| |
| |
THIS WEEK IN THE LETTER...
...we have lots and lots of Napoleonic event information, but first of all you will find at the top of the letter our latest objet d'art of the month, this time a portrait miniature of Maréchal Masséna's two sons. And now onto the events: taking place tomorrow (24 April) is a walking tour of Napoleonic sites in Grado, Italy. If you're interested in going along, registration needs to be completed by this afternoon. Coming up on 5 May is the commemorative mass in honour of Napoleon I and the soldiers of the Grande Armée who died for France. On that same day, the Souvenir Napoléonien is holding its AGM and gala dinner and cruise, registration for which needs to be completed by 25 April. The Charlotte Bonaparte exhibition in Rome has been extended, whilst the annual May ceremony at the British Cemetery in Elvas will take place on Friday 14 May. Don't forget either that registration is still open for the Fondation Napoléon/Souvenir Napoléonien "1810" conference, which takes place on 8 and 9 June, 2010. Towards the bottom of the letter you will find information on the newly refurbished Musée des Lettres et Manuscrits, and bringing up the rear we have our regular look at this week in history, with Napoleon authorising some hefty loans for Austria (200 years ago), and the creation of the Garnier opera house (150 years ago).
|
|
|
| |
OBJET D'ART OF THE MONTH
Portrait miniature of Jacques Prosper Masséna, Comte d'Essling and his brother François Victor, by Jean-Baptiste Jacques Augustin
Nearly ten years after completing his portrait of General Masséna (1797), Augustin started work on this miniature painting of his two sons. The eldest, Jacques Prosper (1793-1821), is depicted in a chair, with his left arm drawn around his younger brother's waist (François Victor, 1799-1863). In his right hand he holds a laurel sprig, symbolising the numerous military victories won by his father.
|
|
|
| |
WHAT'S ON
Commemorative mass
The mass held in honour of Emperor Napoleon I and the soldiers of the Grande Armée who died for France will be held in the Eglise Saint-Louis des Invalides (Paris) on Wednesday 5 May, 2010, at 6.30pm. The Prince Napoléon will be in attendance.
Souvenir Napoléonien gala dinner and cruise
The Souvenir Napoléonien is organising a gala dinner and aperitif aboard the Cristal II for 5 May, 2010, which will follow the Annual General Meeting and the commemorative mass in honour of Napoleon I and those of the Grande Armée who died for France. The aperitif will take place at 8pm and the boat will cast off at 8.30pm from the Quai Branly, a stone's throw from the Eiffel Tour.
Delegazione Nord Italia del Souvenir Napoléonien: Napoleonic Grado walk, Grado, Italy
This walk will include visits to the site where the Napoleonic fort (built in 1811) once stood, the Grado-Pirano telegraph, the Grado basilicas and church silverware hidden during the British incursion in 1810, the remains of the old city walls, ending in the port and the exhibition "The wreck of the Mercurio and the battle of Grado (1812)". Registration is free but must be completed before the end of today (23 April).
|
|
|
| |
"Charlotte Bonaparte Dama di molto spirito: the romantic life of a princess artist"
Contrary to our announcement last week, the exhibition "Charlotte Bonaparte Dama di molto spirito: the romantic life of a princess artist" has been extended until 9 May. Good news for those of you who still have not had the chance to visit the Museo Napoleonico in Rome (Italy) and the exhibition that focuses on the life of Charlotte Bonaparte, daughter of Napoleon's brother, Joseph Bonaparte.
Fondation Napoléon and Souvenir Napoléonien "1810" conference and concerts
With registration essential for the Fondation Napoléon and Souvenir Napoléonien "1810" conference and the three commemorative concerts planned for 8, 9 and 10 June, 2010, the registration form is now available on napoleon.org. The conference will feature talks from some of the leading experts on Napoleonic history, and will cover such topics as the marriage of Napoleon and Marie-Louise, Murat's foreign policy in Naples and the financial crisis of 1810.
|
|
|
| |
Annual May Ceremony in the British Cemetery, Elvas, 14 May, 2010
2010 is the bicentenary of the battle of Buçaco and the Lines of Torres Vedras, truly the turning point of the war.
The annual May ceremony of The Friends of the British Cemetery will take place on Friday, 14th May in Elvas (Portugal). The ceremony will start at 12noon and all attending should be at the cemetery by 11.45am. The ceremony will be attended by the British Ambassador, the Mayor of Elvas and senior British, Portuguese and Spanish officers. On Saturday 15th May there will be a series of talks in the Municipal Auditorium, including one by Mick Crumplin, who is the leading authority on medical matters in the Peninsular War.
|
|
|
| |
NAPOLEONIC NEWS
New site for the Musée des Lettres et Manuscrits
On 15 April, 2010, the Musée des Lettres et Manuscrits, now based at 222 Boulevard Saint-Germain in Paris, opened its doors to the public.
This Haussmannian building, classed as an historical monument, has been entirely renovated in order to suitably house and present the works and writings of Proust, Hugo, Sand, Saint-Exupéry, Napoleon, Eisenhower, de Gaulle, Einstein, Edison, Delacroix, Van Gogh, Mozart, Beethoven and the hundreds of other great writers who have gone down in history.
200 YEARS AGO
Austrian finances: Napoleon promises help
The Austrian Empire had been financially bled dry after the 1809 campaign, with the Treaty of Vienna (14 October, 1809) forcing the emperor to pay 85 million Francs to France in reparations. Napoleon, all too aware of his new ally's cash-flow difficulties (see also bulletin n° 518) and despite uncertainty in both countries regarding the recent union, resolved to lend Francis II a helping hand in the matter. On 24 April, 1810, the French emperor wrote to Champagny, Minister for Foreign Affairs, authorising Austria's project to borrow a large amount of money as well as new measures governing trade relations between Austria and the Illyrian Provinces.
"You will inform [M. de Metternich, Austrian Minister for Foreign Affairs] [...] that I readily grant the emperor of Austria permission to borrow thirty million Florins using 20 Kreutzer coins, which makes a total of 25 million Livres Tournois. [The Florin was a virtual, paper currency (a bank paper), with one Florin worth 20 Kreutzers. The British bank paper, the Pound, had a similar relationship to the Guinea coin. Using the exchange rate of 1809, 20 Kreutzers were worth 0.86 Francs. Napoleon's off-the-cuff calculation of 25 million Livres Tournois (here used as an old-word equivalent for the Franc) is 0.8 million out.]
Napoleon continued:
"He can take out the loans in Paris, in Genoa, in Amsterdam, Frankfurt etc., and not only do I authorise it, but you will inform him that I am quite happy to offer the emperor proof of my desire to be agreeable towards him, and to encourage his projects.
Regarding the second note, reply to Monsieur de Metternich that you are authorised to enter into negociations regarding the establishment of a trading post in Fiume [modern-day Rijeka, in Croatia], the regulation of trade relations between the Illyrian Provinces and Austria, as well as a general trade treaty. Work on this important project in concert with Monsieur Aldini [Antonio Aldini was Secretary of state for the Kingdom of Italy and resident in Paris] and the Interior Minister and ensure that the above plans are concluded." [Letter from Napoleon to Champagny dated 24 April, 1810, n° 16,407 Second Empire edition]
In reality, this authorisation was nothing but a hollow promise from the French emperor, as bankers in the aforementioned cities rarely if ever lent money to countries allied to France. This would have been doubly the case for a country as heavily in debt as Austria.
Pierre Branda
150 YEARS AGO
A new opera house for Paris
On 23 April, 1860, the Moniteur Universel printed a report on the plans for Paris' new opera house which were on display at the town hall in the 9th arrondissement.
"The curious amongst us continue to flock to the town hall in the 9th arrondissement (rue Drouot), where the diagrams regarding the construction of a new opera house, on the proposed square to be found at the end of the Boulevard des Capucines, at the start of the Rue de Rouen, and at the junction between the aforementioned boulevard and the Rue de la Chaussée-d'Antin." [Moniteur Universel, 23 April, 1860]
The plan, clearly still at a preliminary stage, indicated merely the location of the projected building as well as the changes that would be required to accommodate it, plus the design for the new front facade.
The site was cleared in 1858 in preparation for the new construction, and the competition to find an architect worthy of designing the opera house was opened in 1860. 171 architects submitted designs, which were then whittled down to five, with Charles Garnier eventually emerging victorious. Although the construction process was begun in 1861, the project encountered severe difficulties as significant ground water was found on-site, which took a great deal of time to drain. The building was eventually inaugurated on 5 January, 1875 by Maréchal Mac-Mahon. The building is today also known as the Palais Garnier.
Wishing you an excellent "Napoleonic" week,
Peter Hicks & Hamish Davey Wright
Historians and web-editors
THE NAPOLEON.ORG BULLETIN, N° 539, 23 - 29 April, 2010
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.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
THE BIBLIOTHEQUE FONDATION NAPOLEON LIBRARY
Easter opening times
Between Monday 19 April and Thursday 29 April, the library will be open:
Tuesday, Wednesday: 1.30pm-6pm
Thursday: 10am-3pm
(Closed Monday and Friday)
FONDATION NAPOLEON ON THE WEB
Each week we offer you a "mystery" link to somewhere on napoleon.org. Click on the link to discover a part of the website you might not have visited before...
Statistic of the week:
For 1810, the Napoleonic state's total revenue totalled 786.57 million Francs.
The Fondation Napoléon's triumvirate of Napoleonic websites:
- Napoleon.org
- Napoleonica. La Revue
- Napoleonica. Archives Online
The best of the month:
- Book of the month
- Painting of the month
- Objet d'Art of the month
- Article of the month
MAGAZINE
Press review
- Book review: A Radical History of Britain. Visionaries, Rebels and Revolutionaries: the Men and Women who Fought for Our Freedoms plus author's response
EVENTS
On now and coming up
A selection of events taking place now or in the coming weeks, taken from our What's on listings.
Conference
- Fondation Napoléon/Souvenir Napoléonien "1810" conference, La Courneuve, France [08/06/2010 - 09/06/2010]
Full details
Concert
- Bicentenary concerts commemorating the marriage between Napoleon and Marie-Louise, Paris, France [08/06/2010 - 10/06/2010]
Full details
Dinner and cruise
- Souvenir Napoléonien gala dinner and cruise, Paris, France [05/05/2010]
Full details
Commemorations
- Annual May Ceremony in the British Cemetery, Elvas, Portugal [14/05/2010]
Full details
- Commemorative mass in honour of Napoleon I and the soldiers of the Grande Armée, Paris, France [05/05/2010]
Full details
Tour
- Napoleonic Grado walk, Grado, Italy [24/04/2010]
Full details
Exhibitions
- "Jean-Baptiste Jacques Augustin, miniature painter", Saint-Dié-des-Vosges, France [17/04/2010 - 20/06/2010]
Full details
- "Charlotte Bonaparte, Dama di molto spirito: the romantic life of a princess artist", Rome, Italy [05/02/2010 - 9/05/2010]
Full details
- "The imperial honeymoon: Paris 1810", Fontainebleau, France [02/04/2010 - 02/07/2010]
Full details
<
|
|
