The Reign and Ruin of Napoleon

Plutarch's Lives, also known as Parallel Lives, is a collection of 48 biographies of notable men from ancient Greece and Rome. The work is structured in pairs, with one Greek and one Roman figure of similar destiny, such as Alexander the Great and Julius Caesar, or Demosthenes and Cicero. Plutarch's primary concern was not to write strict historical accounts but to explore the moral virtues and failings of his subjects, aiming to provide examples of conduct to imitate or avoid. The biographies are significant not only for their insight into the individuals but also for their historical value, offering a glimpse into the times in which they lived.

Andrew Roberts’s 'Napoleon: A Life' is the first one-volume biography to fully utilize Napoleon’s 33,000 recently published letters, offering a radical transformation in our understanding of his character and motivation. The book portrays Napoleon as a protean multitasker, decisive, and surprisingly willing to forgive his enemies and his wife Josephine. Roberts, an award-winning historian, traveled to fifty-three of Napoleon’s sixty battle sites and discovered crucial new documents in archives, including a trip to St. Helena. The biography is praised for its magisterial, insightful, and beautifully written narrative, providing a deep and nuanced look at Napoleon’s life, successes, and failures.

Written in the early 16th century, 'The Prince' is a realistic instruction guide for new rulers. Machiavelli argues that an effective leader must be skilled in the art of war, sometimes cruel, and willing to use deception and manipulation to achieve political goals. The book is divided into chapters that discuss various types of principalities, how to acquire and maintain power, and the qualities a prince should possess. Machiavelli uses historical examples, including the career of Cesare Borgia, to illustrate his points. The treatise emphasizes the importance of maintaining the goodwill of the people and the stability of the state, even if it means deviating from traditional virtues. 'The Prince' remains a controversial but influential work in modern political philosophy.