Advertisement
Published: April 26th 2013
Edit Blog Post
Tuesday 23rd April, 2013, Ajaccio, Corsica, France
Ajaccio's biggest claim to fame is not a landmark or a building but a bloke called Napoleon Bonaparte. He was born here and it is impossible to escape his presence. Streets, squares, buildings, restaurants (and more) are named after him all over the city. Ajaccio is located at the end of a headland and used to be protected by a fort and ramparts along the sea and harbour. The walls can't be seen today as they were demolished in the 19th century on Napoleon's orders. The city was founded by the Genoese in 1492.
After disembarking the ship we headed straight for the Tourist Information Office. Here we picked up a walking guide to the city and a list of the attractions and their opening hours. Most of the attractions closed at 12.30 for a siesta and didn't re-open until after we had to re-board the ship. With this in mind we decided to do the museums first and then 'play it by ear' with regard to the walking tours. First, we went to the Salon Napoleon which is a small museum located on the second floor of Hotel de Ville (Town
Hall). Here we saw a copy of Napoleon's death mask (not very impressive for us as we had seen the real thing on St Helena a few years ago). The museum only consisted of a couple of rooms one of which was full of coins (a numismatists paradise). We would normally have spent more time looking at the exhibits but time was limited. It was a nice little museum and the Hotel de Ville was a pretty impressive building. We then spent a few minutes strolling around the busy market square.
Next we proceeded to the Maison Bonaparte, the house where the great man was born on 15th August 1769. We had to queue for about 15 minutes as it seemed the whole ship had the same idea. We made use of the free audio guide included in the ticket price. Napoleon lived here until he was 8 years old. He was then sent to a military academy on the mainland. He returned to the house several times during the rest of his life but never really resided there permanently again. The house covered 3 floors and displayed antiques, paintings, coins and objects from the Bonaparte family's everyday life.
In the basement there were restored agricultural displays including an olive press and mill from the time. Since Napoleon died in 1821 the "Casa Bonaparte" has become a place of pilgrimage for artists, sovereigns and political leaders as well as tourists.
After Napoleon's house we started on the three walking tours (although we didn't complete them in the recommended order or in their entirety as we were short of time). Two of the walking routes started at the Place General De Gaulle and would take us through the narrow city streets with their tall houses with coloured facades. The Place General De Gaulle is situated with the Old Town to the south-east and the new town to the north. This large square was called the Place Du Diamant (after the Diamanti family who had a property here) until 1945. The square is dominated by a statue of Napoleon depicted in Roman dress, on horseback, surrounded by his four be-togaed brothers: Lucien, Prince of Canino, Joseph, King of Spain, Louis, King of Holland and Jerome, King of Westphalia.
We made our way to the Cathedral of La Madonuccia, dedicated to the Assumption of the Virgin, which was built at
the end of the 16th century. The main alter was bequeathed to the city by Elisa Baciocchi. Napoleon's sister, who was baptized there in 1771.
We then strolled along the coast until we reached the citadel which was built in the 16th century by a well-healed merchant called Marshal De Thermes. Corsica at this time was controlled by the French. However, from the 12th Century onward the Genoese, wishing to establish a base of operations, to support Calvi and Bonifacio in defending them against the Barbary Coast, built a fortification on the sight called Castel Lombardo. Unfit for habitation,the position was, centuries later, abandoned in 1492 in favour of Capo di Bollo at Leccia Point. When the town came under French Control in the 16th Century the citadel, once restored, formed one of the defensive corners of the hexagonal shape of Ajaccio.
We took a few photos of the watchtower which dominates the beach below. We then walked through the narrow streets taking in the Indi Sta Casa, St Roch Church (the largest church in the city) finishing at the Fesch Palace next door to the church. This palace was commissioned by Napoleon's maternal uncle, Cardinal Fesch, (b.Ajaccio
1763 - d. Rome 1839) for the education of young people. It was designed in the 19th century. The palace houses a prestigious collection of fine art. Unfortunately it is closed on Tuesdays so we couldn't go inside. We returned to the ship stopping for a cool beer at the cruise terminal on the way.
Advertisement
Tot: 0.09s; Tpl: 0.013s; cc: 14; qc: 31; dbt: 0.0591s; 1; m:domysql w:travelblog (10.17.0.13); sld: 1;
; mem: 1.1mb