Early Propaganda: How Poet Prince Goethe got involved in the politics of a conqueror

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Poets' parade: Napoleon also received literary stars Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (left) and Christoph Martin Wieland (fantasy picture, late 19th century) in Erfurt

Photo: Bridgeman Art Library

On the morning of September 27, 1808, a carriage rolls towards Erfurt.

The most powerful man in Europe, the French Emperor Napoleon, sits on board.

Gun salutes thunder from the city's citadel.

The church bells are ringing.

Soldiers form a trellis and waving their hats on bayonets.

The townspeople jostling in front of the Brühler Tor shout "Vive l'Empereur!"

Napoleon drives into the city through the cheering crowd.

On the houses there are banners with flattering rhymes such as "Trade and change make the country flourish, even more Napoleon's heart and mind" or "If there was still a son of gods, it would be Napoleon".

His carriage stops in front of a baroque building with four wings: the Lieutenancy where Napoleon will reside.

The occasion for the imperial visit is a congress of European monarchs.

Napoleon receives the Russian tsar, the kings of Westphalia, Württemberg, Bavaria and Saxony, 18 other ruling princes, plus princes and ministers to negotiate alliances, territories and contributions.

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