Our 2024 Annual Conference
will be held November 15-17 in Mexico City

The conference will be held in the truly grand The Gran Hotel Ciudad de México. The famous Tiffany-style stained glass ceiling was constructed by the famous French artisan, Jacques Gruber in his workshop in Paris. It was transported by ship and reassembled to form the roof of one of the most posh department stores in the capital in 1908. Now a beautiful hotel since 1968 converted for the Olympic games, it has featured in movies and television, most recently in the riveting opening scenes of the James Bond movie, Spectre.

The hotel is nestled in the most protected and safest part of the City, the Historical Center with views of the Main City Square (Zócalo) dominated by a beautiful gothic cathedral that took 250 years to complete, built over the top of the ruling Aztec (Mezica) royal palace. There is a large police presence and it is full of tourists. Stay within the City center. You should keep your wits about you, as you would in any major city center.

The Terraza rooftop restaurant in the hotel has excellent & elegantly plated food with views of the city center… Simply stunning.

Below is our link to make reservations. On the top right hand side of the screen, you can click the drop-down menu and change the prices displayed to US or Canadian dollars. You may have to use your browser’s translation feature to change the page to English. You then have to scroll forward in time to November 2024 and you can see all of the days that are eligible for our rate during, and in the time before and after our conference.

You can click the globe in the upper right of the page to select to see the prices in USD or other currency. Unfortunately, as of now, the language preference doesn’t offer anything other than Spanish. Your browser may have a translation feature. In Chrome you can click on the three dots in the upper right and select Translate from the drop-down menu. If that doesn’t work, you can click on the word “Beneficios” on the upper left to connect to connect to the main reservation page, which has an American flag in the upper right to see the site in English, but that page might not include our special rate.

Alternative Hotels: The Gran Hotel Ciudad de México is a small boutique hotel. It was expected that some conference attendees would not be staying for all, or potentially any nights, at the host hotel. You will still experience the beauty of the host hotel and participate in our events and meals hosted there. Happily, there are numerous excellent, beautiful & historic hotels within the immediate vicinity (walking distance) to accommodate everyone. We have included a list of hotels below.

Options to Consider for Hotels in the Vicinity of the Host Hotel, Gran Hotel Ciudad de México (in no order): 1. Zocalo Central & Rooftop Hotel; 2. Best Western Hotel Majestic Mexico City; 3. Hotel Histórico Central; 4. Hotel NH Collection Mexico City Centro Histórico; 5. Umbral, Curio Collection By Hilton; Hampton Inn & Suites Mexico City – Centro Historico. (Not an endorsement of any hotel, do your own research for suitability).

The Centro Historico (central tourist zone) is perhaps the safest part of Mexico City. However, use common sense, walk in groups, watch for pickpockets, and do not go it alone as in any major urban city. Always play it safe and be alert.

We strongly encourage you to review online resources for safety tips on Mexico City: e.g. Berkshire Hathaway Travel Protection “Staying safe in Mexico City – the basics”

Program Summary     For a detailed program click here.

Conference Registration

Partial List of Speakers and Topics

An overview of Napoleon’s activities and ideas in the eyes of Latin America. Napoleon’s influence on the independence movements; the participation of Latin Americans in the Napoleonic wars (both in the Americas as in Europe), and vice versa, the participation of veterans of the Napoleonic wars in the Latin American Independence movement. The importance of the Napoleonic Code in Latin America and the clash between conservatives and liberals in Latin America and the impact on the creation and consolidation of Republics and Constitutions.

Dr. Marco Cabrera Geserick is the Director of Latin American Studies, and Assistant Professor of Humanities, Department of Comparative Cultural Studies at Northern Arizona University. Dr. Geserick is a Cultural Historian of Latin America and works as Assistant Professor of Humanities at Northern Arizona University, where he also holds the position of Director of Latin American Studies. He received his Ph.D. in History from Arizona State University in 2013 and is author of the book The Legacy of the Filibuster War: Collective Memory and National Identity in Central America, published in 2019. He is working on a book tilted La Guerra Filibustera y la Identidad Nacional Costarricense, as well as on a volume on the connections between filibusterism, the Mexican American War, and the U.S. Civil War. His research interests concentrate on nineteenth century cultural history, with an emphasis in Latin America during the Independence wars and the Filibuster war, including topics like national identity, consolidation of the nation-state, and Memory Studies.

J. David Markham, M.A., M.Ed
President, International Napoleonic Society
Knight, Order of the French Academic Palms
“Following the Road to Glory: Stendhal’s Napoleonic Adventure.”

Many people know Stendhal through his literary works, such as The Charterhouse of Parma, The Red and the Black, The Life of Henry Brulard and, of course, A Life of Napoleon. Less known is the fact that almost from the very beginning Stendhal was fascinated by Napoleon and quite literally followed him on his Road to Glory by serving in the military and in the French government. In his paper, David, who has written and lectured on Stendhal and whose writing has been added to the Stendhal Archive in Grenoble, follows what really became Stendhal’s Napoleonic Adventure over the many years of his involvement, ranging from the crossing of the Alps to the Russian Campaign, to serving under Martial Daru in government. And much much more! It is quite a story. Then, David will briefly consider what Stendhal ultimately came to feel about Napoleon and his place in history.

J. David Markham is an internationally recognized scholar and writer and is President Emeritus of the Napoleonic Historical Society, President of the International Napoleonic Society, and Knight of the Order of the French Academic Palms (Chevalier de l’ordre des Palmes Académiques).

David is also a Vietnam Veteran who was awarded the Army Commendation Medal and the Bronze Star. And much to the amazement of all who know him, the Good Conduct Medal!

His recent books include Simply Napoleon, Napoleon for Dummies and The Road to St Helena: Napoleon after Waterloo. He has appeared in several television documentaries, lectured at conferences and museums around the world and did the Napoleon 101 podcast that has over 100,000 listeners. David also has a world-class collection of Napoleonic decorative arts that include period furniture, snuffboxes, miniature paintings, engravings, statues and clocks, among other things. It has been featured in several significant museum exhibitions in Phoenix, Seattle and New York City.

In 2014 David was appointed a Knight of the Order of the French Academic Palms, France’s highest civilian-only award, second only to the Legion of Honor. The order was established by Napoleon himself in 1808. He has been awarded the Médaille d’or du Rayonnement Culturel (Gold Medal for Cultural Influence), the Otto von Hapsburg Merit Medal, The Marengo Medal from Italy, the INS Legion of Merit, and numerous additional medals and awards.

Kevin Rodriguez, F.I.N.S.
“To Conquer a Peace and a Rebellion: Gen. Winfield Scott and his service during US Mexican War and the American Civil War.”

General Winfield Scott’s Mexico City Campaign and his early Civil War Service highlight the influence of Napoleonic Warfare on the tactics of both campaigns while celebrating the innovation of strategic doctrine by Scott in both conflicts. This presentation hopes to foster a new appreciation for one of America’s greatest yet most obscure commanders, arguably the nation’s best soldier of the 19th century.

Kevin F. Rodriguez, F.I.N.S., holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science from San Diego State University, focusing on Executive Power and Military History, and has spent more than a decade serving in the San Diego County Registrar of Voters, which oversees elections for the county.

Edna Markham, M.Sc., P.Geo.
“The Use of Google Earth to Illustrate the Russian Campaign of 1812.”

Edna Markham has pioneered the use of Google Earth and other technological resources in tandem with records and maps of the era to better contextualize the history of famous battles and military campaigns.

Edna is a geophysicist and vice-president of a consulting company in Toronto, Canada. Geophysics can distinguish the types of rocks that are underground based upon their magnetic, gravity and radioactive properties. She is currently working on projects in Saudi Arabia, Uganda and Canada. She has always loved maps and this presentation helps to illustrate historical events with the use of maps and Google Earth.

Mark Billings, F.I.N.S. “The Life of Admiral Lord James Gambier – From Naval Warrior to Newfoundland Governor.”

Most historians have tended to assume the worst about Admiral Lord Gambier, who was nicknamed “Dismal Jimmy” for his piety. He faced much criticism for his operations at Basque Roads in 1809. This presentation is intended to provide a more balanced overview of his career and contributions to the British cause during the Napoleonic Wars, including specifically his involvement in the naval battles of the Glorious First of June (1794) and the Second Battle of Copenhagen (1807).

Mark Billings is originally from St. John’s, Newfoundland, Canada, and has been a Napoleonic aficionado since he was a teenager, when he discovered that his ancestor George Billings, a Welshman, fought with Napoleon at the Battle of Marengo in 1800. Mark is a Fellow of the International Napoleonic Society and currently Executive Vice-President of the Napoleonic Historical Society. He served as a director of the Souvenir Napoléonien from 2008 to 2021.

Sharon Worley, Ph.D.
“The Rhetoric of Empire in Leonora Sansay’s ‘The Horror of Santo Domingo’ and Napoleon’s Attempted Reconquest of Haiti.”

American author, Mary Hassal, also known as Leonora Sansay, published her novel, Zelica, in London in 1820. It is a revised and expanded version of her novel, Secret History, or The Horrors of Santo Domingo, in a series of letters, written by a lady at Cape Francois, to Colonel Burr, late vice-president of the United States, principally during the command of General Rochambeau (Philadelphia,1808). Sansay’s character, Clara, is based on her own experiences as the wife of an American planter who returned to Haiti in 1802 when the French led by General Emmanuel Leclerc on Napoleon’s orders sought to reimpose French rule. Sansay’s novel supports both the American policy in the Caribbean as well as the interests of plantation owning Southern states from the perspective of whites, not abolitionists. Her novel warns of the dire consequences of a slave rebellion but at the same time condemns the white colonial social hierarchy based on race that leads to the revolt. The narrator’s perception of the French campaign succinctly summarizes the goals of European colonists who returned to the island to restore their claims to the plantations and their slaves. Napoleon’s desire to reclaim Haiti was due to its large sugar production which rivaled that of any other colony in the Caribbean. Napoleon regarded European civilization as superior to African slave culture and determined to defeat the “gilded Africans.” After receiving a copy of Toussaint’s Constitution of 1801, Napoleon replied to Toussaint in a letter carried by his sons, who had been educated in France, that the constitution “included many good things” but other things that went against the sovereignty of the French Republic. Napoleon’s propagandists supported his policy of reconquest through a media blitz of rhetoric that portrayed Toussaint as duplicitous in diplomacy and treacherous in war.

Letter from Napoleon to Leclerc quoted in Paul Christopher Johnson, “Vodou Purchase: The Louisiana Purchase in the Caribbean World,” in R.J. Callahan, Ed ., New territories, new perspectives: The religious impact of the Louisiana purchase. (University of Missouri Press, 2008), 159.

Laurent Dubois, Avengers of the New World: The Story of the Haitian Revolution (Harvard University Press, 2005), ch. 12.

Dr. Sharon Worley is an author and an artist. Dr. Worley received her Ph.D. in Humanities from the University of Texas at Dallas and teaches in Houston, Texas, USA.

Anahí Esparza Vallín, M.Ed.
“Conflict and confluence, the French influence in Mexico.”

From revolutionary ideals sparking armed revolution in the streets to appeals for a strong but just monarchy to restore order to the resulting chaos, France exerted considerable influence on Mexico, her political climate and her governments. The brief Mexican rule by an Austrian-born Emperor Maximilian had also an outsized influence on Mexican society and particularly the opinions and attitudes of the Mexican upper classes. French-inspired architecture, governmental reforms and cultural and culinary influences remained long after French troops eventually left Veracruz harbor to return to France.

Anahi Esparza was born in Zacatecas State in Mexico and she immigrated to the United States where she became a naturalized American Citizen. Anahi attended Texas Christian University where she received her Bachelor of Arts degree in Spanish and Mathematics in 2009. She completed her Masters in Educational Leadership in 2020. She is a lifelong educator and administrator in Public Schools. She lives in Fort Worth, Texas with her husband Anael Luebanos, and their children Ana, and Rafael.

Chris Sloan
President, Napoleonic Historical Society
“The War of the Oranges (1801): Prelude to the Peninsula”

An overview of the brief and relatively little-known war between Portugal and Spain in late May and early June of 1801, brought on by Napoleon’s demand that Portugal abandon its alliance with Great Britain, and which resulted in the expansion of the territory of Brazil, and in a border dispute that still stands today, more than 200 years later.

Chris Sloan has been interested in Napoleon and his era since the age of 12, when a family friend gave him a coffee-table sized-book about the 100 Days Campaign. He has a particular interest in Napoleonic uniforms, and in Napoleon’s Polish troops and other foreign units of La Grande Armée. A collector by nature (his wife might say “by sociopathic obsession”), his Napoleonic library threatens to outgrow available shelf space on a weekly basis, and he has something like 6,000 toy soldiers of the Napoleonic period – which he’ll get around to painting someday. He has been a member of the NHS and its predecessor organizations since the early ‘90s. He has served on the Board for almost 10 years, including as Treasurer, and, for the last three years, as President.