Five curious facts about Napoleon Bonaparte

History has plenty to say about Napoleon Bonaparte, who was born into humble circumstances on the French island of Corsica in 1769 and rose to be the emperor of France. He is famed for his spectacular military successes; his defiant escape from his first period of exile; and his eventual defeat at Waterloo in 1815. With such an eventful biography, it’s easy to forget that he was ever a real man. Here are five lesser-known facts about him.

1. He liked to cheat at cards (so they say). Napoleon was a highly competitive man and his contemporaries accused him of bending the rules in card games to his advantage. His favourite game, however, was chess which he played for long hours during his exile on St. Helena. As far as we know, he didn’t cheat at that. 

2. He was obsessed with personal hygiene. While on campaign, Napoleon would take a daily bath, sprinkle himself with eau de cologne and change into a fresh uniform. He encouraged others around him to take care of themselves within their means. He was once heard to pronounce, “Clean hands: clean empire!”

3. He wasn’t actually that short. The most reliable source puts his height at 5 foot 6 inches; but this was in French feet which were slightly longer than English ones. His reputation for being height-challenged was partly British propaganda and partly because he was often seen beside elite troops who were strapping young men. It is fairer to think of him as being of average height for his generation.

4. He spoke French with an accent. Napoleon was born and brought up in Corsica and he kept the accent of that island all his life. As a cadet he was teased about his way of speaking. He also made spelling mistakes, for instance writing “otorisé” for ”autorisé”. He was, however, in favour of all things intellectual and as well as his military victories he left France with improvements in the fields of public administration, law and education. 

5. His penis has its own story. It was widely rumoured that the doctor who performed the autopsy on Napoleon on Saint Helena in 1821 removed the emperor’s penis as a souvenir or to preserve it for posterity. The supposed organ changed ownership many times after that. The last time it was seen in public, displayed in a museum it was described as being like “a piece of leather or a shrivelled eel”. If it is really what it is said to be – it is now in New Jersey in the USA, in the possession of the family of a renowned urologist. Whether or not the doctor did what he is accused of, we will never know.