The sun of Austerlitz (December 2, 1805) is so dazzling that it throws into the darkness revealing episodes (in the photographic sense) which belong to the same maelstrom of events. This is the case with the occupation of Vienna by French troops. Faced with the defeat of Emperor Francis II of Habsburg, who embodies, through his lineage, the constancy of centuries, amazement prevails.
At the time, the Viennese, poorly informed and disoriented, even wanted to believe a false rumor. The venerable Germanic Roman Empire, which existed since the year 962, did not resist the shock wave: its dissolution took place in August 1806 with the abdication of Francis II - who would become Emperor of Austria - from the Crown from Germany. European history then underwent a millennial inflection.
Nuanced reality
Vincent Haegele, paleographic archivist, curator of the Versailles libraries and prolific historian, takes us on the first stage of a European ride where the Napoleonic conquests…