a life told in gardens and shadows
"Published on the 200th anniversary of his death, [this book] is an unprecedented portrait of the emperor seen through his engagement with the natural world. One of the greatest generals in history, Napoleon Bonaparte (1769-1821) has for centuries attracted great male writers, who invariably identify with him. [The author] rejects the shibboleth of the "Great Man" theory of history, instead following the dramatic trajectory of Napoleon's life through gardens, parks, and forests, not through his battlefields [and] frames the general's life through the green spaces he created and the diverse cast of scientists, architects, family members, and gardeners who stood in the shadows of his meteoric rise and fall. His dealings with these people offer unguarded and unusual opportunities to see how Napoleon grafted the worst corruption of the Ancien R?gime into a new French Empire."--Provided by publisher.
