A conversation about how history propagates itself quite consciously as we emulate the past. We talk to Susan Jaques, author of The Caesar of Paris about Napoleon’s idea to turn Paris into “the new Rome”― Europe’s cultural capital― through architectural and artistic commissions around the city. Napoleon had a tradition of appropriating from past military greats to legitimize his regime, but it was ancient Rome and the Caesars that obsessed him the most.
Guest: Susan Jaques is a journalist specializing in art. She is the author of A Love for the Beautiful: Discovering America’s Hidden Art Museums and The Empress of Art: Catherine the Great and the Transformation of Russia.