Napoleonean Legend

Napoleon Bonaparte is the object of a Mythe, the Napoleonean legend . Indeed, few men in the Histoire of Humanity caused as many Haine and Admiration, and sometimes even the two frays. As of the origins of its Military career in Italy or the beginnings of its Political career by seizing the power by the coup d'etat of the 18 Brumaire, Napoleon fell under the Histoire and the memory of the men through an animated and exceptional destiny. Its fulgurating rise, its French glory then European obtained by victorious conquests Military S, the new extent of the last routs as its two exiles made of this major character of the French history and the Europe a man of legend, throughout the centuries which followed its epopee.

The Napoleonean legend is such as certain give to the Emperor a Messianic character , that this last however never truly asserted. Thus, Élie Faure, in its work “Napoleon”, compares it with a prophet modern times .

There is initially the epopee of the character, certainly one of the more human great adventures, military, policies of the Histoire. But certain events more precise than the epopee in general, can be evoked to try to explain the myth of Napoleon. Its Dead, for example, remains mysterious and is favourable with the invention of Rumeur S, which do nothing but surround historical truth of lies, which gave certainly birth to them-even a certain Napoleonean legend. Indeed since the death of the Emperor, the May 5th 1821, the official thesis according to which Napoleon would have died of a Cancer of the stomach, is contradicted by various versions. Some estimate that the character would be escaped island of Saint-Helene (thesis defended by Antoine De Caunes in its Mr NR.). However, for some time the thesis of the Empoisonnement made way, Arsenic mineral, more known under the name of “died in the rats”, would have been found in hair of Napoleon. According to some, this arsenic would come from food ingurgities by the Emperor. Poisoning would be thus completely plausible. But for others, at the time of Napoleon arsenic was used for the conservation of the hair, or was employed to clean the tanks of Vin. The question thus remains whole and takes part in the Napoleonean myth.

The myth in art

Napoleon is a so popular historical figure, that all arts made him honor, and it appears in a prolific creation of works, films, tables…

Literature

Honore de Balzac illustrates this admiration, while writing in its " Scenes of the life privée" : " Which will be able never to explain, paint or include/understand Napoleon? A man that one represents the arms crosseds, and who did everything! Who was the most beautiful known capacity, the capacity more concentrated, most corrosive, most acid of all the capacities; singular genius which walked everywhere the civilization armed without fixing it nowhere; a man who could do everything, because he wanted all; extraordinary phenomenon of will, overcoming a disease by a battle, and which however was to die of a disease in a bed after having lived in the middle of the balls and of the balls; a man who had in the head a code and a sword, the word and the action ".

Cinema

The character of Napoleon appears in approximately two hundred Film S, interpreted inter alia by Christian Clavier, Philippe Torreton, Albert Dieudonné, Daniel Gélin.

Painting

Cartoon

Although not having drawn any chief from work of the Napoleonean adventure, contrary to the Painting or the Cinema, the Cartoon is an art which remains enough inspired by the character whom is Napoleon. One can of course quote in the works devoted to the Emperor most interesting that of Roger Lecureux and Guido Buzzelli, which entirely tells the life of Napoleon, in a style of drawing realistic, and a great sobriety in the scenario. Other cartoons of the same kind tell the life or of the periods of the life of Napoleon, such as for example Napoleon Bonaparte , of Guy Hempey (with the scenario) and Pierre Brochard (with the drawing) or the three albums of the series Napoleon , of the Belgians Liliane and Fred Funcken: the sultan of fire, the fall of the eagle, Waterloo.

But the Napoleon myth is often caricatured, putting in scene megalomaniac which are caught for the Emperor. They are case of Jean-Marc Rochette, which gained a certain business success and critical (by gaining certain prices with the festival of Angouleme) with Napoleon and Bonaparte , which tells the adventures Burlesque S of two insane, being caught both for the famous soldier. One can also quote, to remain in the Comique, the work of Marcel Gotlib, which made use of Napoleon Bonaparte in his Heading-with-brac.

A myth of French historiography

the Ogre left traces in the Iberian peninsula and other theaters throughout Europe. Also, no trace of legend, associated myth and of nostalgia of size persists. In the popular culture of the Spaniards a sentence appears recalling that “on the other side of the Pyrenees begin the lies” in connection with the figure of the Emperor.

Paintings of Goya Back of mayo and Tres of mayo are, in this respect, without ambiguity concerning the representation of the atrocities inflicted with the civil populations.

See too

Internal bonds

related Articles:

Theorem of Napoleon
Construction of Napoleon

generic Articles:

Worship of the personality
Mythographie

External bonds

File the Napoleonean legend
Short analysis of the Napoleonean myth

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