Charles Margerison - Amazing National Leaders

Welcome to this inspirational eBook, which provides you with a unique and fascinating collection of life stories. It is part of a series developed by the Amazing People Club, written in the form of a BioView, which is a short name for a biographical interview.

A BioView is a new concept that reveals amazing stories, as if the person has given an interview about their life. Each of the stories can normally be read in around five to ten minutes. They are based on the known facts of each individuals life, plus what they may have felt about their experiences.

The unique format and flow enables each persons story to come alive, as if it is being personally told to you. Each one of them reflects the interests, emotions and passions linked to the amazing persons achievements. They are stories that can provide inspiration and ideas for your own journey through life and we hope you will enjoy them.

The career notes at the end of each story supply information on each persons life, reflecting their achievements and some of the recognition they have received. They provide the background to the stories, and an easy way of learning about people who made major contributions to our world.

The stories show how ordinary people did extraordinary things to tackle problems and opportunities. Amazing people all had one thing in common. Rather than accepting the situation before them, they developed and implemented plans of action to make improvements. We can all learn from their experiences and the ways they dealt with the challenges and, in this eBook, you can understand their troubles and triumphs.

To learn more about the Amazing People Club books and audios, please visit www.amazingpeopleclub.com .

I knew from an early age that I was blessed with a vision to lead men

But, I could not exercise it in Corsica, where I was born in 1769

At that time, many local battles were fought over our island

The French took control and imposed their laws and customs

My family, who were originally from Genoa, recognized the new order

My mother, Letizia, had a strong influence over me

Father was a lawyer with many influential connections

I was the second of their eight surviving children

Five of my brothers and sisters died during infancy

I was christened, at Ajjacio Cathedral, as Napoleone di Buonaparte

Twenty years later, I changed it to the French version

By that time, I was an officer in the French army

That happened because father sent me to be educated in Autun

It was a pleasant small town in the centre of France

But, my life there was hard, as students made fun of my accent

Learning to read and write in French was difficult, but essential

Father had arranged my entry to the French Military School

Located at Brienne, in Burgundy, it was a tough place

Mainly because the rich students taunted me in all ways

They made life a misery for me, by laughing at my relative poverty

It became so bad that I tried to run away and join the British Royal Navy

But, in the end, I stayed and learnt how to be tough and decisive

After five and half years, I was promoted to the military school in Paris

Their notes said I was four feet eight inches in height and in good health

My assessor said that I would make a good sailor

Little did they know what I had in mind?

I had the ability, so I looked for the opportunity to use it

In October 1785, I took up my duties in Paris, as 2 nd Lieutenant of Artillery

It was a new world, full of opportunity, but with danger all around

The poor people lived in rags and the rich in regal palaces

As soldiers, we were trained to protect our King and country

However, in the streets, a revolution was brewing

From time to time, I returned to Corsica to see my family

They were proud of my achievements

On my return to France, I could see conditions were getting worse

Then on July 14 th 1789, the poor people stormed the Bastille prison

It was the start of the French Revolution

The fury of the crowd was only matched by the cruelty of their leaders

Aristocrats and government officials were taken to the guillotine

Heads rolled on the scaffold and blood flowed in the streets

No mercy was shown and the executions became public spectacles

Our military role was to defend the country from external enemies

No one had trained us to deal with civil mass murder

We did our best to keep order

But, there was no way that King Louis XVI could be saved

He and the Queen were later executed by the murderous mob

There was danger from external enemies also

I was ordered to go south and fight the British invaders at Toulon

In the process, I was injured, as a sword went into my leg

For leading my troops successfully, I was made a Brigadier General

But, the French civil war was more dangerous than the British

In 1794, I was thrown into prison by the new regime

They said I was on the side of the mad revolutionary leader

Protesting that was not so, I was released

My place was on the field of battle, not a rat infested jail

I wanted an opportunity to show my ability as a French soldier

In 1795, I was promoted to be General of the French Army in the West

Exciting battles to rout our enemies followed

In that way, we helped restore the French esprit de corps

But, that had to be done in Paris, where civil strife continued

On my return, I led a group of soldiers to establish order

My efforts were noted by a political leader called Barras

He helped me to be appointed as Commander of the French Interior Army

During that time, I met Josephine who became my wife in 1796

Within a short time, I was on my horse again riding into battle

Many great victories followed at Lodi, Arcole and Rivoli

A peace treaty was signed with Austria

By December 1797, I returned to a heroes reception in Paris

However, it was not long before I set sail with my troops to Egypt

In the heat and dust of the desert we had success, but tragedy at sea

The British, led by Admiral Nelson, destroyed our navy

But, my army won many battles including the capture of Cairo

News arrived of more civil unrest in Paris

On my return, I seized the opportunity to impose order on civilian chaos

By the age of 30, I became First Consul, of the new French Government

It was a chance to fight battles of a different kind

I charged ahead with reforms

The Code Napoleon improved the legal process

I gave orders to develop education and health facilities

My military discipline imposed order on civilian life

That is what the people wanted and needed in order to live in peace

Yet, across our borders there were dangers

Joephine Beauharnais

So, I called my troops together and marched into battle