MEMOIRS
of
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE.


CHAPTER 1

1769-1783.

Authentic date of Bonaparte's birth--His family rained by the
Jesuits--His taste for military amusements--Sham siege at the
College of Brienne--The porter's wife and Napoleon--My intimacy with
Bonaparte at college--His love for the mathematics, and his dislike
of Latin--He defends Paoli and blames his father--He is ridiculed by
his comrades--Ignorance of the monks--Distribution of prizes at
Brienne--Madame de Montesson and the Duke of Orleans--Report of M.
Keralio on Bonaparte--He leaves Brienne.


NAPOLEON BONAPARTE was born at Ajaccio, in Corsica, on the 15th of August
1769; the original orthography of his name was Buonaparte, but he
suppressed the during his first campaign in Italy. His motives for so
doing were merely to render the spelling conformable with the
pronunciation, and to abridge his signature. He signed Buonaparte even