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In this week's letter...
we've a whole host of things for you, starting with our new Object of the Month, a model of the column at the Place Vendôme in Paris, presented as part of our partnership with the Musée de l'Armée (Paris) for the exhibition Napoléon et l'Europe. Next up we're highlighting the Napoleonic Digital Library, which now offers readers a selection of over 7,500 Napoleonic titles in both French and English - we've picked out a few choice titles for you to look at. We then have details of upcoming events: there's a conference about war and demobilisation in London, another in Germany about the defences in Saxony in 1813 and a period festival in Vichy (France) celebrating Napoleon III. There will also a be a mass on 5 May at Les Invalides (Paris) commemorating the death of Napoleon I and the soldiers of the Grande Armée. This week's 200 Years Ago recounts the death of Marshal Bessières, and 150 Years Ago, this week, sees the hundred-and-fiftieth anniversary of the Battle of Camarón.
On the right hand side, you'll find details of new publications: a book of memoirs of Waterloo and another about the medical teams at that battle. In our Press Review, we have two new journal articles, and as ever, you'll also find interesting things seen on the web, including a hagiographic statue of Napoleon and recent news of the restoration of a monument to Wellington. Enjoy!
Library Hours and Closure
The Martial Lapeyre Library will be closed for the May Bank Holidays on 1, 8, 9 and 10 May. The library is also closed on Mondays.
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Object of the Month
Model of the Column of the Grande Armée, by Nicolas Guy Antoine Brenet
After the victory at Austerlitz, the director of the musée Napoleon, Vivant Denon, suggested to the Emperor that the project for a national column, begun in 1803 for the place Vendôme, be turned into a column honouring the soldiers of the Grande Armée. The column was successively named the Austerlitz column, then the Victory column, before being named the column of the Grande Armée. The model is on display as part of the exhibition Napoléon et l'Europe at the Musée de l'Armée, Paris.
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What's On
Vichy celebrates Napoléon III, Vichy, France
Napoleon III's visits to Vichy significantly transformed the town. The project, ‘Vichy celebrates Napoleon III', invites visitors to partake in the legacy and atmosphere of the Second Empire, with 300 people in period costume. There will be a banquet with music at the prestigious Palais des Congrès, a ball, an opera and a parade with actors in costume, carriages, dancers and musicians.
Workshop: War, Demobilization and Memory c. 1775-1830, King's College, London, England
This workshop aims to revisit the validity of the concept of an ‘Atlantic Revolution' by applying the findings of researchers working in the field, based on the theory of transatlantic revolutionary experience.
Tagung der Historiker und Festungsforscher, Schloss Hartenfels, Torgau, Germany
A conference centred on the period before the Battle of Leipzig, focussing on the fortress at Torgau in Saxony. Talks range from the architecture of the town to the wider social implications of French hegemony in Europe. Throughout the conference, there will be an exhibition entitled “Napoleon Gesichter” (Faces of Napoleon).
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Mass in Memory of Napoleon I
There will be a mass held at the church of St Louis des Invalides in Paris (France) to commemorate the death of Napoleon I and the soldiers of the Grande Armée. A wreath will be laid at his tomb, after which mass will be sung. The ceremony starts at 6pm.
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200 Years Ago
On 1 May, 1813, Marshal Bessières (1768-1813) died in Weissenfels. He was killed by a cannonball which ricocheted and hit him in the chest; a death he had foreseen, according to his aide de camp. Jean-Baptiste Bessières, duc d'Istrie, was born in the south of France and worked his way up the ranks of the Garde Nationale. He served in the First Italian Campaign and was commended for his bravery at the battle of Rivoli. In 1805, when the Grande Armée was created, Bessières was made head of the garde imperiale and served at the Battle of Austerlitz and in Spain from 1808-1812. At the beginning of the German Campaign, he had been appointed head of the cavalry, and it was during one of their first engagements that he was fatally wounded.
His was not the only significant death; on 28 April, 1813, the Russian generalissimo Mikhail Kutuzov died. Increasing illness had forced him to stop as the army marched to Dresden.
150 Years Ago
The 30 April, 1863, saw the infamous Battle of Camarón. This bloody episode during the French expedition to Mexico - a ten-hour stand off resulting in the death of sixty-two legionnaires under Captain Danjou in the face of 2,000 Mexicans commanded by Colonel Milan - was to acquire a special place in the history of the French Foreign Legion. Such was their heroism that Napoleon III had the name of this battle added to the flag of the Foreign Regiment in memory of these brave soldiers.
Further information
- An account of the Battle of Camarón (in French)
- More details about the Mexican campaign.
Wishing you an excellent "Napoleonic" week,
Peter Hicks and Andrew Miles
Historians and web editors
THE NAPOLEON.ORG BULLETIN, N0. 668, 26 APRIL - 2 MAY, 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
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'NAPOLEON ET L'EUROPE' AT THE MUSEE DE L'ARMEE
- Visiting the exhibition? 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: Model of the column of the Grande Armée
- Book of the Month, from the exhibition: Napoléon et l'Europe Exhibition Catalogue
MAGAZINE
Just Published
-The Bloody Fields of Waterloo: Medical Support at Wellington's Greatest Battle, by Michael Crumplin
- The Exploits of Ensign Bakewell MS, by Ian Robertson
Seen on the web (external links)
- Restoration of a monument to Wellington
- An interesting hagiographic statue of Napoleon I which became an altarpiece.
Press Review
- Cuando el Poder cabalgaba (When Power rode a Horse), by Victor Minguez Cornelles
- “It Still Makes me Shudder”: Memories of Massacres and Atrocities during the Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars', by Philip Dwyer
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.
Festivals
- Vichy Celebrates Napoleon III [26/04/2013 - 28/04/2013]
Conferences
- Workshop: War, Demobilization and Memory c. 1775-1830 [UK 30/05/2013]
- Schlachten und Befestigungen. Die Situation vor der Voelkerschlacht bei Leipzig [Germany 24/05/2013 - 25/05/2013]
NAPOLEONICA.LA REVUE
Available free on Cairn.info
NAPOLEONICA ARCHIVES ONLINE
Napoleonica Archives is now online!
THE BIBLIOTHÈQUE MARTIAL-LAPEYRE FONDATIO N 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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