Empire Style: The Hotel de Beauharnais in Paris

Description

The Hotel de Beauharnais, constructed in 1713, gained renown during the Consulate period. In 1803, Josephine Bonaparte acquired the property for her son, Eugene de Beauharnais, and had the building renovated and decorated at great expense. At the fall of the Napoleonic Empire, it was sold to the King of Prussia and became an embassy during the nineteenth century. With its unique Consulate and Empire decor, the palace is an invaluable specimen of Parisian interior architecture. The result of more than ten years of research and restoration work, this book recounts three centuries of European political history through the lives of the Hotel's successive owners.

Art historian Ulrich Leben is the consultant for furniture and interiors restoration at Beauharnais. Joerg Ebeling is director of research at the Centre Allemand d'Histoire de l'Art and renovation consultant at Beauharnais. Francis Hammond's photographs have appeared in numerous books including Historic Houses of Paris and Private Houses of France.

"'Empire Style: The Hotel de Beauharnais in Paris' - newly published by Flammarion - is one of the most beautifully printed and produced books this year. At 358 pages, it covers the restoration and refurbishment of one of the architectural treasures of Paris." -StyleSaloniste.com