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THIS WEEK'S LETTER...
Three weeks to go before Christmas, and we at the Fondation are dusting off our decorations. To help you in your preparation for the coming celebrations, we have put together a list of recent publications that any Napoleonic enthusiast would be delighted to find under their tree come the big day. On top of that, you will also find a number of First and Second Empire Christmas recipes that will give your Christmas dinner a real period flavour. And to give you a break from all things festive, we also have the latest painting of the month, this time of Empress Eugenie, plus news of the latest edition of Napoleonica. La Revue. Another PhD viva is taking place soon in Paris, and we also have news of the auction of a flag designed by Napoleon Bonaparte which is to be held in New York. Finally, we sign things off in the usual way, with our 200 years ago, which continues Napoleon's advance through Spain, and 150 years ago, which sees the Comte de Viel Castel being rather critical of the Prince Napoleon. Have a look in the Magazine section of the bulletin for all the exhibition and conference news as well as details of the latest issue of the bicentennial publication, Los Sitios de Zaragoza.
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PAINTING OF THE MONTH
The Empress Eugénie in 18th-century costume
"Eugénie almost worshipped Marie-Antoinette. The tragic end of that 'martyr queen' obsessed the Empress throughout her reign, and especially after the fall of the Second Empire, when Eugénie began strongly to identify herself with her royal predecessor. Indeed the Austrian Queen and the Spanish Empress shared the same destiny, in that they were both non-french sovereigns who soon became targeted by the French people."
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CHRISTMAS SELECTION 2008
We're into December now, and that means that Christmas is quickly approaching. With the onset of the festive season, we have on offer for you some of this year's recent publications, in both literary and multimedia forms: those in search of Napoleonic gift ideas need look no further.
Click here to make your Christmas shopping that little bit easier.
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NAPOLEONICA. LA REVUE
Issue n° 3 online now
Issue n° 3 of Napoleonica. La Revue has just been released and to celebrate, we're proposing Pierre Branda's article "Did the war pay for the war? An assessment of Napoleon's attempts to make his campaigns self-financing". You can purchase this article for 7 €.
PHD VIVA
David Rouanet: "Foreign prisoners of war in north-eastern France (1803-1815)"
On Wednesday 17 December at 9am, David Rouanet, a Fondation Napoléon research grant winner, will defend his PhD thesis "Foreign prisoners of war in north-eastern France (1803-1815)" in front of an examining committee. The viva will take place in Salle des Actes at the Université Paris-Sorbonne, Paris. The PhD is supervised by Jacques-Olivier Boudon.
Click here for the 2008 research grant winners and their proposed PhD theses.
AUCTION NEWS: SOTHEBY'S NEW YORK
On Thursday 11 December, an auction of fine books and manuscripts will take place at Sotheby's auction house in New York. Of particular interest is lot 192, a flag designed by Napoleon for the island of Elba.
Click here for more information.
SOUVENIR NAPOLEONIEN
This week the Souvenir Napoléonien held its General Meeting: Christian Fileaux was elected President of the Souvenir Napoléonien along with Alain Pigeard, Thierry Choffat and Jacques Palombo (Vice-Presidents), Gérard Moyaux (Secretary-General), Maurice Bernard-Catinat (Treasurer) and Jacques Macé (Assistant Treasurer). Congratulations to all those elected.
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200 YEARS AGO
Madrid falls
On 2 December, French troops arrived in the suburbs of Madrid. After demanding its capitulation, which was refused, Napoleon sent in troops and seized the Retiro heights, high-ground that was key to the defence of Madrid. Following this attack, Napoleon retired and again demanded the city's surrender. The military junta in Madrid agreed and French troops entered Madrid on the morning of 4 December. The surrender ensured limited bloodshed and pillage in the capture of the capital; Napoleon, in a letter addressed to General Belliard, the governor of Madrid, issued instructions for the city's reorganisation: "Monsieur le Général Belliard, nothing has yet been done in Madrid. It is not through gentle cajoleries that order is restored but through firmness and vigour [...] Give the order that the military junta be disbanded; only the corregidors [representatives of royal power involved in local and judicial administration] and the alcaldes [municipal magistrates] charged with the policing [of Madrid] may remain. Have the alcaldes ensure that the barricades are taken down, the streets are repaved and the bodies, both men and horses, are removed, all before midday tomorrow [...] The day after tomorrow, deliver a proclamation according the populace 48-hours grace, after which time any inhabitant still carrying arms will be condemned to death." (Letter from Napoleon to General Belliard dated 5 December 1808, Correspondance n° 14534)
Insignia of discord
On 9 December 1808, Napoleon wrote to General Clarke, War Minister in Paris, expressing his displeasure at Joachim Murat, King of Naples, who had awarded, without the French Emperor's acquiescence, the Order of the Two Sicilies to soldiers distinguished in the capture of Capri. A report of the ceremony appeared in the gazettes, and Murat, perhaps anticipating Napoleon's displeasure, hastily sent Napoleon a letter informing him of his actions in an attempt at damage limitation. This attempt, however, singularly failed to appease Napoleon, whose fury is plainly evident in the letter: "Monsieur le Général Clarke, you will inform the King of Naples of my dissatisfaction at his awarding of distinctions to my soldiers without my involvement; he does not have this right, and accordingly none of those whom he decorated will receive them [the awards]; every Frenchman who wears a decoration must have received it from me; I stand by this principle completely, and may [such an event] never occur again." (Letter from Napoleon to General Clarke dated 9 December 1808, Correspondance n° 14541)
150 YEARS AGO
Ministère de l'Algérie et des Colonies
1858 saw the creation of the "ministère de l'Algérie et des Colonies", Napoleon III's attempt to move towards a civilian, political and administrative government of Algeria (see Bulletin back issue n° 462). The Prince Napoleon, cousin of the emperor, was put in charge of the ministry. However, as the Comte de Viel Castel remarks in his entry for 9 December, the prince was unsuited to the post and the ministry struggled: "The new ministry for the colonies, its disposition and its appointments do not inspire great confidence. More so than ever, the settlers are not taking to Algeria, property prices there are falling and the army is unhappy; the nomination of officials has not been a happy process and finally the Prince Napoleon will bring, as expected, further disruption to something that is already badly disorganised. (Mémoires du Comte Horace de Viel Castel)
The Prince was eventually replaced by the Comte de Chasseloup-Laubat. The ministry was short-lived, however, as Algeria proved to be too difficult to govern and administer from Paris. In 1860, it was abolished and a Governor-General was re-established.
Click here for our timeline on Abd el-Kader, France and Algeria.
Wishing you the very best "Napoleonic" week,
Peter Hicks and Hamish Davey Wright
Historians and web-editors
THE NAPOLEON.ORG BULLETIN, N° 477, 5 - 11 December, 2008
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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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THE BIBLIOTHEQUE FONDATION NAPOLEON LIBRARY
Autumn and winter opening times:
Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday: 1pm-6pm
Thursday: 10am-3pm
(Closed Friday)
The library will be closed exceptionally on Tuesday 16 December.
THE MAGAZINE
Book of the month
- Michel Kerautret and Gabriel Madec (eds.), La Correspondance générale de Napoléon Bonaparte: Volume 5, Boulogne, Trafalgar, Austerlitz 1805
Press Review
- Los Sitios de Zaragoza, Publicación del Bicentario N°10 Octubre 2008
News
Fondation Napoléon History Prizes and Research Grants 2008 announced
WHAT'S ON
Auctions
- Sotheby's auction of Fine Books and Manuscripts, including flag designed by Napoleon Bonaparte for the island of Elba, New York (USA), 11 December 2008
Conferences
- Portugal, Brazil and Napoleonic Europe, Lisbon (Portugal) from 4 to 6 December, 2008
Exhibitions
- "The Eagle and the quill: the 'retour des manuscrits'", Paris, France [03/12/2008 - 01/03/2009]
Full details
- "Napoleon III and the Romanian principalities", Bucharest, Romania [23/10/2008 - 01/02/2009]
Full details
- "Ben Weider Collection at the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts", Montreal, Canada [Permanent]
Full details
- "Bonaparte and Egypt", Paris, France [14/10/2008 - 29/03/2009]
Full details
- "Between the dagger and the cross", Paris, France [21/10/2008 - 11/01/2009]
Full details
- "From Pompei to Malmaison", Rueil-Malmaison, France [22/10/2008 - 26/01/2009]
Full details
- "Jerome Napoleon, king of Westphalia", Fontainebleau, France [10/10/2008 - 08/01/2009]
Full details
- "Paper Landscapes, a celebration of Napoleonic cartography", La Spezia, Italy [04/10/2008 - 11/01/2009]
Full details
- "Fine people. Luxury and Fashion at the Time of the Empire", Erfurt, Germany [14/09/2008 - 11/01/2009]
Full details
- "Spectacle of Power. Rituals in Old Europe 800-1800", Magdeburg, Germany [23/09/2008 - 04/01/2009]
Full details
- "Napoleonic side-arms of the Rocca d'Acquaviva", Acquaviva Picena, Italy [04/10/2008 - 31/12/2008]
Full details
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