"In my relations with Napoleon, relations which from the beginning I endeavoured to make frequent and confidential, what at first struck me most was the remarkable perspicuity and grand simplicity of his mind and its processes. Conversation with him always had a charm for me, difficult to define. Seizing the essential point of subjects, stripping them of useless accessories, developing his thought and never ceasing to elaborate it till he had made it perfectly clear and conclusive, always finding the fitting word for the thing, or inventing one where the usage of the language had not created it, his conversation was ever full of interest. He did not converse, he talked; by the wealth of his ideas and the facility of his elocution, he was able to lead the conversation, and one of his habitual expressions was, "I see what you want; you wish to come to such or such a point; well, let us go straight to it.""
Quote Details
Added by wikiquote-import-bot
Unverified quote
0 likes
Original Language: English
Available Languages (1)
Sources
Revision History
No revisions have been submitted for this quote.
Categories
Napoleon
Napoléon Bonaparte (15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821) was a French military general who rose dramatically up the ranks of the French Army during the French Revolution, becoming the ruler of France as First Consul of the French Republic (11 November 1799 - 18 May 1804), and then Emperor of the French and King of Italy under the name Napoleon I (18 May 1804 - 6 April 1814, and again briefly from 20 March - 22 June 1815). He died in exile on the island of Saint Helena.
308 quotes on TrueQuotesView all quotes by Napoleon →
Related Quotes
"Il faut laver son linge sale en famille."
"From triumph to downfall is but a step. I have seen a trifle decide the most important issues in the gravest affairs."
"Send me 300 francs; that sum will enable me to go to Paris. There, at least, one can cut a figure and surmount obstac…"
"The man fitted for affairs and authority never considers individuals, but things and their consequences."
"A congress of the powers is deceit agreed on between diplomats — it is the pen of Machiavelli combined with the scimi…"
"You Frenchmen, not content with having robbed us of everything we held dear, have also corrupted our character. The a…"
"It is only by prudence, wisdom, and dexterity, that great ends are attained and obstacles overcome. Without these qua…"
"Hand weapons were the main weapons of the ancients; it is with his short sword that the legionary conquered the world…"
"My waking thoughts are all of thee. Your portrait and the remembrance of last night's delirium have robbed my senses …"
"Never depend on the multitude, full of instability and whims; always take precautions against it."