Every August 15, Christians commemorate the ascent into heaven of Mary, the mother of Jesus.
On that day, according to the Catholic faith, the Virgin Mary was “
taken up into heaven
” in body and soul after her death.
In Corsica, it is the birth of Napoleon on August 15, 1769, in Ajaccio, that is celebrated on that day.
However, the traditional Napoleonic evenings, scheduled from Thursday to Sunday in his hometown to celebrate the anniversary of the birth are canceled due to the outbreak of Covid-19 cases affecting Corsica.
Read also: Ajaccio: Napoleon, the invention of a myth
Each year during these three days, the city takes on the appearance of a battlefield and bivouac with the reconstruction of street fights by hundreds of enthusiasts from all over Europe, corseted in their uniforms of grognards or hunters of the Guard. imperial or in First and Second Empire dresses.
"
Due to the progression of indicators of worsening of the health crisis on the island (...) the tourist office of the country of Ajaccio is forced to cancel all the events programmed within the framework of the Napoleonic Evenings 2021
", He indicates Monday in a press release.
Thursday, a big open-air movie night with the screening of "
Napoleon (and me)
" by Paolo Virzì (2006) is canceled as is the show "
Napoleon and the Imperial Guard
" on Friday, which was to revisit the creation of this famous guard. in period costume.
Also canceled on Saturday the reconstitution of balls I and Second Empire in the courtyard of the Palais Fesch-Musée des Beaux-Arts.
A concert, under the direction of the conductor Jean-Christophe Spinosi, which was initially to take place on May 5 on the occasion of the bicentenary of the Emperor's death and had been postponed due to the epidemic, is at again postponed to a later date.
Only the ceremony celebrating the birth of Napoleon Bonaparte in “
restricted gauge
”
is maintained,
which will be marked on Sunday at 10 am by a mass at Ajaccio cathedral.
Corsica is particularly affected by the fourth wave of Covid-19 with an incidence rate of 643 per 100,000 inhabitants last week, while the national average was 230 per 100,000 inhabitants.
In an attempt to slow down this outbreak, the prefects of the island have taken restrictive measures including the return of the wearing of compulsory masks in the main towns and the cancellation of celebrations and events bringing together crowds which are added to the establishment of the health pass since Monday.
In total, 241 people have died on this island of 340,000 inhabitants since the start of the epidemic, including four since Saturday and 84 people are hospitalized including 17 in intensive care or intensive care, according to the latest report from the Regional Health Agency published on Monday. .
Two new medical evacuations from Bastia to Marseille and Ajaccio took place, also announced Monday the ARS, which counts four new clusters in the island.
