Heinrich Luitpold Himmler (7 October 1900 – 23 May 1945) was Reichsführer of the SS, a military commander, and a leading member of the Nazi Party. As Chief of the German Police and later the Minister of the Interior, Himmler oversaw all internal and external police and security forces, including the Gestapo. Serving as Reichsführer and later as Commander of the Replacement (Home) Army and General Plenipotentiary for the entire Reich's administration (Generalbevollmächtigter für die Verwaltung), Himmler rose to become the second most powerful man in Nazi Germany.
As overseer of the concentration camps, extermination camps, and Einsatzgruppen (literally: task forces, often used as killing squads), Himmler coordinated the killing of some six million Jews, between 200,000 and 500,000 Roma, many prisoners of war, and possibly another three to four million Poles, communists, or other groups whom the Nazis deemed unworthy to live or simply "in the way", including homosexuals, people with physical and mental disabilities, Jehovah's Witnesses and members of the Confessing Church. Shortly before the end of the war, he offered to surrender both Germany and himself to the Western Allies if he were spared prosecution. After being arrested by British forces, he committed suicide before he could be questioned.
Himmler The Mystic: Occult History of the 3rd Reich
Part 4 of a 4-part BBC program on Nazi Germany. Exposes the Occult, Mystical and Esoteric influences behind Adolf Hitler and NAZI Germany's Third Reich. Narrated by Patrick Allen and produced in 1991.
The audio of all four parts were featured in William Cooper's "Mystery Babylon" series on his enlightening "Hour of the Time" Radio Program.
Himmler, The Mystic, Occult History of the 3rd Reich Part 1 of 6 Aryan Race, Eugenics, Control of Human Breeding, Sterilization, Racial Hygiene, Hitler, Mystical, Esoteric, Writings, and Occult Teachings.
Himmler, The Mystic, Occult History of the 3rd Reich Part 2 of 6 The Elder Society, Aryan God Man, German People, Himmler, SS Membership, Nordic, Race and Resettlement Bureau, Marriage, Inter races, Health, Jewish, Military Religious Order, Ancient Tribe, Psychic, and Mystic Powers.
Himmler, The Mystic, Occult History of the 3rd Reich Part 3 of 6 German/Aryan History, The SS Spiritual Center an Order Castle Wewelsburg, Training, Mobile Battle Group, Camouflage, SS VT, Deaths Head, Concentration Camp, SS Dagger, Ring, and other Symbols.
Himmler, The Mystic, Occult History of the 3rd Reich Part 4 of 6 German Women, Offspring, Nursery, 12 SS Leaders, Ceremony, The USA, Belgium, Britain, Austria, and Czechoslovakia.
Himmler, The Mystic, Occult History of the 3rd Reich Part 5 of 6 Sattlers, Poland, Aryan Empire, Repatriation, and Race Crusade.
Himmler, The Mystic, Occult History of the 3rd Reich Part 6 of 6 Mystical Grounds, Architecture, Aryan People in Power, SS State, and SS Kingdom.
Adolf Hitler ( 20 April 1889 – 30 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician and the leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party (German: Nationalsozialistische Deutsche Arbeiterpartei, abbreviated NSDAP), commonly known as the Nazi Party. He was Chancellor of Germany from 1933 to 1945 and, after 1934, also head of state as Führer und Reichskanzler, ruling the country as an absolute dictator.
A decorated veteran of World War I, Hitler joined the precursor of the Nazi Party (DAP) in 1919 and became leader of NSDAP in 1921. He attempted a failed coup called the Beer Hall Putsch in Munich in 1923, for which he was imprisoned. Following his imprisonment, in which he wrote his book, Mein Kampf, he gained support by promoting German nationalism, anti-semitism, anti-capitalism, and anti-communism with charismatic oratory and propaganda. He was appointed chancellor in 1933, and quickly transformed the Weimar Republic into the Third Reich, a single-party dictatorship based on the totalitarian and autocratic ideals of national socialism.
Hitler ultimately wanted to establish a New Order of absolute Nazi German hegemony in continental Europe. To achieve this, he pursued a foreign policy with the declared goal of seizing Lebensraum ("living space") for the so-called "Aryan people"; directing the resources of the state towards this goal. This included the rearmament of Germany, which culminated in 1939 when the Wehrmacht invaded Poland. In response, the United Kingdom and France declared war against Germany, leading to the outbreak of World War II in Europe.
Within three years, Germany and the Axis powers had occupied most of Europe, and most of Northern Africa, East and Southeast Asia and the Pacific Ocean. However, with the reversal of the Nazi invasion of the Soviet Union, the Allies gained the upper hand from 1942 onwards. By 1945, Allied armies had invaded German-held Europe from all sides. Nazi forces engaged in numerous violent acts during the war, including the systematic murder of as many as 17 million civilians, including an estimated six million Jews targeted in the Holocaust and between 500,000 and 1,500,000 Roma, Poles, Soviet civilians, Soviet prisoners of war, people with disabilities, homosexuals, Jehovah's Witnesses, and other political and religious opponents.
In the final days of the war, during the Battle of Berlin in 1945, Hitler married his long-time mistress Eva Braun and, to avoid capture by Soviet forces less than two days later, the two committed suicide on 30 April 1945.
Mein Kampf, English: My Struggle, is a book by Adolf Hitler. It combines elements of autobiography with an exposition of Hitler's political ideology. Volume 1 of Mein Kampf was published in 1925 and Volume 2 in 1926. The book was edited by the former Hieronymite friar Bernhard Stempfle who later perished during the Night of the Long Knives.
Hitler began the dictation of the book while imprisoned for what he considered to be "political crimes" after his failed revolution in Munich in November 1923. Though Hitler received many visitors earlier on, he soon devoted himself entirely to the book. As he continued, Hitler realized that it would have to be a two-volume work, with the first volume scheduled for release in early 1925. The prison governor of Landsberg noted at the time that "he [Hitler] hopes the book will run into many editions, thus enabling him to fulfill his financial obligations and to defray the expenses incurred at the time of his trial."
Read his other book:New World Order Hitler wrote two books, Mein Kampf and an unpublished sequel Zweites Buch. When first published Mein Kampf sold few copies and Hitler felt this was because he hadn't thoroughly explained his foreign policy. In it he states the ultimate objective of himself and the National Socialist Movement is the establishment of Germany world hegemony (ie world domination), as well as the complete destruction of all other belief systems, ways of governance, etc. Though he viewed the Soviet Union as the greatest short term obstacle to this goal he considered the United States to be the greatest long term threat. The first step was the conquest of Eastern Europea. He believed the Western Democracies were to weak and feeble (as well as being afraid of communism, though it was mutual when it came to the Soviets) to intervene in any campaigns of conquest he undertook, hence he would have a free hand to conquer eastern and central Europe. He then planned to conquer France in order to remove any last potential threat to him on the continent. Britain would take on a role similar to the one Italy would later take on, that of Germany's total subordinate. From here either he, or his successor, would launch an invasion of the United States and in so doing remove the last threat to the "New World Order." Due to greater showings in the elections and increased sales of Mein Kampf, as well as a fear that it revealed to much about his foreign policy Hitler had it stored away in secrecy until it was eventually recovered by the Allies following the war.
Hitler - Mein Kampf - Part 1
Hitler - Mein Kampf - Part Part 2
Hitler - Mein Kampf - Part Part 3
Hitler - Mein Kampf - Part Part 4
The Secret Life of Adolf Hitler (1958)
In this installment of the Why We Fight propaganda film series, we see the events of Nazi Germany's diplomatic and military acts of international aggression. One by one, we learn of the Nazi's consistently underhanded and relenting violation of every promise of peace and exploitation of their foes's attempts of appeasement until the invasion of Poland September of 1939 which led to Britain and France finally taking an armed stand against Hitler.
The Nazi Strike
371 Swiss banks stand accused of collaborating with the Nazis during World War II. This was suspected at the time by by U.S. Secretary of Treasury Henry Morgenthau, who began investigating this collaboration. He found the Swiss were not alone. His archives reveal that both British and American bankers continued to do business with Hitler, even as Germany was invading Europe and bombing London.
This investigative film shows in detail the roles played by the Anglo-German banking clique. Key members of the Bank of England together with their German counterparts established the BIS, the Bank for International Settlement, which laundered the plundered gold of Europe. On its board were key Nazis such as Walther Funk and Hjalamar Schact The president of BIS was an American, Thomas McKittrick, who readily socialized with leading Nazis. Not only the BIS, but other allied banks worked hand in hand with the Nazis. One of the biggest American banks kept a branch open in Occupied Paris and, with full knowledge of the managers in the U.S., froze the accounts of French Jews. Deprived of money to escape France, many ended up in death camps.
When Pres. Roosevelt died in April 1945, Morganthau lost his protector and his crusade against the banks came to an end. He was further weakened when men in his department were accused of being Communists during the McCarthy era. This incredible story contains interviews with surviving members of banking families and Morganthaus investigative team as well as newly found archive material. (Excerpt from torrentchannel.com
Banking with Hitler
The Battle of Stalingrad was a major battle of World War II in which Germany and its allies fought the Soviet Union for control of the city of Stalingrad (now Volgograd) in southwestern Russia. It took place between 17 July 1942 and 2 February 1943. The battle is considered by many historians to be the turning point of World War II in Europe, comparable to the way the Battle of Midway was the turning point of the Pacific War and the Second Battle of El Alamein was the turning point of the North African Campaign.
The battle involved more participants than any other on the Eastern Front, and was marked by its brutality and disregard for military and civilian casualties by both sides. It was amongst the bloodiest in the history of warfare, with the upper estimates of combined casualties coming to nearly two million.
The German offensive to capture Stalingrad proceeded rapidly in the late summer of 1942, supported by Luftwaffe bombing which reduced much of the city to rubble. However, the German offensive bogged down in house-to-house fighting; despite controlling over 90% of the city at times, the Wehrmacht was unable to dislodge the last Soviet defenders, who clung tenaciously to the west bank of the Volga River as the weather turned rainy and cold.
In November 1942, the Red Army launched Operation Uranus, a two-pronged attack on the exposed flanks of the German 6th Army in Stalingrad. This operation dramatically turned the tide, as the weakly held German flanks collapsed and the German 6th Army was cut off and surrounded inside Stalingrad. As the Russian winter set in, the 6th Army weakened rapidly from cold, starvation and ongoing Soviet attacks, but command ambiguity coupled with Adolf Hitler's resolute belief in the "power of the will" and the value of standing fast prevented it from breaking out. During December, a German attempt to break the encirclement failed, and subsequently all attempts at supply collapsed. By early February 1943, German resistance in Stalingrad had ceased, and the surrounded 6th Army had been destroyed.
While this film of one of the epic struggles of WWII is over 50 years old, it still delivers the drama of the battle fought by Russian soldiers and sailors to defend Leningrad. Codenamed "Operation Barbarrosa" by Hitler, the battle was truly horrific. This documentary, The Great Battle of the Volga, focuses on the bravery and suffering of the Russian soldiers as they endure the tremendous attack by the well-equipped German army. That they could regroup and fight back with such ferocity is depicted, along with the terrible destruction caused by the Germans
In 1938, the Czech government was forced to cede the Sudetenland to Germany. It was the price paid for Hitlers promise not to start a war in Europe. Many researchers believe it was the conflict over the Sudetenland that triggered World War II. Now, documents directly related to these events have been declassified by the Foreign Intelligence Service. Find out more in XL Report on RT.
Czech and Germany - Munich 1938
RussiaToday| October 02, 2008 Today we will talk about history. Russias Foreign Intelligence Service has declassified the archive documents which shed light on the notorious Munich agreements of 1938 and the events which preceded the Second World War What kind of activities are disclosed by this publication? What was going on behind the scenes? Will generally accepted historical facts be challenged by these documents? Well talk about it with retired intelligence officer and historian - Lev Sotskov.
Manifesting The Mind : Documentary On Psychedelics & Shamanism
Bouncing Bear Films is proud to announce our first documentary film. This film is the first in a series of three films discussing various aspects of shamanism. This first film, Manifesting the Mind, is a broad look at psychedelics in general. Why are psychedelics so brutally suppressed in our culture? What exactly are some of the psychedelic plants and chemicals and how can they benefit us? With philosophy and insight from Dennis McKenna, Daniel Pinchbeck, Alex Grey, and many others, this film is not to be missed by anyone interested in psychedelics and shamanism.
Interviews include – Robert Bussinger, Mike Crowley, Timothy Freke, Peter Gandy, Alex Grey, Clark Heinrich, Nick Herbert, John Major Jenkins, Dennis McKenna, Terence McKenna, Daniel Pinchbeck, and Dr. Rick Strassman.
Manifesting The Mind
Ayahuasca: Shamans Of The Amazon 2002
Shamanism - Other Worlds - Ayahuasca
Ayahuasca is used largely as a religious sacrament. Those whose usage of ayahuasca is performed in non-traditional contexts often align themselves with the philosophies and cosmologies associated with ayahuasca shamanism, as practiced among indigenous peoples like the Urarina of Peruvian Amazonia. The religion Santo Daime uses it.
While non-native users know of the spiritual applications of ayahuasca, a less well-known traditional usage focuses on the medicinal properties of ayahuasca. Its purgative properties are highly important (many refer to it as la purga, "the purge"). The intense vomiting and occasional diarrhea it induces can clear the body of worms and other tropical parasites, and harmala alkaloids themselves have been shown to be anthelmintic. Thus, this action is twofold; a direct action on the parasites by these harmala alkaloids (particularly harmine in ayahuasca) works to kill the parasites, and parasites are expelled through the increased intestinal motility that is caused by these alkaloids.
Entheogen: Awakening the Divine Within
The film examines the re-emergence of archaic techniques of ecstasy in the modern world by weaving a synthesis of ecological and evolutionary awareness,electronic dance culture, and the current pharmacological re-evaluation of entheogenic compounds. Within a narrative framework that imagines consciousness itself to be evolving, Entheogen documents the emergence of techno-shamanism in the post-modern world that frames the following questions: How can a renewal of ancient initiatory rites of passage alleviate our ecological crisis? What do trance dancing and festivals celebrating unbridled artistic expression speak to in our collective psyche? How do we re-invent ourselves in a disenchanted world from which God has long ago withdrawn? Entheogen invites the viewer to consider that the answers to these questions lie within the consciousness of each and every human being, and are accessible if only we give ourselves permission to awaken to the divine within.
The media material presented in this production is protected by the FAIR USE CLAUSE of the U.S. Copyright Act of 1976, which allows for the rebroadcast of copyrighted materials for the purposes of commentary, criticism, and education.
Robert David Steele Vivas (July 16, 1952 New York City), is known for his promotion of open source intelligence (OSINT). He is a former United States Marine Corps infantry and intelligence officer for twenty years and was the second-ranking civilian (GS-14) in U.S. Marine Corps Intelligence from 1988–1992. Steele is a former clandestine services case officer with the Central Intelligence Agency. He is the founder and CEO of OSS.Net as well as the Golden Candle Society. Steele also was a member of the Adjunct Faculty of Marine Corps University in the mid-1990s. Career
He spent his early years, two decades, in Latin America and Asia as the son of an oil company executive. Steele has an BA in Political Science; an MA in International Relations; and an MPA in Public Administration. He resigned from the military in 1993.
He is commonly associated with the open source intelligence movement and coined the terms "virtual intelligence" and "information peacekeeping". He argues that U.S. intelligence reform is needed, and that the private sector can perform a high percentage of U.S. open source intelligence needs and reduce cost to the U.S. government. He advocates "collective intelligence" or "the wisdom of the crowd" (what Howard Rheingold calls "smart mobs") and for hackers as a national resource.
Steele, an international proponent of OSINT, argues that both reports, while recent, still ignore his decades of advocacy for a proper national focus on OSINT from 1988 to date. He further argues that the CIA has refused to take open source information seriously for decades, and should not be charged with developing new capabilities that are totally outside its existing culture of secrecy.
Books self-published by Steele
On Intelligence: Spies and Secrecy in an Open World (AFCEA, 2000).
The New Craft of Intelligence: Personal, Public, & Political (OSS, 2002).
Peacekeeping Intelligence: Emerging Concepts for the Future (OSS, 2003). Contributing editor with Ben de Jong and Wies Platje.
Information Operations: All Information, All Languages, All the Time (OSS, 2005).
The Smart Nation Act: Public Intelligence in the Public Interest (OSS, 2006).
Film appearances
Steele is prominently featured in the 2007 documentary American Drug War: The Last White Hope.
He also appeared in two French documentaries: Les Hackers (English translation: Hackers), on the National Geographic Channel, CIA Guerres Secretes (By William Karel) and Le Monde selon Bush (English translation: The World according to Bush by William Karel), on the television channel Paris Première.
Robert Steele presented the Keytone address at Gnomedex, 2007.
Napoleon Bonaparte (1769-1821) was initiated into Army Philadelphia Lodge in 1798. His brothers, Joseph, Lucian, Louis and Jerome, were also Freemasons. Five of the six members of Napoleon's Grand Council of the Empire were Freemasons, as were six of the nine Imperial Officers and 22 of the 30 Marshals of France. Confirmed Mason. Supporting Document:Napoleon I and Freemason
The French Revolution By Jim Marrs
If one desires to point to a major world event proven to have been inspired by secret society machinations, one need look no further than the French Revolution, which devastated that nation between 1787 and 1799. Revolutionary leaders, in seeking to overthrow the decadent monarchy of King Louis XVI, launched the first national revolution of modern times.
Although popularly believed to have begun due to a public uprising over lack of food and government representation, the record is quite clear that the revolution was instigated by cells of French Masonry and the German Illuminati.
The New Encyclopedia Britannica tells us that in France there arose a political system and a philosophical outlook that no longer took Christianity for granted, that in fact explicitly opposed it... The brotherhood taught by such groups as the Freemasons, members of secret fraternal societies, and the Illuminati, a rationalist secret society, provided a rival to the Catholic sense of community."
Secret society researcher and author Nesta H. Webster was even more pointed, writing in 1924, "[The Masonic book A Ritual and Illustrations of Freemasonry] contains the following passage, 'The Masons... originated the Revolution with the infamous Duke of Orleans at their head.'"
Author Bramley wrote, "During the first French Revolution, a key rebel leader was the Duke of Orleans, who was grand master of French Masonry before his resignation at the height of the Revolution. Marquis de Lafayette, the man who had been initiated into the Masonic fraternity by George Washington, also played an important role in the French revolutionary cause. The Jacobin Club, which was the radical nucleus of the French revolutionary movement, was founded by prominent Freemasons."
It was the Duke of Orleans, grand master of the Grand Orient Lodge of Freemasons, who reportedly bought all the grain in 1789 and either sold it abroad or hid it away, thus creating near starvation among commoners. Galart de Montjoie, a contemporary, blamed the Revolution almost solely on the Duke of Orleans, adding that he "was moved by that invisible hand which seems to have created all the events of our revolution in order to lead us towards a goal that we do not see at present..."
Drawing on an impressive number of contemporary writings, Webster added, "If, then, it is said that the [French] Revolution was prepared in the lodges of Freemasons - and many French Masons have boasted of the fact - let it always be added that it was Illuminized Freemasonry that made the Revolution, and that the Masons who acclaim it are Illuminized Masons, inheritors of the same tradition introduced into the lodges of France in 1787 by the disciples of Weishaupt, 'patriarch of the Jacobins.'"
Guiseppe Balsamo, a student of the Jewish Cabala, a Freemason, and a Rosicrucian, became known as Louis XVI's court magician Caliostro. He wrote how the German Illuminati had infiltrated the French Freemason lodges for years and added, "By March 1789, the 266 lodges controlled by the Grand Orient were all 'illuminized' without knowing it, for the Freemasons in general, were not told the name of the sect that brought them these mysteries, and only a very small number were really inititated into the secret."
Jacobins and Jacobites Pro-revolutionary members of France's National Constituent Assembly had formed a group which became known as the Society of the Friends of the Constitution. After the Assembly moved to Paris, this group met there in a hall leased from the Jacobins' convent of Catholic Dominican Friars. These revolutionaries, sworn to protect the revolution from the aristocrats, soon were known as the Jacobin Club. Since that time, all revolutionaries have been called Jacobins.
At least that is the official story of the Jacobins. As usual, the Jacobins are tied to earlier secret societies, in this case a movement to restore a kingship in Britain.
In 1688 England's unpopular and pro-Catholic Stuart king, James II, was deposed by his Dutch son-in-law, the Protestant William of Orange. James - whose name in Latin was Jacobus, hence the name Jacobites - fled to France. There he continued to be supported by Freemasons in Scotland and Wales who sought to restore him to the English throne. They were accused by French Freemasons of converting Masonic rituals and titles into political support for this restoration.
According to some versions of Masonic history, James was ensconced in the Chateau of Saint-Germain by his friend, French King Louis XIV where he established a system of Masonry that became known as the Scottish Rite of Freemasonry.
After a series of failed rebellions, the Jacobites in Scotland were finally crushed at the battle of Culloden Moor near Inverness in 1746. Their leader, Charles Edward Stuart, "Bonnie Prince Charlie, the young pretender," escaped to France, taking with him Jacobites imbued with "Freemasonic ideals". A year later in Arras, France, Charles chartered a Masonic Sovereign Primordial Chapter of Rose Croix known as "Scottish Jacobite"...
French Masons too were heavily involved in the political events of that day. Webster noted, "All the revolutionaries of the Constituent Assembly were initiated into the third degree" of Illuminized Masonry, including revolutionary leaders such as the Duke of Orleans, Valance, Lafayette, Mirabeau, Garat, Marat, Robespierre, Danton, and Desmoulins.
Honre-Gabriel Riquetti, Comte de Mirabeau, a leading revolutionary, indeed espoused ideals which were identical with Adam Weishaupt, founder of Bavarian Illuminized Masonry. In personal papers Mirabeau called for the overthrow of all order, all laws, and all power to "leave the people in anarchy." He said the public must be promised "power to the people" and lower taxes but never given real power "for the people as legislators are very dangerous as they only establish laws which coincide with their passions." He said the clergy should be destroyed by "ridiculing religion."
Mirabeau ended his tirade by proclaiming "What matter the means as long as one arrives at the end?" - the same end-justifies-the-means philosophy preached from Weishaupt to Lenin to Hitler.
Contrary to popular history the storming of the Bastille was not the spontaneous action of a downtrodden mob. "That brigands from the South were deliberately enticed to Paris in 1789, employed and paid by the revolutionary leaders, is a fact confirmed by authorities too numerous to quote at length... In other words, the importation of the contingent of hired brigands conclusively refutes the theory that the Revolution was an irrepressible rising of the people," wrote Webster.
We see in the French Revolution the first time where grievences were systematically created in order to exploit them," wrote author still.
Such exploitation began with the Freemasons as early as 1772 when the Grand Orient Lodge was firmly established in France, counting 104 lodges. This number grew to 2,000 lodges by the time of the Revolution, with 447 lodge members participating in the 605 member Estates-General. One of their primary goals was the Nationalization of all Church property to help pay off the large debts Revolutionary France incurred in assisting their Jacobite Masonic brethrens plans during the American revolution.
Meanwhile, buoyed by the situation in France, Masonic-based revolutionary clubs sprang up in other countries, including England, Ireland, the German states, Austria, Belgium, Italy, and Switzerland. Tensions between outside nations and France rose until 1792 when France declared war on Austria and Prussia.
Confronted with both a war and a revolution, France degenerated into the Reign of Terror, during which time King Lous XVI, Marie Antoinette, and many thousands, chiefly aristocrats, were executed.
In a move similar to Hitler's action 150 years later, the Jacobins closed down all Masonic lodges in 1791, ironically fearful that Freemasonry's organizing power might be turned against them.
"Behind the Conventions, behind the clubs, behind the Revolutionary Tribunal, there existed... that most secret convention which directed everything... an occult and terrible power of which the other Convention became the slave and which was composed of the prime initiates of Illuminanism" noted Webster.
Author Epperson, after an exhaustive study of the subject, agreed. He wrote, "The invisible hand that guided the entire French Revolution was the Illuminati, only 13 years in existance, yet powerful enough to cause a revolution in one of the major countries of the world."
Wars, riots, and coups continued in France until a young General Napoleon Bonaparte finally seized complete control in 1799. Although he carried on his own brand of terror in Europe for years, Napoleon proclaimed an end to the revolution. France was in shambles. Hundreds of thousands had died of starvation, war, violence, and the guillotine. The power of both the monarchy and the monolithic church had been largely destroyed.
"So in the 'great shipwreck of civilization,' as a contemporary has described it, the projects of the Cabalists, the Gnostics, and the Secret Societies which for nearly eighteen centuries had sapped the foundation of Christianity found their fulfillment," commented Webster.
Rule by Secrecy Page 221 Jim Marrs Harper Collins, 2000
Name and title: Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte, Napoleon 1st of France. Originally Napoleone Buonaparte, also unofficially known as The Little Corporal (Le Petit Caporal) and The Corsican. More on 'Was Napoleon Shorta?'
Dates: Born: 15th August 1769 in Ajaccio, Corsica Married (Josephine): 9th March 1796 in Paris, France Married (Marie-Louise): 2nd April 1810 in Paris, France Died: 5th May 1821 on St. Helena First Consul of France: 1799 - 1804a Emperor of the French: 1804 - 1814, 1815
Biography of Napoleon Bonaparte: One of the greatest military commanders and a risk taking gambler; a workaholic genius and an impatient short term planner; a vicious cynic who forgave his closest betrayers; a misogynist who could enthrall men; Napoleon Bonaparte was all of these and more, the twice-emperor of France whose military endeavors and sheer personality dominated Europe in person for a decade, and in thought for a century.
Birth in Corsica Napoleon was born in Ajaccio, Corsica, on August 15th 1769 to Carlo Buonaparte, a lawyer and political opportunist, and his wife, Marie-Letizia. The Buonaparte's were a wealthy family from the Corsican nobility, although when compared to the great aristocracies of France Napoleon's kin were poor and pretentious. A combination of Carlo's social climbing, Letizia's adultery with the Comte de Marbeuf - Corsica's French military governor - and Napoleon's own ability enabled him to enter the military academy at Brienne in 1779. He moved to the Parisian École Royale Militaire in 1784 and graduated a year later as a second lieutenant in the artillery. Spurred on by his father's death in February 1785, the future emperor had completed in one year a course that often took three.
Early Career: The Corsican Misadventure Despite being posted on the French mainland, Napoleon was able to spend much of the next eight years in Corsica thanks to his ferocious letter writing and rule bending, as well as the effects of the French Revolution and sheer good luck. There he played an active part in political and military matters, initially supporting the Corsican rebel Pasquale Paoli, a former patron of Carlo Buonaparte. Military promotion also followed, but Napoleon became opposed to Paoli and when civil war erupted in 1793 the Buonapartes fled to France, where they adopted the French version of their name: Bonaparte. Historians have frequently used the Corsican affair as a microcosm of Napoleon's career.
Early Career: Fluctuating Success The French Revolution had decimated the republic's officer class and favoured individuals could achieve swift promotion, but Napoleon's fortunes rose and fell as one set of patrons came and went. By December 1793 Bonaparte was the hero of Toulon, a General and favourite of Augustin Robespierre; shortly after the wheel of revolution turned and Napoleon was arrested for treason. Tremendous political 'flexibility' saved him and the patronage of Vicomte Paul de Baras, soon to be one of France's three 'Directors', followed.
Napoleon became a hero again in 1795, defending the government from angry counter-revolutionary forces; Baras rewarded Napoleon by promoting him to high military office, a position with access to the political spine of France. Bonaparte swiftly grew into one of the country's most respected military authorities - largely by never keeping his opinions to himself - and he married Josephine de Beauharnais. Commentators have considered this an unusual match ever since.
Napoleon and The Army of Italy In 1796 France attacked Austria. Napoleon was given command of the Army of Italy - the post he wanted - whereupon he welded a young, starving and disgruntled army into a force which won victory after victory against, theoretically stronger, Austrian opponents. Aside from the Battle of Arcole, where Napoleon was lucky rather than clever, the campaign is legitimately legendary. Napoleon returned to France in 1797 as the nation's brightest star, having fully emerged from the need for a patron. Ever a great self-publicist, he maintained the profile of a political independent, thanks partly to the newspapers he now ran.
Failure in the Middle East, Power in France In May 1798 Napoleon left for a campaign in Egypt and Syria, prompted by his desire for fresh victories, the French need to threaten Britain's empire in India and the Directory's concerns that their famous general might seize power. The Egyptian campaign was a military failure (although it had a great cultural impact) and a change of government in France caused Bonaparte to leave - some might say abandon - his army and return in the August of 1799. Shortly after he took part in the Brumaire coup of November 1799, finishing as a member of the Consulate, France's new ruling triumvirate.
First Consul The transfer of power might not have been smooth - owing much to luck and apathy - but Napoleon's great political skill was clear; by February 1800 he was established as the First Consul, a practical dictatorship with a constitution wrapped firmly around him. However, France was still at war with her fellows in Europe and Napoleon set out to beat them. He did so within a year, although the key triumph - the Battle of Marengo, fought in June 1800 - was won by the French General Desaix.
From Reformer to Emperor Having concluded treaties that left Europe at peace Bonaparte began working on France, reforming the economy, legal system (the famous and enduring Code Napoleon), church, military, education and government. He studied and commented on minute details, often while travelling with the army, and the reforms continued for most of his rule. Bonaparte exhibited an undeniable skill as both legislator and statesmen - a study of these achievements could rival those of his campaigns for size and depth - but many have argued that this talent was deeply flawed and even fervent supporters admit that Napoleon made mistakes. The Consul's popularity remained high - helped by his mastery of propaganda, but also genuine national support - and he was elected Consulate for life by the French people in 1802 and Emperor of France in 1804, a title which Bonaparte worked hard to maintain and glorify.
A Return to War Nevertheless, Europe was not at peace for long. Napoleon's fame, ambitions and character were based on conquest, making it almost inevitable that his reorganised Grande Armée would fight further wars. However, other European countries also sought conflict, for not only did they distrust and fear Bonaparte, they also retained their hostility towards reavolutionary France. If either side has sought peace, the battles would still have continued.
For the next eight years Napoleon dominated Europe, fighting and defeating a range of alliances involving combinations of Austria, Britain, Russia and Prussia. Sometimes his victories were crushing - such as Austerlitz in 1805, often cited as the greatest military victory ever - and on other occasions he was either very lucky, fought almost to a standstill, or both; Wagram stands as an example of the latter. Bonaparte forged new states in Europe, including the German Confederation - built from the ruins of the Holy Roman Empire - and the Duchy of Warsaw, whilst also installing his family and favourites in positions of great power: Murat became King of Naples and Bernadotte King of Sweden, the latter in spite of his frequent treachery and failure. The reforms continued and Bonaparte had an ever-increasing effect on culture and technology, becoming a patron of both the arts and sciences while stimulating creative responses across Europe.
Napoleon’s Failings Napoleon also made mistakes and suffered setbacks. The French navy was kept firmly in check by their British equivalent and the Emperor's attempt to tame Britain through economics - the Continental System - harmed France and her supposed allies greatly. Bonaparte's interference in Spain caused even larger problems, as the Spanish refused to accept Napoleon's brother Joseph as ruler, instead fighting a vicious guerilla war against the French invaders.
The Spanish 'ulcer' highlights another problem of Bonaparte's reign: he couldn't be everywhere within his empire at once, and the forces he sent to pacify Spain failed, as they often did elsewhere. Meanwhile, British forces gained a toehold in Portugal, slowly fighting their way across the peninsula and drawing ever more troops and resources from France itself. Nevertheless, these were Napoleon's glory days, and on March 11th 1810 he married his second wife, Marie-Louise; his only legitimate child - Napoleon II - was born just over a year later, on March 20th 1811.
1812: Napoleon’s Disaster in Russia The Napoleonic Empire may have shown signs of decline by 1811, including a downturn in diplomatic fortunes and continuing failure in Spain, but such matters were overshadowed by what happened next. In 1812 Napoleon went to war with Russia, assembling a force of over 400,000 soldiers, accompanied by the same number of followers and support. Such an army was almost impossible to feed or adequately control and the Russians repeatedly retreated, destroying the local resources and separating Bonaparte from his supplies.
The Emperor continually dithered, eventually reaching Moscow on September 8th after the Battle of Borodino, a bludgeoning conflict where over 80,000 soldiers died. However, the Russians refused to surrender, instead torching Moscow and forcing Napoleon into a long retreat back to friendly territory. The Grande Armée was assailed by starvation, extremes of weather and terrifying Russian partisans throughout, and by the end of 1812 only 10,000 soldiers were able to fight. Many of the rest had died in horrible conditions, with the camp's followers faring even worse.
In the final half of 1812 Napoleon had destroyed most of his army, suffered a humiliating retreat, made an enemy of Russia, obliterated France's stock of horses and shattered his reputation. A coup had been attempted in his absence and his enemies in Europe were re-invigorated, forming a grand alliance intent on removing him. As vast numbers of enemy soldiers advanced across Europe towards France, over-turning the states Bonaparte had created, the Emperor raised, equipped and fielded a new army. This was a remarkable achievement but the combined forces of Russia, Prussia, Austria and others just used a simple plan, retreating from the emperor himself and advancing again when he moved to face the next threat.
1813-1814 and Abdication Throughout 1813 and into 1814 the pressure grew on Napoleon; not only were his enemies grinding his forces down and approaching Paris, but the British had fought out of Spain and into France, the Grande Armée's Marshalls were underperforming and Bonaparte had lost the French public's support. Nevertheless, for the first half of 1814 Napoleon exhibited the military genius of his youth, but it was a war he couldn't win alone. On March 30th, 1814, Paris surrendered to allied forces without a fight and, facing massive betrayal and impossible military odds, Napoleon abdicated as Emperor of France; he was exiled to the Island of Elba.
The 100 Days and Exile Undoubtedly bored and aware of the continuing discontent in France, Napoleon made a sensational return to power in 1815. Travelling to France in secret, he attracted vast support and reclaimed his Imperial throne, as well as re-organising the army and government. This was anathema to his enemies and after a series of initial engagements Bonaparte was narrowly defeated in one of history's greatest battles: Waterloo.
This final adventure had occurred in less than 100 days, closing with Napoleon's second abdication on June 25th 1815, whereupon British forces forced him into further exile. Housed on St. Helena, a small rocky island well away from Europe, Napoleon's health and character fluctuated; he died within six years, on May 5th 1821, aged 51. The causes of his death have been debated ever since, and conspiracy theories involving poison are rife.
Conclusion Simple narratives of Napleon's life can fill whole books, let alone detailed discussions of his achievements, and historians remain divided over the Emperor: was he a cruel tyrant or an enlightened despot? Was he a tortured genius or a blunderer with luck on his side? These discussions are unlikely to be resolved, thanks partly to the weight of source material - making it unlikely that a historian could truly master everything - and Napoleon himself.
He is, and remains, so fascinating precisely because he was such a massive blend of contradictions - itself prohibiting conclusions - and because of the massive effect he had on Europe: no one should forget that he helped first perpetuate, then actively create, a state of European wide-warfare that lasted for twenty years. Few individuals have ever had such a huge effect on the world, on economics, politics, technology, culture and society, making Bonaparte's life more fantastic than any believable fiction.
Nevertheless, it is possible to attempt a small summary on his character: Napoleon may not have been a general of utter genius, but he was very good; he may not have been the best politician of his age, but he was often superb; he may not have been a perfect legislator, but his contributions were hugely important. Whether you admire him or hate him, the real and undoubted genius of Napoleon, the qualities that have drawn praise such as Promethean, was to combine all these talents, to have somehow - be it luck, talent or force of will - risen from chaos, then built, steered and spectacularly destroyed an empire before doing it all again in a tiny microcosm one year later. Whether hero or tyrant, the reverberations were felt across Europe for a century.
Notable Family of Napoleon Bonaparte: Father: Carlo Buonaparte (1746-85) Mother: Marie-Letizia Bonaparte, née Ramolino and Buonaparte (1750 - 1835) Siblings: Joseph Bonaparte, originally Giuseppe Buonaparte (1768 - 1844) Lucien Bonaparte, originally Luciano Buonaparte (1775 - 1840) Elisa Bacciochi, née Maria Anna Buonaparte/Bonaparte (1777 - 1820) Louis Bonaparte, originally Luigi Buonaparte (1778 - 1846) Pauline Borghese, née Maria Paola/Paoletta Buonaparte/Bonaparte (1780 - 1825) Caroline Murat, née Maria Annunziata Buonaparte/Bonaparte (1782 - 1839) Jérôme Bonaparte, originally Girolamo Buonaparte (1784 - 1860) Wives: Josephine Bonaparte, née de la Pagerie and Beauharnais (1763 - 1814) Marie-Louise Bonaparte, formally of Austria, later von Neipperg (1791 - 1847) Notable Lovers: Countess Marie Walewska (d. 1817) Legitimate Children: Napoleon II (1811 - 1832) Source from:About.com
Napoleon the great. This is a great dramatized documentary made by BBC it depicts Napoleons Rise in the Revolutionary hierarchy and eventually his victory at Tulon ,the first step towards becoming himself the revolution as he said it "I AM THE REVOLUTION"
What inscriptions are on the Sphinx? Although there are no records regarding the construction of the Sphinx, there are records of its restoration. The "Sphinx Stela," a stone-engraved inscription dated around 1400 B.C., is the oldest record concerning the Sphinx. According to Fingerprints of the Gods, it describes the restoration of the Sphinx by Pharaoh Thutmosis IV (1401-1391 B.C.) of the 18th Dynasty.
The Stela states that during a hunting trip Prince Thutmosis became tired and slept in the shadow of the Sphinx. He had a dream that the Sphinx promised to reward him with a double crown of Egypt if he would remove the sand from it and restore the sculpture.
According to Manly Hall’s book and Max Thoth book Pyramid Prophecies (p. 158), another account of this legend states that the god appeared unto Prince Thutmosis asking him to do the same. Due to erosion of the stela inscription, no one knows how this promised was fulfilled.
Now this stone inscription did not explain the purpose, the original designer and builder, or the date of the Sphinx’s erection. However, it did cause a great controversy. On line 13 of the inscription it contains the first syllable "Khaf" and it has been associated with King Khafre of the Fourth Dynasty of Pharaoh, who reigned during 2520-2494 B.C.
From this inscription the orthodox view found in any textbook and encyclopedia states that King Khafre built the Sphinx. It will be shown later that a minority group does not accept this view.
Since the Sphinx is located in a desert region, the sand constantly recovered it. In the last 200 years the Sphinx has been excavated and re-excavated four or five times. Basically, this has been the history of the Sphinx.
In Reference to: Hancock, Graham Fingerprints of the Gods Thoth, Max Pyramid Prophecies Source from:Plim
