Close-ups : 49
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Close-upA close-up on: Abd el-KaderAbd el-Kader is considered to be one of the founders of the modern Algerian state as well as an important figure in east-west rapprochement. At the mid-point of the 19th century, he and Napoleon III were the most important figures in their respective countries, Algeria…
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Close-upA close-up on: the Prussian CampaignThe twin battles of Jena and Auerstedt, 14 October, 1806.
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Close-upA close-up on: Napoleon’s entry into Berlin, 27 October, 1806On 27 October, 1806, after the victories at Iéna and Auerstädt two weeks earlier, Napoleon rode in triumph into Berlin passing under the Brandenburg Gate.
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Close-upA close-up on: the "Continental system or Blockade"On 21 November, 1806, Napoleon decreed, from his Palace in Berlin, a blockade of the British Isles and forbade all British goods and commerce entering the continent. This came to be known as the ‘continental’ blockade since de facto most of the European continent was…
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Close-upA close-up on: the Flaubert Madame Bovary trial7 February, 1857, saw the end of the trial involving the writer Gustave Flaubert, the owner, and the printer of La Revue de Paris. The three men had been accused of insulting public morals and offending decent manners by the serialised publication of the novel…
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Close-upA close-up on: the Polish campaign: Eylau (8 February, 1807)On 8 February, 1807, there took place the appalling (and inconclusive) bloodbath at Eylau, pitching French against Prussian and Russian forces, 66,500 men versus 82,500 respectively. Despite the fact that both sides lost thousands of men, Eylau is usually recorded as a French victory since…
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Close-upA close-up on: Louis Lafitte (1770-1828), painter and draughtsmanLouis Lafitte was a painter and draughtsman specialising in allegories and great festivities, and he is perhaps best known for his famous work General Bonaparte proclaiming the Cisalpine Republic. It was he who produced the trompe-l’oeil bas-reliefs on the ‘temporary’ Arc de triomphe of erected…
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Close-upA close-up on: the Great Sanhedrin: Jews during the EmpireNapoleon took but little interest in the Jews when he came to power. It was only in 1806 that, when faced with mounting hostility to the Jews in France, Napoleon turned to the problem of Jewish integration in the Empire.
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Close-upA close-up on: Robert Lefèvre (1755-1830), portrait painterRobert Lefèvre, portrait painter to the rich and famous, owed his remarkable success to his remarkable talent. And his genius brought him connections in high places (Denon was his champion) not to mention the emperor’s favour. Continuing his remarkable career right until the July Revolution…
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Close-upA close-up on: the Polish campaign, Friedland (14 June, 1807)14 June, 1807, was the day on which Napoleon got his decisive battle in which he drove Alexander to defeat and to the negotiating table.