An evocative tour to discover the places associated with Napoleon’s stay on the island of Elba

May 1814 to February 1815: Napoleon remained on the island of Elba for 10 months. After the Battle of Leipzig, which was followed by the Treaty of Fontainebleau, Napoleon was forced to abdicate and go into exile. He chose Elba Island as his destination, where a principality was created in April of that year. While preparing his triumphant return to France, Napoleon devoted himself to the administration of the island from his home, the Villa dei Mulini. It was a brief but intense period that marked the island’s memory indelibly.

Napoleon’s residences on the island of Elba

A tour that leads to the discovery of Napoleon’s places on the island of Elba cannot but begin with Villa dei Mulini, also known as Palazzina dei Mulini, a building located in Portoferraio, between Fort Stella and Fort Falcone. Chosen by Napoleon as his main residence because of its strategic location that allowed him to control any landings or approaches of ships. Today the Villa hosts a museum where it is possible to learn more about the history of the emperor’s exile. Staying in Portoferraio, in the locality of San Martino, you will find Villa San Martino, mainly used by Napoleon as a summer residence. Here you can admire the period prints and furnishings located in beautiful frescoed rooms.

Napoleon’s sites between Portoferraio and Marciana Marina

Next stop on this tour is the Teatro dei Vigilanti, also located in Portoferraio. It is said that Napoleon had this theater carved out of an earlier deconsecrated church dedicated to Our Lady of Mount Carmel at the request of his sister Pauline. Despite the economically unhappy period, the emperor managed to complete the work, inaugurating the theater in January 1815. Today the theater is active and hosts many events. Another place to visit in Portoferraio is the Church of Mercy, where a mass in honor of the emperor is celebrated every year on May 5.

Next to the church is the Museo dei Cimeli di Napoleone (Museum of Napoleon’s Memorabilia) with such precious objects as the flag with the three bees in gold thread that Napoleon donated to Elba on May 4, 1814, and the bronze cast of his right hand.  The tour then continues to Marciana Marina where the Sanctuary of the Madonna del Monte is located: it was in the oldest sanctuary on the island that the emperor stayed for a brief period during the summer of his exile on Elba. Finally, the last stop on this tour: the Paolina beach, about two kilometers from Procchio in the direction of Marciana Marina. Pauline, the emperor’s sister, particularly loved this beach, so much so that both the beach and the nearby islet covered with thick Mediterranean scrub were named after her.

Photo Credits

Edisonblus, Wikimedia
Niels J. Buus Madsen, Flickr
Marco Lazzaroni, Flickr