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THIS MONTH'S BOOK
BROWN Howard G., Ending the French Revolution. Violence, Justice and Repression from the Terror to Napoleon
For two centuries, the early years of the French Revolution have inspired countless democratic movements around the world. Yet little attention has been paid to the problems of violence, justice, and repression between the Reign of Terror and the dictatorship of Napoleon Bonaparte. In Ending the French Revolution, Howard Brown analyzes these years to reveal the true difficulty of founding a liberal democracy in the midst of continual warfare, repeated coups d'état, and endemic civil strife.
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BICENTENARY OF THE CODE DE COMMERCE
The Code de commerce was promulgated on 14 September, 1807, and it is part of the policy to reorganise France begun after the Brumaire coup d'état (1799). Many events are being planned in France for this bicentenary year. To follow them, visit the site (in French) http://www.bicentenaireducodedecommerce.org/
Napoleon on the imperial throne (detail), Ingres © Musée de l'Armée
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200 YEARS AGO
5 March, 1807, Napoleon decided that working should not be prohibited either on Sundays or any other religious holidays. «It is contrary to divine law to prohibit man, who has his needs on a Sunday, from earning his daily bread. The government could not impose such a law without also giving free bread to those who have none. […] We must make sure that one day we do not find ourselves forced to employ gendarmes to prevent men, who need their jobs to ensure their livelihood, from working on Sundays. […] Observance of Friday fish and rest on the Sabbath are only secondary and insignificant laws. The essential point of the Church's commandments is that they should not harm social order. […] Warders and prison ought never to be the means of bringing people to the practice of religion.» (Correspondance n°11936)
6 March, 1807, considering the supply difficulties he had experienced during the Prussian campaign, Napoleon came up with an idea for improving the baggage train. «I would like to form baggage train battalions. Each battalion should have a governing body and be commanded by a man of the rank of infantry captain. Each company could be made up of thirty-two caissons, each pulled by four horses and driven by two men. […] Hence in each company there should be 32 caissons, 128 carthorses and 64 men. You should add a field forge, a carriage for replacement harnesses and other provisions for the repair of the caissons. Each company should be divided up into four squads of eight caissons, the whole commanded by a Maréchal des logis chef. Six companies could form a battalion, and so a battalion would comprise 192 carriages, 768 horses and 384 men.» (Correspondance n°11945)
Wishing you an excellent, Napoleonic, week.
Peter Hicks
Historian and Web editor
THE NAPOLEON.ORG BULLETIN, No 405, 2 - 8 March, 2007
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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
WHAT'S ON
Conferences:
- Napoleon at the Zenith: a bi-centennial seminar, Liverpool, UK
Exhibitions:
- Napoleon, Trikolore und Kaiseradler über Rhein und Weser, Wesel and Minden, Germany
- NAPOLÉON An Intimate Portrait, Oklahoma, USA
- Das Königreich Württemberg 1806–1918. Monarchie und Moderne (The kingdom of Württemberg 1806–1918. Monarchy and modernity), Stuttgart, Germany
- Champignon Bonaparte - illustrations by Gilles Bachelet, Paris, France
- "The trace of the eagle", the Invalides dome, Paris, France
Got a problem with the letter? Try the home page: http://www.napoleon.org
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