From the early beginnings of the Restoration to the return of the ashes of Napoleon (December 1840), the cult of the dead exemplified the political struggles of post-revolutionary France. The cult of the victims of the Revolution, dynastic funerals, national funerals, funerals of political opponents, all play their part in forming our modern politics. Paris was a theatre for this politicization of the cult of the dead during the Romantic period. This papers analyzes three singular aspects of this process : the role of emotions and sentiment, the re-definition of sacred in politics, and the emergence of public protest.