NOW A MAJOR BBC2 TV SERIES AWARDED THE PRIX DU JURY DES GRANDS PRIX DE LA FONDATION NAPOLÉON 2014 From Andrew Roberts; author of the Sunday Times bestseller The Storm of War; this is the definitive modern biography of Napoleon. Napoleon Bonaparte lived one of the most extraordinary of all human lives. In the space of just twenty years; from October 1795 when as a young artillery captain he cleared the streets of Paris of insurrectionists; to his final defeat at the (horribly mismanaged) battle of Waterloo in June 1815; Napoleon transformed France and Europe. After seizing power in a coup d'état he ended the corruption and incompetence into which the Revolution had descended. In a series of dazzling battles he reinvented the art of warfare; in peace; he completely remade the laws of France; modernised her systems of education and administration; and presided over a flourishing of the beautiful 'Empire style' in the arts. The impossibility of defeating his most persistent enemy; Great Britain; led him to make draining and ultimately fatal expeditions into Spain and Russia; where half a million Frenchmen died and his Empire began to unravel. More than any other modern biographer; Andrew Roberts conveys Napoleon's tremendous energy; both physical and intellectual; and the attractiveness of his personality; even to his enemies. He has walked 53 of Napoleon's 60 battlefields; and has absorbed the gigantic new French edition of Napoleon's letters; which allows a complete re-evaluation of this exceptional man. He overturns many received opinions; including the myth of a great romance with Josephine: she took a lover immediately after their marriage; and; as Roberts shows; he had three times as many mistresses as he acknowledged. Of the climactic Battle of Leipzig in 1813; as the fighting closed around them; a French sergeant-major wrote; 'No-one who has not experienced it can have any idea of the enthusiasm that burst forth among the half-starved; exhausted soldiers when the Emperor was there in person. If all were demoralised and he appeared; his presence was like an electric shock. All shouted "Vive l'Empereur!" and everyone charged blindly into the fire.' The reader of this biography will understand why this was so.
#11356 in Books Penguin Books 2001-05-01 2001-05-01Original language:EnglishPDF # 1 7.97 x .88 x 5.29l; .65 #File Name: 0141001828302 pagesGreat product!
Review
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Good but short readBy CustomerReally interesting and engaging story if some what short. It has inspired me to start reading Moby Dick as I have a better understanding of the whaling culture. I had started Moby Dick several times before and it never engaged my interest;now I am finding it quite as enjoyable as reading Dickens. The observations on the human condition have left me much to think about. But I am not done with it so enough of that. back to the book at hand; For the price as a kindle book of the day it was more than worth it.0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. A good read in history; a tribute to the early life in the USABy Mr. BillIf you are into historical reality this is a story very well told and in the doing accurately informative of life in such times.I also truly enjoy the movie somewhat based on the book (as Hollywood is inclined to do); but as is inherently true the book is so very much better than the movie/1 of 1 people found the following review helpful. Sad but uplifting at same time.By Wade SteenIt is hard to read about what these poor men endured. Sad to know that there fear of the unknown caused them sail in the wrong direction leading to many more deaths.
