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2010 DRAWS TO A CLOSE...
- bringing with it all the usual seasonal festivities - but work still carries on apace here at the Fondation Napoléon. Not only does the list of documents in our Digital Library continue to swell, but on top of that, we have some breaking news on some of the interface changes that we've made to the service. Our latest book of the month continues along a similar theme, with, perhaps for the first time on napoleon.org, a digital text - Adolphe Thiers' Atlas de l'Histoire du Consulat et de l'Empire - our featured choice. We also have a short report on our History Prizes and Research Grants 2010 awards ceremony, which was held this week, plus details of the inauguration ceremony for a monument marking the bicentenary of the British landing on Ile de France (today Mauritius). For our younger readers, there's a short article about how to make soup, First Empire countryside-style, plus we round our letter off with 200 and 150 years ago (Franco-Russian relations and the Hanseatic cities, and festive preparations, respectively).
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NAPOLEON.ORG
Changes to the Digital Library
The Fondation Napoléon Digital Library continues to grow, with a large number of new documents recently added. On top of this, one or two changes have been made to the interface: the foundation's Digital Library and the online source catalogue, previously separate portals, have merged to form one complete directory henceforth known as the Digital Library. This updated portal not only features all the books that have been digitised by the Fondation Napoléon, but also the huge selection of sources and works of history (in French, English, German, Spanish, Italian and even Latin), covering the entire period and available online through various different French and foreign cultural, academic and library institutions.
Latest additions from the Fondation Napoléon:
- Almanach national de France, 1803, Paris: Testu, 1803
- Almanach impérial 1810, Paris: Testu, 1811
- Cérémonial de l'Empire français, Paris: Librairie économique, 1805
- Adolphe Thiers, Histoire du Consulat et de l'Empire, Paris: Paulin, Lheureux, 1845-1862:
Volume 1 Volume 2 Volume 3 Volume 4 Volume 5 Volume 6 Volume 7 Volume 8 Volume 9 Volume 10 Volume 11 Volume 12 Volume 13 Volume 14 Volume 15 Volume 16 Volume 17 Volume 18 Volume 19 Volume 20
- Plan de Paris avec détail historique de ses arrondissemens, Paris: Debray, 1818
- Notice sur l'île d'Elbe, contenant la description de ses villes, augmentée de l'itinéraire du voyage de Buonaparte jusqu'au lieu de son embarquement, Paris: Tardieu-Denesle, 1814
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BOOK OF THE MONTH
Digital library: L'Atlas de l'Histoire du Consulat et de l'Empire, by Adolphe Thiers
Our latest book of the month is not really a new release. In fact, it was published all the way back in 1859! But thanks to the wonders of technology, this most venerable of books has been given a new lease of life as the latest addition to the Fondation Napoléon's digital library. It is, after all, not the easiest work of history to read in its physical incarnation, being of extremely large format and requiring a magnifying glass to examine any of its pages in close detail. But now you can read, discover or indeed rediscover Thiers' atlas in the comfort and convenience of your own home, simply by making your way to our digital library.
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NAPOLEONIC NEWS
Inauguration of the Monument to commemorate the British landing on 29th November 1810, at Bain Boeuf, Mauritius
On 2 December, 2010, a monument erected to mark the bicentenary of the British capture of Ile de France was inaugurated by HRH Princess Anne and the President of the Republic of Mauritius. The monument is to be found on the Bain Boeuf beach on the north side of the island, where, just over two hundred years ago, the British landed. We have here a transcript of the speech delivered by Philippe la Hausse de Lalouvière, CEO of Les Moulins de la Concorde Ltée and Treasurer-General of ICOMOS.
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FONDATION NAPOLEON NEWS
History Prize & Research Grants 2010 Awards Ceremony
On Tuesday evening, the Fondation Napoléon History Prizes and Research Grants for 2010 were presented to the winners in a ceremony which took place at the Palais de la Légion d'honneur in the presence of H.I.H. the Princess Napoléon and Victor-André Masséna, Prince d'Essling and President of the Fondation Napoléon.
A new arrival!
We here at the Fondation Napoléon are delighted to inform our readers that on 23 November, 2010, Alexandra Mongin, secretary to the Director, gave birth to a baby girl named Célia. Mother, father and child are all fine. We should like to take this opportunity to offers our heartfelt congratulations to the whole family.
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NAPOLEON.ORG
Bon appétit! Soup glorious soup!
During the First Empire, roughly four in of five French people lived in villages or small towns. Many worked as farm labourers, craftsmen, merchants or doctors. Some were rich, and lived comfortably, whilst some were forced to live "hand-to-mouth" because their fields were too small to produce enough food to sustain them and their families. For hundreds of years, the most common and popular dish eaten in the countryside was soup. Families would often eat nothing but soup, as it could serve as a main meal for everyone.
Christmas Selection 2010
As you will have seen from last week's letter, our Christmas Selection 2010 is now online, with plenty of gift ideas and reading suggestions.
200 YEARS AGO
Franco-Russian relations worsen: Oldenburg and the Hanseatic cities
The sénatus-consulte of 13 December, 1810, formally incorporated the Hanseatic cities of Lübeck, Bremen and Hamburg, which had been occupied by French troops since 1806, into the French Empire. Despite French presence in the ports for more than four years, fraud and counterfeit were still widespread and the application of Napoleon's continental blockade remained uneven along the coastline. This annexation, intended to strengthen the blockade along the Baltic, also included a number of territories linking the ports, notably the Duchy of Oldenburg. This small dukedom was ruled by the regent Peter I, whose son George was married to Alexander I's sister Catherine Pavlovna of Russia. Napoleon offered Erfurt as compensation for Oldenburg, a proposition that was poorly received in Russia, but for the moment the duke chose to remain in place with severe restrictions imposed upon his rule. This was not to last however. By an imperial decree dated 22 January, 1811, Napoleon ordered the displacement of the Oldenburg family and the seizure of the dukedom, contravening the treaty of Tilsit (article 12), and further worsening Franco-Russian relations.
150 YEARS AGO
Festive preparations in the Moniteur Universel
With Christmas and New Year approaching, the Moniteur Universel began preparations for the festive season. The back page of its issue from 11 December, 1860, was dotted with seasonal gift advice (in France, presents known as étrennes, were given on New Year's Day), featuring, in particular, an advert for ornate opera glasses produced by the Brothers Harweiler:
"Charming seasonal gifts
New in, small opera glasses, adjustable focus by means of a small wheel adorned with diamonds, from... 100fr.
Same glasses (without diamonds), from... 50fr.
18-lens, polyscopic opera glasses, long range, can be used at the theatre or to gaze at the satelites orbitting Jupiter. Price... 100fr."
And in anticipation of the season's heavy eating, an advert offering pills to cleanse the digestive system could also be found amongst notices for ball gowns, chocolates and cutlery:
"[These] stomachic and purgative dragées made from rhubarb, invention of Laurent [...], [are an] excellent toning purgative for stimulating the gastric functions and the digestive system."
Wishing you an excellent "Napoleonic" week,
Peter Hicks & Hamish Davey Wright
Historians and web-editors
THE NAPOLEON.ORG BULLETIN, N° 564, 10 – 16 December
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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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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
87,000: The Fondation's operation to save Longwood House (soon to be launched on the English side of the site. Watch this space...) has received donations totalling 87,000 euros so far.
NAPOLEON.ORG
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