Nelson & His World

This is wonderful!

The French plan a 'Napoleonland' theme park which will stage daily re-enactments of Battles of Waterloo and Trafalgar.

The £180million park is to be built on site of famous battle and create 3,000 jobs, is being billed as a rival to Disneyland and could open in 2017.

Read more in the Daily Mail: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article ... algar.html

Perhaps the British can now grow up and stop worrying about upsetting the French when commemorating Trafalgar?

But I just hope Germany & Russia don't follow suit with theme parks for their dictators...

OMG! Spoke too soon - Stalin's World: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/12635612/ns ... thousands/

The Times had a similar spread on Napoleonland this morning but there is a paywall so I couldn't post a link.

There have been comments on various historical sites recently. Richard Morrison in the Times deplores the array of tinkling ice cream vans and sunbathers at a former Nazi labour camp; and Carol Midgeley in yesterday's Times has an acid comment on the anniversary cruise to the site of the lost Titanic, slap up meals and all. She asks whether the participants will take part in a re-enactment of a plunge into the icy Atlantic, which was the fate of many on board.

Solemn commemoration of tragedies and battles long ago, and man's inhumanity to man is one thing; once the grisly snout of commerce is in the trough, though.......

One of the most dignified battlefields I have ever visited is Flodden Field. The little church nearby where the dead were laid was open - and was weighted with sadness still; and a simple monument that said 'To the brave of both nations' together with a small commemorative plaque.

Built on the site of the previous battle? But that is in Belgium not France....

Plus why would the French want to daily re-enact either battle? I understand the money impact but when I re-enacted at Waterloo the funniest thing was that the British plus allies tended to pack a couple of hundred people versus several thousand French. It made you feel almost godlike firing a musket and watching hundreds fall down plus the scowls as their enormous units failed to crush the minuscule opposition was hilarious.

Fantasy reporting I feel...

Joss.

The 'famous battle' is 'the Battle of Montereau in 1814 in Montereau-Fault-Yonne just south of Paris'.

I think he died pretty soon after being guillotined, didnt he?

Not exactly solemn commemoration, Anna!

Well the guillotine could help with the banking 'problem'