P, D & Rupert outside Hotel des Invalides
A short walk from home is Invalides, a hospital built for the military, now museum. It houses the tomb of Napoleon in the Eglise du Dome. I won't do it justice in this short blog, but safe to say, it's well worth the visit. An English audio tour device navigates you around the tomb which also houses the remains of his son, other family members, loyal high ranking military figures and famous French leaders. The actual tomb is a huge blood red case that houses as many as four other successive coffins made of tin, ebony, oak, lead & mahogany. The crypt level is surrounded by a series panels telling of Napoleon's non-military contributions. Beyond the battles, Napoleon's lasting legacy is clearly his contribution with the Napoleonic Civil Code which is the basis of much French law today, and strongly influenced the law in many other European countries. Napoleon died and was buried while in exile at the age of 51 of stomach cancer (although conspiracy theories believe arsenic poisoning). He was later exhumed and returned to Paris for a full state funeral and as he had wished his ashes "rest on the banks of the Seine". We really only scratched the surface today. Expect me to take you here if you come to visit, so I can indulge in some more hero worship, pomp, circumstance and get beyond the standard tourist stuff...if possible.
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