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THIS MONTH'S PAINTING
Officer of the Chasseurs à Cheval of the Garde Impériale charging, by Géricault
It was at the Salon of 1812 that Théodore Géricault, a young painter fascinated by the spectacle of his time, exhibited this his first masterful painting. Géricault's inspiration for the work came from the simple street scene of a cart horse bolting, but he transformed it into a monumental equestrian portrait of Alexandre Dieudonné, a friend of his who was an officer in the Garde Impériale. Here, in the thick of the battle, the officer on his violently rearing horse turns in his saddle to give the signal to charge. Presented bearing the title Portrait équestre de M.D..., lieutenant des Gardes de l'Empereur, the painting is however more than just the portrait of an individual. It was done using the large format which at the time was reserved for 'History Painting'. Here, man has been elevated to the status of modern hero.
NEWS FROM THE BIBLIOTHEQUE M. LAPEYRE-FONDATION NAPOLEON LIBRARY
The Bibliothèque Martial Lapeyre - Fondation Napoléon Library has just acquired a precious research tool: namely, the Bulletins de lois for 1793 to 1816. The collection contains seven series, corresponding to the seven successive governmental regimes, and 49 volumes. Each volume has a chronological table and an alphabetical table, making them very easy to use. (Unfortunately missing are the volumes corresponding to Germinal/Fructidor An V - 1798 and the second quarter of An X - 1802).
Check out the catalogue on the site napoleon.org: there's also a page of recent acquisitions. SO you can carefully plan your visit to 148, Boulevard Haussmann, Mondays and Wednesdays 1 to 6pm, Tuesdays 4-9pm, and Thursdays 10am to 3pm. for futher information, contact Chantal Lheureux-Prévot, Librarian.
ONE HUNDRED AND FIFTY YEARS AGO
A law of 9 June, 1853, set up a system of pensions for civil servants: at that period there were about 250,000 civil servants in France. The law establish the principles of distribution (as opposed to that of capitalisation which had been in favour amongst politicians until 1851-1852), and uniformisation of payments. In fact, whilst there was no "contract" between the State and the civil servant, retirement was increasingly seen as a continuation of a salary payment. Certain conditions were imposed: a deduction at source of 5%; a minimum retirement age of 60, after thirty years of work; the last six years of salary formed the basis for the calculation of the pension.
TWO HUNDRED YEARS AGO
At Saint-Cloud, 18 Prairial, An XI (7 June, 1803), Bonaparte sent a round robin to the Cardinals, Archbishops and Bishops of France, on the subject of the war with Britain: "Sir, the reasons for the present war are known to the whole of Europe. The treachery of the King of England who has violated the sanctity of treaties by refusing to hand back Malta to the order of Saint John of Jerusalem, and who has had our merchant vessels attacked without a previous declaration of war, the necessity of a just defense, all these thing oblige use to have recourse to arms. I write you this letter in order to tell you that I would like you to demand prayers for the blessing of heaven upon our enterprises. The marks which I have received of your zeal in your service of the state give me confidence that you will happily follow my will."
Published in the Moniteur, 21 Prairial, An XI
A bill of 21 Prairial, An XI (10 June, 1803), laid down the organisation of the Lycées or High Schools: the Departmental prefect was the president of the Administrative Bureau in charge of the supervision of the accounts and general running of the Lycée. The Proviseur or Headmaster directed all aspects of life in the Lycée, assisted by a Censeur in charge of pupils, and a Procureur-gérant (a type of accountant). Classes began at 8am, but they were preceded by an hour and a half of study; lunch lasted three-quarters of an hour (untiçl 12-30pm) and was followed by three-quarters of an hour of break. Classes ended at 5pm, with study from 5 to 7pm, dinner was served at 7-30pm. There was morning and evening prayer every day, at 6am and at 8-45pm, lasting a quarter of an hour. Pupils were taught French, maths, languages, whilst also receiving tuition in fencing and drawing. Pupil holidays went from 1 Fructidor to 15 Vendémiaire. Corporal punishment was forbidden. Boarding was not an obligation, but dayboys did not wear the uniform of boarders, nor did they have the study periods or the break times.
23 Prairial, An XI (12 June, 1803), Bonaparte asked Russia to act as diplomatic mediator between France and Britain: Malta (which at that time was suffering from an epidemic of plague...) was to be handed over to Russia, whilst other questions would be debated by a congress comprising the great powers of Europe. Britain categorically refused this mediation on the initiative of Bonaparte.
Wishing you an excellent, Napoleonic, week!
Peter Hicks
Historian and Web editor
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THIS WEEK:
Snippets
- Trial of Napoleon in Venice nears verdict
Press review
- Beyond enlightenment...
- Napoleon III and British Politics
- The cost of war
Recently published
- The Trafalgar Roll
- Army officer awards of the Napoleonic period
What's on
- Exhibition: '1803 - A Turning Point in European History: the Collapse of Feudalism and the Dawn of the Bourgeois Era'
- Commemoration: 142nd Commemoration of the death of Cavour
- Festival: Australian Napoleonic Congress, New South Wales
- Re-enactment: Napoleonic Association British Summer Events
- Re-enactment: Napoleonic Association Continental Summer Events
The monthly titles
- Book of the Month: Britain and the defeat of Napoleon, 1807-1815, by Rory Muir
- This month's picture, Officer of the Chasseurs à Cheval of the Garde Impériale charging, by Géricault
- Article of the Month, 'Napoleon's Courtesans, Citoyennes, and Cantinières', by Susan P. Conner
- In the Collectors Corner, Josephine's wedding basket
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