Napoleonstein

The Napoleon Stone is a historic monument on the Marienhöhe in Leipzig that commemorates the Battle of the Nations in 1813. It was here on October 18 that Napoleon observed and directed the fighting, particularly the struggle for Probstheida, and later gave the order to retreat. The present monument, made of reddish granite, was dedicated in 1857 and replaced an earlier sandstone marker from 1832. It bears inscriptions documenting the emperor's stay and the location of his former tobacco mill, while replicas of his hat, a telescope and, in earlier times, his sword can be seen on top of the stone. Surrounded by an iron fence and now hemmed in by park trees, the stone has lost some of its appeal to tourists compared with the nearby Monument to the Battle of the Nations, but it remains an important place of remembrance. The Napoleon Stone is also historically significant as the site of an illegal Social Democratic Party (SPD) meeting in 1881. A well-known inn once stood nearby, housing an extensive private collection from the Napoleonic era; the property is now occupied by a residential complex.