Buoyed by exceptional success, Donizetti presented his first opera written in French in 1840: La Fille du régiment. At the time, King Louis-Philippe had just reopened the doors of Versailles, turning it into a museum dedicated to “all the glories of France.” Napoleon was more celebrated there than Louis XIV, and France was preparing to fervently welcome the return of the Emperor’s ashes. Patriotism was at a peak, and La Fille du régiment perfectly captured the spirit of the time.
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