Napoleon was one of the world’s greatest generals.

He conquered from Spain to the borders of Russia and dominated the international scene of early nineteenth century Europe.

But what were the factors that changed the young Corsican boy into a powerful leader?

Just over two hundred years ago as Napoleon was defeated by the Allied forces at Waterloo there lay a packet of papers on his desk in the Tuileries, sealed with the Imperial arms.

This packet fell into the possession of Cardinal Fesch who took it to Rome, but he never had the curiosity to open it, and it remained sealed and tied up till his death, on 13 May 1839.

A great many years later it was eventually opened and the astonishing documents revealed.

They were a collection of papers that Napoleon had covering his boyhood and youth.

Using this remarkable source material Oscar Browning was able to produce the first English language account of Napoleon’s formative years, from his birth in 1769 through to when he made himself known on the political map of Europe at the siege of Toulon in 1793.

There he had led his men over the earthworks guarding the city and had been instrumental in the capture of the city by using his artillery to destroy several warships anchored in Toulon’s harbour, forcing them to retreat.

It was the first of many victories for Napoleon.

‘Valuable addition to Napoleonic literature’ The Guardian

Oscar Browning (1837-1923) was housemaster at Eton College before lecturing at King’s College, Cambridge from the 1880s. He was an editor of political memoirs and dispatches of the late eighteenth century, and also wrote about Peter the Great and Dante. After writing his biography of Napoleon’s early years, he retired to Rome. More than this, he is infamous for his inclusion in Virginia Woolf’s A Room of One’s Own.

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