Napoleon was accustomed to surrounding himself with tall bodyguards and was lovingly nicknamed “le petit caporal (the little corporal).” However, this term did not allude to his height, but rather to his fondness and camaraderie with his subordinates. ¹⁾

Napoleon, at his estimated height of 5'6“, would have been taller than both Lenin and Stalin (5'5”), as well as Nicolas Sarkozy (5'5“). He'd be the same height as Winston Churchill and Benito Mussolini (5'6”) and one inch shorter than Vladimir Putin (5'7“). ²⁾

Napoleon constructed Fort Boyard on the Atlantic Ocean between 1801 and 1857. The structure, which measures 68 by 31 meters and is 20 meters tall, rises directly from the Atlantic Ocean. Its initial function was defense, but it eventually housed a jail. The construction of Boyard was an engineering feat — the concept was offered in 1692, but Louis XIV was informed, “Your Majesty, it would be simpler to capture the moon with your teeth than to accomplish such an effort in such a region.” The fort was recently used as a filming site for the French game show Fort Boyard (1990), in which participants performed feats of strength and endurance in order to earn monetary rewards. ³⁾

One of the most frequently quoted figures about Napoleon's military strength is that he gained more war wins than Alexander the Great, Hannibal and Julius Caesar combined. Napoleon, of course, fought many more conflicts than any of these other military commanders, thus his numbers would be larger. ⁴⁾

General George S. Patton, recognized for his command in Normandy during WWII, was a firm believer in reincarnation. Patton imagined himself to be a military leader slain in combat in Napoleon's army in a prior life, or, failing that, a Roman centurion. ⁵⁾

The American Revolution would not have been possible without France's help, which funneled money and guns to American revolutionaries (i.e., the Founding Fathers) in order to support what was then known as the Continental Congress against France's own opponent, the United Kingdom. ⁶⁾

When George Washington died in 1799, Napoleon declared a 10-day national mourning period in France. ⁷⁾

The Duke of Wellington remained infatuated with Napoleon after defeating him at Waterloo. Not one, but two of Napoleon's previous girlfriends were seduced by the Duke. ⁸⁾

The Duke of Wellington was well-known for his infatuation with Napoleon. In 1816, a year after defeating Napoleon at the Battle of Waterloo, the British government presented the Duke with a gift — an eleven-foot statue commissioned by Napoleon representing himself as the Roman god Mars, nude save for a strategically placed fig leaf. Wellington erected the monument at the bottom of a stairway at his London house, where it still remains today. ⁹⁾

Napoleon released his memoirs and authored a book on Julius Caesar's life while in exile. ¹⁰⁾

Clisson et Eugénie, Napoleon's novel, detailed a romanticized story of his love with Bernardine Eugénie Désirée Clary, whose sister married Napoleon's brother. ¹¹⁾

Napoleon's stepson, Napoleon II, succeeded his stepfather as King of Rome, Prince of Parma and Duke of Reichstadt. When Napoleon I was defeated and forced to quit the French crown, he christened his successor Napoleon II. ¹²⁾

Napoleon's army was approaching Russian territory in 1807, and Napoleon met with Russian Tsar Alexander I to propose a peace arrangement. Napoleon was fascinated by the Tsar after meeting (and connecting over their common disdain of the English). ¹³⁾

Napoleon was brought to tears once when he saw the dog of a fallen soldier kneeling on a battlefield, attempting to resurrect its departed owner. ¹⁴⁾

Napoleon offered a prize to anybody who could make food last longer during his army's trips to far-flung areas like Russia and Egypt. Nicolas Appert found in 1809 that food cooked within a sealed glass jar could not deteriorate unless the container leaked — he had created canning! The French government rewarded Appert with 12,000 francs. ¹⁵⁾