The Napoleon I Museum : imperial reopening in the Château of Fontainebleau

After having welcomed the kings and queens of  France, the Château of Fontainebleau was the last residence of Emperor Napoleon I. Spanning eras and styles, from the Middle-Ages to the Renaissance, as well as neo-classic, each royal resident made embellishments to the imposing edifice, but only Napoleon I has the honors of a museum on the original site of the 12th century, bordering the largest forest of the Seine-et-Marne department.

The Château of Fontainebleau, a homage to Napoleon I

Occupying no less than 15 rooms of the Louis XV wing, the museum retraces his daily life, and the lives of those close to him, through a series of objects, weapons, ceramics, costumes, historical documents, paintings, sculptures and furniture—more than 88 new acquisitions, linked to the most famous French personality in the world, enhanced by an attractive scenography.

After 8 months of renovation, the room of the Roi de Rome and his cradle, surmounted by the Wings of Victory, is reopening its doors to the public. © DR

Famous worldwide, the large painting of Napoleon I wearing his coronation costume, is in the spolight, just like his precious saber inlaid with diamonds. © DR

From Napoleon Bonaparte to Emperor of the French

From his childhood in Corsica, followed by his irresistible ascension, his reign and his exile, this visit will be an occasion to rediscover, on two levels, an outstanding figurehead of French history. Take a close look at his military campaigns, his princely apartments, his portraits, a collection of silverware, medals, Sèvres porcelains, his uniforms, his sabers, without foregetting, his stupendous coronation costume !

A tad megalomaniac, this tea set, in Sèvres porcelain, displays portraits of the Napoleonic family. © DR