British State Visit to France, 1855

Following the French State Visit to Britain in April, Queen Victoria and Prince Albert were accompanied by the Prince of Wales and the Princess Royal as they made a historic State Visit to France, where they were hosted by Emperor Napoleon III and Empress Eugenie of France for a 10-day State Visit, which ended on this day in 1855.

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... celebrate this remarkable turnaround in Anglo-French relations, but also marked a growing personal friendship b… twitter.com/i/web/status/1…
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The Bowes Museum (@TheBowesMuseum) March 24, 2019
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I'm a day late but that's not going to stop me sharing this delightful painting of Queen Victoria visiting Marie An… twitter.com/i/web/status/1…
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Mélanie Dangereuse de Clegane (@MmeGuillotine) August 22, 2019
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On this day in 1855, Queen Victoria attended a military review on the Champ de Mars in Paris and then visited the t… twitter.com/i/web/status/1…
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Mélanie Dangereuse de Clegane (@MmeGuillotine) August 24, 2019

The British Royal Family were received by Emperor Napoleon III at Boulogne before being welcomed by Empress Eugenie at the Château de Saint-Cloud near Paris, where the Royal Party stayed for the duration of the visit. Events during the visit included a visit to the Paris World’s Fair, a military review on the Champ de Mars in Paris, and a visit to the tomb of Napoléon.

On this day in 1855, Queen Victoria attended a state ball in her honour at Versailles, the first to be held there s… twitter.com/i/web/status/1…
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Mélanie Dangereuse de Clegane (@MmeGuillotine) August 25, 2019
Royal visit to Napoleon III: the overture to the ball in the Galerie des Glaces, Versailles - 1855. http://t.co/FIh9QqkHha
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Almanach de Saxe Gotha - Handbuch des Adels (@AlmanachGotha) October 28, 2014

The highlight of the State Visit was, no doubt, the magnificent Ball in the Galerie des Glaces (Hall of Mirrors) at the Château of Versailles, following a a Dinner in the Palace Opera, hosted by the Emperor and Empress in honour of the Queen and Prince Consort. Prince Napoleon and Princess Mathilde Bonaparte, cousins of the Emperor, was also present along with the Prince of Wales and the Princess Royal. Queen Victoria described the Galerie as ‘full of people & one blaze of light from endless lustres, wreaths of flowers hanging down from the ceiling’ and described dancing several dances.

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In August 1855, Queen Victoria and Prince Albert spent ten days in France as the guests of Napoléon III and Empress… twitter.com/i/web/status/1…
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Mélanie Dangereuse de Clegane (@MmeGuillotine) August 21, 2018
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Baron Haussmann sent Queen Victoria an album of 19 watercolours of the beautiful Hôtel de Ville ball as a souvenir… twitter.com/i/web/status/1…
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Mélanie Dangereuse de Clegane (@MmeGuillotine) August 23, 2019
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Other magnificent evening events included multiple small Dinners at the Château de Saint-Cloud, an Opera Performance at the Paris Opera House (Queen Victoria wore her Emerald Tiara and Parure), a Banquet in the Apollo’s Gallery of the Château de Saint-Cloud (Queen Victoria wore her Opal Parure and the Empress wore the French Sapphire Parure), and a Ball for 8000 at the Paris City Hall.