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T-MINUS 126 DAYS...
... and counting, and many of us here in Paris are busy working towards one of the Fondation Napoléon's flagship events of 2012: the "Napoleon: Revolution to Empire" exhibition set to open in Melbourne, Australia, in June. As we build towards this much-anticipated event, the letter this week features a number of links to get you in the mood for Terra Australis, including information on Dame Mabel Brookes' house and museum, and further details on the exhibition itself. Elsewhere, we take a look at a set of honorary drumsticks, presented to a young drummer who fought on the battlefield in Italy with General Bonaparte, in our latest objet d'art of the month. More new reading material comes in a short article on First Empire underwear - a perfect introduction to corsets, undershirts and drawers... We continue our progress down the letter with a look at the latest edition of The Journal of the International Napoleonic Society, which includes papers from Rafe Blaufarb, Alexander Mikaberidze and Pierre Branda, plus news on Saul David's talk on the Duke of Wellington, taking place in London on 8 February. We round off the letter with our customary look back in history, which take a look at the fascinating life of John Perkins (200 years ago), and a short anecdote about the clergy's fondness for ice-skating (150 years ago).
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OBJET D'ART OF THE MONTH
Honorary drumsticks presented to the drummer of Arcole
The revolutionary suppression of all Ancien Régime orders and decorations was to prove a serious headache for government authorities in need of an acceptable form in which revolutionary distinctions could be awarded. Honorary weapons had previously been used on occasion to symbolise national recognition, but it was General Bonaparte - during his campaigns in Italy and Egypt - who standardised this practice. These drumsticks, made from ebony and silver, were presented to André Estienne, a young soldier known as "the drummer of Arcole", following his act of bravery during the first Italian campaign.
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FONDATION NAPOLEON NEWS
The Fondation Napoléon: exploring Terra Australis with the French emperor
There are now just 126 days until the exhibition "Napoleon: Revolution to Empire" opens in Melbourne, Australia. A Fondation Napoléon-National Gallery of Victoria collaboration, the exhibition will feature a large number of Napoleonic items, including over one-hundred and thirty works of art from the Fondation Napoléon's own collection. The exhibition will bring to life the period of change that ushered in the French Revolution and Napoleon Bonaparte's subsequent rise to power. Visitors will learn about the dazzling new century that saw the creation of a French empire, as well as the surprisingly close relationship that France had with that far-off land of Australia during the early 1800s. As France and Britain struggled for dominance in Europe, Bonaparte, then First Consul, gave the go-ahead for a voyage to explore the waters around Terra Australis. Now, just over two hundred years later, the Fondation Napoléon is doing the same, and heading to the land on the other side of the world. Get in the mood and visit our file on Dame Mabel Brookes' house and now museum, currently under the aegis of the Fondation's partner, the National Gallery of Victoria. You can also read up on some of the items that will be on display at the exhibition via our Masterpieces from the Fondation Napoléon Collection page.
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NAPOLEON.ORG
Fashion file: Women's underwear during the First Empire
Underwear was originally worn to protect the wearer's skin from often richly decorated clothes that could irritate or scratch the skin. They were also intended to add an extra layer to keep out the cold and make warm conditions more bearable, whilst also resculpting the body to suit the popular fashions of the day. To meet these requirements, new specialised items of clothing, such as the corset, were invented. The Revolution and Directory periods saw the rejection of old Ancien Régime styles and the liberation of the female form (which resulted in the abandonment of constrictive pieces of under-clothing such as the shirt, the corset, and the panier - stiffened hoop dresses supported by whalebone inserts - which made up the gown "à la française") but by the Consulate period so-called "decency" was beginning to make a return.
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PRESS REVIEW
Napoleonic Scholarship: The Journal of the International Napoleonic Society November 2011
The November 2011 edition of the INS's journal, edited by Alexander Mikaberidze, features a wide variety of fascinating articles, including Annie Jourdan on Napoleon Bonaparte's plans to transform Paris into the greatest city in the world, Rafe Blaufarb's article on Louis-Jacques Galabert, a curious counter-revolutionary whose wanderings took him across the world and finally to the United States, and William L. Chew III on American presence in France during the Revolution and under Napoleon. There are also articles from Emilio Ocampo, Jeremy Black, and the Fondation Napoléon's Pierre Branda, amongst others.
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WHAT'S ON
"Wellington: The Iron Duke", by Saul David
National Army Museum celebrity talks: Saul David on the Duke of Wellington
The latest celebrity talk at the National Army Museum in London (UK) sees the historian and television presenter Saul David explore the reputation and career of one of Britain's greatest military leaders, the Duke of Wellington. The talk takes place on 8 February at 7pm. Tickets are available via the National Army Museum website. Saul David is also in the news at the moment for his participation in the BBC History magazine's latest edition (January 2012), which discusses the "most overrated people in history" (David's choice in this admittedly controversial article is Napoleon Bonaparte).
200 YEARS AGO
John Perkins, the first black commissioned officer in the Royal Navy, dies
John Perkins, believed to be the first black commissioned officer in the Royal Navy, died on 27 January 1812 (or possibly 24 January 1812) after nearly forty years in naval service. Very little is known about his early years, but he was described as a "mulatto", meaning that his mother would have been a slave. Born in Jamaica during British rule, he first appears in naval records late in 1775, as a pilot on board the HMS Antelope. His service in command of the schooner Punch in 1778 would lead to his nickname, Jack Punch. He participated in the American War of Independence and finished the war with the rank of lieutenant. Volume twenty-seven of The Naval Chronicle (published in 1812) records how "during his command of [Punch], and several others, he annoyed the enemy more than any other officer, by his repeated feats of gallantry, and the immense number of prizes he took. His knowledge of the different ports, &c. in the West Indies was, perhaps, seldom equalled, and never surpassed". This knowledge proved vital to his next career step: during the 1790s, he took up intelligence work for the British Navy and in February 1792 was arrested in St Domingue (modern-day Haiti), accused by the ruling French authorities of supplying arms to the slave rebellion that had broken out. He was rescued on the day of his execution by a British warship under the command of William Nowell. In July 1803, during the war with France, he commanded the thirty-two gun HMS Tartar, and won praise for his handling of the frigate during an engagement with the much larger French warship Duquesne - a seventy-two gun vessel - off the coast of St Domingue. By the end of 1804, Perkins - by now suffering from an asthmatic complaint - resigned his command of the Tartar (which had been recalled to Britain) rather than leave the warm climate of the West Indies. Rejecting commissions in the Mediterranean and the Channel for similar reasons, he returned to Jamaica, where lived out his days.
150 YEARS AGO
Clergymen and skating
As the colder weather set in across western Europe, those thumbing through their copy of the Moniteur Universel on 27 January 1862 will have found a short article on the British love for skating.
"Whilst in France skating is little practised, it is on the contrary extremely popular in England. Not only do men and women take to their skates, but clergymen do too, knowing they need not fear losing the dignity of their title. Thus pastors, whose [skating] outfits differ only slightly from those worn by ordinary individuals in their increased sobriety, can venture out onto the ice, skates strapped to their feet, and take advantage of the hygienic benefits offered by this innocent recreation. In the Canterbury area, according to The Sun, there is a pond to which all the clergymen from the town head to skate. In recent days, there has been an accident on this lake: the ice gave way under the feet of the dean of the cathedral. Fortunately, the reverend gentleman was not completely submerged and was promptly extricated from his troubling situation and taken home. We hope that this accident will not be followed by any further incidents, as might initially be feared."
Although the article notes skating's relative lack of popularity in France, it nevertheless had its followers. Those in the Paris region tended to congregate in the frozen fields around La Glacière, a hamlet to the south (today near Gentilly). And in 1813, a most curious publication called Le vrai patineur (The true skater) was released, filled with amusing ice-skating anecdotes and illustrated "action shots".
Wishing you an excellent "Napoleonic" week,
Peter Hicks & Hamish Davey Wright
Historians and web-editors
THE NAPOLEON.ORG BULLETIN, N° 612, 27 JANUARY - 2 FEBRUARY 2012
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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...
MAGAZINE
Press review
- BBC History magazine names Napoleon Bonaparte amongst "most overrated people in history"
- The Daily Telegraph reports on plans for "Napoleonland" theme park
- Book review: Morbid Curiosities: Medical Museums in Nineteenth-Century Britain
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.
Talks
- "Wellington: The Iron Duke", by Saul David, London, UK [08/02/2012]
Full details
Exhibitions finishing soon...
- "El viaje andaluz del Rey José I: Paz en la Guerra", Cadiz, Spain [23/11/2011 - 29/01/2012]
Full details
NAPOLEON.ORG
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- Painting of the month
- Objet d'Art of the month
- Article of the month
NAPOLEONICA.LA REVUE
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