Author:Andrew Roberts
'A Napoleonic triumph of a book, irresistibly galloping with the momentum of a cavalry charge' Simon Sebag Montefiore
'Simply dynamite' Bernard Cornwell
From Andrew Roberts, author of the bestsellers The Storm of War and Churchill: Walking with Destiny, 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.
Simply dynamite ... Roberts's fine book encompasses all the evidence to give a brilliant portrait of the man
—— Bernard Cornwell , Mail on SundayMasterly ... a huge, rich, deep, witty, humane and unapologetically admiring biography ... gloriously enjoyable
—— Dan Jones , Daily TelegraphNational Service may prove to be the most original social history book of 2014. The book is bigger than its ostensible subject, embracing class, masculinity, sexuality, compliance, rebellion, combat atrocities, petty crime, notions of national identity, group solidarity, the fallibility of memory and what it means to be a man
—— Richard Davenport-Hines , GuardianVinen has given us the kind of book that every professional historian surely wants to write: not only with a mastery of its voluminous original sources but also a sensitivity to the rich human detail, by turns authoritative, thoughtful, poignant - and funny
—— Peter Clarke , Financial TimesI can't recall ever having read so unexpectedly fascinating a book...every single page has something of great interest on it
—— Nicholas Lezard , The GuardianHis bracing polemic . . . vivid, concise . . . he has a keen eye for telling statistics . . . he also sprinkles his grim narrative with colourful eye-witness accounts . . . among the glut of books published to mark the Great War's centenary, this deserves high marks for passion and clarity.
—— Andrew Lynch , SUNDAY BUSINESS POSTEngaging writing and excellent presentation . . . a tricky yet well-crafted analysis, which adds to the revisionist school of thought with some edgy arguments, this is sure to get you thinking.
—— BRITAIN AT WAR magazineAn insightful study of generalship on both sides.
—— DAILY TELEGRAPH 'Books of the Year'A tremendously well-written and important book and a testament to the qualities Camus lent La Peste's hero: 'humane, optimistic, tolerant, free-thinking, ever alive to injustice and acts of inhumanity'
—— Rebecca K Morris , IndependentCaroline Moorehead’s remarkable book is in essence the story of how a community, or rather group of communities, survived the travails of war with dignity. It is also a tale that gives a larger meaning to Hemingway’s macho phrase, 'grace under pressure'… Moorehead is wary of attempts to simplify history and ignore the complications of memory… What, as the last memories dim, was the truth? Moorehead’s question is implicit: is there such a thing? The reader is left with another question, equally difficult: 'what would I have done?’
—— Ian Bell , The HeraldPowerful and ultimately uplifting book … a far more nuanced account of courage - in which some Catholics did indeed help, and the links with neutral Switzerland were occasionally helpful - than previously recounted about Le Chambon
Fascinating and heartening story… Thorough, objective and readable… captivating
Elegant style
Brilliantly captures the actions of an astonishing, taciturn wartime community
—— Dermot Bulger , Sunday Business PostA story of courage and determination, of heroic individuals…and of what can be done when people come together to oppose tyranny
—— Sunday TelegraphA unique story of courage and determination
—— Daily TelegraphElegant style
—— WOW247Moorehead’s account makes for frequently moving and, at times, harrowing reading… Fascinating
—— Hanna Diamond , BBC History Magazine[Moorehead is a] brilliant investigative journalist
—— Country LifeA work of remembrance and a moving tribute
—— Iain Finlayson , Saga MagazineMoorehead skillfully intersperses layer after layer of historical fact with narratives of deeply human stories
—— Henriette Wentink , Reform MagazineA moving piece, splendidly told
—— Lucy Beckett , TabletIt’s an inspiring story
—— Peter Lewis , Daily MailMoorehead does an expert job in pulling together testimonies from survivors to filter myths and memories from fact to retell an extraordinary tale
—— Julia Richardson , Daily MailStory of courage and determination, of a small number of heroic individuals who risked their lives to save others, and of what can be done when people come together to oppose tyranny
—— Miss DinkyVillage of Secrets is crammed full of stories from survivors, tales of courage, betrayal, failure, success, hope, despair. It is a helter-skelter ride through the most extreme of human experiences
—— Susannah Perkins , Nudge