Filled with hubris, intrigue and an endlessly fascinating central character, Shawcross's hugely entertaining biography of Napoleon III charts an epic rise and fall with immense wit and storytelling brio.
Born into imperial splendour, Louis-Napoléon - the nephew of Napoléon Bonaparte - grew up far from power after the defeat at Waterloo. In exile, he repeatedly plotted, unsuccessfully, to restore his uncle's empire. Few took him seriously.
But what followed is one of the most astonishing, impossible stories in history. Aged 40, Louis-Napoléon would be elected president of France. Three years later, he seized power to become emperor.
Napoleon III's story is one of self-belief, political skill and radical innovation - the first person to master mass democratic politics and populism. Yet, despite being one of the most important trailblazers of the nineteenth century, he is largely misunderstood today, if not totally forgotten.
His strange rise and catastrophic fall is a story of both tragedy and farce, set during some of France's most tumultuous decades.
Publisher: Faber & Faber
ISBN: 9780571361304
Number of pages: 528
Dimensions: 234 x 153 mm
Language: English
Edition: Main
Daughters of the Bamboo Grove
The Nuremberg Women
Allies at War
Liquid Faith
The History of Mankind in Its Entirety (Abridged)
The Most Interesting Book in the World
The Traitors Circle
Between the Waves
This Way Up
This Way Up
The Golden Road
Please sign in to write a review
Would you like to proceed to the App store to download the Waterstones App?
