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THIS WEEK'S LETTER...
... has plenty of events - involving all three French emperors from the period - which will keep you occupied over the next few days. Our latest objet d'art of the month is the magnificent grand-croix insignia, believed to have belonged to Napoleon III, which is currently on display at the "Ecrins impériaux" exhibition in Paris. Next we have news of the Fondation Napoléon's participation in the Consortium on the Revolutionary Era, organised by the one of the foundation's partners, the Institute on Napoleon and the French Revolution at Florida State University. Further down you will also find information on a new exhibition dedicated to the early years of Napoleon II's life, which opens soon in Fontainebleau, plus a reminder of the Friends of the British Cemetery fund-raising reception, set for the evening of 2 March, in London. A review of the British Periodicals digital collection (from the Reviews in History website), plus our usual 200 and 150 years ago sections (Napoleon reacts angrily to the Russian ukase, and the King of Italy gets set to return, respectively) round off the letter.
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OBJET D'ART OF THE MONTH
Grand-croix insignia, believed to have belonged to Napoleon III
In 2008, Ambassador Antonio Benedetto Spada handed over to the Musée de la Légion d'Honneur a Légion d'Honneur grand-croix insignia believed to have belonged to Napoleon III. It cannot be said with any great certainty, however, that this item held by the museum is the one that belonged to the emperor. A lack of archival sources, in particular offering any precise description of the emperor's personal jewels, means that care must be taken when discussing this item's provenance. This insignia features as part of the "Ecrins impériaux, splendeurs diplomatiques du Second Empire" exhibition, currently on at the Musée national de la Légion d'honneur et des ordres de chevalerie, in Paris.
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FONDATION NAPOLEON NEWS
Fondation Napoléon at the CRE
As part of the continuing partnership with the Institute on Napoleon and the French Revolution, directed by Rafe Blaufarb, at Florida State University, the Fondation Napoléon will be participating in the Consortium on the Revolutionary Era, 1750-1850, which is taking place in Tallahassee, Florida, from 3 to 5 March. The Fondation Napoléon panel, set for 4 March between 10.30am and 12.15pm, will feature papers from Thierry Lentz ("Napoleon-Hitler, the improbable comparison"), Alexander Grab, ("Recent works in Italian on the Napoleonic period"), Peter Hicks ("Recent works in French on the Napoleonic period"), and Joseph Horan, one of the Fondation Napoléon's study grant awardees for 2010 ("The beginnings of an environmental history of the Napoleonic Era").
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SEEN IN THE PRESS
Reviews in History: British Periodicals Collections I and II
The Institute of Historical Research website features an in-depth review of the British Periodicals Collections I and II (external link), available through ProQuest. The service reproduces in digital format 472 fully searchable British periodicals which cover the period between 1681 and the late 1930s. Offering fascinating insights into the culture, society and politics of the period - particularly with the 19th century known as the age of the periodical - these newspapers and articles are invaluable in the study of Georgian and Victorian Britain.
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WHAT'S ON
"An imperial childhood - the Roi de Rome, son of Napoleon", Fontainebleau, France
Taking its cues from this prestigious Napoleonic past and the château's unrivalled collection of artefacts, "An imperial childhood: the Roi de Rome, son of Napoleon" brings to the fore the early years of the soon-to-become (albeit fleetingly) Napoleon II, who reigned briefly from 4 - 6 April, 1814 and from 22 June - 7 July, 1815. This exhibition dedicated to Napoléon François Joseph Charles Bonaparte - whose story would be immortalised later on in Edmond Rostand's L'Aiglon - is part of the commemorations being held this year to mark the 200th anniversary of his birth. The works of art displayed here combine with richly evocative mementos - including the exceptional ceremonial furnishings, baby linen, clothes, slippers and first toys belonging to the Roi de Rome - to transport the imperial prince's childhood from the beginning of the 19th century to the present day.
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Friends of the British Cemetery fund-raising reception 2011, London, UK
On Wednesday 2 March, 2011, from 7pm to 9.30pm, there will be a Friends of the British Cemetery fund-raising reception held at the Tower of London in aid of the restoration of the chapel at the British Peninsular War Cemetery, Elvas, Portugal. Wine and refreshments will be served and a raffle will be drawn. At 9.30pm, guests will be invited to attend the centuries old "Ceremony of the Keys".
200 YEARS AGO
Trade, treaties and trouble
On 28 February, 1811, incensed by the Russian tsar's ukase of 31 December 1810, Napoleon wrote to Alexander I. The ukase (proclamation) decreed that goods (other than those of British provenance) could once again enter Russia via its ports, whilst imports entering the empire over land (the majority of which was of French origin) would be hit with heavy duties. Despite the stipulation, Russia was effectively open to British trade again. Moreover, any goods found to have entered the country illegally would be destroyed. Such a change in commercial policy - announced without consulting the French emperor - was to prove the catalyst for Napoleon's mixture of melodramatic melancholy and unconcealed menace reminding the Russian tsar of Tilsit and the generosity displayed by France regarding his territorial acquisitions of Wallachia and Moldova:
"I cannot conceal from myself the fact that Your Majesty no longer has any regard for me. [...] [Your] latest ukase is, in content and most especially form, specifically directed against France. [...] Britain and Europe already believe our alliance is no more. [...] If Your Majesty will permit me to speak with candour: You have forgotten what profit You have gained from the alliance [...] I am struck by the evidence of these facts and by the thought that Your Majesty is entirely disposed, a soon as circumstance permits it, to come to an agreement with Britain; this would be nothing less than inciting war between the two empires [i.e. France and Russia]. Were Your Majesty to both abandon the alliance and destroy the Tilsit conventions, it is clear that war would follow, sooner or later. This atmosphere of distrust and uncertainty is inconvenient for both Your Majesty's empire and mine. [...] If Your Majesty has no intention of returning to Britain's side, You will appreciate the necessity of clearing up all this confusion, for my benefit and Yours."
Little would be cleared up in the ensuing months as both emperors continued to eye each other warily. The relationship was beginning to buckle.
150 YEARS AGO
The return of the King of Italy
The 2 March, 1861 issue of the Moniteur Universel brought to the French public the news that a draft bill of law voting King Victor Emmanuel II of Piedmont-Sardinia the title of king of Italy had successfully passed through the Senate assembled in Turin.
"Paris, 1 March
The senate in Turin has voted, with a majority of 129 to 2, the law draft which confers on King Victor-Emmanuel II the title of king of Italy; a semi-official paper from Turin explains that the draft has kept the words Victor-Emmanuel II, in order to avoid the difficulties that would arise from the change in name, making the renewal of the diplomatic corps' credentials obligatory.
The Piedmontese lower house is still entirely occupied with the verification of powers."
The title, which had not been used since Napoleon I's abdication in 1814, followed the collapse of the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies in February 1861 (see bulletin n° 569). Victor-Emmanuel II would be officially proclaimed King of Italy on 13 March, 1861.
Wishing you an excellent "Napoleonic" week,
Peter Hicks & Hamish Davey Wright
Historians and web-editors
THE NAPOLEON.ORG BULLETIN, N° 573, 25 February – 3 March, 2011
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© This Napoleon.org weekly bulletin is published by the Fondation Napoléon. Reproduction or all or part of this bulletin is forbidden, without prior agreement of the Fondation Napoléon.
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OPERATION ST HELENA
The Fondation Napoléon and the Souvenir Napoléonien, in association with the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs, have announced an international fund-raising campaign to restore and save Napoleon I's residence on the island of St Helena. All the details regarding the campaign as well as donation forms and advice for donating from outside France, can be found on napoleon.org.
FONDATION NAPOLEON ON THE WEB
Each week we offer you a "mystery" link to somewhere on napoleon.org. Click on the link to discover a part of the website you might not have visited before...
STATISTIC OF THE WEEK
The grand-croix insignia, thought to have belonged to Napoleon III, features 284 brilliants, which were set in March 1855.
MAGAZINE
Press review
- Reviews in History: British Periodicals Collections I and II
EVENTS
On now and coming up
A selection of events taking place now or in the coming weeks, taken from our What's on listings.
Exhibitions
- "Ecrins impériaux", Paris, France [19/01/2011 - 29/05/2011]
Full details
- "An imperial childhood: the Roi de Rome, son of Napoleon", Fontainebleau, France [28/02/2011 - 23/05/2011]
Full details
Fund-raising event
- Friends of the British Cemetery fund-raising reception 2011, London, UK [02/03/2011]
Full details
Study days
- Ateliers de la Fondation Napoléon: "Napoleon and the family", La Courneuve, France [31/03/2011]
Full details
And ending soon...
- "High Society: Mind-Altering Drugs in History and Culture", London, UK [11/11/2010 - 27/02/2011]
Full details
- "L'heure, le feu, la lumière (1800-1870)", Paris, France [21/09/2010 - 27/02/2011]
Full details
NAPOLEON.ORG
The best of the month:
- Book of the month
- Painting of the month
- Objet d'Art of the month
- Article of the month
NAPOLEONICA.LA REVUE
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