Route Napoléon
The Route Napoléon is the route taken by Napoleon I in 1815 on his return from Elba.[1] It is now concurrent with sections of routes N85,[1][2] D1085, D4085, and D6085.
The route begins at Golfe-Juan, where Napoleon disembarked on 1 March 1815,[1] beginning the Hundred Days that ended at Waterloo.[3] Napoleon led around 1,000 men, horses and equipment, and completed the journey in less than seven days, reaching Grenoble on 7 March 1815.[4] From there he proceeded to Paris, where, as Balzac wrote, 'France gave herself to Napoleon, just as a pretty girl abandons herself to a Lancer'.[5]
The Route was inaugurated in 1932[2] and meanders from the French Riviera north-northwest along the foothills of the Alps.[1][2] Among the highlights of the route are the towns of Grasse, Castellane and Sisteron, and the Gorges du Verdon, which can be reached with a slight diversion from the main route.[6]
Route
[edit]From south to north:
- Antibes
- Grasse
- Saint-Vallier-de-Thiey
- Castellane
- Digne
- Sisteron
- Gap
- Col Bayard (1,246 m)
- Corps
- La Mure
- Laffrey
- Grenoble
Gallery
[edit]-
Route Napoleon, Prairie de la Rencontre, Laffrey -
Lake on the Col Bayard
References
[edit]- ^ a b c d "Napoleon's gravity-defying 325km road". www.bbc.com. 21 January 2022. Retrieved 12 June 2025.
- ^ a b c "The Napoleon Route - Provence Alpes Tourist Office - Digne les Bains". Office de Tourisme Provence Alpes - Digne les Bains. Retrieved 12 June 2025.
- ^ "The Route Napoléon". Verdon Tourisme. Retrieved 12 June 2025.
- ^ Goulding, Rory. "A Napoleonic road trip". Lonely Planet. Retrieved 31 October 2025.
- ^ "The Route Napoléon". napoleon.org. Retrieved 31 October 2025.
- ^ "Driving the Route Napoléon". LeShuttle. Retrieved 31 October 2025.
External links
[edit]
Media related to Route Napoléon at Wikimedia Commons
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