THE NAPOLEON EUROPEAN JOURNEY




Art was created and displayed everywhere in Europe often at his (Bonaparte and Napoleon) request. Colossal artistic themes and military/civil engineering were thriving.
He created an European empire by autocratic rule.

Significant progress was made in terms of public administration and civil code legislation.

There is a duplicity in that, when using the correct data and/or collating the
information from actual contemporaries and writing eloquently, satirists and admirers are both very convincing.

Hence his influence on arts and politics for the good, the bad and of the ugly in a period of upheaval and contradictions.
 
Impromptu Poetry

Introduction: NAPOLEON – The Good, The Bad and the Ugly

Napoleon was the cunning destroyer and yet the best apostle of the French Revolution. 
This legendary and yet real duplicity has also an international dimension.
Serene moment for Stendhal or disobedience by Goya?
Ambiguous Duke of Wellington.


During my 60-day journey I will try to express the feelings of former admiration, the rejection of a despicable image and the contradictions. Cities, villages, countries are split in terms of allegiance. Families as well.

I will be using the title of that famous spaghetti western as this movie was part of my childhood; we learnt some life experiences through its adaptation as a play. It is essential to draw the reader’s attention to the negative aspects of the Napoleonic era so as to add even more majesty to the people’s life improvement heritage under Napoleon. The historical character is a hero of English, French and Corsican influences. An European citizen in other words.

I will to take into account my previous experiences in cities which suffered or thrived under the oppressive authority of Napoleon. For logistical reasons I will no longer do a cruise whose destination would have been St Helena (Longwood / Jamestown). I shall not return either to the Lion’s Mound (Waterloo) for the time being.
I have only a couple of days left for the list of cities and locations across Europe before the official start of this human and intellectual challenge.

Today is the time for the defence of Europe and its values. The most famous heroic histrion is actually often misunderstood.
I am not an expert of Napoleon; I am only a staunch European looking for judgements from different angles on a complex character.
I am a humble soul. My source of information will range from childhood anecdotes to discoveries during the journey across selected cities. I will also use some key literature reads and astonishing pieces of art.


Loin d’être l’empoté. Plutôt le maître de l’Aiglon.
Il harangue les armées. Il conduit les légions.
Des traces il laissait. Un saint né lors de l’Ascension.
Contre lui peuples révoltés. A l’Europe au fait des séditions.
Les droits certes modifiés. Les sujets sous divisions.
Dormir c’était tricher. Un Don Juan de séduction.
Vivre tant de traités. La dernière grande bénédiction.
Balham 12h50 26th September 2018

Raucous cries
Nothing short of cries. Nothing short of lies.
Let our Napoleonic adventures deploy ably
What history and memory tell our body.
There is a sense of urgency. Some sort of insanity.
Raucous as your cries be let new chapter set
The right priorities that would be anyone’s bet.
Elephant & Castle 18h30 24th September 2018

Ecusson vénitien
Sous les reflets de Calle de la Passion
Les couleurs variées sont légion.
La Sérénissime d’unique dimension
A été meurtrie par les invasions
Mais reste centre d’attention :
Le flambeau esthétique d’histrions;
Le tableau des gondoles en motion;
Les jeux de lumière des saisons.
Balham 0h40 le 30 septembre 2018


L’ascension
Le grand général d’Arcole
Se distingua par le cas d’école
Que fut son coup du 18 Brumaire
Rien de sectaire. Seulement le nécessaire.

Retenu par ses ambitions planétaires
Il s’affirme comme génie militaire.
Ses contradictions fascinent le public.
On le compare aux héros d’effets puniques.

Sa capacité de travail est incroyable
Quand ses desseins furent parfois louables.
L’ascension au faîte de la gloire
Fut aussi subtile que ses déboires.

Un jugement hâtif. 200 ans après.
Face aux mutins, il reste la liberté.
La troika militaire se joue de lui
Mais il ne courbera l’échine ; il n’a fui.

Balham 1h20 le 30 septembre 2018

Isola et plages
Les plages d’un blanc, bleu et vert
Vous rendent un temps distrait. A revers
D’une Histoire conquise sans surprise
C’est dans ce cadre idyllique qu’eut reprise
Sur quoi et comment a t’il main mise
De cette petite Corse en grande frise
Vivre ce moment héroïque d’un despote
C’est revenir dans les ères de redingote.
Alessandria 2h20 le 7 octobre 2018
Un instant napoléolonique
En chair et en os il parvint à ses fins
De transformer l’Europe hors de l’Albion
Le monde avance mais c’est toujours division
Auprès de la légende. Libération par gredins.
Si fort en logique, grec et latin. Salluste. Cicéron
Il disposait très vite des symboliques notions
De ce moment de culture il en retint les stratégies.
Inachevé    Alessandria 2h28 le 7 octobre 2018

L’héros
Le sabre piémontais d’un cheval monté
Est la première vision de cette résidence
En jaune et simple, elle est grande volupté
A l’image de ses jardins et flore d’enfance
L’effigie par la couronne N est offrande connue
De ce mythique héros au parcours qui ne déplut
L’amour, l’intellect, l’esprit politique
Sont les attributs d’un Mulini onirique.

Interrompu    Alessandria 2h45 le 7 octobre 2018


Verve jamais éteinte
Dernier camp de retranchement d’un audacieux
Homme d’Etat hors pair à jamais facétieux
Distribuant impériales attributions. Se sauver
Pour échapper tant aux français qu’aux alliés
Une épopée dont le destin en fascine légions
Doit s’achever très vite dans l’âpre confusion
Le souffle de l’Empereur irradie la verte contrée
L’instinct de survie impérial sert aux Anglais
La compassion de la perfide d’Albion tient bon
Les soutiens du régime déchu voient un chemin long
Car tout périple d’évasion est voué à l’échec
Il est temps d’adopter une realpolitik  ‘high tech’
Sans ambages il aura mené son destin loin
Des rivages corses, des parties champenoises
Son aura restera le plus grand trésor de loin

Des rimes chaotiques   19h15 Dans RER vers St Germain le 21 octobre 2018


Ile d’AIX
Petite île aux plages intrigantes
Dévore les derniers instants. Usurpateur,
Que faites-vous? En ce lieu, déchu d’honneur
Vous, aux grandes batailles, foi de Constituante
Donnez-nous de l’espoir. Feu ceux du Moniteur
La Restauration trouble nos esprits, Hantent
Les Cent Jours d’une jubilation sans ambages
Sauvage souvenir de votre dernier passage
Votre légende dépasse les plus vastes rivages
Interrompu  10h40 entre Marly et la Défense  le 26 octobre 2018


Ile sauvage
C’est une île fortifiée et fortifiante
Victime de pillages de flottes insouciantes
Les arbres et le sol ont végétation diverse
Tandis que la vie paradisiaque souvent renverse
Les préjugés auprès d’une île si souriante
Sa terre fut foulée par un héros. Intenses
Sont les marques de son passage. Que pensent
Les contemporains après cette reddition?
Marly-le-roi 8h50 le 28 octobre 2018


Survival instinct
On his blockade he tried a parade;
Under his tirade his clout was made.
In an era of upheaval, vast spade;
Under resolute action, new grenades.
Prancing horses listen to serenade.
On his return any liberty he forbade
To severe his ties in need of blade.
Northern Line near Clapham Common 15h50 18th November 2018

Humble heritage

Some kind of portent imperial hope
That his policies would not go to rope
That with evil future can stoically cope
Or fear of death lonely way to pave
To die a prince or survive as a slave,
The election is most cruelly brave.
Between royalists and anarchists,
They all know the problem’s gist.
Such duplicity in his actions. A mist
Settles the obscure plebiscite.
From Elba to St Helena, all hope
That with serene retreat Boney
Left to his memoirs, soft prey,
Would subject to what we crave
Would aspire to humility on his grave.

V&A London 14h35 22nd November 2018

Diplomatic Zest
Caricaturist set his trade on nest
Of stifling conquests and policy zest
His tally of foreign ideal officers
Were powerless. Their views a tad nicer
Were dismissed in a barrage of fits
Whilst Volpone and Will praise true Brits
Using the most appaling imagery of business
Reducing Little Boney to loneliness.
On Bakerloo line 12h50 1 December 2018

Nemesis is apotheosis
Vigorous fight for Liberty and Democracy
Was not on the agenda of mean aristocracy
Devoted to a reformed religion without orders
Secluded to a paternalist regime with order
To God his labours, a new symbiosis
For the nemesis would turn into apoteosis.
On Northern Line 13h05 1 December 2018


Acknowledgements


I would like to thank profusely various persons and some institutions for their help and support.
I would like to thank profusely Mark Philp from the Department of History at Warwick University as he gave me the impetus to take this task fairly seriously. He also made me realize that I should do this work in French and in English.
I would like to give special thanks to my mother (Nicole Cournier) and my friend Karine Deslandes for giving me ideas and being such lovely listeners and so supportive in the good and bad times.
I would like to mention that during the whole European trip I travelled with the Napoleon the Great book by Andrew Roberts.
Finally, I would like to thank the friendly staff at the Victoria & Albert Museum Art Library in London, the Napoleon Museum at the Aix Island, the Villa Mulini in Portoferraio and the Malmaison for making this project full of lovely memories.


European art history would be no different if Napoleon had not lived. Delacroix declared in his Journal: «The Life of Napoleon is our century’s epic for all the arts’[1]»

«Who can explain, paint and understand Napoleon?  A man portrayed with his arms crossed and yet he has done it all! […] A man that could do anything, because he wanted it all![2]».
A quote from Balzac which makes us a tad bewildered as to the influence of our research and the hybrid personality as well as the dual perception of his aesthetic and political legacy.

An influence is a mechanism which can be negative, positive and neutral. Generally speaking art requires sponsoring. A sponsoring initiative infers a bias in the artist’s relationship with its work. The artist’s project may be deferred or abandoned whilst the end product may be lost or destroyed or damaged. The level of influence is political, financial and philosophical. Napoleon was opposed to ideologies; he was however interested in any opportunity that could raise his profile. The artist has an influence on the political imperatives of the great ruler thanks to symbolic allegories and/or the setting of values.

During the Napoleon trip across European cities[3], we have come across the following aesthetic platforms:
-          Decorative Porcelain depicting portraits and/or battles
-          Furniture including beds/tables/clocks
-          Sculptures
-          Columns and obelisks  
-          Equestrian statues
-          Medals, medallions and coins made of portraits / battles / events
-          Engraving made of portraits / battles / events
-          Oil painting made of portraits / battles / events
-          Sketches made of cartoons / caricatures / drawings
As a matter of fact, as per the latin motto art is eternal whereas life is short[4].
Artistic creativity is affected by the raw data of politics. It serves the purposes of personality cult and the political interests of the great ruler.  As a matter of fact, the Louvre Museum changed its name to the Napoleon Museum in 1802 under the stewardship of Denon. Louis XVIII instructed to make all the paintings or sculptures or engravings with the effigy of Bonaparte disappear from the Royal palaces and houses. It is many years since I have not visited the Louvre museum; sadly I did not spend time there during my various stops in Paris. The museum obviously has its ‘Denon’ wing and its ‘Napoleon’ hall. The influential Ecole du Louvre is a significant testament to the sponsoring of the Beaux Arts and the prestigious Grandes Ecoles by Napoleon. In the short term this academic work would benefit from a visit to the permanent exhibitions as well as a review of the museum’s history and online resources[5].  
Bonaparte is portrayed as an illustrious and heroic general of the Republique. The objective is two-fold. It echoes romantic feelings. It provides Napoleon with an eclectic set of admirers. In my room in Marly-le-roi, I have Victoria cartoons of historical events inside a comic ‘Bonaparte’[6]. Bust sculptures of Bonaparte by Corbet were commissioned by the Directory but the original ones were lost. The Bonaparte sculptures in the museums visited to date, namely those at the Aix Island, were either of a different material used by Corbet or a different sculptor[7]. As far as the oil paintings Bonaparte haranguing the troops before the battle of the Pyramids and Bonaparte at the Arcola bridge by Gros are concerned, our school manuals full of propaganda and the ‘Napoleon’ book with green leather given to me by my grandmother included these magnificent items. I must have seen copies at the locations visited in October.  
Napoleon is depicted as Roman Emperor being a ‘classical’ Great Ruler. Unlike Napoleon, latin was one of my favourite subjects. This is why I was struck by the impressive Napoleon clocks with classical effigies and august bust sculptures at the Aix Island[8]. As for the Fontainebleau Castle[9], one of Napoleon’s favourite palaces, a Roman bust is on display on the outside gallery and another one in one of the first rooms. Napoleon as Cesar is the theme of a blackened bust having survived the Saint-Cloud Castle fire. He is also a ‘classical’ peace-maker legislator (Canova representing Napoleon as Mars at Apsley House) notwithstanding the manipulative historical imagery[10] (Napoleon on a prancing horse on the Grand Saint Bernard mountain, Versailles Castle and Aix Island).  There is no indication of worship of Antiquity[11] in the truthful portrait of Napoleon executed by Vigneux.

The Egypt expedition (see Egyptian items at the Louvre Museum, Wellington Museum and the Description of Egypt sketches at the Victoria & Albert Museum) is a magnet for the illustrious prince who is to rule the destinies of nations including their liberation. English historians of late 19th century (including but not limited to Mitchell) are insisting upon the treachery of the greatest despot regarding this campaign[12].

Suddenly the historical character appears as a citizen whose political achievements and diplomatic mastermind are those of a brilliant statesman as per the portrait in a red suit by Laurent Dabos or black and white by Robert Lefevre seen both at Apsley House[13] but also at the Malmaison and the Aix island respectively. The former red portrait exudes a feeling of calm and was a lovely discovery.
Or he can cure the sick and those who suffer. I have a soft spot the Greek amphora(s) at the Fontainebleau Castle showing Napoleon capable of miracles. Thanks to this sabbatical I was able to visit the beautiful Elba Island and engravings at Villa Mulini[14] capture the same subject. In a leafy street of a very affluent borough of Paris, I discovered the Marmottan Museum. I arrived in good time and I enjoyed the impressionists works and the display of the ‘good’ Napoleon in the Napoleonic collection.
Or he is understood to grant clemency to defeated enemies as he portrays a conqueror who has compassion on the conquered[15] (Napoleon pardoning the rebels in Cairo by Guerin) or showing goodwill (Napoleon at the battle of Eylau, by Gros, where even after a bloodthirsty battle the Emperor has time to bless the dying[16]) and/or showing affection (The arrival of Empress Maria Luisa at Compiegne by Pauline Auzou and bucolic painting[17] at the Malmaison) and/or courageous action so as to entice the soldiers that there is no further danger (biography of Napoleon by the late Max Gallo[18] which adds to the realism of painting by Gros of General Bonaparte visiting the Pesthouse at Jaffa[19]).   
Or, in view of political changes, he is now emperor of France (Napoleon on the Imperial throne by Ingres), heir to absolute monarch ruling by divine right (Napoleon in his coronation robes by Gerard seen at the Fontainebleau Castle), whose civil marriage with Maria Luisa was greeted by wild celebrations (Marmottan museum and museum of the Saint-Cloud Castle).
Or crowned by the Fame (Malmaison Castle), guided and crowned by the Victory. Laurels are shown by Houdon. He becomes legislator in the Palais Bourbon wearing an antic dress according to Chaudet. Bonaparte wears his large imperial suit per Cartellier[20]. At the Malmaison, Josephine is also represented as a goddess of the Antiquity as if she were crowned by Minerva.   
And depicts
A simple life of good peasants, tender engaged couple, faithful married couples and courageous soldiers, i.e. a lot of small stories
The glory as well as the undertakings of statesmen (for example flattering portrait of Joseph by Gerard at the Napoleon museum in the Fontainebleau castle[21]) and
Illustrious and triumphant war marshals, generals and soldiers (Austerlitz Table at the Malmaison, Leclerc portrait at the Malmaison, Duroc and Murat’s portrait(s), The Crossing of the Danube before Wagram by Fontaine at Apsley House, Charging chasseur by Gericault, portrait of Desaix by Appiani) and
Whilst we can admire beautiful sculptures of Napoleon’s Imperial Family (Napoleon’s parents, Napoleon’s brothers and sisters) at the Marmottan museum, we can also admire oil painting portraits of the King of Spain Joseph and the Empress Joséphine by Robert Lefèvre at Apsley House.
Napoléon was instrumental to the execution of commemorative buildings such as columns in remembrance of warriors[22] such as that of Place Vendome and in Boulogne but also the erection of a Temple of Glory in recognition to the Great Army soldiers at the Madeleine location. In addition, plans for the Triumph Arch and the Carrousel Arch had been laid out but were not completed until the latter part of the nineteenth century. A similar recognition for the Egypt campaign is achieved through the commissioning of an obelisk at Place des Victoires in honour of General Desaix, at the Pont-Neuf in honour of the Great Army and Baltard’s for the Place de la Concorde. However, the Luxor Obelisk currently on display at the Place de la Concorde dates back from the Restauration. On the one hand the greatness for the public buildings, on the other hand the sumptuousness for his Imperial dynasty of palaces and castles not only in France but also in the invaded States and the satellite kingdoms. A transformation to improve life standards as well; however most constructions, embellishments and sanitisation were done in Paris[23].
It is worth noting the medallions of Jupiter (Aix Island), the Bonaparte necklaces (Marmottan museum) and the coins celebrating the peace Treaty of Amiens (Fontainebleau Castle). Prosaically my home keys are in a black leather wallet which has the eagle and the ‘N’ embroidered coming from the Louvre museum shops.
The clocks celebrating the Emperor displayed at the Aix Island were stopped at the time when Napoleon passed away as if the legendary Napoleon was immortal.
At the Villa Mulini in the Elba Island visitors are greeted with restored furniture from the Empire style and many engravings ranging from lost battles to life in the Elba Island and sad family portraits. I felt overwhelmed by the rooms. I really enjoyed the gardens scenery. I was so tired that I did not realize that most of my pictures were blurry. When the museum clerks saw me with the Napoleon costume including the bicorn[24] they said that I was at home, master of the premises, and as a result I shall not pay for the visit. I enjoyed the free visit thanks to my Napoleon costume.
One can easily assert that ‘Official’ artists were appointed. Shortlist to include Gros (ably depicts pompous Empire style ad vitam eternam), David, Gerard (skilful flattery of the imperial family and European monarchs), Ingres, Girodet (David’s pupil finding it hard to be a painter under the Empire), Canova.
Other fascinating portraits and events of the Napoleonic era also come from artists such as Spalla,   Benvenuti, Piat Joseph Sauvage and Carle Vernet (engraving Crossing the Bridge at Lodi[25]).
Some artists such as Otto Runge and Friedrich resorted to paintings as a shelter from the occupation by the French.
Sumptuous furniture designed by appointed sculptors is an immortal trait of the Imperial heydays.
Decorative arts are being exploited to advertise political supremacy. Isabey is the perfect example. For example, one can draw the attention to the porcelain objects from Sevres (Saint-Cloud, small Napoleon portraits from anonymous or per Isabey at Marmottan Museum, Aix Island, Castle of the Malmaison, Wallace Collection in London, Apsley House). I have a soft spot for the porcelain objects and the design wealth is second to none.
The new regime is being celebrated using the revolutionary allegories, such as those of Beauvallet, Boizot and Bocquet[26]. Adequate lines, elegant models and heroic representations: this is the Roman School and Quatremère de Quincy including the celebration of courage and virtue, as per the Great Men from the Tuileries gallery by Angiviller[27].
According to Timothy Wilson Smith[28] and Hautecoeur[29], imperial designers and architects such as Percier and Fontaine dramatically changed the palaces and landmark monuments of European cities; their interior decorations of colossal proportion made references to the Antiquity and were a means to enhance local trade.
There was an imperial fashion. The painters had eclectic models. Some artists, whether sculptors or painters, were very close to the imperial dynasty or European monarchs or the aristocracy.
There could be a tendency of over-analysing the message conveyed by some paintings such as Prud’hon’s Venus and Adonis, being an ageing goddess trying to hold onto her young lover[30].
The Napoleonic empire is clearly remembered for the diffusion of the Empire Décor. However, it was a short-lived success. The combined effects of the continental blockade and the military defeats have contributed to the Empire style decay.
The imagery of every stamp casts Napoleon as the legitimate heir to the old royal domains: immortal traits must be preserved and brilliance of triumphs to posterity. The reporting of such events by artists was dual: Boilly paintings confirm that he was impressed by the coronation whereas the rage of Gillray is epitomised by an engraving depicting the travesty of a procession.
The Legion of Honour was created and it served the purpose of acknowledging useful men to the nation. Useful men are stimulated by the august presence of the Emperor as evidenced by the painting of Napoleon and Oberkampf by Isabey.
Eclecticism, effective propaganda and charismatic personality were essential. He would promote the Beaux-Arts, the French Academy as a Maecenas. He had his siècle like every Great Ruler[31]. He politicised the annual Grand Salon so that it became a channel for official propaganda: 1808, second anniversary of the Battle of Jena
He was enthusiastic in his patronage of the arts and he was enlightened in his concern for artisans, the small army of workers.  He was obsessed with prestige. Items were bought and built on a grand scale[32]. There were a limited number of authorised theatres and the contents of plays was fiercely controlled.
As Boime explains, a regime achieving power through usurpation could not depend on convention alone to preserve itself. Mobilize, manipulate and marshal imagery of every stamp to maintain control of the crosscurrents of the hegemonic process[33].
The aesthetic propaganda also stems from the statement that under the moments of peace (for example the Peace following the Treaty of Amiens) arts and science are prosperous. If one looks at the top of one oil painting from the Napoleon museum in the Aix island the very sentence is being displayed as if it were a self-fulfilling harmonious prophecy.
Benefiting from a robust knowledge of various forms of art, he inspired a mixture of paternalist and aristocratic missions or actions.  He delegated to key individuals some of his prerogatives, relied on the amusing deus ex machina role of gazettes and newly created institutes. He was not however the sole source of inspiration and he had a limited control over the type and quantity of disparaging art and literature. His Muses were not always music to his ears. The least expected artists and statesmen changed their opinions as to his influence as art custodian.   


2-     Spoliation during conquests


Battlefields and territories now subjected to the French flag are vastly destroyed. Many monuments were demolished.
As was the case with the Egypt expedition, Denon was an accomplished looter and was understood to be zealous in his prerogatives[34]. 
Fine Arts are taken away abruptly. This epitomises the Napoleon aesthetic imperialism orchestrated by its generals and marshals. It affected both private collections and museums across the world. The underlying principle was that Paris would become the European capital of Arts. British artists would commute to Paris in order to mingle with the good taste of Napoleon’s protégés.
At the Vienna Congress in 1815 it was specially mandated to return the items of art. All the paintings accumulated at the Louvre Museum must be retroceded. As an example, Denon protested in vain against the relinquishment of Murillo’s Saint Elizabeth caring for the sick, which had been given freely by the city of Seville to Soult[35].
It is worth noting that one of Napoleon’s favourite opus is Ossian by a Scottish author Macpherson, such fascination being displayed at the Malmaison castle by Gerard and Girodet (Ossian receiving the spirits of French heroes) and having brought it with him to St Helena.
Several caricatures are faithful to the British imagery: fears of corruption by the French Revolution and Bonapartism. Napoleon is also portrayed as or compared to Hannibal, a gingerbread baker, a gardener, a bullfighter or a swimming instructor. The utmost effort by Broadley is fascinating[36]. It is the perfect anti-climax to the imperial propaganda. Pictorial satire at its best. Some of my favourites have to be “Britannia weighting the Fate of Europe”, “The Bone A Part in a Fresh Place”, “Boney at Bayonne having a Spanish bubble”, “Napoleon the little in a rage with his great French eagle”, “The Sorrow of Boney at Elba Island”. Each etching has its own story and different versions may exist.
The French civilization is actually in disarray, hence the comparison with Carthage made by the painter Turner[37], who had already made a painting of the famous Battle of Trafalgar as seen at the Tate Gallery. One can also notice a combination of patronage and patriotism alongside a criticism of wasteful wars against Napoleon in the historical and landscapes paintings from Turner[38].
In hindsight the relationship of print publishers, politicians, artists, authors and poets with the actual or feared Napoleonic conquests is far more nuanced that we are led to believe. The spoliation is a search for identity and a rendez-vous with the best works of art approved by the incumbent authorities. Caricatures were also used by Napoleon to defuse his enemies at their own games. I would like to suggest a classification of aesthetic and political heritage perception in the following fashion:

-          Intense foe and/or admiration, including a combination of both: Germany, Great Britain and Italy
-          Resentful invasion: Spain and the Netherlands
-          Mild enemies: Sweden and Switzerland
-          Competitive battle for supremacy: Austria and Russia
-          Strong positive vibes: Poland   
-          Untapped or limited positive vibes: Belgium, Croatia, Hungary and the Czech Republic

Figures 32-37 Caricatures from Napoleon in Caricature (Broadley)
Bonaparte weighting the fate of Europe
Published by William Holland, Bodleian Library & Broadley

Figure 33: Bone-a-part in a fresh place, etched by William Charles [mentioned in Dupuy, Broadley and Ashton in their thesis and books respectively]

Figure 34: The Consular Games - the Game of Brag and - the Game of Hazard
Broadley, part of British Cartoon Prints collection Library of Congress Washington DC at loc.gov,
Bodleian Library and British Museum: Woodward del etched and published by Piercy Roberts of Holborn

Figure 35: Boney at Bayonne blowing a Spanish bubble, etched by Charles Ansell 
Broadley, part of British Cartoon Prints collection Library of Congress Washington DC at loc.gov and image available, published by Thos Tegg of Cheapside

Figure 36: The Tyrant Unmasked
Attributed to artist Jean Baptiste l’Ainé Gautier, Napoleon museum in Arenenberg & Broadley

Figure 37: The Sorrows of Boney, meditations in the Island of St Helena, etched by anonymous,
Broadley and published by McCleary in Dublin, reversed copy of Elba one]

The Sorrows of Boney, meditations in the Island of Elba
British Museum, published by John Wallis

Three Plagues of Europe
o   Original published by Holland attributed to G. M. Woodward by Broadley in his book
o   Adaptation version 1 [part of British Cartoon Prints collection Library of Congress Washington DC at loc.gov or British Museum, drawn by Mr West, published by Roberts of Holborn]
o   Adaptation version 2 [part of John Johnson collection of Political and Satirical prints, published by McCleary in Dublin, Bodleian Library] [vads.ac.uk]


3-     Re-enactments

The Napoleonic industry embraced all crafts from the making of furniture, silverware and carpets to the manufacture of fashionable clothes and military uniform. Ironically, I managed to find my Napoleon outfit in 2013 in a shop in Granollers, which used to be a key city of the Spanish guerrilla against the afrancesados.
There are a lot of events where life under Napoleon’s regime is re-enacted. Such forums are still very popular to the day. I missed the Rambouillet Castle re-enactment early October 2018 because it was sold out. The Waterloo battle bicentenary re-enactments were very crowded and it was very rainy that weekend. I left before the end of the English victory on Day II, which meant that I did not meet for lunch my English work colleague who is fond of Napoleon’s history.
From late 2017 to late 2018 the City of Arras has organized a full 12-month schedule of events in collaboration with the Versailles Castle in relation to the Napoleonic heritage politically and culturally. It would make a lot of sense to investigate further on the outcomes of the symposium events.
Napoleon wielded a significant clout on European cities: the main avenues in Paris are also known as the Marshals boulevards. A large proportion of the Paris metro stations has a direct or indirect relationship with Napoleon. There is a love story[39] between Napoleon and Paris: the best description to date is that of Maurice Guerrini in Napoleon and Paris (1967). He also became master and administrator of his good city. The works in Paris fulfil two objectives: order and power. The great works must be performed to serve my subjects’ interest as well as my own satisfaction[40].
The Return of the Ashes was a huge event. It helped cement the Napoleon mythology including its eight illustrious battles (Aix Island and St Helena exhibition at the Malmaison).
                                                                                                                  

4-     How do authors and artists react?

Authors and artists are either impressed or enraged or able to embody some kind of duplicity towards the character and his clout through art and literature.
Upon reaching the end of the exhibition on Napoleon’s last days at St Helena at the Malmaison, on a flashy dark blue screen visitors can read the following quotation from Henri Heine in Lutèce: « […[ to the liberticide, the Vendemiaire hero, the hugely ambitious  Jupiter  should we have the most lavish funeral and raise Archs of Triumph? No, it is the man who instead epitomised Young France vs Old Europe that should be glorified; the French citizens were the ultimate winners and also humiliated and molested on his behalf, and through him they get to be honoured, celebrated thereby regaining their own pride[41]». This statement struck me because the author mentions the good, bad and the ugly from the historical character. This is an its eloquent praise. It still remains far too emphatic. It is also a much more complex assertion than it appears at first.    
Stendhal was my main inspiration for the Napoleon trip. During the rail journeys across Italy (region of Udine, Milan and the Lombardy, Tuscany, Piedmont) we hopped at many Italian cities which belonged to the Kingdom of Italy from 1805. Such cities suffered from the Napoleonic invasion and yet Stendhal organised his own pilgrimage of places visited by the Emperor[42].  As a young teenager I was lucky enough to purchase a literature magazine which was made of a light pink binder replete with the summary of plays/novels from leading authors. They offered us a free copy of the ‘Le Rouge et le Noir’. I cherish this copy as much as I cherish the English special edition of the ‘The Red and The Black’ (also known as The Scarlet and the Black) which has a typo on Henri Beyle’s name. Julien Sorel, the famous hero of ‘The Red and The Black’ relies heavily on the Napoleon’s aphorisms. This novel was the start of my love story with Stendhal and Napoleon. One famous quote in The Charterhouse of Parma reads as follows: « The general Bonaparte entered Milan as the leader of a young army which crossed the Lodi bridge and made the world aware that, the century-long wait was over: we have now found the heir to Caesar and Alexander»[43]. This is pure idolatry of the imperishable glory of Napoleon and enduring heritage[44]. Whilst Stendhal admitted that «Napoleon was our only religion», he also acknowledged he fell with Napoleon, which shows a more measured devotion.
Alexandre Dumas‘s father having been dishonoured by Napoleon, it is understood and agreed that the author of the novel The Count of Monte Cristo outlines with a lot of malice the equality principle and the benefits of the Napoleon regime (p55) despite the loss of influence (p53). However costly it might be one has to get rid of Napoleon and break the treaties suggests the marquess (p57).  This would immediately madden the Usurper. Fallen « Great Ruler, Hero, semi-God » (p57) whose support divides France (p118).
Napoleon Bonaparte’s biography by Alexandre Dumas does not contain as much irony and satire as his play Napoleon Bonaparte or the 30 years of French History and 23 paintings. Literature serves political interests since Alexandre Dumas resents the lack of respect from Napoleon towards his late father.

Napoleon is THE hegelian hero by definition. « I saw the Emperor – the soul of the world – riding out the city on reconnaissance ; it is indeed a wonderful sensation to see such a person, who, whilst focused on a particular point, astride a horse, reaches out over the world and masters it[45]». The existence of a human being stems from its actions; it is through this action that the individuality is real […] the individual human being is defined by what the action is. It is the concept of a cunning Reason according to Hegel. Napoleon is a great man of actions who revelled to any human being its creative possibilities. More importantly in Elements of the Philosophy of Right and The Reason in History: introduction to the historical philosophy he applauds the events of 18 Brumaire and the Civil Code in a sublime style that few admirers would be jealous of. One would need the German original version in order to assess the deeper influence.
During the 100 Days, former liberal enemy[46] Benjamin Constant, is appointed by Napoleon for the creation of a new Constitution; the basic principle being a change from the absolute sovereignty (of a monarch, an Emperor or even the population) to a relative sovereignty for the census restricted by the respect of others. Villepin[47] does make reference to the role played by Constant in setting up a new philosophical and political framework as Napoleon’s reign draws to an end.
The intensity of Napoleon’s regime propaganda was such that a civil strife could easily be channelled in arts and politics. On the same spot at the Malmaison, one can read that extract from The Military Necessity by Alfred de Vigny: « I belong to this generation born in the early 1800’s, fed by news bulletins from the Emperor, that would always have in front of them a drawn sword, and caught it at the very moment when the Bourbons were back in power in France».
In L’Aiglon by Edmond Rostand there are subtle stylistic patterns aimed at celebrating the Napoleon myth and highlighting its ignominy as it was performed back in 1993 near the Vincennes castle.
Le Génie du Christianisme by Chateaubriand provides a reconciliation of religion with romantics. Atala is the symbol of religious freedom[48]. In Les Mémoires d’Outre-Tombe by Chateaubriand Napoleon Bonaparte is more often vilified than celebrated for his military genius.  Unlike Saint-Louis Napoleon Bonaparte would have poisoned the Jaffa subjects[49]. As a result «Bonaparte is no longer the genuine Bonaparte. It is a legendary figure made up of a poet’s dreams, a soldier’s recollection and tales from the population».

Madame de Staël deploys a courageous criticism of oppressive authority by Napoleon in About Germany. « The emperor of France had subjected all the continental States to such oppression that one feels like being in a Republique as soon as one enters a country where Napoleon’s tyranny is no longer felt».[50]

Goya: a reproduction of atrocities committed by the regime and/or wild exaggeration of behaviours by the afrancesados offset by a latent admiration towards Napoleon. Goya was known to have Godoy as a Maecenas and was initially close to king Joseph. Then he switched allegiance to accommodate the new regime[51].
Beethoven was so disappointed when hearing the proclamation of the Empire that he revoked his apology of Napoleon as heir of the French Revolution heard in his symphony Eroica[52].
Norman Davies appears to express some sort of ire and sadness as to the holistic influence of Napoleon both aesthetically and politically in his well-documented A History of Europe.
 

5-     Historiography and Cinema

Whilst Stanley Kubrick was unable to produce the greatest film ever made on, we are able to identify three types of movies pertaining to the Napoleon’s mythology (see Appendix 2). I was unable to see (to date) the Guitry nor the Abel Gance nor the Bondarchuk movies so it is difficult for me to make an assessment. The historical film director has a complicated roadmap as suggested by Bertrand Tavernier during his interviews with Priska Morrissey[53]. As a percentage of books on the historical character there are not many movies released; why not re-working the dialogues and scenarios from Kubrick and suggest a new movie scenario to director and producer altogether?
Whilst it is understood that there have been more publications on the magnanimous Napoleon Bonaparte to date than the number of days since his death in 1821, there is only a handful of experts on the Napoleonic era: Lentz, Tulard, Lefebvre and Roberts.
Napoleon was pursuing great dreams and was willing to offer his subjects comfort and well-being at the expense of freedom[54]; this is why attachment to the theories and understanding of the real world were guiding principles for statesmen as well as architects, painters and designers. There is a genuine romantic hope in that most sculptures and paintings relating to the Napoleonic era have this immaculate beauty providing some kind of tranquil and peaceful immortality in accordance with the sweetest of political dreams:-
Its loveliness increases ; it will never
Pass into nothingness ; but will still keep
A bower quiet for us, and a sleep
Full of sweet dreams, and health and quiet breathing […] »
Endymion, Keats

Politics under influence


In Thierry Lentz‘s 18 Brumaire the title underneath is ‘Les Coups d’Etat de Napoleon Bonaparte’ and it serves the purpose of showing how a single political event can be read in many different ways.  This is a fascinating journey into a pivotal moment which is often overlooked by historians. It is also the perfect platform for the Good, the Bad and the Ugly analogy. Napoleon did not wait for Nietzsche to lead him ‘beyond good and evil’ in the ‘will to power’[55]; hence Nietzsche called him ‘Ens realissimum’ and the only good product of the Revolution. “The strong are good, the weak are wicked” [56] said the young Bonaparte.
The overwhelming duty of care applied to the political aphorisms from Napoleon accounts for, beyond any positive or negative judgment, a significant influence into the political destiny of France, Europe and other parts of the world.
  

II-                The Political Influence


1-     The new legal framework


Social rights and social rules are codified: the Civil Code is established.  Art to serve politics as confirmed by the allegory painting by Mauzaisse[57]. Provides sanctity of private property and patriarchal family life. Such legal framework also known as the Napoleonic code is still in use nowadays in various countries across Europe. The influence is a legal heritage across Europe.
Land registers are set up and this allows the administrative network arising out of the French Revolution to thrive and collect taxes in a more efficient manner.
Spiritual freedom is offered alongside Gallicanism. He managed to reconcile the Pope with Revolutionary France. Support from the Pope is achieved through the Concordat.  Such an influential breakthrough that artists are here to celebrate the event with astonishing allegories. During the European trip I have seen one allegory painting by an anonymous artist[58], one engraving by Monnet[59] and another one by François[60]. I was captivated by the Anonymous allegory painting at the Malmaison. Visitors suddenly became enlightened.
The res publica[61] is being shaped and challenged thanks to the implementation and distribution of the Legion(s) of Honour. I have at home a hand-made jigsaw representing Napoleon distributing the Legion of Honour[62]. And the Council of State was set up. It was divided in sections to report upon literature, science, legislation, civil, military, naval and ecclesiastical affairs[63]. As the empire grew, the most distinguished men were selected to enrich the council. Both the prestigious medal and the institution are still very much at the heart of today’s French politics.
Business activities must be polarised, hence the desire in setting up a Palais de la Bourse.

2-     Foreign Affairs


a-      The role for France

France started its leadership through the Revolutionary Wars. A new Confederation of the Rhine and Danube is in place. Its size varies very frequently owing to relentless wars and invasions.
In terms of influence and duration I would probably split them in three groups
Hugely influential: Talleyrand, Maret (Duke of Bassano), Caulaincourt
Fairly influential: Colchen, Delacroix, Reinhard,
Not as influential:  Lebrun-Tondu, Deforgues, Buchot, Mangourit, Melito, Champagny, Laforêt

Convention = Lebrun-Tondu / Deforgues / Buchot / Mangourit / Melito / Colchen
Directorate = Delacroix / Talleyrand / Reinhard 
Consulate = Reinhard / Talleyrand
Empire = Talleyrand / Champagny / Maret (Duke of Bassano) / Caulaincourt / Laforêt
First Restauration (Louis XVIII) = Talleyrand
The Hundred days = Caulaincourt
Second Restauration = Talleyrand

There were so many satellite states under French rule and/or the Napoleon’s imperial family and so many rifts with the Allies including Great Britain that French foreign affairs ministers had to maintain softly the diplomatic hegemony. 
In placing members of his family on foreign thrones, French interests were supposed to prevail.
As a former Foreign Office minister, Villepin was always eager to promote the interests of France. When Villepin wrote ‘100 days of sacrifice’ a couple of years later, the analogy between the statesmen was nothing short of a palimpsest.

An aesthetic ethos created by artists supports national identity and colonialism[64]. The Directorate set a precedent[65] in choosing imperial expansion in the East to quell internal divisions. France surrendered militarily to the British in August 1801 whereas the scientific and academic collective work set in the Description of Egypt confirms the nascent Egyptology led by France.

The deployment of France’s culture is based on the three interlocking strategies[66] of historical memories, moral contrasts (clash of civilization) and scientific postures. Art serves power: Napoleon commissioned a monumental history painting of the Battle of Nazareth, and Gros was the winner of such Napoleonic salons contest. Lejeune’s Battle of Mount Tabor clearly identifies the religious (Christian) imperialism. The Battle of Aboukir by Gros[67] deploys all three strategies. Vincent, Hennequin and Lejeune developed the same interlocking theme with the Battle of the Pyramids[68].
In other words, the salvation of France is through the return from Egypt (Franque’s Allegory of the Condition of France before the return from Egypt, 1810). A couple of years after Napoleon’s death Gros painted The Genius of France animating the Arts and succouring Humanity. This is the pictorial evidence of diplomatic and messianic missions by France as a leading nation in the pursuit of political grandeur and the defence of human rights.

In my teenage years I read the Jean Tulard books on Napoleon[69] whereas in early March one year whilst at the Lycée I purchased at the eponymous Salon du Livre one book from Thierry Lentz[70]. What struck to my mind in their books was the diplomatic jigsaw.  Tulard is known to have made the history of Napoleon accessible to everyone, which in turn means that he had a tendency to over-simplify his argumentation. In hindsight I should aim at doing the comparative analysis of their extended bibliographies using art and international politics/foreign policy as influence mechanisms.

The ultimate goal is a healthy rivalry with England. As the continental embargo failure became evident, the pax mercanti must have taken place. Mutual respect is key.

Europe shaped by the French Revolution ignites the nationalisms in Prussia, Italy[71] as well as Austria and Illyria for different reasons.
It was the first great object of Napoleon, immediately upon his accession to power to reconcile France with Europe, and to make peace with all the world[72]. France was weary of war, science of destruction. She needed to recover from the turmoil of revolution.

My European trip must be outside Russia as it was not covered by my monthly InterRail Global pass. The intent was to do the key treaties in reverse order.
Europe shaped by the Treaties (BACALUAPRESTIVIPAPA)
Basle
Campo-Formio, near Udine
Luneville
Amiens
Presburg (Bratislava)
Tilsit (Oblast Kaliningrad in Russia)
Vienna
Paris
Paris


The coalitions were often divided but a growing hostility towards Napoleon and his representatives is pervasive. Bilateral treaty signed in Paris in 1806 acknowledging the independence of Holland was not complied with by France. As for the Kingdom of Italy, its independence set in the Presburg Treaty was not respected by France either.
The political differences between the Czar and the Emperor which had led to the Ertfurt meeting were so far adjusted, that the sovereigns parted at least in apparent friendship. There were genuine geopolitical matters still at stake (Turkey, Poland, Finland, Sweden). Napoleon was forced to soften some of his speeches towards Russia as they must have caused some diplomatic rows at the time.
When I travelled from Ulm to Salzburg then onto Vienna, I was shocked by the hefty accommodation prices of the Austrian capital (whether hostals or hotels). I did walk through the city center close to the main railway station at around 22.45 but was unable to walk towards the Schönbrunn palace. It was also too late to attend the Vienna Tourist Center. Austerlitz which is located in the Czech Republic is a short train ride away but I was not in a position to sleep over in Vienna. I therefore decided to procrastinate the Wien to Brno then onto Slavkok u Brna. Instead I caught the last train to Presburg (Bratislava) just before 1 am. The railway station surroundings are those of a derelict city and the new skycrapers a few miles on the left of a highway bridge looked like the false dawn of capitalism. As I was getting tired the light rain and breeze kept me awake until the railway station re-opened.
Then I was in a position to head back to Vienna. From there I went to Salzburg then Villach then Udine. The next day I then travelled to Venice, Verona and Milan. A 3-hour delay for the train to Livorno led to a sleepless night hopping on the first train for Piombino Maritimo and a frantic rush to board an early ferry to Elba Island.
Depending on the artist allegiance, the atmosphere of meetings with Metternich was brutally different. Similarly, the welfare initiatives in Venice were overshadowed by looting and a plethora of murders by the French soldiers.
As Stendhal and the Army of Italy did, I travelled from Milan to Turin via Alessandria, which is home to the Marengo (battlefield) museum. I was unable to visit the museum in the middle of the night but I was struck by the city’s architecture richness.
     
Europe is shaped by the Imperial Nobility[73]. The Emperor took another step forward towards a new aristocracy conferring titles upon his relatives, his marshals[74], certain administrative officers and outstanding savants.
Europe is also shaped by the extended family dynasty. One can mention the various portraits of the Imperial family ruling over Europe by Appiani: from a young Bonaparte commanding the Army of Italy in 1797 to Napoleon, king of Italy, Napoleon’s stepson Eugene de Beauharnais, Josephine de Beauharnais, Paolina Bonaparte Borghese. The perfect family portrait was the Coronation by David[75].
One can also mention the destinies of the three Napoleon’s sisters[76]: Elisa, Pauline and Caroline, Italian queens and symbol of the Europe in construction.  And he has established a dynasty across Europe whose biographies are fascinating as outlined in The Napoleon dynasty (1853) by Charles Edwards Lester.  Napoleon was keen to divorce Josephine with a view to form an alliance with the most ancient and noble reigning family in Europe (i.e. Austria) through marriage to Maria Luisa, having been exposed to a refusal by the czar’s sister.

His political ideal was a federation of European or Continental states governed in their external relations from Paris as the capital of the world. In that “Association Européenne” all the component states would have the same money, weight, measures, and basic laws, with no political barriers to travel, transport and trade[77]. The Napoleonic Europe was a federal Europe of vassal states because they were often arbitrary annexed (for example sixteen new departments to the Empire by a single decree such as that of 16th of June 1811).
A trip to the Napoleonic European cities is a gloomy journey of decay and loss of the very virtues most cherished by men. This is probably why most people were fairly indifferent and appeared reluctant to talk with me when I was wearing the Napoleon outfit underneath my coat on trains throughout Europe.
However, had I gone to Austerlitz (Slavkok u Brna), I would have been mighty close to the free city of Krakow, one of the gems in European culture, and home to the Men’s European handball championships in 2016. Polish soldiers have been instrumental to maintain Napoleon’s influence across Europe, including during his exile at the Elba Island. The national Polish (Dabrowski’s Mazurka) anthem includes an ode to Napoleon:  «Bonaparte showed us the way / The manner in which we have to win battles» [«Dał nam przykład Bonaparte jak zwyciężać mamy»].


The Russian Retreat is a woeful itinerary for the grognards from the Grande Armée.
The terrible meltdown in Spain for Napoléon requires a hasty retreat and some re-adjustments are required. Napoleon at St Helena [78]said: “I embarked very badly on the Spanish affair, I confess: the immorality of it was too patent, the injustice too cynical, and the whole thing wears an ugly look since I have fallen; for the attempt is only seen its hideous nakedness, deprived of all majesty and of many benefits which completed my intention”. It is worth noting that the servile legislative body was reluctant to support the Spanish invasion. The train which I boarded at Avila stopped for a few minutes in Valladolid. The dark clouds were reminiscent of the short stay by Napoleon before he fled hastily Spain, which meant that he could not envisage any British conquest. At Apsley House we can see an engraving celebrating the British victory at Talavera. The Wellington statue and the Wellington Arch near Hyde Park Corner reminded me of the intriguing book by Andrew Roberts Napoleon and Wellington where one discovers that they had a lot in common. Ironically Wellington spent 52 years (number of years Napoleon was alive) of the 19th century.

The TGV from Paris to Hendaye stops at Bayonne but I was unable to stop there. The confidential letters[79] between May and June 1808 from Napoleon to his brother Joseph were written from Bayonne. The journey must be secret as set in letter 384 dated 11 May 1808. Clear instructions from Napoleon appear in letter 386 dated 16 June 1808: ‘you must speak of the sorrow with which you are filled by the disturbances in Spain, and of your regret at being obliged to obtain by a forcible repression a result which should have been produced by reason and conviction alone’. There is a large number of letters dated July 1808 from Napoleon detailing the military tactics, the funding of Joseph’s expedition and the journey leading locations (namely Burgos and Vitoria). Irún is mentioned as a sleep to-night stop landmark; I also stopped at Irún in a spacious old-fashioned hotel on my way back to France after a few days in Salamanca. Letter 401 dated 18 July 1808 shows a wary and struggling Joseph which led to Napoleon’s wrath. At the end of letter 746 dated 20 February 1812 in Volume 2 Napoleon recalls the importance of Salamanca as a fortress.
Vitoria, which was one of various stops during the Sud Express (Hendaye to Lisboa) journey, is the seat of the Basque Autonomous Community Parliament and government nowadays; in the Napoleonic era the battle of Vitoria gave hopes to millions of subjects across Europe that Napoleon’s army was not invincible and the rising of nations should flourish.
In The Fall of Napoleon, an historical memoir, Mitchell unveils a scathing attack on the propaganda of historians who tend to over-estimate the role played by Napoleon during the Revolutionary wars and the Directorate whilst they seem to omit the ignominy of its early expeditions in Italy and Egypt and Middle East. He explains how “the ignoble man was arrogant in prosperity and weak in adversity”. He is also appalled at the inadequate statements and historical accounts from Thiers in his biography of Napoleon. He loathes the comparison with Hannibal’s expedition. His flight to the Opera from the dreadful scenes on rue Saint Nicaise does not go down very well either. He contends that “Napoleon chose to be the world’s oppressor when he might have been its benefactor”. Gigantic rhodomontade from a despot. He goes on to contend that Napoleon was of less genius and more savage than Tiberius as depicted by Tacitus.
Hostile historians are therefore stigmatized him and the contradictory views of Napoleon are astonishing. Abbott in his preface eloquently explains why he reveres the historical and political character. He then simplifies the judgement based on answers given to the following three questions:
-Did Napoleon usurp the sovereignty of France?
-Having attained the supreme power, was he a tyrant, devoting that power to the promotion of his own selfish aggrandizement?
-Were the wars in which he was incessantly engaged provoked by his arrogance?

Called to the throne by the voice of the people, a career open to talent?

The American author goes on to contend if the power he loved was the power of elevating the multitude to intelligence, self-respect and comfort, he could be compared with Washington[80]. 
“Of all the libels and pamphlets with which the English ministers have inundated Europe, there is not one that which will reach posterity […] my victories and my works of public improvement are the only response which it becomes me to make”[81]

I was supposed to be on a cruise to St Helena on the 4th November instead I was the happy guest of a surprise dinner at the famous Parisian salon the Café Procope. A Bonaparte’s habit[82]!

  

4-     Revolution or counter-revolution(s)?

a-      Preserve the Revolution landmarks

Territorial Limits of constituencies established under the Directorate and the Constituante are preserved. Their enlargement stems from the conquests.
Adherence to the revolutionary principles applies to the following:-
o   Equality before taxes / law is consolidated
o   Universal Suffrage
o   Separation of powers (executive, legal, judiciary)
o   Sale of Biens Nationaux
o   Repression of the vendéens

Monetary stability is spurred by the raw data of politics. Following the Amiens peace treaty the Franc Germinal is created. The monopoly of money issuance by the Banque de France is drastically controlled.
A Consular declaration dated 15 December 1800: «The revolution is rooted in its original principles; it is ended»[83].

b-      Contrasting priorities and outcomes

Roberts states that concepts such as liberty, equality and fraternity cannot co-exist. I call this the axiom Liberty Equality Fraternity of Andrew Roberts. This is the impossible triangle. Hence the following assertion: ‘a society can be formed around two of them, but never all three’[84].
-          If liberty and equality are rigidly adhered to then fraternity suffers as a result
-          If equality and fraternity are complied with then it leads to the disappearance of liberty
-          If liberty and fraternity co-operate then it will be at the expense of equality
-          Conversely extreme equality annihilates liberty and fraternity
«If I were to choose between the old monarchy and the Jacobin misrule I should infinitely prefer the former. […] He judged that France needed an imposing throne, supported by an illustrious nobility, and by a standing army of invincible power, with civil privilege cautiously and gradually disseminated among the people»[85].
From a Consulate shared into three statesmen to Consul for life. Napoleon is therefore an enlightened autocrat[86].
“Bourgeois Revolution” yet Imperial nobility and Imperial dynasty. The preservation of the symbols of kingly representation preserved the visual configuration of social hierarchy whilst suggesting that commoners could aspire to the apex of the pyramid[87]. The establishment of an imperial nobility in 1808 with hereditary titles and landed estates was a flagrant breach of the revolutionary principle of equality.[88] Napoleon envisaged that his dynasty had acquired the sanction of legitimacy after the coronation in 1804, his Austrian marriage and the birth of the King of Rome. Stendhal concedes that Napoleon made the mistake of all parvenus as the monarchical principle had died with Louis XVI and the bourgeoisie might be prepared to accept a temporary Napoleonic dictatorship, but sooner or later they would demand a share in the government.
As part of his political marketing he does make the shrewd move of royalists’ absolution or amnesty leading to the return of emigrates[89], which is in stark contrast with his duties during the Directorate.
Education is enhanced but oppressive elitism and discipline apply[90] (Lycée(s) and Grandes Ecoles including Ecole Polytechnique).
The electoral census is limited to men with nobility, thereby diminishing the impact of the universal suffrage.
The appointment of priests and bishops by Napoleon is a mixture of refractory religious leaders and priests or bishops close to Robespierre’s disciples. The State still exerts an influence on the religion. The new Imperial Catechism led by Portalis on behalf of the Emperor is ready to challenge the Holy Empire and feed the rising generation with the Imperial ideas and authoritarian religious instruction[91].
When the Pope refused to enforce the continental blockade, he occupied the Papal States in February 1808. The arrest of the Pope in the Vatican probably went beyond his instructions.

The patronage system drastically limits local autonomy and self-government.
The conscription is brutal because it is made difficult to escape and the relentless military battles are sanguinary.
In spite of his lucid intelligence and his passion for facts there were fatal limits to Napoleon’s political insight, and contradictions in his policy which he was unable to see or unwilling to resolve[92].
The Hundred Days are an illusion of power and the Congress of Vienna heralds a new era as outlined by Henry Kissinger[93] and Norman Davies[94]. The Warwick university achieved through its online exhibition one of my wildest dreams. We get to be closer to the epic journey undertaken by Napoleon through 100 works of art or memorabilia. I would have loved to do the same for this on-going European assessment. The defection of various marshals, the growing fits of rage from the citizens, the demise of his imperial dynasty, the Industrial Revolution, the influence of Britain in the psyche of European politics made the return of a statesman as a misfit. It is an ugly end but actually Britain handled the case in the main very gently. 

c-      Frail legitimacy of a tyrant dilapidating the République?


He embodies the Revolution but sets himself free from it (‘masses de granite’); politics is fate. By a sort of manoeuvre, Goethe responded to Napoleon.[95]

I enjoyed reading Napoleon by Lefebvre because he is a well-respected historian who has highlighted the good, the bad and the ugly of the general, the Consul, the Emperor or the fallen sovereign.
I was barely 15 years old when I got to know the influential play Cinna by Corneille. Grant[96] eloquently mentions the following quote with a bit of irony towards Napoleon:
«César tu vas règner. Voici le jour auguste
Où le peuple romain pour toi toujours injuste»
   
He has set a dictatorial regime with oppressive authority. There is a machiavelic dimension to his political regime. It is understood that he had studied Machiavelli: an annotated copy of The Prince was found in his carriage at Waterloo [97]. Enemies are liquidated manu militari (murder of Duke of Enghien, arrest of Stapz and the list goes on[98]). Freedom of speech/media does not exist. Censorship applies. The Moniteur is a major propaganda vehicle.
The deference to the First Consul was questioned by a minority of magnanimous artists: patriotic Canova considered that Bonaparte was an oppressor of Italy and  that time-honoured treasures of Rome were now in the hands of strangers, as a result he initially denied to execute the bust but then obeyed as a slave obeys his master.[99]
The loss of liberties reaches a climax owing to the international triangular commerce whereby slavery is picking up again. This occurs following the enactment of slavery under a decree dated 20 May 1802. There are revolts in the colonies. However, an imperial decree dated 29 March 1815 would abolish the trade slavery.
Karl Marx wrote the 18th Brumaire of Louis Bonaparte and the analogy clearly identifies the Napoleonic regime as an absolute tragedy. Friedrich Engels wrote from Manchester in 1851 letters to Karl Marx using a very aggressive language towards the Napoleonic political events.
Napoleon indicated that he was the apostle of free masonry and his influence in that regard was there for all to see at the archives of the Civil War in Salamanca as half of their permanent exhibition is dedicated to the history of free masonry. How spooky!
Despite his huge popularity and glory, he is the main subject of multiple caricatures. His name is “little Boney”. The Oxford Bodleian Library back in 2004, the British Museum back in March 2015 and the History Museum of Arras in 2018 have highlighted the taunts towards the fallen Usurper through engravings, sketches and drawings.


Nationibus               Bona
Auctoritatem           Usurpavit
Principibus               Omnium
Obedientiam            Neutrorum
Libertatem               Aurum
Ecclesiae                   Populorum
Omni Modo              Animas
Negans                      Revera
                                   Tyrannus
                                   Execrandus


Differences between Napoleon in caricature and caricatures of the Napoleonic era shall apply: the latter is broader in scope and can be less pernicious. It is the laughter of art.

Sketches are mainly provided by Rowlandson, Gillray, Woodward or the two Cruikshanks. For copyright reasons, an academic license along a standard wording is required for the reproduction of the Gillray etchings pertaining to the National Portrait Gallery collection. The prodigious wealth of political aphorisms in the colour etchings relate to actual or feared consequences of the
napoleonization in Europe and Britain. I visited the Heinz archive library in order to feel such gems with a special smell, exquisite detailed calligraphy and colourful contrasts stored in large green boxes. I relied upon three visits taking as many pictures[102] as I could. The prestigious opportunity offsets the inability to access (again) both the British Museum and the Washington DC Library of Congress collections. The
draughtsman works of art were also seen in several books read at the V&A Art library including my sister’s present  Napoleon and the invasion of Britain, Franklin and Philp (2003), Ed. Bodleian Library. Broadley, Ashton, Bryant, Dupuy, Semmel and Godfrey have led me to believe that historians and the research community have not always explored caricatures and satires to their full potential and lasting legacy. London became a political magnet for fans of our hero Gillray and anyone nostalgic for Napoleon’s policies.

From a political influence standpoint, a cross-sectional analysis of sketches prevailing at the time in France, Germany, Russia, Italy, Spain, Holland, Switzerland or Scandinavia would actually give us a better idea of the extent by which the subjects could democratically express their opinion or criticisms in Europe and outside the United Kingdom. I have already noticed a latent secrecy in the sources of Spanish items which I would like to unlock. I am keen to get a personal feel as to the untold stories belonging to museum and libraries in Berlin.


In his work Die Karikatur der Europäishen Völker, Edward Fuchs cites as a proof of Napoleon’s peculiar sensitiveness to satire, the fact that in 1802 he desired to introduce into the draft of the Treaty of Amiens a clause providing that persons who ventured to ridicule his person and policy should be treated as murderers or forgers, and be liable to extradition.

The most telling or compelling political influence is in the United Kingdom where the premiership of William Pitt is challenged by authors and statesmen who converge to a balanced opinion of Napoleon,

Little Nap is having a nap
Good news for his European subjects
Thereupon Corsican despot so abject
Has influence cut to tiny map.



The variety and ubiquity of Napoleonic aesthetic symbols across Europe alongside the Bonapartist heritage in Europe are artistic and political influences in today’s world.
Whilst experience could hardly teach him the imperative necessity of concord, he only made war from political necessity from the compulsion of circumstances.
Whilst art was prosperous under his sponsorship and stewardship, he also contributed to the destruction and looting of eternal jewels across the conquered European territories.
His imperial dynasty angered diplomatically Austria, Russia and Britain whilst he aimed at setting up a network of European states sharing the same currency and laws.
His duplicity comes from his complex relationship with the French revolution and the contradictions in his internal and international affairs.
Hostile artists and fervent admirers are equally convincing as long as they rely on the true facts and trustworthy sources. Otherwise the influence is a distortion which has artistic and political consequences. 
To wrap this around I feel that I should commit myself to look at six subjects in greater detail:
·    The Louvre looting and recovery (that of other museums/galleries where applicable)
·       Comparative analysis of Tulard and Lentz books
·       Comparative analysis of military, aesthetic and political influences of marshals and brothers of Napoleon
·       Comparative analysis of foreign affairs ministers as to their influence and their handling of rising nationalisms
·       European countries where caricature and satire on Napoleon and his policies were produced and displayed
·       Scenario and dialogues for a Napoleon movie

I also noticed there would always be a significant number of locations associated positively or negatively with Napoleon which I have not visited as of yet.



Appendix 1 TYPOLOGY of marshals of imperial nobility


List of 26 Imperial marshals [1804-1815] (based on historyofwar.org)
Augereau (1757 - 1816) Duke of Castiglione
Bernadotte (1763 - 1844) Prince and Duke of Ponto-Corvo, later King Charles XIV of Sweden
Berthier (1753 - 1815) Prince of Neuchâtel and Prince of Wagram
Bessières (1768 - 1813) Duke of Istria
Brune (1763 - 1815) held prestigious diplomatic and military positions but was never a Duke nor a Prince
Davout (1770 - 1823) Duc of Auerstadt, prince of Eckmuhl
Gouvion Saint-Cyr (1764 - 1830) Count of the Empire in 1808. Later Marquis de St Cyr in 1817.
Grouchy (marquis de) (1766 - 1847) Count of the Empire
Jourdan (1762 - 1833) Never a Duke nor a Prince
Kellermann (1735 - 1820) Duke of Valmy
Lannes (1769 - 1809) Duke of Montebello
Lefebvre (1755 - 1820) Duke of Dantzig
MacDonald (1765 - 1840) Duke of Tarento
Marmont (1774 - 1852) Duke of Ragusa
Masséna (1758 - 1817) Duke of Rivoli, prince of Essling
Moncey (1754 - 1842) Duke of Covegliano
Mortier (1768 - 1835) Duke of Tréviso
Murat (1767 - 1815) Grand Duke of Berg et de Clèves, King of Naples
Ney (1769 - 1815) Duke of Elchingen, prince of Moskowa
Oudinot (1767 - 1847) Duke of Reggio
Pérignon (marquis of Grenada) (1754 - 1818) Count of the Empire in 1811
Poniatowski (1763 - 1813) Prince of Holy Empire
Sérurier (1742 - 1819) Count of the Empire
Soult (1769 - 1851) Duke of Dalmatia
Suchet (1770 - 1826) Duke of Albufera
Victor (1764 - 1841) Duke of Belluna

Appendix 2 Napoleon movies


Austerlitz 

1960
Abel Gance
Napoleon
1927
Abel Gance
Napoleon
1955
Sacha Guitry
Adieu Bonaparte
1985
Youssef Chahine
War and Peace
1966
Sergey Bondarchuk
Waterloo
1970
Sergey Bondarchuk


Appendix 3    Cities or places visited


Day 1 Brussels - Bruges (The Damme Canal) - Antwerp - Liège - Maastricht
Day 2 Augsburg - Ulm - Munich – Salzburg - Vienna
Day 10 Basel - Dusseldörf - Koblenz
Day 5 Elba Island (Portoferraio - Lacona - Rio Marina - Cavo)
Day 26/27 Fouras - Aix Island - Rochefort
Day 3 Vienna - Bratislava (Presburg)
Day 10 near Brienne
Day 11 Luxemburg (from the train) - Nancy
Day 11 Lunéville
Day 8 Paris (from the outside only - Invalides, Carrousel Arch, Louvre Museum)
Day 8 Paris (from the outside only - Saint-Roch church, Notre Dame)
Day 21 Paris (Marmottan Museum, Rivoli Street, Concorde Plaza, Tuileries, Vendome Column)
Day 35 Paris (Procope)
Day 25 Saint-Cloud
Day 29 Castle of the Malmaison
Day 12 Fontainebleau Castle
Day 3/4 Udine (Campo-Formio)
Day 5 Livorno
Day 6 Piombino
Day 7 Alessandria (Marengo) and its region
Day 7 Turin
Day 4/7 Milan
Day 4 Venice
Day 4 Verona (Arcola)
Day 16/17/18/19 Salamanca
Day 19 Valladolid
Day 19 Avila
Day 16/19 Vitoria
Day 41 London (Apsley House / Wellington Museum)
Day 60 London (National Portrait Gallery Heinz Archive Library)


Appendix 4 Places not yet visited nor re-visited


Autun
Montereau
Brienne le Château – Military Museum
Pontivy
Châteauroux
Rome – Napoleonico Museum
Albenga
Altare
Balestrino
Boissano
Borghetto Santo Spirito
Capraia
Cengio
Cherasco
Cosseria
Dego
La Maddalena
Loano
Mantova
Pontinvrea
Santa Teresa
Savona
Torresina
Dubrovnik
La Valette
Kaliningrad Oblast (Tilsitt)
Kaliningrad Oblast (Eylau)
Kaliningrad Oblast (Friedland)
Vilnius
Borodino
Boleslawiec
Klodzko
Vienne – Schönbrunn Palace
Vienna – Deutsch Wagram
Grossbeeren
Hanau
Hövelhof
Kassel
Mainz
Auerstedt (Iéna)
Bailen
Park of Bois Preau                [already visited]
Ajaccio - Napoleon birthplace    [already visited]
Bocognano
Calvi                    [already visited]
Corte                   [already visited]            
Perinaldo
Zuccarello
Paris (Invalides)              [already visited]
Paris (National Archives Museum)
Paris (Louvre Museum) [already visited]
Paris (Carnavalet Museum)
Laffrey
Valence              [already visited]
Montmirail
RN7 (Napoleon’s Road)
Monaco - Antibes - Grasse - Vallauris - Toulon
Versailles Castle et Grand Trianon          [already visited]
Rambouillet Castle
Castle of Grosbois
Compiègne Castle
Amiens
Seclin
Boulogne s/ Mer
Castle of the Pommerie
Colpo
Coudekerque-Branche
Millesimo
Anvers (Meir Palace)
Luxembourg      [already visited]
Arenenberg (Suisse)
Aranjuez
Ciudad Rodrigo
Fuentes de Onoro
Granada             [already visited]
Lerma (Burgos)
Mostoles (Spain)
Zaragoza            [already visited]
Ucles
Almeida (Portugal)
Torres Vedras (Portugal)
Battle of France and Belgium
Fleurus
Charleroi
Sombreffe - Ligny
Wavre
Ferme du Caillou (Waterloo) - Braine l’Alleud [already visited]
Saint Helena (French Domain)
                    

Appendix 5 Bibliography

 

Institutions


The Napoleon Foundation: History website in English and in French http://www.napoleon.org
The Napoleon Foundation: Archives and Napoleonic documents  http://www.napeolonica.org
http://www.napoleoncities.eu and destinations «Napoleon The Magazine»
http://www.napoleon-empire.net

 

Journals

Revue des études napoléoniennes

 

Virtual Libraries


https://www.musees-nationaux-malmaison.fr/musees-napoleonien-africain/phototheque/oeuvres
Bibliography of the Napoleon Foundation http://www.napoleon.org
Sketches, engravings, paintings relating to Napoleon Bonaparte at London’s National Portrait Gallery (NPG)  http://www.npg.org.uk

Books


Napoleon in Caricature [1795-1821] in two volumes, Broadley & Holland Rose (1910), Ed. John Lane, The Bodley Head
English Caricature and Satire on Napoleon I, John Ashton (1884)
Napoleonic Wars in Cartoons, Mark Bryant (2009), Ed. Grub Street

Bonaparte and the British: Prints and Propaganda in the age of Napoleon, T. Clayton and S. O’Connell (2015), Ed. The British Museum Press
Napoleon and the British, Stuart Semmel, Ed. Yale University Press
100 Days of Sacrifice, Villepin (2001), Ed. Librairie Académique Perrin
Le 18 Brumaire, les coups d’Etat de Napoléon Bonaparte, Lentz (1997), Ed. Jean Picollec
Napoleon, Lefebvre (1935)
Napoleon the Great, Andrew Roberts (2014), Ed. Penguin Books
Napoleon and Wellington, Andrew Roberts (2002), Ed. Phoenix Press
The Napoleon dynasty, Charles Edwards Lester (1853)
The History of Napoleon Bonaparte, John S C Abbott (1855)
The Fall of Napoleon, the final betrayal, David Hamilton Williams (1994), Ed. Arms and Armour Press
Art in the age of Bonapartism, Boime (1990), Ed. University of Chicago Press
Napoleon and the artists, Hamil Grant (1917), Ed. Grant Richards, London
Napoleon and his artists, Timothy Wilson-Smith (1996), Ed. Constable, London
L’art sous la Révolution et l’Empire en France, 1789-1815: architecture, sculpture, peinture et arts appliqués, Louis Hautecoeur (1953), Ed. Guy Le Prat, Paris
“The Confidential Correspondence of Napoleon Bonaparte with his brother Joseph, some time King of Spain” (1855)(English translation)
War and Peace in an age of upheaval 1793-1830, Edited by C. W. Crawley (1965), Vol IX in The New Cambridge Modern History, Ed. Cambridge University Press
The Age of Napoleon, A History of European Civilization from 1789 to 1815, Will and Ariel Durant (1975), Part XI in The Story of Civilization, Ed. Simon and Schuster
 Napoléon et Paris, Maurice Guerrini (1967)

 

Essays


https://www.napoleon.org/histoire-des-2-empires/articles/napoleon-heros-hegelien/
Comprendre l’Histoire, Spécial Napoleon 1er, August 2018 (129 pages)
Histoire Magazine, Napoléon de l‘intime à la légende, October-November 2018 (98 pages)
Murat et la question italienne de 1815, Dufourcq (1898) Mélanges de l’école française de Rome pp207-270


Appendix 6 Illustrations

For copyright reasons both my personal pictures at the locations visited and that of well-known caricatures and paintings have been removed from this essay. The latest version of this essay dates back from 30th December 2018. The English blog version is dated 31st January 2019.

Whilst authorities in Great Britain are fairly open-minded on the matter, the French authorities appear more prescriptive. This essay is a personal research. For a seamless reading I needed to keep within the blog version both the schedule of illustrations and the descriptive layout of some caricatures. 



·       Corbet - Bust of General Bonaparte
·       Gros - Bonaparte haranguing the troops before the battle of the Pyramids
·       Gros - Bonaparte at the Arcola bridge
·       Montorgueil - Bonaparte
·       Canova - Napoleon as Mars the peacemaker
·       David - Napoleon on a prancing horse on the Grand Saint Bernard mountain
·       Vigneux - Portrait of Bonaparte
·       Janssens - Napoleon as Cesar
·       Description of the Egypt
·       Guerin - Napoleon pardoning the rebels in Cairo
·       Dabos - Portrait of the Emperor
·       Lefevre - Portrait of Napoleon
·       Greek amphora showing Napoleon curing the sick
·       Gros - Napoleon at the battle of Eylau
·       Auzou - The arrival of Empress Maria Luisa at Compiegne
·       Du Vigneau – Napoleon and his women at the Malmaison
·       Gros - General Bonaparte visiting the Pesthouse at Jaffa
·       Teapot porcelain representing the Emperor
·       Girodet - Napoleon in his coronation robes and the Civil Code
·       Imperial costume
·       Gerard - Joseph Bonaparte, King of Spain
·       Brongniart (collective work) - Table of Austerlitz
·       Maria Luisa wedding celebrations
·       Carle Vernet - A promenade in the park of St Cloud
·       18 Brumaire Coup d’Etat
·       Saint-Cloud snapshot
·       A beer legacy at Elba island
·       Hennequin - Napoleon distributing the Legion of Honour crosses at the Boulogne camp on 16 August 1804
·       Caricature showing the Bonaparte rule in Egypt Great Britain sought to avoid
·       Drawing evidencing the Emperor’s influence to posterity despite Waterloo
·       Family medallion taken to St Helena by Napoleon
·       Caricature - Britannia weighting the Fate of Europe
·       Caricature - The Bone A Part in a Fresh Place
·       Caricature - Consular Games
·       Caricature - Boney at Bayonne having a Spanish bubble
·       Caricature - Le Tyran démasqué
·       Caricature - The Sorrow of Boney at Elba Island
·       Waterloo bicentenary re-enactments
·       Milan and the battle of Lodi in Rome, Naples and Florence by Stendhal
·       Carle Vernet - The crossing of the bridge of Lodi
·       Goya - 3rd of May 1808
·       Goya - 2nd of May 1808
·       Satirical Alexandre Dumas play
·       Mauzaisse - Napoleon crowned by the Time writes the Civil Code
·       Anonymous - Allegory of the Concordat
·       Gros - Battle of Aboukir
·       Lejeune - Battle of the Pyramids
·       Franque - Allegory of the Condition of France before the return from Egypt
·       The convention of Alessandria
·       Satirical poetry - Triumph of Europe over Bonaparte
·       Map of the French Empire in 1809
·       The Napoleon’s army in Krakow
·       The Battle of Vitoria and Salamanca as a fortress
·       Revolutionary principles and Bonaparte dynasty questioned
·       David - Army oath to the Emperor after the distribution of Eagles
·       Peace breeds science and arts
·       Imperial Catechism Allegory
·       In Memoriam
·       Napoleon’s office at Elba Island
·       Gerard - Napoleon’s coffin at St Helena
·       The Vendome Column (special effects)
·       Bouvier - The 8 epic battles
·       Les Invalides
·       Appiani - Portrait of Desaix
·       Prud’hon - Venus and Adonis
·       Isabey - Napoleon and Oberkampf
·       Fontaine - The crossing of the Danube before Wagram
·       Girodet - Ossian receiving the spirits of French heroes
·       Turner - The Battle of Trafalgar
·       François - Allegory of the Concordat of 1801
·       Monnet - Napoleon meeting the Pope at Fontainebleau on 25 November 1804
·       Gros - Battle of Nazareth
·       Lejeune - Battle of Mount Tabor
·       Vincent - Battle of the Pyramids
·       Hennequin - Battle of the Pyramids
·       Gros - The Genius of France animating the Arts and succouring Humanity
·       David - The Coronation
·       Appiani - General Bonaparte commanding the Army of Italy in 1797
·       Appiani - Napoleon, king of Italy



[1]Delacroix, E. (1938) The Journal of Eugene Delacroix, trans. Walter Pach, London, Jonathan Cape. See also page xxv of preface in Napoleon and his artists by Wilson-Smith
[2] This is my unapproved translation of a quotation displayed at the Malmaison for an exhibition called ‘Napoleon at St Helena’ and belongs to “Une conversation entre onze heures et minuit”, Contes bruns, Honoré de Balzac (1832)
[3] The first journey was eventually limited to 31 days in October 2018. The month of November is mainly spent for the academic research at the Victoria & Albert (V&A) Art Library.
[4] Ars longa, vita brevis
[6] The comic is called ‘Bonaparte’ by G Montorgeuil (1910), Ed. Boivin
[7] The list of sculptors and the type of material may not be provided here.
[8] The lady in charge of tickets was not there so entry was free. The entrance was exceptionally by the main door. I had waited for 15 minutes knocking on the rear garden door. I spent 90 minutes in the museum taking a lot of pictures.
[9] Despite wearing a very hot Napoleon uniform I had no issue with security. The poor lighting inside the palace was detrimental to my pictures
[10] pp39-41 in Art in the age of Bonapartism, Boime (1990)
[11] Preliminary Note in Napoleon and the Artists, Hamil Grant (1917)
[12] See Volume 1 of The fall of Napoleon, an historical memoir, John Mitchell (1845)
[13] Pictures are not allowed at the venue (Apsley House). I purchased an English Heritage guidebook for GBP 5
[14] This was the main residence of Napoleon at Portoferraio.
[15]p164 in Napoleon and his artists, Wilson-Smith (1996)
[16]p163 in Napoleon and his artists, Wilson-Smith (1996)
[17] See figure 16 Du Vigneau did the painting. One of my favourite pictures of the whole trip.
[19] Please be aware that there are various versions of this painting by the same artist.
[20] p59 in L’art sous la Révolution et l’Empire en France, Hautecoeur (1953)
[21] Napoleon was, as a sponsor, very selective in his glorification appointment. For example his declinature towards Junot. See p96 in L’art sous la Révolution et l’Empire en France, 1789-1815: architecture, sculpture, peinture et arts appliqués, Hautecoeur (1953). I have noticed that the words ‘le Directoire’ visible on the front cover are removed from the book’s main title as if to augment Napoleon’s influence.
[22] pp23-24 in L’art sous la Révolution et l’Empire en France, 1789-1815: architecture, sculpture, peinture et arts appliqués, Louis Hautecoeur (1953)
[23] p28 in L’art sous la Révolution et l’Empire en France, 1789-1815: architecture, sculpture, peinture et arts appliqués, Louis Hautecoeur (1953)
[24] The costume with the famous bicorn is on display at the Fontainebleau Castle in a very dark room.
[25] Source is http://www.napoleonexhibit com/item.php?id=9
[26] p54 in L’art sous la Révolution et l’Empire en France, 1789-1815: architecture, sculpture, peinture et arts appliqués, Louis Hautecoeur (1953)
[27] p59 in L’art sous la Révolution et l’Empire en France, 1789-1815: architecture, sculpture, peinture et arts appliqués, Louis Hautecoeur (1953)
[28] A large description of the fascinating works by Percier and Fontaine for Napoleon as the Maecenas in the various cities of my European journey is in the Imperial Designers chapter pp100-133 in Napoleon and his artists, Wilson-Smith (1996)
[29] p23 et pp38-43 in L’art sous la Révolution et l’Empire en France, 1789-1815: architecture, sculpture, peinture et arts appliqués, Louis Hautecoeur (1953). It is of note that Napoleon trusted more the engineers and military officers than expensive architects.
[30] p186 in Napoleon and his artists, Wilson-Smith (1996)
[31] page xxv of the introduction in Art in an age of Bonapartism, Boime
[32] p31 in L’art sous la Révolution et l’Empire en France, 1789-1815: architecture, sculpture, peinture et arts appliqués, Louis Hautecoeur (1953)
[33] page xxvi of the introduction in Art in an age of Bonapartism, Boime
[34] p259 in Napoleon and his Artists, Wilson-Smith (1996)
[35] p272 in Napoleon and his artists, Wilson-Smith (1996)
[36] Respectively p209/210/266/278/354 in Napoleon in Caricature [1795-1821] in two volumes, Broadley (1910)
[37] pp113-115 in Art in the Age of Bonapartism, Boime
[38] pp106-110 in Art in the Age of Bonapartism, Boime
[39] p71 et p146 in Napoleon and Paris, Guerrini (1967)
[40] p61 in Napoleon and Paris, Guerrini (1967)
[41] This is my unapproved translation. I found it tough to translate this one
[43] This is my unapproved translation of a quotation on display at the Malmaison for the Napoleon at St Helena exhibition
[44] pp269-271 in Napoleon and the artists, Hamil Grant (1917)
[45] This is an unapproved translation of a quotation. Original language is German. It stems from its Correspondences
[46] Constant developed animosity towards Napoleon when as First Consul he gave signs of desiring absolute power. pp302-308 in The Age of Napoleon, A History of European Civilization from 1789 to 1815, Will&Ariel Durant (1975)
[47] pp 271-298 in chapter headed ‘The Misunderstanding’ in 100 Days of Sacrifice, Villepin (2001), Ed. Librairie Académique Perrin
[48] p81 in Art in the Age of Bonapartism, Boime
[49] p86 in Art in the Age of Bonapartism, Boime
[50] pp309 et alia in The Age of Napoleon, A History of European Civilization from 1789 to 1815, Will&Ariel Durant (1975). I had picked the same authors (Chateaubriand and Madame de Staël) as writers against the Napoleonic regime. The best review of reciprocal antipathy with Mrs de Staël is on pp233-252 in Napoleon and the artists, Hamil Grant (1917) and for Chateaubriand it is on pp259-264 of that same book
[51] Goya allegiances are split as follows: close to the King and Godoy p226/231/234 et pp243-248, satire per ‘los caprichos’ pp264-271, 3rd of May pp210-212, ‘afrancesados’ and 2nd of May pp296-302, under Joseph orders pp302-303, Napoleon as a tyrant p305, war disasters pp308-312 dans Art in the Age of Bonapartism, Boime
[52] p234 War and Peace in an age of upheaval 1793-1830, Edited by C. W. Crawley (1965) and pxxvi of Introduction in Art of the Age of Bonapartism, Boime
[53] pp35-38, pp47-48, pp93-95, pp 99-100, p122, p124, p133, p152, pp239-247 in Historians and Filmmakers, a meeting of two minds, Morrissey (2004), Ed. L’Harmattan
[54] As admitted by Hautecoeur on p17 in The Art under the French Revolution, Directorate and Empire (1953)
[56] This maxim dates back from 1791 and may have become the cardinal principle of his politics. See The Mind of Napoleon, a selection from his written and spoken words, Herold (1955)
[58] Allegory of the Concordat is at the Malmaison.
[60] Allegory of the Concordat of 1801 is at the Malmaison as well.
[61] Napoleon stated: ‘My best policy, as well as my duty, to support the progress of popular institutions and to promote reform in every branch of the public administration’ p38 Volume 1, The Life of Napoleon Bonaparte, Abbott (1855)
[62] Napoleon distributing the Legion of Honour crosses at the Boulogne camp on 16 August 1804, Hennequin
[63] pp571-573 in Volume 1, The Life of Napoleon Bonaparte, Abbott (1855)
[64] p5 in Allure of Empire, Art in the Service of French Imperialism, Todd Porterfield (1998).
[65] Ibid. p44
[66] Ibid p47
[67] Ibid pp50-52
[68] Ibid pp61-67
[69] Tulard has written many books on Napoleon. My best memories lie with Le Temps des passions: espérances, tragédies et mythes sous la Révolution et l'Empire, Tulard (1996)
[70] From an academical viewpoint Lentz works are more powerful. My lucky purchase was: Le 18-Brumaire: les coups d’État de Napoléon Bonaparte (novembre-décembre 1799), Lentz (1997)
[71] This section should be further refined. For Italy, one can explore the paper Murat and the unity of Italy, Dufourcq (1898) Mélanges de l’école française de Rome pp207-270
[72] A short time before the treaty of Luneville a treaty of amity between France and the United States of America was ratified. pp348/349 in Volume 1, The Life of Napoleon Bonaparte, Abbott (1855)
[74] see appendix 1 relating to the marshals of imperial nobility. Not all of them ended up faithful to the end: early death, conspiracy, treason or political discrepancy
[75] p205 in Art in the Age of Bonapartism, Boime. It must be said that Joseph, Louis and Jerome were the inspiration of may portraits, often at their request. It was not the case with Lucien.
[77] p257 in The Age of Napoleon, A History of European Civilization from 1789 to 1815, Will&Ariel Durant (1975)
[78] Mitchell did not provide his source.
[79] p318/319/320-334/332 in Volume 1 and pp213-215 in Volume 2 of The Confidential Correspondence of Napoleon Bonaparte with his brother Joseph, some time King of Spain (1855) (English translation)
[81] p171 in Volume 1, The Life of Napoleon Bonaparte, Abbott (1855)
[82] p7 in Napoleon and Paris, Guerrini (1967)
[83] p33 in Napoleon and Paris, Guerrini (1967)
[84] p465 in Napoleon the Great, Andrew Roberts
[85] p46 in Volume 1, The Life of Napoleon Bonaparte, Abbott (1855)
[86] Terminology used on p126 in The Fall of Napoleon, the final betrayal, David Hamilton Williams
[87] page xxv of Introduction in Art in the Age of Bonapartism, Boime
[89] p32 in Napoleon and Paris, Guerrini (1967)
[90] «If our troops are not compelled unhesitatingly to obey the commands of the executive, we shall be exposed to the blind fury of democratic passions, which will render France the most miserable country on the globe». p38 in Volume 1, The Life of Napoleon Bonaparte, Abbott (1855)
[91] pp209-215 in Napoleon and the artists, Hamil Grant (1917)
[93] See pp67-80 in Diplomacy, Kissinger (1994)
[94] p731, p733, pp747-748, pp 761-763 in History of Europe, Davies (1997)
[95] p111 in Napoleon and the artists, Hamil Grant (1917)
[96] p82 in Napoleon and the artists, Hamil Grant (1917)
[97] p251 in The Age of Napoleon, A History of European Civilization from 1789 to 1815, Will&Ariel Durant (1975)
[98] The murderous list can be found in The fall of Napoleon, an historical memoir, John Mitchell (1845)
[99] The full explanation lies with pp159-161 and pp167-171 in Napoleon and the artists, Hamil Grant (1917)
[100] pp390-391 of Chapter LVI in Volume 1 of English Caricature and Satire on Napoleon I, John Ashton (1884)
[101] p7 of Chapter II in Volume 1 of English Caricature and Satire on Napoleon I, John Ashton (1884)
[102] I made an extensive inventory of the pictures taken from my favourite Gillray etchings whose descriptive illustration could stem from Historical and Descriptive account of James Gillray Caricatures, Wright and Evans (1851), Ed. Bohn, London and the Napoleon en images, estampes anglaises, John Grand-Carteret (1895). 

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