#napoleon a biography

[captainknell]

*Book Report!*

Napoleon, A Biography by Frank McLynn

I would just like to start off by saying that I do not recommend this book, unless you've already exhausted the 300+ other books in the world about Napoleon, then sure, why not.

It took me about 6 months to read, which is actually quick for me for a book of its size (668 pages) with life and everything going on but sometimes I just had to press on, or I really would have to be coming back as a ghost to read the other books! I'm just glad it's over 😮‍💨

My biggest problems were the reoccurring words and themes that repeated themselves so tirelessly. I dare someone to count the times the words "Machiavelli/Machiavellian" and "oriental complex" were used. "Fabian" and "Jungian" had their moments too. Then there were all the psychoanalytical Freudian reasons behind every little thing Napoleon did. It was because he felt this way about his mother or this way about his eldest brother. His views on women and his hidden homosexuality... These were the reason for everything apparently. In fact, you could make a drinking game out of these if you have a death wish.

The book definitely had its redeeming moments when it was actually focused on a particular battle or event. Unfortunately everything in-between was just filler speculation or spouting facts.

The end of this book was the great debate of poisoning, stomach cancer, or other reasons for Napoleon's demise. You have to forgive it for being published in 1997. The author seemed to go with Montholon being the poisoner but gave decent argument for all sides, even a myriad of different diseases it could have been. He said that "officially" stomach cancer is the cause of death since that was not a malady that the British could be accused of killing him with. It obviously ran in his family as well. They couldn't go with hepatitis or another apparently "more plausible" illness without being at fault by providing negligent medical care or effects of the climate from keeping him prisoner on St. Helena.

Read at your own risk, as these are just my opinions but let me say I've never been so glad to be done with a book!

[certifiedcoffeeaddict]

there are other ways this sentence could have been written but this is by far the funniest version

[isa-ko]

Mortier and Lefebvre!

I think the letters between Lefebvre and Mortier are fun to read because they’re both always so sweet to each other☺️ Here, Lefebvre has been absent for some time from the army due to a wound at Ostrach. Mortier had written a letter to Lefebvre about how it was going in his Brigadier General gig, and Lefebvre responds:

"Your news has given me infinite pleasure, my dear Mortier, please continue it for me; you feel how much they must interest me, especially in the position I find myself in. My arm, which at first was doing very well, is today in the most alarming state due to the ineptitude of a health officer who, however, in Paris, enjoyed a certain reputation..... I unfortunately gave him leave a little late and accepted Director Barras' doctor..... “

“Keep me informed of your operations; stay at the forefront if possible; Besides, I will always try to have you with me when I return to the army which, unfortunately, I do not foresee soon.”

(pp. 77-78)

Also, the author does mention Mortier’s sadness whenever a general he had been under leaves the army. Here, he writes to a General Ernouf (and also mentions Lefebvre):

"I learned with great regret of your departure from the army. Must we therefore give up the hope of seeing you there again with General Jourdan, your brave friend? You can, at least, count on the fact that our attachment and our esteem will follow you everywhere and that, in particular, the regrets that I feel about our separation are as sincere as the friendship that I have forever dedicated to you and to the others..... “

“If you see General Lefebvre, please tell him how much we want to see him again; I'm worried to know how he's doing; I have written to him several times and I have not received any news.”

(p. 81)

That was written in May 6 a few months after Lefebvre had written the previous above letter on April 23.

Also, later, Mortier wanted to return to the Rhine to be under Lefebvre’s orders. He requests to move to the Army of the Rhine, but Lefebvre then writes a very lovely letter to him:

"You know, my dear Mortier, that ambition has never tormented me; I made my principles known to you and I would have thought I was failing them by accepting command of the Army of the Rhine.”

"I know how to appreciate the wish you form to serve with me; I love you and esteem you too much not to participate in everything that depends on me and I hope to succeed in bringing about our reunion as soon as the bad consequences of my injury allow me to return to service. In the meantime, give me your news more often; tell me, above all, something about your operations and the state of the army. “

So Lefebvre hadn’t yet taken command of the Army of the Rhine. Mortier responds with another affectionate letter☺️

"I received your good news on Thermidor 13; they would have been even more pleasant if you had been able to tell me of your complete recovery; However, the hope you gave me of your soon return to the army has revived the hope I have always had of returning under your orders; you are kind enough to promise me this and I make the most ardent wishes so that this much desired meeting can take place when the Army of the Rhine takes action. It is generally believed that you will return with Minister Bernadotte. The soldier is already feeling the effects of his work at the Ministry of War; It was time that his needs were finally taken care of.”

(p. 100)

And finally, here is a letter between the two later, when Lefebvre has better health and now commands the 17th military division in Paris. He sent Mortier this letter:

"I accept with great pleasure, my dear General, the offer that you gave me from Souvarow's car. So please, please, send it to me..... I think it won't be long before you cross the Rhine; this time we must succeed and take up our winter quarters in Swabia, Franconia and Bavaria; So keep me informed of your operations, they will become very interesting; but above all, always be convinced that nothing can diminish the sincere esteem and friendship that General Lefebvre will always have for you. “

“P.S. I always think, my dear Mortier, of bringing you closer to me. I had requested for you the command of the place of Paris, then that of Mainz; I was promised both, but your services have probably since been judged to be more useful to the army. However, I have not forgotten you and, certainly, you will still serve with me and as soon as possible.”

(p. 155-156)

And it does come true later! Mortier will eventually come to France and take command of the 17th military division from Lefebvre.

Frignet-Despréaux (colonel). Le Maréchal Mortier: Duc de Trévise. Par son petit-neveu Frignet Despréaux, Vol. III, Berger-Levrault, 1914. pp. 77-156.

Source

[dailyflicks]

VANESSA KIRBY as EMPRESS JOSEPHINE Napoleon (2023) dir. Ridley Scott

[filmgifs]

Napoleon (2023) dir. Ridley Scott

[joachimnapoleon]

A look at three Fouché biographies

Over the past few months I've read three English-language biographies on Fouché: Joseph Fouché: Portrait of a Politician, by Stefan Zweig; Fouché: Unprincipled Patriot, by Hubert Cole; and Medusa's Head: The Rise and Survival of Joseph Fouché, Inventor of the Modern Police State, by Rand Mirante. These are a great example of how dramatically interpretations of a historical figure can vary from one historian to another (see also the difference between Alan Schom's interpretation of Napoleon vs. that of Andrew Roberts). And also a great example of why it’s a good idea to read multiple biographies on the same figure, to gain a more well-rounded perspective, instead of simply accepting/adopting that of the first biographer you read.

Zweig is a colorful writer and his biography is highly entertaining—he actually had me laughing out loud a few times—but his depictions of Fouché are so hilariously sinister and malignant throughout that at times it almost feels like a caricature. Zweig also utilizes the least amount of primary source material out of the three biographers--hardly any, actually--and so much of what he writes in regard to Fouché's motivations and thoughts come across as pure speculation or projection, but are always stated very matter-of-factly. Zweig presents a Fouché who chafes at the smallness of the roles he is given, driven by "unflinching selfishness." "When in power," Zweig writes, "he does not work for the State, does not work for the Directory or for Napoleon, but for himself." Aside from raw ambition, Zweig attributes most of Fouché’s actions to his sheer delight in engaging in intrigue for the sake of intrigue, an interpretation that seems to come straight out of Napoleon’s venting on St. Helena: “Intrigue was to Fouché a necessary of life. He intrigued at all times, in all places, in all ways, and with all persons. Nothing ever came to light, but he was found to have had a hand in it. He made it his sole business to look out for something that he might be meddling with. His mania was to wish to be concerned with everything.” Overall, Zweig’s book is worth reading, but out of the three English-language Fouché biographies, it’d be ranked third on my list.

Hubert Cole’s interpretation of Fouché is as different from Zweig’s as night is from day. The key word in Cole’s title is “Patriot,” and Cole’s central point is that Fouché, at each point in his career, was doing what he believed was in the best interests of France, even if that meant negotiating for peace with Britain behind Napoleon’s back, or pushing Napoleon towards a divorce and remarriage for the sake of shoring up the Bonaparte dynasty, or even (repeatedly) abandoning one master to serve another. This is the second one of Cole’s biographies I’ve read, and as most of you following me already know, I loved his dual biography on Joachim and Caroline Murat, the deceptively named The Betrayers, which is actually a very sympathetic look at the Murat couple. Cole is no fan of Napoleon and doesn’t really attempt to hide it, and maybe it’s because of this that he feels inclined to look deeper at the motivations and actions of those who ended up in opposition to Napoleon at various points (and who have therefore been demonized in history books accordingly). Cole draws heavily on primary sources, from letters and memoirs of Fouché’s contemporaries, to Fouché’s police bulletins (quoted at length throughout) to argue that “It is possible… that he was a sincere and moderately successful patriot. It is not uncommon in France for egoists to be hailed as patriots, and patriots condemned as traitors.” Far from the sinister, cold-blooded figure that haunts Zweig’s biography, or the “universally distrusted, feared, and hated” social pariah of Mirante’s, Cole's Fouché is charming, a welcome figure in the drawing rooms of Paris society, with a preference for making friends rather than enemies; nevertheless Cole does not deny that Fouché could also be ruthless, ambitious, and cunning. Cole also uses numerous accounts regarding Fouché by British, German, and Russian contemporaries, “in the belief that their prejudices, if national, are less personal.” Out of these three biographies, this one was my personal favorite, as I think it provides a more well-rounded picture of Fouché as a human being.

The primary focus of Mirante’s book is Fouché’s administration of the Ministry of Police, and the biography goes into great detail about the operations of the police in Napoleonic France, its vast network of informants, subversion of the press, surveillance of emigrés, and steady stream of information flowing in from all quarters. Fouché emphasized to his subordinates how one small detail or event could be “of great interest in the general order of things by its connections with related matters of which you are scarcely aware.” Like Cole, Mirante quotes frequently from Fouché’s police bulletins, as well as from memoirs of the era (though most of the excerpts are those hostile to Fouché). Unlike Cole, Mirante’s Fouché is driven not by any higher patriotism, but—especially after his humiliating flight from France in 1810—by a deep and abiding hatred of Napoleon, towards whose final destruction Fouché is willing to go to any length. Mirante provides more detail on Fouché’s exile and final years than either Zweig or Cole, one interesting aspect of which is the warm welcome Fouché received in Trieste from Elisa Bonaparte, who had been driven from power in Tuscany largely through Fouché’s machinations with Murat in 1814. Mirante ends the book with a critical look at Fouché’s dubious, ghostwritten “memoirs,” the credibility of which he is far more suspicious than Cole, who accepts the argument of French historian Louis Madelin that they are “largely authentic and accurate.” Mirante, on the other hand, is not convinced, and concludes that the memoirs are “highly assailable, at least quasi-spurious, and shrouded in controversy and deceit.” Mirante ends by drawing parallels between Fouché’s policing methods and those of the Gestapo and NKVD in the 20th century.

Overall I enjoyed all three of these for different reasons, and taken together they offer a more complete picture of Fouché. I haven’t gotten around to reading any French-language biographies on Fouché yet, but I do have a couple works on him by Emmanuel de Waresquiel that are definitely on my to-read list.

[empirearchives]

“I cannot accustom myself to the idea that I will never see him again. I am in despair. Adieu. For me life has no more charm, all is finished. I embrace you.”

— Pauline Bonaparte on the death of her brother, Napoleon. In a letter to Hortense de Beauharnais.

Source: Venus of Empire: The Life of Pauline Bonaparte, by Flora Fraser

[zenia62]

My Collection of Books

Hey guys, I'm feeling quite bored rn 😶 (Despite having a project to build a one piece ship for my brother-) So I decided to show y'all my book collections ^^ 👀 Most of them are Daendels ofc but I also have couple of Raffles book n one Nelson book bcs few years ago I was rlly invested in them but then I got bored of them so I never read them again 🫠

Daendels book :

Raffles n Nelson books :

Books that I regret the most at buying were probably Nelson ones cus it wasn't orginal 😭 I js realized it after it came that it was basically a reprint so that explains why the insides were fading n Nelson was kinda green on the front ☹�� Another one was mostly Daendels Indonesian books cus mostly weren't even talking abt him n it was more like abt what's on the road he made instead so yeah 😔 I'm thinking of selling Raffles n Nelson books tho cus I need money haha 😆 I don't know how to sell stuff sadly- Anyways, that's all for now, thank you guys n have a great day, stay safe 🌙

[bunniesandbeheadings]

Not to start discourse but I really love how when I was a teenager I read about Robespierre and I thought that was interesting so then I read about Danton and Camille Desmoulins and Marie Antoinette and Louis XVI and Louis XVII and Louis XVIII and then I wanted more so I taught myself French and about the Marquis de Sade and Napoleon and and and

And also all these books about the culture and the history and the art and the individual people who we don’t have enough data for a biography but who still mattered and felt so strongly and did so much

Idk. It’s just fun, to me, to reach a point where any time I see a historical figure in the 18-19th century I can be like “I know that guy!!”

[cadmusfly]

There’s some old posts from deactivated blogs from years ago in the 26 eight year old men/Marshalate fandom talking about how the most popular marshals are the Lannes/Ney/Murat Trio and it’s rare to see the others

I’d say that Soult, Bessieres and Davout are getting in on the action these days - I do mentally rotate Soult a lot, and these six pretty much line up with my main favourites (though I am open to being convinced to love more - Victor has some very nice drama going on, Owl Man is a hoot, I need more Masséna and Augereau the dnd characters)

But also if we think of Lannes/Ney/Murat as the feckless reckless brave idiot trio

Soult/Bessieres/Davout are like. The Seemingly calmer and measured trio

but they can hold a lot of Drama too

also if we post three more lannap fanfics we can temporarily overtake the napoleon/Alexander shippers on ao3 /im kidding i appreciate all the fanfics and don’t actually mean any ship war seriousness

[josefavomjaaga]

I haven’t read any biographies of Soult. If I were to read one, would you recommend that Nicole Gotteri's book on him be the one to read?

Absolutely. Especially as I am unaware of any other similar in-depth study on Soult's life.

If possible, get this one:

N. Gotteri, "Le Maréchal Soult", éditions B. Giovanangeli, Paris, 2000

I've only borrowed that one from a library and found it had some additions (in particular more images) compared to the older book I own ("Le Maréchal Soult, maréchal d'empire et homme d'état", éditions La Manufacture, Besançon, 1991)

Nicole Gotteri is or was (she may be retired by now) an archiviste, working in the Archives Nationales, in charge of the napoleonic era documents. And she really dug into those 😋. So, unlike in many popular history books, you will usually find she cites her sources very thoroughly, i.e., if you want to fact-check her or just read up some stuff yourself, it's very easy. She even unearthed some letters to and from Soult that had been missing.

Like many (most?) biographers, she is quite in love with her subject though. I've noticed that there are a couple of instances when she follows Soult's own memoirs without giving a secondary source. And in order to exonerate Soult, she often is very harsh on both Berthier and Ney (not even talking about Joseph 😁). Just to give you a fair warning.

[captainknell]

(January 1798)

I hope he at least made deviled eggs. I don't think I could eat just boiled eggs 🤢

From "Napoleon A Biography" by Frank McLynn

[certifiedcoffeeaddict]

so, like, daddy issues?

[isa-ko]

Mortier and Oats

Throughout 1797-1798, Mortier would be a Brigade Leader under General d’Hautpoul, who was Division General of the 23rd Cavalry. At this point, the 23rd Cavalry is headquartered at Guelders. They must prepare horses to cross the Rhine, but they struggle to get help from civil authorities in Guelders. Here, Mortier writes to the president of the administration of Guelders the day before departing:

"I am waiting in vain since this morning, citizen, may it please you to deliver to the horses of the company which is here, the oats which are due to it. They can do without it all the less since, setting out tomorrow for the crossing of the Rhine, it is essential that they have their full rations. I therefore make you responsible, citizen, for the lack of this service and declare to you that if within one hour, the oats which are due to it are not delivered, you will force me to use the rigorous means that l am authorized to take to obtain it. It is a fact that horses cannot do without eating. Hello and brotherhood. Ed MORTIER.”

Idk, this just seems like a rare angry Mortier moment. And it’s apparently about oats.

Frignet-Despréaux (colonel). Le Maréchal Mortier: Duc de Trévise. Par son petit-neveu Frignet Despréaux, Vol. III, Berger-Levrault, 1914. p. 21.

Source

[skitskatdacat63]

God I so much prefer researching Habsburg history over reading about literally any of the other figures I'm interested in bcs it gives me genuine stress parsing through the giant amount of biographies, that have such a huge range of biases and narratives, and trying to decide which to actually embark upon. It's not like Habsburg scholarship is a small field or anything, but it's so much more limited than it is for someone like, say, Napoleon. For Habsburg stuff, I'll pretty much read anything bcs I'm so desperate to learn anything, and I usually have to go out of my way to even find books and papers

[romanceyourdemons]

i’m still losing it over that nextshark article about the trend of chinese people making “white people food” for work lunches and calling them “the lunch of suffering.” white people secret i was notorious among my friend group in high school for opening up my lunchbox and inside there was a single loose unseasoned hardboiled egg