Book description
On April 20, 1814, after a dizzying series of battles, campaigns, and diplomatic intrigues, a defeated Napoleon Bonaparte made his farewell speech to the Old Guard in the courtyard of the Chateau de Fontainebleau and set off for exile on the island of Elba. Napoleonic legend asserts that the Emperor…
Why read it?
2 authors picked Napoleon as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?
The accomplished historian of France across the years of Revolution, Empire and Restoration, Munro Price brings all his arsenal of erudition, archival acumen, and intellectual insight to bear on the last crisis of the empire. His attention to detail, his sensitivity to character and motivation make for one of the most penetrating, illuminating accounts of the implosion of support for Napoleon among the French elites ever written. No non-French scholar had picked through the complex politics of late Napoleonic France with as much skill or precision. Price delivers all this in elegant prose, the sign of a subtle historian.
From Michael's list on Napoleon and an era that shook Europe.
A brilliant analysis of the downfall of Napoleon. It is based on unexploited archival materials from Paris and Prague.
It shows definitively that through the years 1812 to 1815 the allies on multiple occasions offered the French Empire generous peace terms. Napoleon for complex psychological and political reasons turned down repeatedly these overtures that would have allowed him to retain his crown.
Research and narrative at their finest, and it has the readability of a thriller.
From Ambrogio's list on Napoleon, his rise to power, and his downfall.
If you love Napoleon...
These Blue Mountains
A moving story of love, betrayal, and the enduring power of hope in the face of darkness.
German pianist Hedda Schlagel's world collapsed when her fiancé, Fritz, vanished after being sent to an enemy alien camp in the United States during the Great War. Fifteen years later, in 1932, Hedda…
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