Yves Jégo, a French deputy from the Radical Party and mayor of Montereau, site of a Napoleonic victory, proposes to build a new leisure park about the epic deeds of Napoléon Bonaparte, just 45 miles from Disneyland Paris.

The park will be called Le Bivouac de Napoléon, and the Prefect Jean-Louis Dufeigneux is going to present this idea on 17 February, the anniversary of the battle of Montereau (17-18 February 1814), which resulted in the victory of the French against the Austrians and the Württembergers. The mayor’s team has to raise €200m ($255m) and would like to start building on 17 February 2014, the battle’s bicentenary. The opening of the park is planned for 2017-2018.

Mr. Jégo thinks that this investment can be an anti-crisis measure to create jobs in the region and help turn around the French economy: people desperately need to relax, so the entertainment industry is likely to remain a stable market.

Among the ideas for the attractions, there is a ski slope, the crossing of the Berezina River, a horse performance and labyrinths in the Egyptian pyramids. There will also be facilities such as hotels, restaurants, conference centres, shops, even a high-speed railway service and a museum dedicated to the French leader.

Napoleon is the best-known Frenchman after Charles de Gaulle and is popular also among Russians and Chinese. The French government can play on this popularity to promote the project. Russian and Middle Eastern investors are interested.