Napoleon Was Not Short. It Is A Myth.

["Napoleon Crossing the Alps", paitning by the French artist Jacques-Louis David, circa 1801 - 1805. Picture Source]

Historical Fact: Napoleon Was Short (The Myth)

Napoleon was of short stature - this is probably one of the most notorious myths. He was not short at all, even according to contemporary standards. This myth can be traced to an error in measurement conversion from French measurement system into British measurement system. During Napoleon's autopsy, his personal doctor François Carlo Antommarchi reported his height as 5 feet and 2 inches. French inch (pouce) was equivalent to 2.7 cm while British Imperial inch measured 2.54 cm. It means that Napoleon's height was about 170 cm which was more than average for French male of that time, and certainly much taller than average height of Englishman around this period which was around 165 cm.
British propaganda during that period with the help of caricaturistic depictions contributed to perpetuation of the myth.
The impression that he was short was also caused by the fact that Napoloen surrounded himself by the Old Guard (elite grenadiers of The Imperial Guard) whom he required to have minimum height of 185 cm.

[British caricature of Napoleon from the 19th century. Picture Source]

This height myth has contributed to description of alleged psychological trait called Napoleon complex (or Napoleon syndrome). It is ostensible cognitive condition that affects short people who try to compensate their height with over-aggressive or dominating behaviour. Although it is now widely believed to be factual condition, it is just another myth that has been debunked by scientific research, and it has never been included in any psychiatric definition of psychological disorders.

[Napoleon reviewing the Imperial Guard. Painting by Horace Vernet, 1836. Picture Source]

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References:

"Napoleon Was Short ", Fact/Myth, 2016.

"Cultural depictions of Napoleon", Wikipedia article.

"History of human height", Wikipedia article.

"Napoleon Complex", Wikipedia article.

"Old Guard", Wikipedia article.

"Napoleon", Wikipedia article.

"Personality functioning: the influence of stature", The Wessex Growth Study, 2004.

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