II.

Childhood, Youth, and Early Career

Napoleon was born Napoleone Buonaparte, the second son of Carlo and Letezia Buonaparte in Ajaccio, Corsica, on August 15, 1769. He was one of eight children: Joseph (1768-1844), whom Napoleon made first King of Naples and then King of Spain; Lucien (1775-1840), his first Minister of the Interior; Élisa (1777-1820), created Archduchess of Tuscany; Louis (1778-1846), made King of Holland; Pauline (1780-1825); Caroline (1782-1839), created Queen of Naples in 1808; and Jérôme (1784-1860), made King of Westphalia. Even the circumstances of his birth are surrounded in legend, for it has been claimed—improbably—that his mother gave birth to him alone and unaided. His family, of modest bourgeois status, was embroiled in the many personal and political feuds that plagued the island, which had been ceded by Genoa to France only in 1768. Originally supporters of the struggle for independence led by Pasquale Paoli, the family changed sides around 1771, when the French recognized their claims to nobility. In 1779, thanks to this collaboration, Carlo placed Napoleon and Joseph in college in Autun, in Burgundy, then in Brienne, and finally at the military academy in Paris, in 1784. He did not return to Corsica until 1786, and saw his parents only three times between 1779 and 1786. Napoleon was desperately unhappy at school, developing virulent anti-French, pro-Corsican feelings. He never mastered French and all his life retained a marked regional accent.

In the late 1780s, Napoleon was a garrison officer, largely untouched by the French Revolution of 1789. He spent most of the early years of the Revolution in Corsica; despite his early leanings, he joined the pro-French faction. By 1793 the whole family was forced to flee to Toulon and never returned. The years 1792 to 1794 marked the Reign of Terror and the ascendancy of the Committee of Public Safety, dominated by the radical Maxmilien Robespierre. In Toulon, Napoleon accepted the patronage of his brother, Augustin Robespierre, and distinguished himself with his mastery of artillery when the British besieged Toulon. When the Committee fell from power in August 1794, Napoleon was jailed and faced execution but was reprieved. In 1795 he rose to be General of the Army of the West, charged with repressing the royalist Vendéan revolt. Napoleon avoided these duties by transferring to the Topographical Bureau in Paris. This shrewd, if unheroic, conduct has been interpreted as an early sign of his political acumen, but also of his desire to remain “above faction” in the maze of Revolutionary politics, that would mark his approach to government after 1799. While in Paris he came to the attention of Paul Barras, a member of the executive, the Directory, who charged him with crushing the royalist rising of August 1795, known by the revolutionary month “Vendémiaire”. It was in the course of this action that Napoleon is reputed to have said that “a whiff of grapeshot” was enough to end a revolution. This proved the first major advance in his career and his personal life. In March 1796, Napoleon became General of the Army of Italy, his first great command; Barras also introduced him to his ex-mistress, Joséphine de Beauharnais. She remained, incontestably, the great love of Napoleon’s life, despite her many infidelities. They were married just before he left for the Italian front. Napoleon had several close relationships in his life, all marked by genuine fondness on both sides. He was a good husband to Marie-Louise of Austria, his second wife, and taught her many political skills she used later as Duchess of Parma. The Polish Countess Marie Walewska, bore him a son for whom he provided well; she remained fiercely loyal to him, even after his fall. In his early years, Napoleon was a thin, small figure, and unpretentious in dress, but deeply emotional, known for his remarkable memory and sharp intelligence. He did not stand out from his military rivals, but he was a commanding personal presence.