Blog archives: January 2016

  • What did Napoleon’s wives think of each other?

    What did Napoleon’s wives think of each other?

    January 29, 2016

    Napoleon Bonaparte had two wives: Josephine (Rose de Beauharnais) and Archduchess Marie Louise of Austria. What did they think of each other?

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  • Texas Revolutionary José Francisco Ruiz

    Texas Revolutionary José Francisco Ruiz

    January 22, 2016

    José Francisco Ruiz was a Mexican soldier who fought for Mexico’s independence from Spain and later supported Texas’s struggle for independence from Mexico. He is most noted for being one of only two native-born Texans to sign the 1836 Texas Declaration of Independence, even though he was “horrified” by the idea.

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  • A Tomb for Napoleon’s Son in Canada

    A Tomb for Napoleon’s Son in Canada

    January 15, 2016

    Did you know that a tomb originally intended for Napoleon’s son is sitting in a Canadian cemetery?

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  • Texas Governor José Félix Trespalacios

    Texas Governor José Félix Trespalacios

    January 8, 2016

    José Félix Trespalacios, who fought for Mexico’s independence from Spain, became the first governor of Texas in newly-independent Mexico in 1822. He established the first Texas bank, negotiated an agreement with the Cherokees, supported Stephen Austin’s colony, and introduced the first printing press to Texas.

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  • Napoleon’s First New Year’s Day on St. Helena

    Napoleon’s First New Year’s Day on St. Helena

    January 1, 2016

    Napoleon revived France’s New Year’s Day celebrations, which had been banned in the French Revolution. His first New Year in exile on St. Helena in 1816 was less festive.

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We must confess that fate, which sports with man, makes merry work with the affairs of this world.

Napoleon Bonaparte