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TED Radio Hour

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The Smell of Napoleon's Cologne

Napoleon's cologne could be described as incredibly fresh and slightly sour and sweet. There were citrus fruits in there, like bergamot and lemon, but also flowers and rosemary. Napoleon loved that smell, because he had a Prussian memory of his days when he was ruling Europe. So to him, that was a very important smell,. But it was also a sense used by many soldiers in the 18th and 19th century for masking war smells.

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