Felix Markham
Autor de Napoleon
Sobre El Autor
Obras de Felix Markham
Obras relacionadas
Social organization, the science of man, and other writings (1964) — Editor, algunas ediciones — 41 copias
Etiquetado
Conocimiento común
- Nombre legal
- Markham, Felix Maurice Hippisley
- Fecha de nacimiento
- 1908
- Género
- male
- Nacionalidad
- UK
Miembros
Reseñas
También Puede Gustarte
Estadísticas
- Obras
- 7
- También por
- 1
- Miembros
- 454
- Popularidad
- #54,064
- Valoración
- 3.6
- Reseñas
- 3
- ISBNs
- 20
- Idiomas
- 1
Thus, despite the title of this volume (and the claim on the back cover that it “places special emphasis on the resurgence of European nationalism in the nineteenth century”), it also covers topics like Napoleon’s seizure of power in France and the development of the Napoleonic Code and the Concordat with the Catholic Church. Perhaps based on the favorable response to his first book, Markham decided to write a second more complete version.
Whatever the case, this book does a very good job of giving a well-rounded assessment of Napoleon not just in terms of his military campaigns and diplomatic achievements but also with respect to his political career, his personality and the highlights of his life. One could read this short paperback and be more than adequately conversant with the significance of Napoleon and his life.
On the battlefield, Napoleon was a strategic and tactical genius. This was still the case in the campaigns of 1812 to 1815, but the many years of war had taken a toll not just on Napoleon but also on his generals and his troops. Napoleon and his generals were fatigued and his armies did not recover from the fearsome losses in the Russian campaign. However, Napoleon may have won at Waterloo if Ney and Grouchy had not made mistakes on the battlefield.
Markham maintains that Napoleon was unique in modern times in his ability to combine military genius with political accomplishment. One has to go back to ancient times to find comparable individuals such as Napoleon’s own idols (Caesar, Alexander the Great). He does not downplay Napoleon’s weaknesses and the millions of deaths that arguably resulted from his pursuit of his ambition, but he also notes that it is the role of God, not the historian, to judge. He also contrasts Napoleon with more recent dictators like Hitler who acquired power not through military genius but through demagoguery.
The quote on the back cover from the review in the Times Literary Supplement accurately sums up the achievement of this book: “To compress the career of Napoleon . . . without allowing the narrative to become a string of facts, is no light task. Mr. Markham’s success is due to his easy command of an immense mass of material, to his sense of proportion and to the clarity of his style. In writing of Napoleon, it is difficult to keep a cool judgment; to censure without violence or praise with restraint. Mr. Markham is reasonable and dispassionate, especially in dealing with those matters which usually raise debate.”… (más)