Articles : 1400
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ArticleThe "Berlin Decree" of November 21 1806
Preamble From our Imperial Camp at Berlin, November 21, 1806. Napoleon, Emperor of the French and King of Italy, considering: 1. That England does not admit the right of nations as universally acknowledged by all civilized people; 2. That she declares as an enemy every individual belonging to an enemy State, and, in consequence, makes prisoners of war, […]
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ArticleEyewitness accounts of Napoleon’s entry into Berlin
The official reports: The Bulletins de la Grande armée: 21st Bulletin, 28 October, 1806, Berlin «Yesterday, the 27th, the Emperor made a solemn entrance into Berlin. He was accompanied by the Prince de Neufchatel, the marshals Davout and Augereau, his Grand maréchal du Palais [Duroc], his Grand-écuyer and his ADCs. Marshal Lefebvre led the march […]
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ArticleNapoleonic pages: Mercure de France, 4 juillet 1807. Chateaubriand wrote: "It is in vain that Nero prospers …"
The Mercure de France, the once celebrated literary review founded in the 17th century, which died many times but which was continually to be resuscitated, would not have been particularly noticed during the First Empire, had not the new owner and editor in chief, François-René de Chateaubriand, written a famous article against tyranny and despotism. […]
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ArticleWhy did the battle of Jena take place?
The seeds for this article grew out of a visit to the “Journées de Thuringes” held in Jena in Germany on 14 July, 2006. As part of the festivities, held under the aegis of Franc-German friendship, the local museum had an exhibition of military events related to the battle of Jena, 14 October, 2005, a […]
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ArticleNapoleonic pages: Histoire de Napoléon, par M. de Norvins, illustrée par Raffet, (Paris: Furne et Cie, 1827)
There are two books which all Napoleon fans (and bibliophiles) should have on their shelves: the first is Jacques de Norvins' Histoire de Napoléon, published in 1827 and illustrated by Raffet, and the second is Laurent de l'Ardèche's work with engravings by Horace Vernet, published in 1839. As Baron de Marquet de Montbreton, Jacques de Norvins […]
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ArticleWas the Napoleonic regime a military dictatorship?
Introduction It is generally agreed that the regime installed by Napoleon was authoritarian. But simply calling it a dictatorship seems excessive. The presence of opposing powers, the strength of the principles limiting the action of the executive and the circumstances themselves all restricted the leader’s room for action. There are three elements that define a […]
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ArticleAir and graces: Napoleon and vocal music
Introduction Throughout his life Napoleon was a confirmed music lover. Like all his contemporaries, he was a passionate visitor to the opera, seeing 163 different operas and attending 319 performances.(1) As early as the Lyons prize essay (1791), he is recorded singing its praises. “For every age and in every situation,” he enthused, “music consoles, […]
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ArticleNapoleonic Pages: John R. Glover, secretary to Rear Admiral Cockburn (on board the "Northumberland"), with introd. and notes by J. Holland Rose, London, T. Fisher Unwin, 1906
Introduction This previously unpublished account of Napoleon's voyage to St Helena by a British eyewitness was published almost simultaneously in French and English in 1893.The author was John Richard Glover, secretary to George Cockburn, the British Admiral to whom Napoleon's safe conduct to St Helena had been entrusted. The daily journal kept by J.R. Glover […]
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ArticleThe Confederation of the Rhine
Geography and politics are always interlinked, and never more so than in the history of the creation of the Confederation of the Rhine. It came about as a result of French concerns over its “natural frontiers” and the desires of a ‘third' Germany (that is, neither Prussia nor Austria) to free itself from traditional burdens […]
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ArticleSummer selection 2006
Memoirs ABELL (BETSY BALCOMBE) Mrs, To Befriend an Emperor: Betsy Balcombe's Memoirs of Napoleon on St Helena LOWRY James, MILLYARD John, (ed.) Fiddlers and Whores: the candid memoirs of a surgeon in Nelson's fleetMARKHAM J. David, Napoleon and Doctor Verling on St HelenaMIKABERIDZE Alexander, (ed.) The Czar's General: The Memoirs of a Russian General in the […]