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THIS MONTH'S ARTICLE
Joseph Bonaparte's American Retreat, by Patricia Tyson Stroud
An "ornament to society" was the way Napoleon I described his older brother Joseph Bonaparte. Although this description had an edge to it, since Joseph Bonaparte had not been the ambitious ruler Napoleon had hoped for, it accurately forecast the nature of the older Bonaparte's life in the United States. After Napoleon's defeat at Waterloo in 1815 and subsequent surrender to the English aboard the HMS Bellerophon, Joseph Bonaparte set sail for exile in the new world, and for a life in which he and his art collection truly became ornaments to society.
(c) Fondation Napoléon
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200 YEARS AGO
Fashion: Journal des Dames, 15 April, 1806: «What is today's hottest fashion? To be seen at the Bois de Boulogne, at about one in the afternoon is of primordial importance; but don't forget your carriage, and it's got to be either half curved or half square; and as for your hat, it's got to be half taffeta and half satin - the blend of the two materials provides the decoration. And like a man's hat, it shouldn't have anything under the chin so you can take it off and put it back on when you want. The hat is the key…»
150 YEARS AGO
On 16 April, 1856, a declaration of principles of international sea law was adopted. Indeed, after signing the Treaty of Paris on 30 March, the plenipotentiaries of the Paris Congress stayed until 16 April to hammer out an agreement on international maritime matters, so as to «consolidate and complete the establishment of the peace» (Moniteur universel, 16 April, 1856)
On 16 April, according to the principles of maritime law, it was agreed that: « 1. Privateering is and remains abolished; 2. A neutral flag covers all enemy cargoes except war contraband; 3. All neutral merchandise under enemy flag, but not including enemy contraband, is exempt from seizure; 4. A blockade only become obligatory when it can be maintained effectively, in other words, when it is maintained by a force large enough to prevent effectively any access to the enemy coast.»
This declaration thus ended all privateering activity and guaranteed the protection of merchant vessels under neutral flags from harrassment by powers at war. It also laid down the principles of naval warfare. The agreement protocol was published the following week in the Moniteur universel, dated 1 May, 1856.
Wishing you an excellent, Napoleonic, Easter.
Peter Hicks
Historian and Web editor
THE NAPOLEON.ORG BULLETIN, No 367, 14 - 20 April, 2006
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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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THIS WEEK in the MAGAZINE
SNIPPETS
- The Monster of Longwood: the other Betsy film
PRESS REVIEW
- H-France Napoleon Forum
JUST PUBLISHED
- The man who had been King: the American exile of Napoleon's brother Joseph, Patricia Tyson Stroud
WHAT'S ON
Conferences:
- The Paris Congress (1856), a founding moment, Paris, France
- In the embrace of France: The Law of Nations and Constitutional Law in the French Satellite States of the Revolutionary and Napoleonic Age (1795-1813), Tillburg, The Netherlands
Commemorations:
- Jena 1806-2006 - Rendezvous in Thuringia The "Journées de Thuringe 2006" and the bicentenary of the Battle of Jena/Auerstädt
Exhibitions:
- Il tempo dell'Imperatore: gli orologi restaurati delle residenze di Napoleoni all'Elba, Elba, Italy
- Treasures of the Fondation, Mexico 2006, Monterrey, Mexico
- Napoléon an intimate portrait, Tallahassee, Florida, USA
- "Battle in a sittingroom" The Austerlitz wallpaper, Museo Napoleonico, Rome, Italy
- "Beauty celebrating power": Vincenzo Monti in the Napoleonic period, Milan, Italy
- Louis Napoleon: at the court of the first King of Holland, 1806-1810, Apeldoorn, Netherlands
- Entertainments:
Thursdays at the Museum of Florida History, Tallahassee, Florida, USA
Got a problem with the letter? Try the home page: http://www.napoleon.org
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