Napoleon Andrew Roberts Reviewed by Robert Schmidt About the Author Andrew Roberts is a British author who graduated with honors from Gonville & Caius College, Cambridge and is presently a visiting professor in the War Studies Department at Kings College, London. He has written or edited 19 books which have been translated in 22 languages and appears on radio and television around the world. About the Book There have been many books about Napoleon, but Andrew Roberts’ single-volume biography is the first to make full use of the ongoing French publication of Napoleon’s 33,000 letters. Seemingly leaving no stone unturned, Roberts begins in Corsica in 1769, pointing to Napoleon’s roots on that island—and a resulting fascination with the Roman Empire—as an early indicator of what history might hold for the boy. Napoleon’s upbringing—from his roots, to his penchant for holing up and reading about classic wars, to his education in France, all seemed to point in one direction—and by the time he was 24, he was a French general. Though he would be dead by fifty one, it was only the beginning of what he would accomplish. Although Napoleon: A Life is 800 pages long, it is both enjoyable and illuminating. Napoleon comes across as whip smart, well-studied, ambitious to a fault, a little awkward, and perhaps most importantly, a man who could turn on the charm when he needed to. Through his portrait, Roberts seems to be arguing two things: that Napoleon was far more than just a complex soldier, and that his contributions to the world greatly surpassed those of the evil dictators that some compare him to. “The historian, like the orator,” Roberts quotes Napoleon as saying, “must persuade. He must convince.” I, for one, am convinced. A fascinating read. –Chris Schluep BLUE SKY LEADERSHIP CONSULTING | 210-219-9934 | [email protected] Blue Sky Leadership Consulting works with organizations to leverage Strategic Thinking and Execution Planning and we encompass many of the principles in these books into our Four DecisionsTM methodology and development of your company’s One Page Strategic Plans. Need to grow top line revenue? Improve bottom-line profits? Build accountable and trusting teams? Improve cash flow? Develop leadership team members? Contact us for a free consultation • Volume 5 Issue 4 Copyright 2018 |Blue Sky Leadership Consulting | All rights reserved • 1769- Birth, Tuesday, August 15, on island of Corsica. • 1785- Graduated from Ecole Militare with the rank of second lieutenant in the artillery • 1793- for his brilliant tactical command at the battle of Toulon he receives the rank of Brigadier general • 1794- imprisoned under suspicion of being a supporter of Robespierre. • 1795- He meets Josephine • 1796- Napoleon is given the command of the French Army in Italy and begins the Italian campaign against Austria; wins battles of Lodi & Arcole • 1797- Wins battle of Rivoli and signs Treaty of Campo Formio; returns to Paris a hero • 1798- Begins the Egyptian Campaign; Admiral Nelson and the British fleet destroy the French navy in the Battle of the Nile; Napoleon’s army is cut off from supplies and communication • 1799- receiving news or turmoil in France, Napoleon returns to Paris; through the Coup of Brumaire he overthrows the Directory and is elected First Consul of the Consulate • 1800- Battle of Marengo; escapes an assassination attempt • 1801- Treaty of Luneville signed with Austria; Concordat of 1801 • 1802- Treaty of Amiens; Napoleon restructures the French educational system; Legion of Honour established; new constitution adopted; Napoleon confirmed as First Consul for life. • 1803- sells Louisiana territory to the US; Britain declares war on France; France invades Hanover • 1804- introduction of the Civil Code (aka the Napoleonic Code); proclaimed Emperor by the Senate; crowns himself Emperor in the company of the Pope • 1805- Battles of Ulm, Trafalgar (Lord Nelson killed), Caldiero and Austerlitz (considered Napoleon’s greatest victory) • 1806- Established the Confederation of the Rhine; the Holy Roman Empire is abolished; Prussia joins Russia and Britain against France; Battles of Jena and Auerstadt; the Berlin Decree initiated the Continental System (against Britain) • 1807- Battles of Eylau & Friedland, Treaty of Tilsit between Russia and France signed; Napoleon and Spain divide Portugal through a secret treaty • 1808- Imperial University established; Spanish people rise up against France (Dos de Mayo Uprising); Napoleon’s soldiers retaliate by brutally executing Spanish citizens (Goya’s painting ‘The Third of May 1808’); brother Joseph crowned King of Spain; Peninsular War, Battle of Bailen • 1809- Battle of Raszyn; Battle of Aspern-Essling (his first defeat in 10 years); Battle of Wagram (Austria loses territory and must enforce the Continental System; Treaty of Schonbrunn; Napoleon divorces Josephine • 1810- Napoleon marries Marie Louise, Duchess of Parma • 1811- Napoleon II is born, named King of Rome • 1812- Battles of Salamanca & Smolensk; Moscow evacuated, Battle of Borodino; Napoleon arrives in Moscow to find it abandoned and on fire, the Grand Armee begins the ‘Great Retreat’ suffering great losses; crossing of the River Berezina; Grand Armee expelled from Russia • 1813- Battles of Luneburg, Lutzen, Bautzen, Haynau, Poischwitz, Vitoria, Danzig, Grossbeeren, Dresden, Katzbach, Hagelberg, Kulm, San Marcial, Dennewitz, Gohrde, Altenberg, Wartenberg, Bidassoa, Lieberwplkwitz, Leipzig, Hanau, Nivelle, Pamplona, Bornhvoved, Nive & Sehestedt • 1814- Six Days Campaign; Battles of Garris, Orthez, Toulouse & Paris; Napoleon abdicates his throne to Louis XVIII; Treaty of Fontainbleau; Napoleon is exiled to Elba, his wife and son take refuge in Vienna • 1815-Napoleon escapes from Elba and begins the ‘100 Days’; Battle of Ligny; Battle of Waterloo; restoration of Louis XVIII; Napoleon exiled to St. Helena • 1821- Napoleon dies on St. Helena Book Review: N a p o l e o n Volume 5 P a g e 2 | 6 Issue 4 Overview Napoleon Bonaparte was founder of modern France and one of the great conquerors of history. He came to power through a military coup only six years after entering the country as a 24-year-old penniless political refugee. Although his conquests ended in defeat and ignominious imprisonment, over the course of his short but eventful life he fought sixty battles and lost only seven, a record envied by any general of any age. His greatest and most long-lasting victories were not on the battlefield but rather, his institutions, which put an end to the chaos of the French Revolution and cemented its guiding principle of equality before the law. Today, the Napoleonic Code forms the basis for law in Europe and aspects of it have been adopted in forty countries spanning every continent besides Antarctica. Even if Napoleon hadn’t been one of the greatest military geniuses of history, he would still be one of the giants of modern history. The leadership skills Napoleon employed to inspire his men have been adopted over the centuries, but never equaled except perhaps by his great devotee, Winston Churchill. The fact that his army was willing to follow him even after the retreat from Moscow, the battle of Leipzig, and the fall of Paris testifies to his capacity to make ordinary people feel they were capable of doing extraordinary, history-making deeds. He was a great lover of women. In addition to his wife Josephine, and later his second wife Marie Louise, he had at least 22 mistresses. Always the conqueror, numerous books have been written about the many women in his life including opera singers, actresses and the wives of some of his most trusted soldiers. Many of the women in his life were equally unfaithful to him, including Josephine during his Egyptian campaign. All too often, biographies of Napoleon adopt the easy trope by which his deranged hubris- tied up with what has become erroneously known as the “Napoleon Complex” (he was actually 5’-7” tall, the height of the average Frenchman of his day)- inevitably led to his well-deserved downfall; the ancient comforting suggestion that such is the fate of all tyrants sooner or later. “History is an argument without end”, says Pieter Geyl, believing every generation has to write its own biography of Napoleon. Andrew Roberts’ interpretation is very different from other historians’. He believes that what brought the Emperor down was not some deep-seated personality disorder but a combination of unforeseeable circumstances coupled with a handful of significant miscalculations: something altogether more believable, human and fascinating. Life-long Learner Napoleon was a voracious reader and life-long learner. (P165) On his campaign to Egypt in 1798 he took with him 125 books of history, geography, philosophy and Greek mythology in a specially constructed library including Captain Cook’s three volume Voyages, Goethe’s Sorrows of Young Werther and books by Livy, Thucydides, Plutarch, Tacitus and of course, Julius Caesar. He brought biographies, poetry, drama, a Bible and the Koran. He knew that his hero, Alexander the Great, had taken learned men and philosophers on his campaigns to Egypt, Persia and India and he intended his expedition to be a cultural and scientific event and not merely a war of conquest. To that end he took 167 geographers, botanists, chemists, antiquaries, engineers, historians, printers, astronomers, zoologists, painters, musicians, sculptors, mathematicians, economists, journalists and baloonists- the so-called Savants. They were not told where they were