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Recent Posts
Goodreads
Category Archives: France
Notebook
By 1815, memories of the 1790s were fragmented and confused, varying greatly according to the divergent memories of individuals, families and regions. Some of the most famous mythical symbols of the Revolution had yet to be propagated. Building barricades – … Continue reading
Posted in France, History, Notebook
Tagged French Revolution, Paris, Robert Tombs, tricoteuses
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Bastille Day
The birth of a national legend? Simon Schama describes the myth-making in “Citizens”: No one wanted to be in the Bastille. But once there, life for the more privileged could be made bearable. Alcohol and tobacco were allowed, and under … Continue reading
Posted in France, History
Tagged Bastille Day, despotism, French Revolution, Louis XVI, Marquis de Sade, Simon Schama
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Notebook
There had been almost no French military defence of Paris, so there had been no excuse for the Wehrmacht to hesitate in driving right into the prize. But an awkward lull had briefly prevailed. Waiting outside the city on June … Continue reading
Posted in France, History, World War 2
Tagged Montmartre, Paris, Sacré-Coeur, Wehrmacht, World War Two
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CV
Well, any biography of Guy Burgess, spy and man about town, is bound to have some good captions, isn’t it?
Musée d’Orsay
A Sunday morning visit, June 2015.
Notebook
The defining feature of the GIA’s [Groupe Islamiste Armé] war was its ultra-violent methods. The terrorists did not simply kill people but turned the murders into a form of performance or ritual. As in the original War of Independence, throats … Continue reading
Cute Carla, bawdy Brassens
A song for Bastille Day. It’s not really the alternative that it jokingly claims to be. Great fun though. I just never thought I’d hear a woman sing it…
Grand Palais, 1916
“The Great Nave: Wounded Soldiers Performing Arms Drill at the End of Their Medical Treatment.” [@metmuseum via @RPanh]