Deux batailles pour Lyon

Winter 1814: the Coalition armies are marching on Paris. Napoleon's last hope is an army hastily raised in Lyon; 50,000 Austrians come down the Saône valley to block it. At Saint-Georges-de-Reneins and then at Limonest, the fighting opens the road to Lyon, which falls on 21 March 1814.

The bicentenary, in 2014

For the 200th anniversary, La Brigade Infernale organised “Deux batailles pour Lyon” (Two Battles for Lyon).

• Saturday 22 February: skirmishes in the streets of Beaujolais villages.
• Sunday 23 February: in the Parc de Lacroix-Laval, more than 200 reenactors from all over Europe, infantry, cavalry and artillery, for the battles of Saint-Georges-de-Reneins and Limonest.
• October 2013 to June 2014: events in the neighbouring communes, talks, film screenings; in Marcy-l’Étoile, the troupe performed a duel scene and a conscription.

With the support of

The Rhône département, the Académie Napoléon, the Panorama association, and the Directorate of Memory, Heritage and Archives of the French Ministry of the Armed Forces.

See the photo album of the battle · Photos: Thomas Carrage, Pierre Michel and the troupe.