In March 1802, France and Britain signed the Treaty of
Amiens, ending the war that had raged between the two countries since 1793. It
was a time of great excitement for both Paris and England. English high society
was in a flutter as it rushed to France to enjoy once again the delights of
Paris, an indulgence denied to them by the last nine years of conflict.


Outside Napoleon’s circle, there were other delights
awaiting the English. Balls, dinners, and card parties were very popular
nighttime activities. During the day, visitors would travel to view galleries
full of paintings, Roman marbles and other artifacts which the English had been
denied access to because of the war. Then, just as now, Paris was all about
shopping for high end goods, and the English certainly shopped! Many spent
exorbitant amounts of money on china services, paintings, ancient marbles and
clothes.

The excitement of the peace did not last. In January, cracks
in the peace began to show and the tide of visitors to France began to shift as
people returned home. By early May 1803, it was imperative that anyone who
wanted to leave France needed to do so immediately. Those that were able to
make their way back to England were lucky. There were many who were not so
fortunate. Fanny Burney, her husband and son were trapped in France. She and
many others would not see England again until the Battle of Waterloo brought
down Napoleon in 1815.
The year after the Peace of Amiens was a glittering time that
ended almost as quickly as it had begun. For a few months, the English were
able to indulge their love for all things French, reunite with loved ones,
visit old friends and gather experiences before war denied them access to the
country for another twelve years. It was a time rife with conflict, excitement,
anticipation, loss, hope and fun, a great time to provide drama for a romance
novel, such as my latest release, THE COURTESAN'S BOOK OF SECRETS.
Check out my books to see more of how I incorporate history into my novels. www.Georgie-Lee,com
1 comment:
What a fine moment in history -- bittersweet with brevity. I didn't know about this, thanks for sharing it!
Do you know about the Dreaming of France meme? It's on Mondays on the Accidental Blog: http://paulita-ponderings.blogspot.com/ Your post would fit equally well there!
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