Challenging Visit to Army Museum and Napoleonic Sites

I visited on Monday, July 21st, 2025, and booked tickets online ahead of time for the Army Museum, Golden Dome Church, and Napoleon's Tomb. Arriving at Varenne Metro, we followed the directional signs that led us left, away from the Seine and towards the golden dome. However, the entrance at the end was closed, forcing us to walk around the entire site, which was quite inconvenient. Inside, we started at the Army Museum, which is huge and primarily explores the history of France through its army's story. You could easily spend the entire day just in this section of the museum, and although fascinating, you must selectively focus your attention due to the abundance, like numerous cannons. A significant portion of the foreign weaponry is a tale of conquest and bribery as sultans presented equipment to Napoleon in attempts to gain favor and avoid invasion. As with several museums I visited in France, focusing heavily on French achievements rather than failures is apparent, with the Napoleonic section of the museum somewhat glossing over Waterloo and Napoleon's captivity. We then went to the Golden Dome and Napoleon's (along with his brothers’) tomb. Having read in the Army Museum some details about the idolization of Napoleon by subsequent governments as a way to distract the public, it shapes your perception of the grotesque idolization of the man, who is presented with revisionist history in a place meant for God, giving a sense of a false prophet or icon being venerated. Some of the Roman Emperor-inspired imagery is absurdly exaggerated. The tomb's size gives a sense of compensating for something, especially considering he was returned as ashes by the British. The buildings and dome are stunning, but leaving the site imparts a feeling of a nation dwelling in its past and a noticeable absence of humility.

Post by _TI***rc | Oct 27, 2025