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The Franco-British Society PROGRAMME
APRIL - JULY 2010 |
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ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING
Tuesday 20 April 6.30pm to 9.30pm All members - individual, branch, honorary and corporate - are cordially invited to the Society's 66th AGM, to be followed by a Buffet Dinner. Guests are most welcome to attend the AGM and Dinner although, like honorary members, they are not entitled to vote. The meeting will take place at Dartmouth House, an important heritage building which was sumptuously remodelled and refur-bished in the 1890s by Lord Revelstoke, who created a grand mansion in the Anglo-French style. Purchased by the ESU in 1926, it is one of the most notable properties in Mayfair and is scheduled as a building of national importance. It is noted for its magnificent interior which includes grand marble fire-places, Louis Quatorze walnut panelling, and a fine French marble staircase with a superb painted ceiling by Pierre Victor Galland. At the close of the meeting Sibila Konstantinova, current winner of the Franco-British Society's Ravel scholarship kindly administered by the ESU, will give a piano recital. A buffet Dinner will be served by Leith's. Tickets for Dinner are £45.00 including wine.
Franco-British Society AGM AGENDA 1) To receive the report of the Chairman, Baroness Shephard. 2) To receive the Financial Report and adopt the Accounts for the year ended 31 January 2010. 3) To elect Members of the Council. 4) To authorise the Council of the Society to reappoint as Auditor/Independent Examiner - Susan Field. 5) To put forward as a Special Resolution to have an independent examination instead of an annual full audit. 6) To transact any other business of the Annual General Meeting. Any Member entitled to attend and vote may appoint another person (whether a Member or not) as proxy to attend and vote instead of that Member.
'Pauline Bonaparte: Venus of Empire' Illustrated talk by Flora Fraser
Tuesday 11 May Renowned biographer Flora Fraser will give an illustrated talk about her latest book concerning Napoleon Bonaparte's favourite sibling Pauline. Considered by many in Europe to be the most beautiful woman of her time, Pauline Bonaparte Borghese shocked the continent with the boldness of her love affairs, her opulent wardrobe and jewels, her decision to pose nearly nude for Canova's sculpture, and her rumoured incestuous relationship with her brother, the Emperor Napoleon-the only man to whom she was loyal. When Napoleon was exiled to Elba, Pauline was the only sibling to follow him there, and after the final defeat at Waterloo she begged to join him at Saint Helena. In Pauline Bonaparte: Venus of Empire, Flora Fraser casts new light on the Napoleonic era and crafts a dynamic, vivid portrait of a mesmerizing woman. Tickets are £15 to include refreshments.
ANNUAL VISIT TO FRANCE Paris and Environs 1-5 June The destination for the annual visit is Paris and environs, and the group of around thirty members will be based in central Paris. We shall be visiting the British Ambassador's Residence in the rue du Faubourg St Honoré, formerly the home of Napoleon Bonaparte's sister Pauline, the Assemblée Nationale and Hôtel de Lassay (residence of The Speaker), Versailles, Josephine's residence at Malmaison and so on. We look forward to describing aspects of the visit in the annual newsletter which will be circulated at the end of the year.
'The Resistance' Illustrated talk by Dr Matthew Cobb
Tuesday 6 July Matthew Cobb, Senior Lecturer at the University of Manchester, will talk about his new book The Resistance which has won the Franco-British Society's Enid McLeod Book Prize 2009. Using hundreds of eyewitness accounts and including recently-released archival material, the book tells the story of the French resistance to Nazi occupation during World War II. Here was a struggle in which ordinary people fought for their liberty, despite terrible odds and horrifying repression. Countless French men and women carried out an armed struggle against the occupation, producing underground anti-fascist publications and supplying the Allies with vital intelligence. The account begins with the catastrophic Fall of France in 1940, and shatters the myth of a unified Resistance created by General de Gaulle. In fact, claims the author, de Gaulle sought to use, dominate and channel the Resistance to his own ends. By turns exciting, tragic and enlightening, The Resistance describes acts of courage, self-sacrifice and betrayal during a desperately bleak yet at times inspiring period in France's recent history. Tickets are £15 to include refreshments. L'Appel du 18 juin
This year is the 70th anniversary of 'L'Appel du 18 juin', General de
Gaulle's famous speech which he broadcast from the BBC in London.
There will be various commemorations, including a two-day event of
talks, discussions and films at the French Institute, 17 Queensberry
Place, SW7 2DT, 16 to 17 June. For more information consult the website: LEGACIES Leaving a legacy to the Franco-British Society, to support its aims in maintaining and enhancing the cultural and educational links between the UK and France, would be most gratefully appreciated. NEW MEMBERS We welcome new members to the Society. To apply for membership, please either contact the Executive Secretary at the office address/telephone number on the front of this Programme, or download the membership application form from this website: |
