Could Andrew Roberts' in-depth look at Napoleon's HR issues with those pesky marshals have prompted a bit of a rethink? With his new book Napoleon And His Marshals, Lord Roberts certainly has a fascinating new perspective moving things on from his 2014 biography Napoleon The Great. Whereas the emphasis had previously been on Napoleon's intellectual brilliance, administrative achievements and battlefield genius, this time we have a much more complicated, rounded, human picture. Those marshals were all-important, but they were treated rather roughly at times; and as Lord Roberts' delving into the latest correspondence shows, what he previously admired as effective compartmentalisation in the great Napoleonic brain now appears to be something closer to micromanagement of the most overdone kind.

It was a great pleasure to welcome Andrew on to the podcast, not least to put Charles' 'rat with great PR' jibe to him directly. The answer shows that, while there is more nuance in his latest look at the Napoleonic period, Andrew Roberts will defend Napoleon's achievements in power to the last.

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