Briars is the name of the small pavilion in which

Napoleon Bonaparte Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader wh ...

stayed for the first few weeks of his exile on Saint Helena in late 1815 before being moved to

Longwood House Longwood House is a mansion in St. Helena and the final residence of Napoleon Bonaparte, the former Emperor of the French, during his exile on the island of Saint Helena, from 10 December 1815 until his death on 5 May 1821. History Longwoo ...

. The pavilion was in the garden of William Balcombe, an English merchant who became a purveyor to Napoleon. His 14-year-old daughter Elizabeth Lucia ("Betsy") Balcombe was the only family member who spoke French and she became the family translator. Because of his family's closeness to Napoleon, Balcombe attracted the suspicion of Governor Hudson Lowe, and in 1818 he was forced to leave the island and return to England. The Briars was then used as the home for the Admiral assigned to St Helena.

History

By coincidence, the

Duke of Wellington Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington, (1 May 1769 – 14 September 1852) was an Anglo-Irish people, Anglo-Irish soldier and Tories (British political party), Tory statesman who was one of the leading military and political figures of Uni ...

also stayed in The Briars, in 1805, on his return from a tour of duty in India. He wrote to the admiral commanding the garrison on 3 April 1816, "You may tell Bony that I find his apartments at the Elysée-Bourbon very convenient and that I hope he likes mine at the Balcombes." In 1827 the

East India Company The East India Company (EIC) was an English, and later British, joint-stock company founded in 1600 and dissolved in 1874. It was formed to trade in the Indian Ocean region, initially with the East Indies (the Indian subcontinent and South ...

bought the property for £6,000 and used it for making silk and growing mulberry trees. In 1959 the Pavilion was purchased by Dame Mabel Brookes, a great granddaughter of William Balcombe, and donated it to the French government, which appointed her as

Chevalier Chevalier may refer to: Honours Belgium * a rank in the Belgian Order of the Crown * a rank in the Belgian Order of Leopold * a rank in the Belgian Order of Leopold II * a title in the Belgian nobility France * a rank in the French Legion d'h ...

de la

Légion d'honneur The National Order of the Legion of Honour (french: Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur), formerly the Royal Order of the Legion of Honour ('), is the highest French order of merit, both military and civil. Established in 1802 by Napoleon ...

in 1960 in recognition of her generous gesture. It became the third of the French properties on the island, together with his former tomb in Sane Valley and

. Later, Balcombe was offered a post in Australia and established a new estate called "The Briars" in the Carwoola area of

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

. On this new estate, it is believed that he was responsible for introducing two plants to Australia, the Sweet Briar (''Rosa rubiginosa'') and the Weeping Willow (''Salix babylonica''). The willow grew nearby Napoleon's grave on St Helena and Balcombe is reported to have taken cuttings from these trees. William's youngest son, Alexander Beatson Balcombe, named his pastoral run and homestead in Mount Martha " The Briars" (the run was previously known as Chen Chen Gurruck, or Tichingorourke).

References

{{reflist, 30em Geography of Saint Helena Palaces and residences of Napoleon French government properties on Saint Helena

History

See also

References