:
Author: Michael Paul Driskel
Pages: 251
Illustrations: 30 black and white photographs of various monuments, tombs and memorials, and 66 reproductions of period paintings and illustrations, including sketches and
architectural plans for the various proposals submitted for Napoleon's tomb. Maps: None
Footnotes: 303, most annotated, presented by chapter at the end of the book.
Appendices: 3 Ñ Chronology of Significant Events Related to the Tomb, Sculptural Program for the Tomb, and List of Official Entries in 1841 Contest.
Bibliography: 28 primary archival sources, 19 secondary sources, and 16 additional sources for the historical context of the July Monarchy (of Louis-Philippe, king of France).
Index: 250 entries.
Publisher: The Kent State University Press, Kent, Ohio.
Publication Date: 1993
Binding: Cloth (hardbound)
ISBN: 0-87338-484-9
Price: $32.00
Summary: In the Preface to As Befits a Legend, author Michael Paul Driskel writes that "during the present reign of the theories of poststructuralism and deconstruction in the humanities, the very existence of such entities as facts is often called into question" (page xv). He goes on to make a distinction between the two different types of facts he utilizes in writing the book. This may all sound a bit intimidating to a potential reader. Don't let it be; it is merely a necessary response to certain unfortunate intellectual fads prevalent in many universities. Fortunately, the rest of the book is nowhere near as academic in tone as this discussion would indicate. It is, on the contrary, an easy, page turning narrative of how Napoleon's tomb came to be conceived, planned, built, and finally inaugurated during the years from 1840 to 1861.

Driskel substantiates this reviewer's opinion that just as a work of literature must adhere to the artistic unities of time, place, and action, so must a work of architecture adhere to the physical laws of gravity, form, and mass. After that, a literary work is relatively free to follow the author's imagination. Any work of architecture, however, is more immediately constrained by the social dictates of finances and location. Generally, the more public a building becomes, the more constraints are put on its final form. Not only does the availability of money and space become more problematic, but the work must also reckon with public taste and the culture of its time.

The theme of this book examines how, during the almost twenty-one year process of conception, preparation and realization, that the building of Napoleon's tomb met these social and political problems. Consequently, it is more than just a narrative about a building. It is also the story about the people who were involved in the project and about the legend of Napoleon they sought to embody in that building.

It is a fact that an architect, unlike a literary author, is not the only "artist" involved in the creation of a building. Specialists such as surveyors, contractors, carpenters, bricklayers, etc., are also needed. In a like manner, no great monument is created by just one person.

Driskel makes this point simply by quoting a character from Ayn Rand's The Fountainhead (1943): "He said that architecture was truly the greatest of arts, because it was anonymous, as all greatness. . . .A great building is not the private invention of some genius or other. It is merely the condensation of the spirit of the people" (quoted page 184).

With meticulous care, the author successfully traces not only the building of Napoleons' tomb from conception to completion, but also the many people who took part in the process. The project began on 12 May, 1840, when Charles de Remusat, France's Minister of the Interior, requested "the funds necessary to bring the body of Napoleon back from the distant island of Saint Helena, where it had rested since his death on 5 May, 1821, and to construct a tomb befitting the former ruler of the nation."

Nearly twenty-one years later Napoleon's body was transferred to the sarcophagus under the Dome of the Invalides on 2 April, 1861. During these two decades, the construction of the tomb was affected by a plethora of people and events. Politicians, kings and even an emperor, as well as architects, artists, sculptors, and the general public all had their parts to play in the drama. Driskel clearly points out the place and importance of each.

Ironically, the biggest role was played by someone who was not even alive: Napoleon himself. His legend, however, was very much a factor. It was this legend that determined many aspects of the tomb, including when it would be built, where it would be built, and who would build it.

Hostile to the militant aspect of the Napoleonic myth, the July Monarchy of Louis-Philippe did not particularly want the tomb built; but his regime was not strong enough to simply refuse it. However, an attempt was made to lessen the impact of such a monument by removing it from the main thoroughfares of the city. Hence, after deliberating over many possible sites, the legislature chose the Dome of the Invalides.

The next step involved choosing the design for the tomb. In an engrossing chapter, the author first describes the planning of the contest through which an artist's design for the tomb would be chosen. After that follows detailed descriptions of many of the eighty-one submissions accompanied by contemporary drawings and sketches. Driskel also explains why the judges preferred a submerged crypt-like tomb over a statuary-like monument which might disrupt the existing architectural integrity of the Dome. Finally, the author also relates how the contest was plagued by protests of favoritism and amateurism, and used as a stage for self-promotion and political in-fighting.

Nor did the intrigue end with the selection of Ludovico-Tullis Visconti's winning design. Through the ensuing twelve years of construction, Visconti had to contend with the manipulations of politicians who held the purse strings, as well as the disagreements of the large number of artists commissioned to do the sculptures, engravings, bas-reliefs, and other work. Nor did Louis Napoleon's coup d'etat on 8 December, 1848 eliminate the machinations that surrounded the building of the tomb. Within six days of assuming the throne, Napoleon III ordered the image of his predecessor Louis-Philippe accepting the body of Napoleon from Saint Helena removed from the tomb.

All these events are well documented by the book. What remains somewhat of a mystery and open to discussion is why Napoleon III, who hoped to emulate his uncle Napoleon I, waited until 1861 to have the latter's body finally moved from its temporary crypt only a few yards away in a nearby chapel to its final resting place beneath the Dome. It is at this point where conjecture replaces fact. Driskel speculates that Napoleon III kept delaying the final transfer in hopes of finding a more dramatic location or even build a different monument.

The author is to be commended for how he successfully renders the spirit of the time as he uncovers the fascinating interaction of politics and architecture underlying the making of Napoleon's tomb.

Related article: Excerpt and illustrations from As Befits a Legend.

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