The unusual objects No. 1
Letter announcing Emperor Napoleon’s passage through Anderlecht to Brussels, 25 April 1810.
During the time that the beguinage is closed for renovations, Erasmus House is shining a spotlight each month on an unusual object or set of objects from the municipal museum’s historical, archaeological, folk art, and religious collection.
Letter from the prefect of the department of Dyle, the Marquis de La Tour du Pin Gouvernet, to the mayor of Anderlecht, Michel Van Soust, announcing Emperor Napoleon’s passage through Anderlecht to Brussels, 25 April 1810.
The year 2021 is marked by the commemoration of the bicentennial of Emperor Napoleon I’s death on the island of Saint Helena on 5 May 1821 at the age of 51. You thought you knew everything about this historic figure, but did you know that Napoleon came through Anderlecht? He came through – but did not stop – on his way to Brussels. That was in 1810. The municipal archives have an unprecedented, original document that proves this trivial, unknown, but historical fact. It is this summer’s “unusual object”. Let’s take a closer look…
Acknowledgements
Iris Andouche
Philippe Charlet
Monique Hepner
Marcel Jacobs
Eric Legrand
Research and text
Frédéric Leroy
Service des Monuments et Sites
Administration communale d’Anderlecht
