5
1
eBook
$17.49
$23.00
Save 24%
Current price is $17.49, Original price is $23. You Save 24%.
Available on Compatible NOOK devices, the free NOOK App and in My Digital Library.
WANT A NOOK?
Explore Now
Related collections and offers
17.49
In Stock
Overview
A major biography of the young Napoleon Bonaparte and his improbable rise to power“A satisfying, psychologically convincing account of Napoleon’s early years. . . . Even-handed and authoritative.”—Adam Zamoyski, Sunday Times (London) At just thirty years of age, Napoleon Bonaparte ruled the most powerful country in Europe. But the journey that led him there was neither inevitable nor smooth. This authoritative biography focuses on the evolution of Napoleon as a leader and debunks many of the myths that are often repeated about him—sensational myths often propagated by Napoleon himself. Here, Philip Dwyer sheds new light on Napoleon’s inner life—especially his darker side and his passions—to reveal a ruthless, manipulative, driven man whose character has been disguised by the public image he carefully fashioned to suit the purposes of his ambition.
Dwyer focuses acutely on Napoleon’s formative years, from his Corsican origins to his French education, from his melancholy youth to his flirtation with radicals of the French Revolution, from his first military campaigns in Italy and Egypt to the political-military coup that brought him to power in 1799. One of the first truly modern politicians, Napoleon was a master of “spin,” using the media to project an idealized image of himself. Dwyer’s biography of the young Napoleon provides a fascinating new perspective on one of the great figures of modern history.
Product Details
| ISBN-13: | 9780300148206 |
|---|---|
| Publisher: | Yale University Press |
| Publication date: | 10/01/2008 |
| Sold by: | Barnes & Noble |
| Format: | eBook |
| File size: | 3 MB |
About the Author
Philip Dwyer is senior lecturer at The University of Newcastle in Australia. He is author or editor of numerous publications on Napoleonic Europe, and is currently writing a biography of Napoleon’s later years.
Table of Contents
List of Maps xiiiA Note on the Use of Names xv
Prologue: The Bridge at Arcola 1
The Outsider, 1769-1792
The Pleasure of Recognition
Imaginary Landscapes 11
Carlo and Paoli 14
'A Violent Enthusiasm for Liberty' 19
The Choice 22
A 'Vigorous and Rude' Education 26
'You Will Be My Avenger'
'A Sombre and Cantankerous Youth' 33
Death of the Father 38
A Corsican in France, a Frenchman in Corsica 42
Corsica in Revolution
An Island in Turmoil 53
Working towards the Revolution 58
The Return of the Babbo 66
Denunciations 72
Ambition Awakened
The Republican 76
'I Wanted You to Be Free' 83
The Easter Sunday Murders 88
Buonaparte, Paris and the Revolution 92
The Revolutionary, 1792-1796
Disillusion
Increasing Tensions 105
The Expedition to Sardinia 106
The Rupture 113
'Perpetual Infamy' 120
'It Is Better to Eat Than Be Eaten' 122
The Jacobin
Refugees 127
The Situation in the Midi 130
The Siege of Toulon 133
'Ville Infame' 140
Italy - the First Plans 145
Shifting Political Sands
Arrest 151
'My Tender Eugenie' 159
Paris: The Decisive Months 163
The Political Appointee
General Vendemiaire 171
'Seizing the Moon with His Teeth' 178
'A Proud Cajoler' 184
The Conquering Hero, 1796-1798
Innovation
First Impressions 195
An Army of Brigands 199
Defeating Piedmont 204
'The Moral Force of Victory' 209
Conquest and Pillage
The Entry into Milan 219
'I Thought Only of You' 223
The Price of Liberty 225
Lombardy in Revolt 227
Liberating Italian Art 234
'My Life is a Perpetual Nightmare' 238
Castiglione 245
Artists and Soldiers, Politics and Love
Rebirth - Arcola 248
Exploiting Victory 254
Love and Self-Pity 258
Breaking Free 265
Rivoli 268
The Apprenticeship of Power
Invading the Papal States 273
'Turn Their Thoughts towards the Idea of Liberty' 277
'Has the Rhine Been Crossed?' 282
The Liberator of Italy 286
The Veronese Easter 293
The Court at Mombello 296
Bonaparte the 'Italique'
Defending 'Liberty and its Friends' 304
Entering the Political Fray: The Coup of Fructidor 311
'Drunk with Happiness' 314
'A Pure and Great Giant of Glory' 320
The Civilizing Hero, 1798-1799
A Grandiose Exile
The Decision 333
The Philosopher General 343
Moments of Doubt 347
Confronting Egypt
Toulon 351
The Crossing 354
Malta 356
'Like Fish on the Plains of Saint-Denis' 361
Sand, Melancholy and Suicide 367
Conciliation and Terror: Governing Egypt
Tearing Away the Veil 375
Adapting 378
Disaffection 383
Distractions 385
The Plague 390
Repression 391
Prisoner of his Conquest
The Battle of the Nile 395
The Revolt of Cairo 401
The Decision to Invade Syria 407
The Limits of Imagination
'All Human Effort against Me is Useless' 412
The Massacre at Jaffa 416
Fear and Contagion 422
The Siege of St John of Acre 424
The End of the Dream
Retreat and Revenge 430
Aboukir: Defeat Atoned 439
The Flight from Egypt 442
Seizing Power, 1799
The Return of the Saviour
Like an 'Electric Shock' 449
'The Man Who Would Save France' 452
France on the Eve of the Coup 462
The 'Sword' 468
Negotiating a Role 470
The Plot 480
The Coup as Farce
The First Act 483
The Second Act 490
Denouement 495
The Final Scene 502
Epilogue
In Search of the Saviour 505
In Search of Bonaparte 514
Notes 521
Select Bibliography 599
Acknowledgements 627
Index 629
From the B&N Reads Blog
Page 1 of