This Was Napoleon's Last Meal

At Longwood, Napoleon Bonaparte’s home on St. Helena, the general was attended by a number of staff, including a butler who served his dinners on porcelain and silver plates (per NPR). Art Daily reports that his extremely generous daily household rations included: “23 kilos of beef and veal, 23 kilos of mutton or pork, 31 kilos of bread, 42 eggs and 15 bottles of milk, two turkeys, two geese, 12 pigeons and nine fowl, in addition to the pig and ducks.” All of which were accompanied by wine, cognac, rum, and malt liquor.

According to research by food writer Andrew Caldwell, Napoleon Bonaparte’s last full meal consisted of the kind of breakfast you might consume before going on a 10-mile hike — albeit the 19th-century French version. His meal included fried liver and bacon, served with shirred eggs (that’s eggs baked in cream for those unfamiliar with French cooking), and a side of roasted tomatoes, garlic toast, and kidneys sauteed in sherry (via Portland Press Herald).

Sadly, Bonaparte would not be going anywhere to burn off those meaty calories; he soon died after a great deal of pain during a long bout of illness. Bonaparte was soon too ill to eat much in his final few days.

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