Battle of Austerlitz reenactment draws record numbers of participants

euronews (in English)

Thousands flocked to Santon Hill for the annual reenactment of the Battle of Austerlitz.  Commemorated every year, this year's edition is the largest since 2015, using 1200 history enthusiasts from 15 different countries.

Transcript

00:00 thousands brave the cold and snow in the Czech Republic on Saturday to watch the annual reenactment

00:05 of the battle of Austerlitz. One of Napoleon`s most famous victories, the 1805 campaign saw

00:10 the French emperor`s army of 60,000 defeat the much stronger Austro-Russian forces. And

00:16 participation was at an all-time high.

00:20 (In Czech)

00:22 Organizers say the popularity of the event was due to the release of Ridley Scott`s historical

00:31 biopic on Napoleon. However, local historians have reservations about the film. Among them

00:36 is Jakub Samek, who has recently published a book on the emperor.

00:39 (In Czech)

00:40 American actor Mark Schneider has been playing the role of Napoleon during the reenactments

01:00 since 2005. He is also unsure about the movie.

01:04 It`s an overwhelming film with lots of extras, lots of drama, but unfortunately, it`s not

01:13 very accurate to the period.

01:16 One of the sore points of the film is the fact that Scott transferred the battle of

01:20 Austerlitz from a flat region with vineyards to a mountainous camp with trenches and tents

01:24 that never existed.

01:25 (In Czech)

01:26 Organizers say Ridley Scott was also invited to see how the battle looked like.

01:39 [WHOOSH]

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