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The Route Napoléon is the route taken by Napoleon I from Golfe-Juan (near Cannes) to Grenoble on his return from Elba in 1815.[1] It is now concurrent with sections of route N85,[1][2] and Routes D1085, D4085, and D6085.
The route begins at Golfe-Juan, where Napoleon disembarked on 1 March 1815,[1] beginning the Hundred Days that ended at Waterloo.[3] Napoleon led around 1,000 men, horses and equipment, and completed the journey in less than seven days, reaching Grenoble on 7 March 1815.[4] From there he proceeded to Paris, where, as Balzac wrote, 'France gave herself to Napoleon, just as a pretty girl abandons herself to a Lancer'.[5]
The Route was inaugurated in 1932[2] and meanders from the French Riviera north-northwest along the foothills of the Alps.[1][2] Among the highlights of the route are the towns of Grasse, Castellane and Sisteron, and the Gorges du Verdon, which can be reached with a slight diversion from the main route.[6]
From south to north:
Media related to Route Napoléon at Wikimedia Commons