While in exile on St Helena, Napoleon dictated a commentary on the wars of Julius Caesar, later published in 1836. In each chapter he summarized the events of one campaign, then added comments from the standpoint of his own military knowledge. Over the nearly two millennia between Caesar and Napoleon some aspects of warfare had changed, notably the introduction of firearms. But much remained the same: the rate of movement of armies (at the foot pace of horse or man); human muscle power as the main source of energy for construction work; some military techniques, notably bridge construction; as well as the actual territory fought over by Caesar and later by Napoleon. Napoleons commentary thus provides a fascinating and highly authoritative insight into Caesars wars, as well as providing a window into Napoleons own thinking and attitudes. Napoleon in places detects mistakes on the part of Caesar and his enemies, and says what they should have done differently. Remarkably, this is thought to be the first full English translation of Napoleon's work.Napoleon Bonaparte was born to an obscure Corsican family but rose through the ranks of the French army to become Emperor of France, conqueror of most of Europe and acknowledged military genius. He wrote this book while in exile on St Helena.The translator. RA Maguire, is a former civil engineer with a long-standing interest in military and ancient history.

For the first time ever, Napoleon's "Chronicles of Caesar's Wars" ("Pr�cis des guerres de C�sar") is available in English.Dictated by Napoleon to Count Marchand, his valet, while in exile on St. Helena, Chronicles of Caesar's Wars explores Caesar's rise, his campaigns in Europe and North Africa, and the plot that killed him. Napoleon, who had a lifelong obsession with Caesar, wrote this book in one of his last acts. The work relaxed him, "tossing a few flowers on the path that was leading to the tomb," as Count Marchand's preface recalls.Napoleon passionately explores Caesar's battles in Gaul and during the Civil War. He concludes each chapter with observations, sometimes providing details, sometimes veering away from praise towards criticism, applying the insights of a military career and a healthy ego to explain what he would have done better. Napoleon ends the book with a remarkable defense of Caesar's dictatorship. He takes apart his assassins' justifications and the fault-finding of "good Plutarch the libeler" with such fervor that one can scarcely believe a gulf of two millennia stood between the two eminent men. In a sense, though, it was also a defense of his own government.Attached to the book are previously untranslated essays in which Napoleon takes on the role of literary critic and philosopher. He criticizes Virgil's Aeneid for butchering Homer's Iliad, and Voltaire for unflatteringly depicting Mohammad, another of Napoleon's heroes. He explores in another essay whether a man has the right to kill himself, an act we now know he had personally attempted.

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