Places, museums, monuments

In April 2014, the Museum of the Franco-Prussian War and the Annexation was inaugurated in Gravelotte, a town famous for the battle of Saint-Privat (known as the battle of Gravelotte in Germany) that took place there on 18 August 1870. The museum is not just a linear account of the conflict that broke out between France […]

A history museum unique in Europe This museum, which opened in 2014, is the only one entirely devoted to the history of the Franco-Prussian War [la Guerre de 1870] and the annexation of Alsace and part of Lorraine by the German Empire (1871-1918). It takes a fresh look at the issues raised by this conflict […]

History and locationBessonies, a small commune in the Lot département, sits at an altitude of 580 metres above sea level. The huge Château de Bessonies was built in the 16th century and features two round towers that flank the front facade. It is particularly famous for being the location of Maréchal Ney's arrest on 3 […]

History Tucked away in the small commune of Cendrieux, in the heart of the Périgord region, and housed in a modest château belonging to the Witt family, is the Musée Napoléon de la Pommerie. The property was acquired towards the end of the 1940s by Princess Marie-Clotilde Napoléon, the great grand-daughter of Jerome, King of […]

Given to the Lot department by the descendants of the comtes Murat (the branch derived from the Marshal's brother), the house in which that proud cavalier, but also 'grand amiral', grand-duc de Berg and King of Naples was born, is open to the public, offering…

The Hôtel de Ville or town hall in Ajaccio was built during the reign of Charles X between 1824 and 1830. In it is the Salon napoléonien which houses various napoleonic paintings and statues, and memorabilia of the imperial family. For reasons of lack of space, a part of the collection is on show at […]

The main museum of Sedan is located in the largest castle of Europe with an area of 35,000 m². The battle of Sedan, which took place on 1 September 1870, saw the defeat of the army of Marshall MacMahon, who was beaten and made prisoner by the troups of the royal prince of Saxony. Napoleon […]

In the heart of Ajaccio lies Palais Fesch, and in that building is the Musée Fesch displaying the painting collection amassed by Cardinal Joseph Fesch (1763-1839), Napoleon's maternal uncle and archbishop of Lyons, the primate of the Gauls, a great art lover and important patron. It was Fesch's desire to found an Intsitute of Arts […]

Of the property where Gustave Flaubert lived and worked from 1843 until his death, all that remains is this garden pavilion facing a factory-littered Rouen landscape. In the last century, however, Flaubert's house was situated in a particularly agreeable location, on a hillside overlooking the Seine, and a watercolour by Rochegrosse (on show in the […]

In February 1979, the A Bandera association was formed, an organisation with the mission to promote interest in the military history of Corsica. And this goal was to be achieved through a periodical, through conferences and through a museum with one permanent and occasional temporary exhibitions. This museum has been in being since 1989 and […]