Few people throughout history rose from such humble beginnings to unbelievable heights as Napoleon Bonaparte. Countless biographies line the bookshelves of libraries worldwide relating the rise of an unknown Corsican to become emperor of the French Empire. Author Michael Broers is the latest to tackle this subject in his first volume (of three) with Napoleon, Soldier of Destiny which covers the famed general’s life from his birth through 1805.
Broers, who has written several books on the age of Napoleon, has utilized previously unused sources, including the still-emerging Napoléon Bonaparte, Correspondance Générale which is being compiled by the Foundation Napoléon in Paris. Napoleon’s story is an exciting tale of intrigue, empire and iconic moments. Does Broers’s version capture that excitement?
Napoleon’s origin story is well known. Born in Corsica, he was eventually educated in France and would have probably lived an uneventful life in obscurity had not the Revolution opened doors for those not in the established order. He gained early fame with military success at Toulon and eventually gained command of the Army of Italy. His experience and victories during this time taught him how to lead an army and his creation of the Cisalpine Republic, a sister republic of France created from Italian regions, gave him his first opportunity at nation-building. Broers calls this time period (May 1796-November 1797) the most complex point in Napoleon’s history. His use of amalgame (working for the regime alongside former enemies) and ralliement (passive acceptance of regime) to forge his empire are first displayed here and is greatly emphasized by the author.
Of course, his romance with Josephine is also discussed and Broers holds nothing back in his attacks on Napoleon’s paramour. Throughout the entire narrative, Broers criticizes her unfaithfulness and lack of respect towards Napoleon and calls that marriage Napoleon’s greatest mistake. One wonders how Napoleon’s life might have gone had he not gotten involved with her?
The narrative continues with the famed Egyptian expedition, called “the most spectacular moment in the whole incredible adventure of Napoleon’s life.” Although a failure militarily, the expedition was a scientific triumph and carefully used propaganda prevented any damage to Napoleon’s reputation. This was important due to his role in the famed coup of Brumaire which established Napoleon as consul for life in the Consulate. Following his victory at Marengo and the important Peace of Amines, Napoleon was able to utilize this time of peace to consolidate his empire, eventually crowning himself Emperor in May 1804. Several domestic issues took the forefront including his most important achievement, the production of the Civil Code, and one of his failures, the Concordat with the Church. It was also during this time period where he also suffered failures in the Caribbean as hopes of a worldwide empire were dashed with the disaster in Saint Domingue and his sale of Louisiana. From this point, Napoleon shrugged off the desire to be a world power and concentrate on the continent itself.
The Peace of Amiens also gave Napoleon time to craft the Grand Armée into the greatest military force in the world. Emphasizing the concepts of honor and emulation as compared to terror and the lash, he built a powerful army and hoped to unleash it on England. His handling of the navy, however, called by the author as the “most incompetent and disgraceful act of his public life,” prevented him from ever getting the chance to invade. He eventually switched his attention towards to continent to defeat the Third Coalition (Austrian and Russian forces), which I assume will start the second volume of the series.
Broers competently captures these formative years of Napoleon. Unfortunately, the book lacks the excitement and anticipation that this extraordinary life deserves. For instance, military exploits are not given adequate space in the narrative. The author provides little detail and only briefly describes battles like Lodi, the Pyramids, and Marengo and others. At times, the narrative drones on with other aspects of his life while many iconic moments like battles, the Brumaire coup and Napoleon’s becoming emperor are not described as vividly and with as much élan as one would have hoped. A great example is the end of the book where there are pages upon pages of description of events leading up to the war against the Third Coalition and his greatest victory at Austerlitz, but the book ends before those events take place. There is no payoff.
Napoleon’s life is many things, but boring and tedious are words that should never be used to describe it and this narrative (over 500 pages long) tends to drag. Napoleon’s life was more than just his military adventures, but how they do not take center stage in any biography of him is perplexing. Broers should be complimented for his detailed research into Napoleon to paint a complete picture, but this reviewer was bored at times and wanted more. Any book on Napoleon should be a page turner; this was not. In the next two volumes I hope for better results.
CPW
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