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In this week's letter...
we've got plenty to keep you entertained. There's our new Painting of the Month, the famous cartoon of Napoleon's coronation which belongs to the Fondation Napoléon, and which is now on display as part of the exhibition 'Napoléon et l'Europe' in Paris. Then we have news of several events coming up: the International Napoleonic Society conference; a sound and light show at les Invalides in Paris; and a talk about the Crimean War in London. We also have details of a talk at the Museo Glauco Lombardi in Parma (Italy), along with details of their new loyalty card scheme. Next weekend marks the 205th anniversary of Napoleon III's birth, and in honour of this we have an article for you by Fondation Napoléon International Affairs Manager, Peter Hicks, about Napoleon III's early life. ‘200 Years Ago' looks at the building up of Austria's forces at the beginning of 1813, whilst ‘150 Years Ago' recounts the convictions meted out to fraudsters in Paris, reported in Le Moniteur. In our ‘Seen on the Web' section this week we have news of the recent discovery of a letter written by Napoleon, and a short video (in Dutch) showing the letter. There's also an interesting blog post from the Smithsonian about the Napoleonic minister Comte Dejean, who was an avid entomologist. Under ‘Just Published', you'll find details of two new books, one about Wellington at Talavera and the other on Napoleonic Heavy Cavalry and Dragoon tactics, and in ‘Press Review' there is an article from History Today about Lord Nelson's most famous utterances, and details from the Napoleonic Historical Society newsletter. Enjoy!
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Painting of the Month
The Consecration or Coronation of Napoleon, by Jacques-Louis David
Signed and dated 1805, this cartoon by David depicts the unseen act of Bonaparte crowning himself as Napoleon I. It is the most complete of three sketches that exist of the same scene. This cartoon is part of the Fondation Napoléon collection and is on display the the Musée de l'Armée in Paris as part of the exhibition Napoléon et l'Europe, from 27 March to 14 July 2013.
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What's On
A Night at les Invalides, Paris, France
Thanks to the success of this event in 2012, which attracted over 30,000 visitors, the Night at les Invalides returns. Every evening between 18 April and 7 May, 2013, the courtyard of les Invalides plays host to a dazzling show of lights and music, celebrating the legacy of Napoleon, Louis XIV and General de Gaulle.
2013 INS Congress, Toronto, Canada - Save the Date
The International Napoleonic Society 2013 congress is scheduled to take place the week beginning 29 July. The congress will include the presentation of papers, two days of excursisons to sites that were important during the War 1812, and a gala dinner on lake Ontario. More details coming soon.
The Gentleness of Soldiers in the Crimean War, National Army Museum, London
This talk puts the extraordinary lives and deaths of Captain Lempriere and Colonel Egerton of the 77th (East Middlesex) Regiment in a wider context of soldierly feeling in the Crimean War. It considers the sense of regimental family and the ways in which soldiers and civilians spoke of loss.
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Museo Glauco Lombardi
The Museo Glauco Lombardi, the former home of Empress Marie-Louise, is offering a new incentive to friends of the museum in the form of memberships cards, entitling free entry and many other perks. You can find more details here. There will also be a guided tour and talk in May 2013 about Marie-Louise's daughter, Albertina Montenuovo Santivale.
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Napoleon III's Birthday
20 April 2013 marks the 205th anniversary of Napoleon III's birth. In commemoration of this, we have an article about Napoleon III's youth in exile, written by Peter Hicks.
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200 Years Ago
On 14 April, 1813, the Austrian Empire mobilised two armies to fight against the French in Germany and Italy. Since the beginning of the year, Francis I had been recruiting troops and had built up a force of 100,000 men on the Galician frontier (today's border between Poland and the Ukraine), though Austria had not yet formally joined the sixth coalition, comprising Russia, Prussia, Great Britain, Sweden, Spain and Portugal. On 15 April, Napoleon departed from St Cloud for Germany, leaving at 4am and arriving in Mainz forty hours later, from where he rode eastwards to join his army at Erfurt in central Germany.
150 Years Ago
In Le Moniteur of 16 April 1863, there are listed the judgements of the eighth chamber of the correctional tribunal of Paris. The list concerns foodstuff tampering and fraudulent trade's descriptions. L. F. C. Thomin, a grocer from 19 rue de Grenelle (in Paris), received a fine of 50 francs for having sold rotten food. The punishments worsened according to the crimes: M. J. Louvier, a milkman, was sentenced to fifteen days in prison and fined 50 francs for having added ‘twenty-six parts water' to the milk he sold. J. L. Lhermite, baker by profession, was to spend a month in prison and pay the same sum of 50 francs for having given ‘fraudulent information about the exact weight' of his bread. The severity of the judgements meted out did not stop with fraudsters; a long list of other convictions followed.
Wishing you an excellent "Napoleonic" week,
Peter Hicks and Andrew Miles
Historians and web editors
THE NAPOLEON.ORG BULLETIN, N0 665, 12-18 APRIL, 2013
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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 the prolongation of its 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
You can still donate online to the project via the Friends of the Fondation de France in the US here
Follow us on Facebook and on T witter !
'NAPOLEON ET L'EUROPE' AT THE MUSEE DE L'ARMEE
- The exhibition is now open! Buy your tickets online.
napoleon.org-related content:
- Painting of the Month, from the exhibition: Napoleon's Consecration or Coronation
- Interview with E. Robbe, Director of the Exhibition
- Object of the Month, from the exhibtion The Uniform and Epaulettes worn by Lord Nelson at the Battle of Trafalgar
- Book of the Month: Napoléon et l'Europe Exhibition Catalogue
MAGAZINE
Just Published
- Napoleonic Heavy Cavalry and Dragoon Tactics, by Phillip Haythornthwaite
- Talavera 1809: Wellington's Lightning Strike into Spain, by René Chartrand
Seen on the web (external links)
- Article: Napoleon's General who was more interested in collecting beetles than fighting at Waterloo
- Article: A new letter from Napoleon discovered in the Netherlands
- A video of the newly discovered letter (in Dutch)
Press Review
- History Today Online: Nelson - A Command of Words
- The Napoleonic History Society newsletter, January 2013.
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 and Conferences
- INS Conference 2013 [Toronto, Canda 29/07/2013]
- The Gentleness of Soldiers in the Crimean War [London, UK 16/05/2013]
- All'ombra della duchessa: la figura di Albertina Montenuovo Sanvitale (In the shadow of the Duchess: Albertina Montenuovo Sanvitale) [Parma, Italy 04/05/2013]
Other Events
Night at les Invalides [18/04/2013 - 07/05/2013]
NAPOLEONICA.LA REVUE
Available free on Cairn.info
NAPOLEONICA ARCHIVES ONLINE
Napoleonica Archives is now online!
THE BIBLIOTHÈQUE MARTIAL-LAPEYRE FONDATION NAPOLEON LIBRARY
The new library opening hours are:
Monday and Tuesday 1pm – 6pm and
Thursday to Friday 10am – 3pm.
Closed Wednesday.
Online catalogue
Digital Library
Contact
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