Napoleon was speaking about leadership and persuasion—arguing that men are governed less by reason than by imagination and the images leaders create.
The Memorial of Saint Helena (Secondary source)
The Memorial of Saint Helena is a detailed account by Emmanuel de Las Cases of Napoleon Bonaparte’s reflections, conversations, and recollections during his exile on Saint Helena (1815-1816). Blending memoir, dialogue, and political philosophy, it offers an intimate portrait of Napoleon’s mind and became one of the most influential Napoleonic testimonies.
More about “The Memorial of Saint Helena” →
“The Emperor could not refrain from evincing some emotion at these two circumstances; so strongly did the countenances, accents, and gestures of these two men bear the stamp of truth. He then said, See the effect of imagination! How powerful is its influence! Here are people who do not know me—who have never seen me; they have only heard me spoken of; and what do they not feel! what would they not do to serve me! And the same caprice is to be found in all countries, in all ages, and in both sexes! This is fanaticism! Yes, imagination rules the world!”
Napoleon Bonaparte
“That is just it, work is my element; I was born and made for it. I have found the limits of my legs; I have found the limits of my eyes; but I have never been able to find the limits of my labour.”
— Napoleon Bonaparte Secondary source“Everything tells me I shall succeed.”
— Napoleon Bonaparte Primary source“The keys of a fortress are worth the liberty of its garrison when it has resolved not to surrender itself. Thus it is always more advantageous to grant honorable terms of capitulation to a garrison which has shown a vigorous resistance, than to risk the chances of an assault.”
— Napoleon Bonaparte Disputed“Success is the most convincing talker in the world.”
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“He was violating the second rule of the two rules for getting on well with people that speak Spanish; give the men tobacco and leave the women alone.”
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— William Blake Primary source“The years teach much which the days never know.”
— Ralph Waldo Emerson Primary source“A lie stands on one leg, truth on two.”
— Benjamin Franklin Primary source