Dreams of a great man shattered

By Amal Hewavissenti

What type of man was Napoleon Bonaparte? Was he one of the greatest men born to have determined the destiny of a people? Was he a great hero on the face of the earth who rescued a nation from all sufferings? Or, was he, as H.G Wells claimed, a destructive man who was over-ambitious to inflict the greatest damage to Europe?

Even though both viewpoints on Bonaparte carry certain amount of exaggeration, they contain a certain level of truth in them. Napoleon was a strange blend of good and evil, strengths and weaknesses. Yet he was a brilliant military leader and an emperor who, by 1799 had led his troops to several victories in Europe.

Although Napoleon is perhaps best known for his military campaigns, he was also responsible for several notable reforms as a statesman. He reorganised the French legal system in what became popularly known as the "Code Napoleon". It was broadly accepted throughout the Napoleonic empire and influenced legal systems around the world. This remains the basis of French law today.

Developments

His exceptional power of mind and heroic deeds were a source of inspiration for the people of France who were of fierce belief that he was their saviour and the super hero.

He had mastered military arts through courage, physical strength and self confidence. Napoleon had the same degree of ambition that Alexander the Great or Julius Caesar had in achieving imperial power.

To him the whole of Europe appeared to be as small as an anthill and the Eastern countries attracted him instead.

"The great empires and massive developments emerged only in the East. A greater civilisation lies there" he once said.

Napoleon Bonaparte who was pre-eminent in organising land battles continually achieved victory but sea battles brought him irreparable losses. His failure in sea battles was partly due to the lack of skilled marine soldiers and partly due to the tactfulness of Horatio Nelson the commander of the English army. Horatio Nelson, the Britain's renowned admiral brought Napoleon's Navy into a bitter most defeat at the battle of Trafalgar and this ensured that Britain was saved from being invaded by the French.

He was an emperor for 10 years and during this period he made many breakthrough conquests. The name of Napoleon terrorised the whole of Europe and land battles brought much of Europe to his control. For some unexplained reason, Napoleon was markedly weak at the sea which saved Britain from his invasions.

Napoleon Bonaparte was a man of rare charisma and his appearance earned him public attraction. The people of the countries which he invaded showed no objection to this "charming, short new leader."

As Napoleon was on the verge of becoming the sole leader of Europe, he decided to marry a lady from Tsarist family in Russia. The Tsar made a strong Tsarist on his decision as the tsar viewed this as an arrogance and superciliousness on the part of Napoleon.

The Russian king did not tolerate Napoleon's pride of being the emperor of much of Europe and devalued the young Corsican's suggestions of marriage.

After this, Napoleon insisted the Tsar on making arrangements for a marriage with Mary Lucy the daughter of the emperor Hapsburg of Austria.

But Mary soon proved to be what disappointed Napoleon and continued to plaque him with her absurdities. When Napoleon was witnessing his own imperial degeneracy, Mary Lucy deserted and forgot her husband completely.

Attraction

In fact, this small warrior and emperor had a mysterious attraction. He won the hearts of many and his eyes like those of Akbar, possessed a mesmerising quality.

Napoleon said, "Two forces exist in the world - namely enthusiasm and the sword. Enthusiasm ultimately triumphs over the sword....Rarely did I draw my sword from the case. I won battles not by weapons but by the power of my eyes...."

However, the sword brought him victories and then the downfull.

The English dreaded this "master of Europe" and arranged to imprison him as his warriors and supporters deserved him his adversity.

Troops sent to stop Napoleon on his return from exile on the island of Elba in 1815 welcomed him as their emperor.

The English declared Napoleon and some of his supporters as prisoners and imprisoned him on a bleak island of St. Helena. Commissioners from many countries and a large army were there in the solitary island of St. Helena to guard the "European Prisoner."

Napoleon was thus totally isolated from the world in an unpleasant, lonely and bleak island. And... his appeals for an opportunity to speak to his son were ruthlessly rejected as the English were very much afraid of this dangerous and ambitious and above all, clever man.

The English Governor in charge of Napoleon was specially harsh to him and his supporters. He imposed "provoking bans" on Napoleon and deprived him of healthy meals and accommodation. Finally Napoleon's efforts to maintain communication with his European friends too were thwarted.