Lithuania in the news
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7th November, 2003
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Lithuania's Napoleonic History |
![]() French Army in Town Hall Square 1812,
lithograph by J.Damelis On Sunday, October 19, 2003, Australian viewers saw on SBS TV the BBC produced very interesting documentary: "Meet the Ancestors: Napoleon's Lost Army", describing these archaeological discoveries, together with the history of the ill-fated march of Napoleon's Grand Army onto Moscow in 1812. The remnants of Napoleon's retreating defeated army are depicted in front of the Vilnius Town Hall ("Rotuše") in the celebrated and powerful contemporary lithograph by Jonas Damelis. The Town Hall is still standing today. ![]() St. Anne's Church,
as depicted in early 19th Century Napoleon fell in love with Vilnius. An often told story relates to Napoleon's wish to take back to Paris in the palm of his hand the exquisitely beautiful St. Anne's Church, a Gothic masterpiece illustrated in the lithograph from the 19th century "Vilnius Album", edited by Jonas Kazimieras Vilcinskas. Further information: Michael Tarm, "The Napoleon Graves", www.balticsww.com/napoleon_graves.htm |