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BRAZIL, PARIS, MEXICO - NAPOLEON ON THE MOVE
Following on from its hugely successful exhibitions in São Paulo (2003) and Paris (2004-2005), the Fondation Napoléon is to exhibit a large part of its collection in Monterrey, Mexico. The Museo del Vidrio (Museum of Glass) is to host the 'Treasures of the Fondation Napoléon' exhibition, from 24 February to 14 June, 2006. In response to our Mexican partner's request, the evocation of Napoleon and Josephine in the show is to be enhanced with loans from the Paris Musée de l'Armée and the Musée de Malmaison, including such prestigious objects as: Napoleon's Marengo uniform, one of his hats, the coronation stool, Napoleon at Fontainebleau by Delaroche, wine glasses (as befits a glass museum) bearing Napoleon and Josephine's monogram, one the empress's court trains, and a portrait of the empress in her coronation robes. The curators of the exhibition will be Bernard Chevallier (Director of the Musée Malmaison) and Karine Huguenaud, collections manager at the Fondation Napoléon.
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THIS MONTH'S PAINTING
The Empress Josephine in the park at Malmaison, by Prud'hon
Firmly fixed in the grand tradition of female portraits of the period, this work has the romantic melancholy of Gros's Christine Boyer, the antique elegance of David's Madame Récamier and the seductive suavity of Gérard's Récamier - not forgetting the elegance of the latter's painting of a languid Josephine reclining on a sofa. Read on...
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THE PRINCE VICTOR
Winner of a 1998 Fondation Napoléon PhD research grant, Laetitia de Witt passed her PhD viva on the subject of Prince Victor (1862-1926), at the University of Paris IV-Sorbonne, on 4 October, 2005. The examiners included Prof. Jean Tulard, of the Institut, Jacques-Olivier Boudon, Jean Garrigues, Philippe Levillain and William Smith. She received in addition the accolade 'très honorable avec les félicitations du jury à l'unanimité', equivalent of 'summa cum laude'. Laetitia de Witt chose her thesis out of family interest and since she had access to certain still unpublished family archives. Grandson of King Jérôme, youngest brother of Napoleon I, and Catherine de Würtemberg, the Prince Victor was the son of Prince Napoléon-Joseph 'Plon-Plon' (who took the name of Jérôme on the death of his elder brother in 1847) and the princess Marie-Clotilde of Savoy, daughter of Vittore Emmanuele of Savoy (king of Italy in 1861) and Adelaide de Habsbourg.
Congratulations.
The Prince Victor © Fondation Napoléon
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HOMAGE TO THE EMPERORS - CONTINUATION
At last photos of the monument mentioned in last week's letter, no. 341. Erected as part of the Austerlitz bicentennial commemorations by the Czech Napoleonic Society in Zbysov, this monument is dedicated to the three emperors who fought on that 2 December, 1805, at Austerlitz. It comprises three columns with a sphere on top, and a commemorative plaque to one side, all in granite. One of the columns is in light-grey French granite representing Napoleon I, another is in brown Russian granite representing Alexander I, and the third is in dark-grey granite from Germany representing Francis I (II). The name of each emperor is inscribed on the relevant column. Thanks to Sub-Lieutenant Cyril Lepetit (Saint-Cyr) for the photos.
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200 YEARS AGO
The army is in excellent health and eager to get down to fighting": on 15 Vendémiaire, An XIV (7 October, 1805) the First Bulletin of the Grande Armée was written. It was published on 21 Vendémiaire (13 October) in the official newspaper, Le Moniteur: read the text here online.
8 October, Murat won the battle of Wertingen, taking more than 2,000 Austrian prisoners.
On the 9th, Ney victorious at Günzburg, taking more than 1,000 prisoners; Soult entered Augsburg.
On the 10th, Napoleon arrived in Augsburg where he remained until the 12th.
On the 13th, Bernadotte entered Munich, Soult arrived in Memmingen.
On the 13th in the evening, general Mack (1752-1828) and his troups found their lines of communication cut and the city of Ulm surrounded.
The maps put on the line by the Military Academy at Westpoint (USA) give a clear picture of Napoleon's encirclement of Mack at Ulm:
- from 7 to 9 October 1805
- from 9 to 11 October 1805
- from 11 to 14 October 1805
Wishing you an excellent, Napoleonic, week.
Peter Hicks
Historian and Web editor
Interested in the work of the Fondation Napoléon? Why not participate, either generally or in a specific project, by making a donation.
© 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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WHAT'S ON
- Radio: Boney's Revenge, Radio 4 (UK); listen online from wherever you are
- Exhibition: Napoleon: An intimate portrait, Washington, USA
- Nelson and Nevis, Nelson Week, Nevis, West Indies
- Exhibition: Napoleone e il Piemonte. Capolavori ritrovati, Alba, Italy
- Exhibition: Napoleon: Art and Empire in the age of Trafalgar, Barnard Castle, UK
- Exhibition: The Empress Josephine: Art and Royal Identity, Amherst, MA, USA
- Tour: Napoleonic Society of America, Imperial tour of Italy
- Exhibition: Nelson and Napoleon, National Maritime Museum, London, UK
- Conference: The Battle of Trafalgar Conference, at Action Stations, Portsmouth Historic Dockyard, UK
THE MONTHLY TITLES
- This month's book: KNIGHT, Roger The Pursuit of Victory: The Life and Achievement of Horatio Nelson
- This month's painting: The Empress Josephine in the park at Malmaison, by Prud'hon, by Prud'hon
- This month's article: Napoleon and the Corsican Dilemma - part 1, by Barbara Krajeswka
- In the Collectors Corner, Napoleon's camp bed
Got a problem with a link in the letter? Try the homepage http://www.napoleon.org
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