Russian Campaign in the Memory of France in the Second Half of the XIX Century: between "Memory-Victory" and "Memory-Injury"

Abstract

This article examines the process of transforming the image of Napoleon's Russian campaign in the historical memory of the French in the second half of the 19th century. The author, having analyzed the image of war in the space of historical politics, art, periodicals, historical science, came to the conclusion that excessive state intervention in the process of constructing the past leads to the destruction of "heroic myths." So, with the fall of the regime of the Second Empire in the consciousness of society, a trip to Russia began to be perceived as the result of the fatal mistake of the emperor. During the years of the Third Republic, the image of war continued to develop in public discourse, demonstrating a kind of historical pattern when imperial ambitions inevitably lead the nation to tragedy.