Murder Victim. Victor Noir, a 19th century French journalist, is remembered for the political circumstances around his death and him becoming a martyr. He was shot and killed by Prince Pierre Bonaparte, the cousin of Emperor Napoleon III, which led to more of public opposition to the imperial regime. Born Yvan Salmon into a Jewish household, he converted to Roman Catholic and after becoming a journalist on the radical socialist newspaper, "La Marseillaise," used the penname of "Victor Noir." According to sources, the editor of the newspaper, Paschal Grousset, was challenged to a duel by Prince Pierre-Napoléon Bonaparte, who was claiming his well-known family's name had been dishonored. The prince was the nephew Napoleon I, the self-crowned Emperor of France. One of Grousset's newspapers had published a letter about the outcome of an Italian murder trial that had involved the prince. Grousset, after accepting the challenge of the duel, had sent Noir and another man to arrange with the prince the time and place of the duel. The two men came to the meeting armed with pistols. While he was having a conversation with the prince, the prince declined the duel as the editor was "lacking prestige." According to Noir's colleague, bitter words were exchanged and at that point, the prince slapped Noir's face, pulling a gun, and shooting Noir to death. According to the prince's story, Noir was the aggressor and the prince was defending himself. The prince was arrested, charged with homicide, and on May 21, 1871, the courts ruled a verdict of not guilty. With the public unsatisfied with the politics in France, his murder became a symbol of defiance with many violent demonstrations on the streets of France. Over 100,000 people attended Noir's funeral in the cemetery in his hometown Neuilly. In 1891, twenty years after his murder and following the fall of Emperor Napoleon's government, his remains were moved from his hometown to Père Lachaise Cemetery in Paris as he had become a French hero. The renowned French sculptor, Jules Dalou, accepted the commission to create the grave sculpture in bronze to mark his grave. The statue was a remarkable effigy of him, lying flat on the ground after being shot. The sculpture a created a noticeable bulge under the belt, which triggered the formation of a myth that over time made Noir's tomb a symbol of fertility if touch by a woman. Over the years, this touched area on the statue has caused wear and tear. Surrounding the grave with a wrought iron fence in the early 21st century was an attempt to stop the public from touching the sculpture, but after an organized public protest, the fence was removed. This young French journalist's notoriety came with his death and the placement of his grave marker.