Post date: Sep 26, 2013 7:29:18 PM
Napoleon's thoughts in his final days were with the French people, two rare documents to be auctioned in Paris show.
PARIS, FRANCE (SEPTEMBER 25, 2013) (REUTERS) - As Napoleon lay dying in exile, his heart was back at home in France, rare documents to be auctioned in Paris next November show.
Two later amendments to his will dictated by the incapacitated former emperor to a faithful aide a matter of weeks before his death contain instructions for his remains to be brought back to Franceand interred on the banks of the Seine.The spidery writing at the top of one of the documents, a codicil to his original will, indicates that he desired his final resting place to be "amongst the French people, whom I (he) loved so much."
Following his defeat at the Battle of Waterloo, Napoleon was exiled to the remote South Atlantic island of St Helena where he lived out his days and died on May 5, 1821.
The documents to be auctioned come from a private collection and are two of eight codicils to the emperor's will, most of which are kept at the French national archives.
Auctioneer Christophe Castandet said on Wednesday (September 25) that for fans of the French icon, the sale of the documents represented a rare chance to own a piece of history.
"It's a codicil which could seem very dry at first glance, but in fact it's very moving because it signifies that on the other side of the world, in the furthest corner of the Atlantic, Napoleon was still thinking about the French people at the height of his power," he said.
The documents also show the fallen emperor leaving his personal effects to his closest allies, with jewels, books and works of art figuring among the bequests made. The bulk of Napoleon's fortune remained in France in the control of politician Jacques Laffitte.
For historian Pierre Gheno, the codicils are an ode to the French people.
"It's kind of a love letter for the French people and perhaps also a hate letter to the English because he's on English soil and land and he wants really to come back to France," Gheno said.
His wishes were ultimately respected and Napoleon's final resting place was a tomb housed at Les Invalides, a Parisian monument topped with a magnificent golden dome.
The documents themselves are currently being housed in a book shop in central Paris but will go under the hammer on November 6 and are expected to fetch between 80,000 and 120,000 euros.
Castandet said the estimate was a conservative one based on the fact that the documents were not written by Napoleon's hand, and would serve to attract a range of potential bidders.
"80,000 to 120,000 euros is a starting figure which allows everyone who loves Napoleon to say to themselves, 'Why not me?'," he said.