This article first appeared in the St. Louis Beacon, Nov. 12, 2010 - History and Hollywood tell us that Napoleon Bonaparte amassed great power, fame and fortune before he met his Waterloo, and evidence of that will be on display in a new exhibit opening Saturday at the Missouri History Museum.
But perhaps even more interesting are the glimpses into the personal life of a man who would be emperor but couldn't control his siblings. A man who conquered nations but had to divorce the love of his life because she couldn't bear his children. A larger-than-life historical figure who after failing in a larger-than-life way, picked himself up, brushed himself off and got right back in the game.
"Treasures of Napoleon" documents the man's warring ways, his rise to power and eventual death in exile in 1821, illustrated with artifacts from the private collection of Pierre-Jean Chalencon, a French author and authority on the powerful French emperor. Among the 300 objects are original portraits, sculptures and documents, plus clothing and imperial furnishings. Personal effects include letters written by Napoleon, a lock of hair from his ex-wife, Empress Josephine Bonaparte, a snuff box and, yes, one of his signature hats.
St. Louis has a unique historical connection to Napoleon: He sold the Louisiana Territory in that 1803 real estate deal that ushered in America's era of western expansion. The buyer, President Thomas Jefferson, not only doubled the size of the United States by purchasing more than 800,000 square miles of land for $15 million, but he did it at bargain prices -- about 4 cents an acre.
"Napoleon is somebody who seems distant and remote from St. Louis; we aren't part of the world he conquered," Robert Archibald, museum president, said. "But it was really Napoleon's decision that made the Louisiana Purchase possible. His decision made in Paris, thousands of miles from here, to OK the sale of Louisiana to the United States forever changed the United States. It certainly changed Missouri, and it made St. Louis a part of America."
To fully appreciate the exhibit, don't rush through it. Take time, for example, to study the various portraits of Napoleon. In the decades before photographs brought the ability to document reality, history was often in the eyes of the artists hired to paint it.
Near the exhibit entrance, for example, is a portrait of the general crossing Arcole Bridge by Horace Vernet, an example of how artists contributed to his legend by endowing him with mythical qualities on the battlefield. The paintings of his coronation ceremony affirm Napoleon's absolute power: As the pope watched with approval, the new emperor crowned himself, thank-you-very-much.
The exhibit attempts to humanize a man recognized by military historians as one of the world's greatest battlefield masterminds, even as he is lampooned by modern-day comics as a pompous buffoon. And let's not forget Marlon Brando's portrayal of the love-smitten emperor in 1954's "Desiree."
Chalencon, 40, lives in Paris but was on hand Friday morning for a press preview of the exhibit. He seemed to relish watching people observe his collection. He said he purchased his first Napoleon artifact -- a poster - when he was 12. It was "a cheap thing," he said, but it kindled a lifelong passion. At age 16, he sold his motorcycle to buy a handwritten letter.
"The more you have, the more you want," said Chalencon, who continues to acquire items.
The challenge now is that prices are rising because historic artifacts have become business investments for the wealthy, he said.
Chalencon has shown parts of his collection at museums around the world, but this is the first North American tour and includes a half-dozen U.S. cities.
He laughed when he was asked where he stores his collection when it is not making the rounds of the world's museums.
"In my flat," Chalencon said, adding that he lives alone -- although Napoleon is there, too.
"We are a strange couple," he said, merrily.
Archibald said the exhibit is a tremendous opportunity for St. Louisans to see a private collection that is not normally available to the public.
"We keep track of private collections as well as public exhibitions that are being organized around the world," he said. "When we see something that looks like it is going to be developed and it might of interest to people in St. Louis we make inquiries and we try to be the first in line. These things take years to develop."
