Napoleon I of France: Encyclopedia II - Napoleon I of France - Childhood and early life

Napoleon I of France - Childhood and early life

He was born Napoleone Buonaparte (in Corsican, Nabolione or Nabulione) in the city of Ajaccio on Corsica on 15 August 1769, only one year after the island was transferred to France by the Republic of Genoa. He later adopted the more French-sounding Napoléon Bonaparte.

His family were minor Italian nobility living in Corsica. His father, Carlo Buonaparte, an attorney, was named Corsica's representative to the court of Louis XVI of France in 1778, where he remained for a number of years. The dominant influence of Napoleon's childhood was his mother, Maria Letizia Ramolino. Her firm discipline helped restrain the rambunctious Napoleon as a boy, nicknamed Rabullione (the "meddler" or "disrupter").

Napoleon I of France - An interesting youth

Napoléone had a very exciting life from the day he was conceived. His father, Carlo, was active in the Corsican independence movement against the Genoese, and consequently, was often riding through the hills with Genoese firing at him. Letizia carried Giuseppe, Napoléone's older brother (his French name was Joseph), and Napoléone in her womb throughout these adventures with Pasquale Paoli's forces. Paoli had made Carlo a lieutenant, and was greatly involved in the movement.

Napoléone was born during the Feast of the Assumption on a couch in the living room of his parent's lavish house (by Corsican standards). He was the second of eight living children. Letizia was able to attend Mass very often and named Napoléone after an Egyptian religious figure.

Napoléone's parents were very considerate towards their children. As a young child Napoléone and Giuseppe were given an undecorated room in their house in which they could play. They could wrestle, draw on the walls, and play games to their hearts' desire. Napoléone also received a nickname as a child, Rabulione, which means "he who meddles in everything."

Napoléone was a very small, fiery, hot tempered youth. Though small, he often beat his brother when fighting, even though Giuseppe was more than a year older than he. He retained this fiery temper throughout his life. He also retained his small size, both weight and height, until marrying Marie-Louise of Austria in 1810. Before marrying her he had eaten very simple foods, although he controlled much of Europe. After marrying her he began to eat much more elegant and rich foods causing an increase in weight. He also may have had hypogonadism, causing bloating.

Napoléone's mother, Letizia, was an extremely religious woman. An impeccably pious Catholic, she attended mass every day she was in a town. She enforced her religious beliefs on Napoléone throughout his childhood. She made him attend High Mass every Sunday by slapping his face should he not attend. Throughout the rest of his life Napoléone gradually became less and less pious. One of the causes for this change may have been the compulsory religious education (which caused him to think often about religion) in school at Brienne, France.

Napoléone was had a very large superego and was very conscientious. As a child his mother often had him follow his father when he went to the local tavern. He did this because his father had a great love of gambling and unfortunately was not especially lucky. He would then report to his mother the happenings of the evening. Napoléone hated this job because of its dishonesty. He also would tell his mother any bad things he ever did.

Napoléone formed many habits and routines as a child that he continued throughout his life. Firstly, he bathed daily. As Emperor he bathed for an hour each morning before dressing. Secondly, he was very generous. As a child he shared his toys with other playmates and continued to exhibit this characteristic by bestowing awards and honors (titles and ranks) to many as Emperor and First Consul of France.

Napoleon I of France - Training and schooling

Napoléone started school at the age of five. He was enrolled in a school run by nuns in 1774. He had a very relaxed routine in this school and often took leisurely strolls in the afternoons. During these strolls Napoléone would sometimes hold a girl named Giacominetta's hand while they walked. Napoléone's schoolmates noticed this loving behavior and created a rhyme about them. They said, "Napoléone di mezza calzetta, fa l'amore a Giacominetta." This little rhyme means, "Napoléone with his socks half down, makes love to Giacominetta." Whenever this rhyme was said, Napoléone would chase the hooligan and fight him.

Napoléone was nevertheless serious about school. He loved arithmetic and kept this love throughout his life. In 1777, three years after starting school, Napoléone went to a farmer's mill and calculated the production of the mill. His love of mathematics caused him to become an artillery officer in the French army for the angles of trajectory, weight of shot, and amount of powder used when firing at various distances require a complete understanding of mathematics.

In this environment Napoléone enjoyed a happy childhood. His parents were supportive and very proud, producing a good impression on Napoléone. He also developed his fiery nature as a child which ultimately caused him to become a soldier. With that, the seeds of a hero were sown.

Napoleon I of France - Preparatory School

In 1778 Napoléone family was blossoming and resources were becoming somewhat scarce. His father decided his oldest boys were ready for more comprehensive schooling and decided to enroll them in one of the two schools for French nobility. Napoléone, it was decided, should become a soldier for he was very rambunctious and loved history and mathematics. Giuseppe was the reverse of Napoléone and was enrolled to become a priest.

At the age of nine Napoléone, Giuseppe, and a cousin were taken from Ajaccio to Calvi to embark on a ship that would take them to France. Letizia said goodbye to the entourage and murmured "courage" in Napoléone's ear before he left. Napoléone was to return to Corsica several more times.

The three arrived on the southern coast of France where Carlo Buonaparte met them and escorted them to the school at Aix. Afterwards he left his boys and journeyed to Paris to have his nobility verified by the government.

Meanwhile, Napoléone was left in a foreign land without knowing the language. For four months he spent much of his time trying to master French and understand what he was being taught. He became proficient enough in French to speak and understand the basics of the language, but was unable to completely master the language even by the time of his death.

After attending the Autun Academy, Napoléone left for the military school at Brienne. Here he spent nearly six years. Giuseppe (he was called Joseph after arriving in France) stayed at Autun and was taught religious basics until he was sixteen, when he could leave for Aix where he would train as a priest.

Napoléone now found himself among many of Europe's richest children. They were like kings compared to him, although he too was a noble. However, Napoléone was a subsidized student, while most of the others were paying students. Napoléone certainly must have felt odd for he was in an environment very different from that of Corsica. His troubles with the French language cannot have helped either. He was not the only foreigner, however. Several Englishmen attended Brienne, although Napoléone was the only Corsican.

The Ecole Militaire was a continuation of Napoléone's previous education. In this school he was able to narrow his studies to a specific arm of the military. During his year at the school he was treated much more like a soldier and began to learn more about tactics. For instance, while there Napoléone helped to organize the defense of a town during a mock battle. He continued to read and may have begun to form his own ideas about warfare. Books on famous military figures such as Julius Caesar, Alexander the Great, and Frederick the Great held Napoléone's interest. This reading would prove immensely helpful later in life.

Napoléone completed the artillery course at the École Militaire in only one year. Ironically, this was the hardest of the courses at the school. However, he finished only forty-second out of fifty in his graduating class. Three students were younger than he which is quite amazing for most students took several years to finish the course. With this training Napoléone was prepared to become a French artillery lieutenant and later to become one of the greatest military heroes ever.

Adapted from the Wikipedia article "Childhood and early life", under the G.N U Free Docmentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki