20代後半に名将としてその名を轟かせ、30歳で欧州最強国の政権を握り、40代前半に皇帝にまでのぼりつめた一方、失脚後は南大西洋の孤島に幽閉され、失意のうち51歳で生涯を閉じたナポレオン・ボナパルトの数奇な運命はあまりにも有名です。ナポレオンが極めて短い年月で政治権力、人的・物的資源を掌握し得た背景には、いうまでもなくフランス革命が大きく関わっています。革命による政変なくしては輝かしい戦績はありえなかった、そしてその勝利なくして権力の座につくことは無かったことを、歴史的文脈に位置付けて解説します。(cf. Napoleonic Wars, #344)
　　

• A reliable, concise biography of Napoleon in half a century
• Emphasis on Napoleon as self-promoting celebrity and genius of the first total war
• Includes an interpretation of Napoleon that stresses his debts to the French Revolution

   
This Very Short Introduction provides a concise, accurate, and lively portrait of Napoleon Bonaparte's character and career, situating him firmly in historical context.
 
David Bell emphasizes the astonishing sense of human possibility—for both good and ill—that Napoleon represented. By his late twenties, Napoleon was already one of the greatest generals in European history. At thirty, he had become absolute master of Europe's most powerful country. In his early forties, he ruled a European empire more powerful than any since Rome, fighting wars that changed the shape of the continent and brought death to millions. Then everything collapsed, leading him to spend his last years in miserable exile in the South Atlantic. 
 
Bell emphasizes the importance of the French Revolution in understanding Napoleon's career. The revolution made possible the unprecedented concentration of political authority that Napoleon accrued, and his success in mobilizing human and material resources. Without the political changes brought about by the revolution, Napoleon could not have fought his wars. Without the wars, he could not have seized and held onto power. Though his virtual dictatorship betrayed the ideals of liberty and equality, his life and career were revolutionary.