Are you interested in the Age of Napoleon? You are not alone -- there are thousands of other enthusiasts waiting for you to join them in celebrating this exciting period of history. The Napoleonic Alliance is an educational, academic and social, not for profit, association, with no commercial activities, devoted to the study of Napoleon and the Napoleonic era. Our membership reflects a wide variety of interests; our number includes both admirers and critics of Napoleon and his Empire, avid readers, film buffs, and collectors of everything from military antiques to porcelain souvenirs. Every aspect of the Napoleonic period is covered: the Imperial family, the Emperor's marshals and generals, the courtiers and enemies, the Napoleonic Civil Code, the fine and decorative arts, the fashions and uniforms, and the military campaigns of the period. Distinguished members include direct descendants of the Empire, most notably the present Princes Napoleon and Murat. Many of our members are acknowledged authorities in their fields: Napoleonic educators and scholars, including Donald Horward, Jerry Gallaher, John McErlean, and Robert Brier; distinguished authors such as David Chandler, Ben Weider, Scott Bowden, and George Nafziger; and well-known artists and miniaturists like Keith Rocco, Sheperd Paine, Bill Ottinger, Joe Berton and Peter Twist. Of course you need not be an authority to join; most of our members are people from all walks of life who simply enjoy this fascinating historical period. As a member of the Napoleonic Alliance, each year you will receive four issues of The Napoleonic Gazette, a magazine featuring historical articles on Napoleonic personalities and events, book reviews, museum descriptions, notices on upcoming events of Napoleonic interest, and anything else that might delight a Napoleonic buff. For example, did you know there are more than fifty Napoleonic Museums in the world, or that there are at least a dozen Napoleonic libraries in the United States open to members of the Napoleonic Alliance? The gazette also includes arcane tidbits and unusual anecdotes such as Napoleon's penchant for cheating at cards with his family and friends, taking boyish delight in seeing how outrageous he could be without getting caught? Also included as a benefit of your membership in the Napoleonic Alliance is a subscription to Napoleon, a deluxe full-color quarterly journal. Each issue is a cornucopia of articles on the Emperor, and every aspect of his life and times. The enjoyment value of your membership in the Napoleonic Alliance extends well beyond simply receiving publications in the mail. As a member you have the opportunity to develop friendships with people of similar interests. In addition to receiving The Napoleonic Gazette, and the quarterly journal Napoleon, there are a number of other activities in which members can participate. Each year the Napoleonic Alliance holds a weekend-long conference where our members can meet each other and participate in a series of lectures and seminars covering all aspects of the period, vendor areas which include books, prints, ephemera and militaria, and social events honoring the Emperor and his achievements. Although the presentations at the conferences reflect the latest historical research on the period, each conference is more than just an academic gathering; the location changes each year, and the meeting site is always chosen for its historical and entertainment opportunities. At the 1998 conference we enjoyed the pageantry of Colonial Williamsburg; in 1999 we visited beautiful and historic San Francisco. Good fellowship abounds, and the meals reflect the attention to cuisine that is such a significant part of French culture. In addition to our annual conference we hold regional dinners and other informal meetings throughout Canada and the U.S. Recent events have included dinners and programs in Toronto, Chicago, San Francisco, and Charleston, SC. At the regional level the Napoleonic Alliance also enthusiastically supports museum shows, films, plays, consular receptions, and cultural activities related to the Napoleonic period. Every year we organize a tour of battlefields, museums, and other sites connected with Napoleonic History. During the current bicentennial of the Napoleonic era, these tours will take us to places where the events actually occurred 200 years ago. Recent tours have visited sites significant in Napoleon's early career, following the young general from his birthplace in Corsica, through his early military career in France and Italy. Our 1998 tour celebrated his daring expedition to Egypt and Palestine. As the years unfold, future tours will follow the Emperor's travels through Austria, Italy, Germany, Poland, Russia, England, Elba and even St. Helena, as each in turn plays its part in the Napoleonic saga. Because of our close association with historians and museum directors in Europe, we are often able to visit places that are closed to the public and to get "behind the scenes" looks at museum collections beyond the reach of the casual visitor. Recently, for example, we were given private tours of Malmaison and Versailles; the latter, conducted by the Director General of the Museum, included magnificent Napoleonic rooms that are seen by fewer than a hundred visitors a year. We are especially proud that for the past several years we have been one of the few organizations in the world honored with laying a wreath at the tomb of Napoleon on the anniversary of his death. Whenever the annual tour is in Europe this event is a highlight of our schedule. All this awaits you as a Napoleonic Alliance member. Won't you join us? On November 5-6th, The Napoleonic Alliance sponsored a regional conference in New York City examining Bonaparte's Campaign in Egypt and coup d'etat on the 18th-19th Brumaire on the occasion of their bicentennial anniversaries. The conference took place in the splendid Consulat General de France at 934 Fifth Avenue. Consul General in New York City, Mr. Richard Duque was our host, and Prince Charles Napoleon, the current head of the Bonaparte family and President of the newly re-christened Societe FranÁaise d'Histoire Napoleonien (formerly the Souvenir Napoleonien), was our special guest. The Napoleonic Alliance was privileged in that the visit marked the first time Prince Charles Napoleon participates in a stateside Napoleonic event. On Thursday November 4th, Mr. Richard Ortoli, President of the Corsican-American Society invited several Alliance board members to join his organization in honoring Prince Charles Napoleon at a cocktail party held at the French Consulate. On Friday, the conference opened at the Metropolitan Museum of Art with a docent-guided tour of the First Empire period works in the Museum's permanent collection. The featured works included Messionier's stunning Friedland 1807 and Prudhon's full-length portrait of Talleyrand. The attendees then adjourned to the European Sculpture Court for cocktails. For dinner, we were again invited to join the Corsican-American Society for a sumptuous all-Corsican menu at Maxim's on Madison Avenue. The Saturday morning lecture program opened with Mr. Herb Feinberg's presentation North to Palestine, Napoleon marches against the Turks. Mr. Feinberg, an archeologist, who has spent the better part of the last 50 years digging in that part of the world, wove a great deal of his experiences and ancient history into his talk. Next up was Mr. Joseph Berton, delivering a lecture on Desaix's travail's in Upper Egypt. Joe captivated the attendees with what may be one of the greatest adventures in French military history. We then broke for a spectacular buffet dejeuner, returning for the afternoon lecture sessions, opening with J. David Markham's overview of the Egyptian Campaign. Capt. Steven Delvaux, from the Military History Dept. at West Point spoke on the lasting effects of French reforms in Cairo, this was followed by Capt. Philip Cuccia, also of the Academy, who presented a riveting lecture on the Second siege of Mantua. We closed the afternoon with Todd Fisher's talk on the political turmoil that lead up to the coup d'Etat de 18th-19th Brumaire. We topped off the conference weekend with a gala cocktail and dinner in the beautiful Salon Chiminee in the Consulate building. We toasted the Egyptian expedition and Moet & Chandon entertained us with a tradition begun by Napoleon's grenadier's where they saber off the top of a champagne bottle. We then adjourned for dinner into the Salon Rose, where Prince Charles Napoleon detailed the history of his branch of the family and its relationship with the US. He emphasized his excitement at the prospect of our organizations continuing to work together. Then Professor Donald Horward closed the conference with his talk; Massena makes Brumaire possible. Dr. Horward spoke about his close relationship with the Massena heirs, and the pivotal role Massena's victory at Zurich played in making Napoleon's rise to power possible. Back to Table of Contents -- Napoleon #16 Back to Napoleon List of Issues Back to MagWeb Master Magazine List © Copyright 2001 by Napoleon LLC. 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