The Emperor's Wood

It is said that Napoleon, to think and plan his return from exile in peace and without spies, loved to walk the paths near his country house in San Martino. We will visit the rooms of his "rustic" home, but with all the comforts of the time, with the frescoes narrating the Napoleonic vicissitudes and with an enviable view, despite the strategically hidden position, on the port of Portoferraio. From the actual residence, we will then move on to the "Demidoff Gallery", added later at the behest of the homonymous prince in honor of the emperor, where the statue of Galatea will welcome us. From here we will retrace the Napoleonic footsteps to discover a valley that contains one of the largest and most varied state-owned forests on the island of Elba, where for centuries the "holm oak" has been transformed into charcoal by the skilled workmanship of the local "charcoal burners".