John Kettler Posted October 28, 2016 Share Posted October 28, 2016 Childress, While I think it would be grand to have one of Napoleon's hats, I believe I could find better uses for 500,000 pounds. This does, though, seem like something Malcolm Forbes, were he still around, might snap up. Regards, John Kettler 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Childress Posted October 28, 2016 Author Share Posted October 28, 2016 Actually, I mistyped. 500K was the asking bid. Christie's article: What does Napoleon's hat tell us about branding. http://www.christies.com/features/What-Napoleons-hat-tells-us-about-the-power-of-branding-6280-3.aspx 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Childress Posted October 28, 2016 Author Share Posted October 28, 2016 (edited) There's an existing controversy over Napoleon's height. Was he really only 5'2 as contemporaries- notably the English- asserted? That makes him a midget even for the era. It appears that that the use of the 'French pouce' was to blame. The "French inch" used during Napoleon's time differed from the English inch, making Napoleon average or even slightly above average for his time, actually 5'6. Generally, members of the aristocracy were taller given, one assumes, better nutrition. His marshalls tended to be well-born and they perceived him as short. To settle the debate we'd need to drag Napoleon out of his tomb in the Invalides and measure. During the interment in Paris, onlookers were stunned by the pristine condition of the corpse. A few historians claim that this was due to the Emperor's alleged poisoning by arsenic, a known preservative, on St Helena. But that theory is losing ground. http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2007/01/070117-napoleon.html Edited October 28, 2016 by Childress 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Kettler Posted October 29, 2016 Share Posted October 29, 2016 Childress, Not only was the branding thing a surprise and a great read, but I've passed it along to a business colleague. The second link seems to me to fall under the rubric of "necessary but not sufficient," since it fails to explain the signal and well-reported lack of decay in his body when it was first exhumed. Since bodies rot, the researchers have to explain why his didn't. Their theory in no way explains this, whereas major intake of arsenic does--whether it actually killed him or not. Below is look at what his doctors diagnosed and the various horrors they visited upon him by way of treatment. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/3913213.stm Regards, John Kettler 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Childress Posted November 3, 2016 Author Share Posted November 3, 2016 (edited) Napoleon's proposed height compared to contemporary leaders. Interestingly his wife, Josephine, was described by contemporaries as being 'monstrously tall'. She towered over the Emperor. Stalin was said to have been 5'4. During Kremlin rallies, the Vozhd stood on a pedestal hidden behind the podium. Edited November 3, 2016 by Childress 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Kettler Posted November 6, 2016 Share Posted November 6, 2016 Childress, Obama was a contemporary of Napoleon? Who knew?! Also, where's Putin? On a more serious note, while attempting to find a viewable English subtitled version of Sergei Bondarchuk's other magnum opus, "Waterloo," I found Napoleon 2002 complete on YT! Am only a few minutes in on six hours worth of film, but so far, it looks very good. Regards, John Kettler 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Kettler Posted November 6, 2016 Share Posted November 6, 2016 Childress, Six hours later, the verdict is in. Simply tremendous! Regards, John Kettler 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Childress Posted November 6, 2016 Author Share Posted November 6, 2016 (edited) I favor the 4-part PBS documentary from 2000 narrated by David McCullough. It opens with the coronation in Notre Dame. The vivat in aeternum chorus carries one's soul to the heavens. Turn up your speakers. I posted the entry on N's height to Facebook. A friend took issue with the conclusion: ' I've been to Napoleon's tomb several times. There is an exhibit there that displays his coat and it look like it belongs on a child rather than a man. I'm leaning towards him being closer to 5'2". ' Edited November 6, 2016 by Childress 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Kettler Posted January 4, 2017 Share Posted January 4, 2017 This isn't a site for Napoleonic quotes. It's a great historical photo site. It should be of prime interest because it has a bunch of photographs of veterans from Napoleon's army in their original uniforms. How cool is that? My paste function isn't working, so you'll have to Coipy/Paste into into your browser bar. photosofthehistoryandwithhstory.tumblr.com Regards, John Kettler 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Childress Posted January 7, 2017 Author Share Posted January 7, 2017 British caricaturists made an industry with the Corsican upstart. http://shannonselin.com/2016/03/caricatures-of-napoleon-on-elba/ https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Caricatures_of_Napoleon_I_of_France 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Kettler Posted January 8, 2017 Share Posted January 8, 2017 Childress, To your cartoon I respond with one of the few ( and dead on target) palindromes I know. "Able was I ere I saw Elba." My general experience of old British political cartoons when reproed in typical books (especially standard size paperbacks) is utter frustration or worse. The speech balloons contain chicken scratching almost impossible or outright impossible to discern--even squinting with the page a few inches in front of my straining eyes. This rather takes the wind out of the intended message. Regards, John Kettler 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michael Emrys Posted January 8, 2017 Share Posted January 8, 2017 1 hour ago, John Kettler said: The speech balloons contain chicken scratching almost impossible or outright impossible to discern--even squinting with the page a few inches in front of my straining eyes. The magnifying glass is your friend. The bigger and more powerful the better. Michael 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Kettler Posted January 22, 2017 Share Posted January 22, 2017 Childress, You may thank me or curse me after seeing the Napoleon Did That Tumblr. It happens to have all sorts of quotes we don't have. Some of the quotes are hilarious. http://napoleondidthat.tumblr.com/ 40 Napoleon quotes. https://www.geckoandfly.com/16597/napoleon-bonaparte-quotes-biografia-2/ Regards, John Kettler 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Childress Posted January 24, 2017 Author Share Posted January 24, 2017 (edited) The great Napoleon Bonaparte could have won the Battle of Waterloo by attacking earlier in the day, but Napoleon Bonaparte delayed his attack because he suffered greatly from hemorrhoid pain that morning. Napoleon was Roman Catholic, but did not believe in the existence of a living God. John, these two assertions from your Gecko&Fly site are false. 1- Napoleon delayed his attack on Wellington's position was due to the weather, not his hemorrhoids. It rained the night before rendering the morning ground soft and unsuitable for the French artillery. 2- Napoleon- who was all over the map on religion- was essentially a deist throughout most of his life. And he exhibited an enlightened tolerance toward different faiths as Emperor, including Islam. However, he would not admit that there had ever existed a genuine atheist and he died as a professed Roman Catholic, receiving the last rites. But Napoleon did utter some cynical remarks en route to the grave: Religion is what keeps the poor from murdering the rich. And: All religions have been made by men. And: It is by making myself Catholic that I brought peace to Brittany and Vendée. It is by making myself Italian that I won minds in Italy. It is by making myself a Moslem that I established myself in Egypt. If I governed a nation of Jews, I should reestablish the Temple of Solomon. Edited January 24, 2017 by Childress 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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