Napoleon Bonaparte

Napoléon Bonaparte (1769 – 1821), born Napoleone di Buonaparte, and later Napoleon I, was a Corsican military and political leader who ruled first as the First Consul of France from 1799 to 1804, then as Emperor of the French from 1804 to 1815. He rose to power amidst the chaos and political turmoil of the French Revolution. On many occasions, he was an ally of the Assassins, though he had a long and complicated friendship with the French Assassin Arno Dorian.
==Biography==
===Early life===
Born in French-owned Corsica, Napoleon Bonaparte was the son of Carlo Buonaparte, a former supporter of Corsican independentist leader . When his father switched sides, he was rewarded with a coveted position that enabled him to enroll Napoleon and his brother Joseph in France's Collége d'Autun.Assassin's Creed Unity: Abstergo Entertainment – Employee Handbook – Historic Personage Sheets: Napoleon Bonaparte
Between 1779 and 1784, he studied at the military college of Brienne where he was the subject of abuse by his peers due to his foreign accent and rustic manners.Assassin's Creed: Unity – Database: Napoleon Bonaparte Later, he studied in the École Militaire of Paris but as his father died in 1785, he was graduated early as second lieutenant of artillery.
Between 1785 and 1791, Napoleon only served 33 months under the flag while taking 38 months of leave.
===French Revolution===
====Beginning in the Army====
In 1791, during the French Revolution, Napoleon became an associate of Pascale Paoli in Corsica. Despite their cooperation together, the relationship between them became strained. Due to exceeding his leave of absence, Napoleon was dismissed from the army on 1 January 1792. Nonetheless, he was still appointed as colonel of a battalion tasked with suppressing a peaceful demonstration against the Civil Constitution of the Clergy. Against the orders of his superiors, Napoleon's troops took control of the citadel of .
Later Napoleon went to Paris where he participated to the event of 20 June. At some point he met Captain Frédéric Rouille from the National Guard and secretly a French Templar. Napoleon described him as "a persistent thorn".
====Meeting Arno Dorian====
During the event of 10 August 1792, Napoleon infiltrated the Tuileries Palace in order to acquire a key, which would unlock a First Civilization Temple beneath Saint-Denis, that had been placed in a chest and hidden in a secret vault by King Louis in the latter's study. At the same time, the Palace was under attack by several revolutionary extremists Frédéric Rouille.Assassin's Creed: Unity – The King's Correspondence
In the office, Napoleon ambushed at gunpoint an Assassin who was searching for documents that could expose the Parisian Brotherhood of Assassins. Understanding they were not searching for the same prize, Napoleon proposed to the Assassin to work together. With Assassin's Eagle Vision, they discovered the King's hidden vault. While the Assassin burnt the documents, Napoleon opened the casket which contained the key to open the Saint-Denis Temple and hid it in his mantle. 
As they were about to leave, they were attacked by Rouille's men who were searching for Mirabeau's documents. While the Assassin held them off, Napoleon turned a handle to open up a secret elevator hidden in the office. Succeeding in opening the passageway, Napoleon shot down the last revolutionary who was charging the Assassin. Just as they were taking the elevator, Rouille himself burst into the office looking for the documents, missing them by a second. Noticing the Assassin's reaction to seeing Rouille, Napoleon elaborated a little on his rivalry with the captain.
Walking in the sewer, the Assassin introduced himself as Arno Dorian. As Napoleon witnessed Dorian's combat abilities, he offered the Assassin a future position in the military, an offer which Dorian turned down. The pair was then aided by Bonaparte's soldiers, who managed to blow a hole in the palace's wall and provide them with an escape route. As Arno asked again about Rouille, Napoleon promised to help him find the captain. 
During the following months, Napoleon made several unsuccessful attempts to have Rouille assigned to a more remote posting, being both exasperated and impressed by the captain's resourcefulness and connections. In September 1792, Napoleon learned that Rouille was participating in the September Massacres at the Grand Châtelet prison. On his way home, Napoleon was accosted by several revolutionaries who mistook him for a noble by his uniform, though they let him go once he proclaimed his allegiance to the French Republic. Later on, he met with Dorian and informed him of Rouille's location. Thanks to his information, Dorian was successful in assassinating Rouille in the Grand Châtelet.Assassin's Creed: Unity – September Massacres
With the fall of the Monarchy, Paris was threatened by the Austrian army. Learning that royalists were sending messages to the Duke of Brunswick through Chappe signal towers, Napoleon tasked the general Thomas-Alexandre Dumas to find Dorian to sabotage the towers, a mission he succeeded.Assassin's Creed: Unity – A Nice Chappe
====Mediterranean campaign====
In April 1793, the Corsican Civil War began and Napoleon became an enemy of Pascale Paoli. Showing his support for France, Napoleon adopted the French version of his name, "Bonaparte", and relocated to France. In June, he joined his regiment at Nice and supported the Jacobins, even being nicknamed the "booted jacobin".
In September 1793, Napoleon participated in the Siege of Toulon and with the help of Philippe Rose who provided cannons, he took the city.Assassin's Creed: Unity – Dead Kings – A Crown of Thorns Due to his experience as an artillery master, Napoleon earned the attention of brothers and Maximilien de Robespierre, the former appointing him as the brigadier general, with the command of the artillery of the French Army of Italy.
Unbeknownst to Napoleon, Maximilien de Robespierre was a Templar and was concerned with the Corsican's rising popularity within the army. Thus, he secretly conspired with his colleague Louis Antoine de Saint-Just to discredit Napoleon by providing him with defective armaments for Napoleon's men. However, Arno Dorian was able to sabotage the defective weapons before they could be delivered to Napoleon, safeguarding his career.Assassin's Creed: Unity – Up in Arms
====Excavating Saint-Denis====
In August of 1794, after the fall of Maximilien de Robespierre, Napoleon secretly hired Philippe Rose to excavate the Precursor Temple underneath Saint-Denis in order to obtain the Apple of Eden hidden there. On 4 August, Napoleon personally came to check up on Rose. When shown a carving of the Temple, Napoleon noted that a part of the carving resembled the key to the Temple door. He ordered Rose to find the door, promising to pay the captain handsomely. He then took note of a young boy, Léon, who was captured by the raiders. Napoleon instructed Rose to escort the boy back to the surface, but once Bonaparte had left, the raiders intended to murder Léon.Assassin's Creed: Unity – Dead Kings – The Book Thief
Napoleon then moved to another part of the catacombs, where one of his lieutenants complained about Rose, whether he could be trusted. Napoleon compared Rose to a rat wanting food and was confident that he could control him, even though he knew that Rose was untrustworthy. Assuring the lieutenant that what he did was for the good of France, he then placed the Temple key in a box and entrusted it to the soldier.
Unbeknownst to Napoleon, a soldier had convinced Rose to take the Apple of Eden to a higher bidder. Sent on a mission by the Marquis de Sade, Arno Dorian became entangled in Napoleon's quest for the artifact, and in the process killed Rose. He managed to retrieve the Apple first and sent it to Al Mualim in Egypt, where Napoleon could never acquire it.
On 6 August, Napoleon was placed under house arrest on charges of treason, desertion and supporting Maximilien de Robespierre during the Reign of Terror. Eighteen days later, due to his influence in politics, Napoleon was soon released and acquitted of all charges.Assassin's Creed: Unity – Dead Kings – Database: Napoleon's Arrest
====Collaboration with Arno====
Around 1795, Napoleon became engaged to Désirée Clary, who was intended to be engaged to Napoleon's brother. As Napoleon feared for Désirée's safety, he sent his fellow captain Jean-Baptiste Bernadotte and Arno Dorian to protect her from Sans-Culottes.Assassin's Creed: Unity – Désirée Desired After the Assassin succeeded, Napoleon suspected that Bernadotte was in love with his fiancée. Napoleon tasked Dorian to find evidence while he was dining with Clary at the Restaurant Boulanger. During the dinner, Napoleon was confronted by Bernadotte, creating a scandal and gossip. When some patrons insulted Clary, Bernadotte fought them with the help of Dorian. Embarrassed, Désirée demanded Bernadotte that he leave her alone.Assassin's Creed: Unity – Désirée Dismayed 
At some point, Napoleon lost interest in Clary as he fell in love with Joséphine de Beauharnais, the widow of a noble who died during the Terror. When Dorian snuck into Napoleon's house and stole Clary's love letters, Napoleon did not mind the theft at all.Assassin's Creed: Unity – Désirée Delighted When Napoleon intended to take Josephine on a romantic stroll, the couple was escorted by the Assassin sent by Thomas-Alexandre Dumas to protect them from Royalists. Nervous, Napoleon had difficulty completing his sentences during the meeting. While Joséphine told him about her former marriage, Napoleon fascinated her with his Corsican accent and military career. At the end of the meeting, a captivated Napoleon complimented her eyes and insisted that they meet again. Despite clearly being exhausted from the ordeal, he was confident that their stroll together had gone well.Assassin's Creed: Unity – A Romantic Stroll
====Rise to power====
During the Directory, Napoleon had a successful career, beginning with the crushing of the uprising 13 Vendémiaire 1795 in Paris. Despite commanding only five thousand troops against twenty-five thousand insurgents, Napoleon defeated the Royalists through the use of cannons provided by his lieutenant Joachim Murat. Before the Church of Saint-Roch, Napoleon used grapeshot to on the crowd.Assassin's Creed: Unity – The Infernal Machine Napoleon was later named commander of the Army of Interior while Murat became his aide-de-camp.Assassin's Creed: Unity – Database: Joachim Murat
In 1796, Napoleon was placed at the head of the Army of Italy. Under his command, a group of a mere 30,000 men won several key victories against the Austrians, helping to expand the French Republic's influence and elevate Napoleon's reputation. During this campaign, he compared General Thomas-Alexandre Dumas to a Roman hero.Assassin's Creed: Unity – The Tournament That year, he also married Joséphine, but their initial years were marked by infidelity and considerable time apart.Assassin's Creed: Unity – Database: Josephine de Beauharnais
In 1798, Napoleon embarked on a campaign to Egypt and Syria, officially to undermine the British Empire, with the intention of claiming the Apple of Eden from the Saint-Denis Temple. Near Cairo, he won the Battle of the Pyramids on the Ottoman Empire but his fleet was defeat on 1 August by the British Navy led by the Admiral Horatio Nelson during the Battle of the Nile. In the wake of the battle, Britain, Austria, Russia and the Ottoman Empire formed a new coalition against France. In 1799, one of his soldier Pierre-François Bouchard found the Rosetta Stone, a granodiorite stele dating from the 2nd century BCE, inscribed with a decree written in Egyptian hieroglyphs, Demotic, and Greek scripts.Assassin's Creed: Unity – Database: The Rosetta Stone
When General Dumas was captured in the Kingdom of Naples, Napoleon did nothing to secure his release as he found himself at odd with him.Assassin's Creed: Unity – Database: Thomas-Alexandre Dumas
After successfully retrieving the artifact, he returned home in October 1799. As the Jacobins took control of France by a coup, Napoleon allied with the Director Emmanuel Joseph Sieyès to organize another coup. Using his newfound power, Bonaparte seized power for himself during the , becoming the First Consul of France.
===Ruler of France===
====First Consul of France====
During his consulate, Napoleon initiated well-received reforms to France's education, economy and legal system. In 1800, his sister Caroline married General Joachim Murat.
On the night of 24 December 1800, while Napoleon went to the opera, he was targeted by the last remaining Royalists of the 13 Vendémiaire coup, led by François-Joseph Carbon. As they plotted to use "The Infernal Machine" in the Rue Saint-Nicaise, Arno Dorian and another Assassin eliminated all of the snipers who aimed at Napoleon's carriage. The plan backfired when the Infernal Machine detonated too early, far away from Napoleon's carriage. Napoleon's men then escorted the Consul to safety while the Assassins eliminated Carbon and the conspirators, preventing any further assassination attempts. Napoleon himself remained oblivious to the Assassins' presence.
In 1801, Napoleon offered the Luxembourg Palace to the French Senate.Assassin's Creed: Unity – Database: Palais et Jardin du Luxembourg The same year, he reinstated Roman Catholicism as the state religion of France. He also ordered the arrest of the anonymous author of the violent erotic works Justine and Juliette. The author was identified as the Marquis de Sade, who passed the rest of his life in Charenton prison with Napoleon personally overseeing his imprisonment.Assassin's Creed Unity: Abstergo Entertainment – Employee Handbook – Historic Personage Sheets: Marquis de Sade In Egypt, his troops lost the Battle of Aboukir Bay and the British took the Rosetta Stone.Discovery Tour: Ancient Egypt – Tours: Jean-François Champollion: The Rosetta Stone
In 1802, Napoleon was elected consul for life. During the last few years of the Haitian Revolution, Napoleon saw Toussaint Louverture as a threat and sent Charles Leclerc to remove him from power and gave orders to reinstate slavery in the colony of Saint-Domingue. Leclerc succeeded, but later in the war, French troops were forced out of Saint-Domingue.Assassin's Creed: Initiates – Eseosa's Codex: "Leclerc's Expedition: Cap Français, Saint-Domingue, 1802" As a result, Napoleon, seeing the rebelling colonies more of a continuous liability, sold the French colonies to the United States, in what would be known as the .Assassin's Creed: Initiates – Eseosa's Codex: "What Price Freedom: Davenport Manor, British America, 1804-03-01"
In 1803, Napoleon entered once again into war with a coalition composed of Britain, Austria, and Russia. This year, Napoleon ordered the arrest for treason of the fortune teller Marie Anne Lenormand who was a friend of his wife.Assassin's Creed: Unity – Database: Mademoiselle LenormandIn 1804, he established the Napoleonic Code, permitting freedom of religion, forbidding privileges based solely on birth, and ensuring that government jobs go to the most qualified.
====Emperor of the French====
In 1804, after five years as the First Consul of France, Napoleon declared himself Emperor of France as Napoleon I. In 1805, the French fleet was once again defeated at the Battle of Trafalgar by the British Navy of Horatio Nelson who lost his life during the conflict. Napoleon turned his intentions to Austria and Russia, winning victory after victory followed, the the Battles of Ulm and Austerlitz among them, with Jean-Baptiste Bernadotte serving under his command.Assassin's Creed: Unity – Database: Jean Bernadotte During the five following years, the French Empire flourished and grew, even naming his brother-in-law Joachim Murat as Marshal and later King of Naples but they relation became strained.
In 1805, Napoleon covertly sent one of his agents, the Flemish Jan van der Graff, to steal the Koh-i-Noor diamond, a Piece of Eden owned by the Ottoman Sultan Selim III.Assassin's Creed: Templars – Issue #06 Despite the fact that van der Graff eventually recovered the artifact after spending three years in the Sultan's jails, he had in the meantime joined the Templar Order and kept the diamond.Assassin's Creed: Templars – Issue #09
In 1808, Napoleon decided to demolish the Temple as it became a place of pilgrimage for Royalists. Before demolishing it, he accompanied Arno Dorian to retrieve the skeletal remains of the Sage François-Thomas Germain from the Temple's sanctuary, which he was awed by. The pair then buried his body in the Parisian Catacombs.Assassin's Creed: Unity – The Temple During this period, Napoleon also ordered the destruction of the Grand Châtelet.Assassin's Creed: Unity – Database: Grand Châtelet
In 1808, Napoleon invaded Spain and declared his brother Joseph as King of Spain.Assassin's Creed DNA – Timeline: 1808 In 1809, Napoleon ordered once again the arrest of Mademoiselle Lenormand for treason. In 1810, Napoleon divorced Joséphine de Beauharnais after she had failed to bear him any heirs but he authorized her to keep the title of Empress. He remarried with Marie Louise of Austria and had a son named Napoleon.
By 1812, Napoleon still retained the Apple of Eden.Assassin's Creed II – Glyph 2: "Sixty-Four Squares" He invaded Russia with the Grand Army but it ultimately resulted in a disaster, with a mere 10,000 men fit for battle on the 600, 000 soldiers. During this time a coup was made in France to dethrone the emperor but it failed. In 1814, the Allies invaded France, forcing Napoleon to abdicate on 30 March.
====Exile and Return====
After his defeat, Napoleon was exiled to the Elba island in the Mediterranean Sea. Even if the Bourbon House established back the Kingdom of France, Napoleon rallied his followers in March 1815, becoming once more emperor. As the Allies retaliated, his brother-in-law Joachim Murat was defeated by the Austrian on 2 May. On 16 June, Napoleon defeated the Prussians, but the next day at Waterloo, his army was defeated by the British and the Prussians. On 22 June, he abdicated once again for his son Napoleon II but the coalition refused to recognize him.
===Later life and death===
Napoleon was once again exiled but this time to the remote island of St. Helena in the southern Atlantic Ocean. He was allowed a great deal of freedom and leisure, but such a life was not for him. In October, his brother-in-law Joachim Murat was captured and executed.
In 1817, his health began to decline. By 1821, Napoleon was confined to bed where he died on 5 May of this year.
==Legacy==
In 1840, Napoleon's remains were brought to Paris and entombed in Les Invalides.Assassin's Creed: Unity – Database: Les Invalides
Between 1852 and 1870, his nephew Louis-Napoleon Bonaparte established the Second French Empire and became Emperor Napoleon III.Assassin's Creed: The Engine of History – The Magus ConspiracyAssassin's Creed: The Engine of History – The Resurrection Plot
In 2012, the Assassin Clay Kaczmarek collected details on Napoleon's Apple while Abstergo Industries held him captive at their Animus Project laboratory in Rome. He then hid the information within the Animus 1.28 in Glyph puzzles for his successor, Desmond Miles. Sometime in early September,Assassin's Creed: Initiates – The Desmond Files Desmond solved the puzzle set titled "Sixty-Four Squares", in which the Apple was revealed to have been one of many held by a other heads of state, namely, Queen Elizabeth I and George Washington.
==Personality and traits==
Napoleon was an eloquent and collected man who rarely lost his temper, only displaying subtle signs of annoyance when pressured. However, he was prone to losing composure when conversing with Joséphine, frequently stuttering and pausing nervously; he admitted to her that she had left him breathless.
When he met Arno, Napoleon was also extremely ambitious, yet pragmatic and liberally idealistic. Despite his affiliation to the revolutionary cause, he saw those in charge were inefficient in leading France, and instead brought about chaos and anarchy.
As he got older, Napoleon became more jaded and disillusioned, akin to how Arno had been. He came to the belief that mankind was meant to be subjugated by a higher authority in order to bring peace, similar to the Templar ideology. This made him crave power, becoming somewhat megalomaniacal in nature. In his pursuit for power, he became somewhat ruthless, burning several rats alive while in the ruins of Saint-Denis, simply to prove a point to his lieutenant. However, he nonetheless ordered for the boy, Léon, to be safely escorted back to the surface, seeing him to be harmless.
Napoleon also displayed a habit of speaking in military jargon, describing how to 'flank' Joséphine while still remaining engaged with Désirée. He maintained an upper class attitude towards those around him, which made him very intolerable among his colleagues such as Bernadotte and Dumas. He was also had some sardonic wit, pointing out the shady and indiscreet appearance of Arno's Assassin outfit.
Following their first encounter, Napoleon and Arno Dorian bonded, despite their philosophical differences. Arno's devotion towards the Assassin philosophy of freedom of humanity sharply contrasted with that of Napoleon's own beliefs that peace could only be brought about through power and control over humanity. Napoleon trusted Arno enough to allow him to help run personal errands with Désirée, while Arno seemed confident enough to speak with Bonaparte about his relationship with Élise de la Serre, albeit in a joking manner. Though Arno thwarted Napoleon's plans with the Apple of Eden in Saint-Denis, the two did not interact or meet each other, and maintained contact for several years.
===Skills and equipment===
Napoleon was a gifted and capable leader, able to come up with military strategies that granted him victory despite the overwhelming odds. During the 13 Vendémiaire coup, despite being severely outnumbered, Bonaparte managed to defeat the Royalists with minimum casualties through the use of cannon fire. His charisma also played a pivotal role in his rise to power, garnering massive popularity in many of his campaigns. His popularity was such that even Robespierre feared Napoleon's popularity would overshadow his own.
As a commander of artillery, Napoleon was a skilled marksman, capable of shooting down an extremist rebel charging towards him without misfiring. Napoleon carried a cavalry saber as well as dual flintlock pistols, but the former was largely ceremonial as he was never seen using it. He also displayed quick reflexes, being able to catch Arno off guard and hold him at gunpoint during their initial meeting.
Due to his influence in both military and politics, Napoleon was extremely resourceful for a man of his rank in the army. This was seen by his knowledge of the Apple of Eden in Franciade, whereas neither the Assassins nor the Templars were even aware of its existence.
==Behind the scenes==
Napoleon Bonaparte, a historical figure, was first introduced in the Glyphs of Assassin's Creed II. It was not until Assassin's Creed: Unity that he made a physical appearance though, where he was voiced by Brent Skagford.
The name Napoléon is a compound name composed from the Greek elements neapolis (new city) and leōn (lion): hence, "lion of the new city." His surname Bonaparte is of Italian origin; it is composed of the elements bona (buona) 'good' + parte 'solution', 'match', a name bestowed as an expression of satisfaction at the child's arrival.
Léon referred to Napoleon as "the little commandant", a reference to Napoleon's depiction in many forms of popular culture as being of short stature. This is a result from the difference between the measurements of the French pouce (2.71 cm) and the British inch (2.54 cm). Napoleon was actually 1.68 meters (5 ft 6 in) tall, making him of average height for the time period. This nickname was also a reference to how Napoleon was addressed by his subordinates, due to his camaraderie with them.
==Gallery==
ACU Napoleon - Concept Art.jpg|Concept art of Napoleon
ACU Napoleon Promo.jpg|Promotional art of Napoleon
ACU Napoleon Dead Kings Promotional Art.jpg|Promotional art of Napoleon for Dead Kings
The King's Correspondence 12.png|Napoleon finding the Temple key
The King's Correspondence 17.png|Arno and Napoleon escaping Louis XVI's office
The King's Correspondence 20.png|Napoleon leaving the Tuileries
Napoleon Bonaparte Who's In Your Blood.jpg|Napoleon Bonaparte in Who's In Your Blood?
==Appearances==
*Assassin's Creed II 
*Assassin's Creed: Initiates 
*Assassin's Creed: Unity 
**Dead Kings
*Assassin's Creed Unity: Abstergo Entertainment – Employee Handbook 
*Discovery Tour: Ancient Egypt 
*Echoes of History 
==References==
Category:1769 births
Category:1821 deaths
Category:Individuals
Category:French people
Category:Corsicans
Category:Parisians
Category:Generals
Category:Military commanders
Category:Mathematicians
Category:Freemasons
Category:French Army personnel
Category:House of Bonaparte
Category:Monarchs of France
Category:Monarchs of Italy
Category:Monarchs of Germany
Category:Assassin allies
Category:Individuals who held Pieces of Eden
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