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Napoleon

Napoleon dressed in military officer's garb, slumped in a chair
Public domain
"Napoléon Bonaparte abdicated in Fontainebleau" by Paul Delaroche, 1845"

Thursday, we’re looking at the life of Napoleon. Sure, he was crowned emperor of France, but the historian Adam Zamoyski says he was also a rather ordinary man, who happened to live a very big life.

RadioWest divider.

Napoleon’s life has been obscured by layers of myths and exaggerations. In a new biography, historian Adam Zamoyski aims to peel all that back to uncover a rather ordinary man. Zamoyski doesn’t buy the legend of Napoleon’s cunning and genius. There was a lot of luck and timing, he says, and quite a bit of PR spin that made Napoleon what he was. He did build lasting institutions for the common good, but he was also his own enemy. Zamoyski joins us to talk about the life of Napoleon, the man.

Adam Zamoyski is a historian and the author of several books on Napoleon. His newest is Napoleon: A Life [Indie bookstores|Amazon|Audible].

Doug Fabrizio has been reporting for KUER News since 1987, and became News Director in 1993. In 2001, he became host and executive producer of KUER's RadioWest, a one hour conversation/call-in show on KUER 90.1 in Salt Lake City. He has gained a reputation for his thoughtful style. He has interviewed everyone from Isabel Allende to the Dalai Lama, and from Madeleine Albright to Desmond Tutu. His interview skills landed him a spot as a guest host of the national NPR program, "Talk of the Nation." He has won numerous awards for his reporting and for his work with RadioWest and KUED's Utah NOW from such organizations as the Society of Professional Journalists, the Utah Broadcasters Association, the Public Radio News Directors Association and the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences.