--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The Allies had made war on Napoleon as a…" description: "\"The Allies had made war on Napoleon as a tyrant and an oppressor of nations; yet once they had got him out of the way, they did him the favor of repres..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b7a/j-christopher-herold-30177_allies_the-allies-had-made-war-on-napoleon-as-a_491041.jpg" --- # The Allies had made war on Napoleon as a tyrant and an… ![“The Allies had made war on Napoleon as a tyrant and an oppressor of nations; yet once they had got him out of the way, they did him the favor of representing him as the torchbearer of the French Revolution. They did him the further favor of repeating his mistakes and besting him at them.” quote by J. Christopher Herold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b7a/j-christopher-herold-30177_allies_the-allies-had-made-war-on-napoleon-as-a_491041.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b7a/j-christopher-herold-30177_allies_the-allies-had-made-war-on-napoleon-as-a_491041.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b7a/j-christopher-herold-30177_allies_the-allies-had-made-war-on-napoleon-as-a_491041.jpg) > “The Allies had made war on Napoleon as a tyrant and an oppressor of nations; yet once they had got him out of the way, they did him the favor of representing him as the torchbearer of the French Revolution. They did him the further favor of repeating his mistakes and besting him at them.” [J. Christopher Herold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-christopher-herold/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The Allies opposed Napoleon as a tyrant, then later portrayed him as a revolutionary hero, repeating his errors and defeating him again. **In simple terms:** Allies first condemned then glorified Napoleon, repeating his mistakes. Key Takeaway Recognize how narratives can be reshaped after conflict. Themes history politics revisionism Mood reflective critical Type analytical historical When to use this quote - academic lectures - political debates - media analysis Key Concepts narrative framing power dynamics historical memory Questions to Reflect On - How do victors reshape the image of former enemies? - What consequences arise from glorifying flawed leaders? A Different Perspective The reinterpretation may overlook the complexities of his reforms. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Allies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/allies/) [Allies War](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/allies-war-2950537/) [Favors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/favors/) [French revolution](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/french-revolution/) [Made](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/made/) [Mistake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mistake/) [Napoleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/napoleon/) [Napoleon Tyrant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/napoleon-tyrant-3661324/) [Revolution](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/revolution/) [Tyrants](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tyrants/) [War](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/war/) [War Napoleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/war-napoleon-954250/) [Way](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/way/) ## Related quotes > [The Allies had made war on Napoleon as a tyrant and an oppressor of nations; yet once they had him out of the way,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-christopher-herold/the-allies-had-made-war-on-napoleon-as-a-tyrant-and-an-oppressor-of-2/) [J. 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It was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-brownlow/it-was-1953-and-i-was-still-at-school-i-d-borrowed-a-silent-french/) [Kevin Brownlow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-brownlow/) > [“Victor Hugo continues to be popular today not because of his multivolume works, which people may never have time or patience to read, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mouloud-benzadi/victor-hugo-continues-to-be-popular-today-not-because-of-his/) [Mouloud Benzadi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mouloud-benzadi/) > [Europeans are forever the offspring of Machiavelli, trapped in a historical rollercoaster that can bring us a monarchy-toppling French Revolution and then a few…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/loretta-napoleoni/europeans-are-forever-the-offspring-of-machiavelli-trapped-in-a/) [Loretta Napoleoni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/loretta-napoleoni/) > [“They are subjected to all manner of taxes: the tithe, the hearth tax and the capitation tax. When all those are paid, they are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-scarrow/they-are-subjected-to-all-manner-of-taxes-the-tithe-the-hearth-tax/) [Simon Scarrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-scarrow/) > [ “The popular image \[in England\] of Bonaparte as a blood-stained tyrant and bandit was admittedly exaggerated, but instinct told even the most radical among… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-christopher-herold/the-popular-image-in-england-of-bonaparte-as-a-blood-stained-tyrant/) [J. Christopher Herold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-christopher-herold/) > [“Just as Napoleon was the sole authority in the state, so the husband and father was to exercise authority over his family. Unfortunately the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-christopher-herold/just-as-napoleon-was-the-sole-authority-in-the-state-so-the-husband/) [J. Christopher Herold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-christopher-herold/) > [“Greatness has its beauties, but only in retrospect and in the imagination": thus wrote General Bonaparte to General Moreau in 1800. His observation helps…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-christopher-herold/greatness-has-its-beauties-but-only-in-retrospect-and-in-the/) [J. Christopher Herold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-christopher-herold/) ## More by J. Christopher Herold > [“Greatness has its beauties, but only in retrospect and in the imagination": thus wrote General Bonaparte to General Moreau in 1800. His observation helps…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-christopher-herold/greatness-has-its-beauties-but-only-in-retrospect-and-in-the/) [J. Christopher Herold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-christopher-herold/) > [Napoleon, who had an aversion to the moral laxity of the eighteenth century, which he blamed on the domination of society by women, was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-christopher-herold/napoleon-who-had-an-aversion-to-the-moral-laxity-of-the-eighteenth/) [J. Christopher Herold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-christopher-herold/) > [“Just as Napoleon was the sole authority in the state, so the husband and father was to exercise authority over his family. Unfortunately the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-christopher-herold/just-as-napoleon-was-the-sole-authority-in-the-state-so-the-husband/) [J. Christopher Herold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-christopher-herold/) > [Those who mistake their good luck for their merit are inevitably bound for disaster.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-christopher-herold/those-who-mistake-their-good-luck-for-their-merit-are-inevitably/) [J. Christopher Herold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-christopher-herold/) > [ “The popular image \[in England\] of Bonaparte as a blood-stained tyrant and bandit was admittedly exaggerated, but instinct told even the most radical among… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-christopher-herold/the-popular-image-in-england-of-bonaparte-as-a-blood-stained-tyrant/) [J. Christopher Herold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-christopher-herold/) > [ His \[Pitt's\] successor as prime minister was Mr. Addington, who was a friend of Mr. Pitt, just as Mr. Pitt was a friend of… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-christopher-herold/his-pitt-s-successor-as-prime-minister-was-mr-addington-who-was-a/) [J. Christopher Herold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-christopher-herold/) > [There is, of course, nothing wrong in a program that aims to please everybody, except that as a rule it is a prelude to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-christopher-herold/there-is-of-course-nothing-wrong-in-a-program-that-aims-to-please/) [J. Christopher Herold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-christopher-herold/) > [The Allies had made war on Napoleon as a tyrant and an oppressor of nations; yet once they had him out of the way,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-christopher-herold/the-allies-had-made-war-on-napoleon-as-a-tyrant-and-an-oppressor-of-2/) [J. Christopher Herold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-christopher-herold/) > [“The right-wing Tories and the conservative Whigs fought Napoleon as the Usurper and the Enemy of the Established Order; the liberal Tories and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-christopher-herold/the-right-wing-tories-and-the-conservative-whigs-fought-napoleon-as/) [J. Christopher Herold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-christopher-herold/) > [“Historians are lenient to those who succeed and stern to those who fail; in this, and this alone, they display strong political sense.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-christopher-herold/historians-are-lenient-to-those-who-succeed-and-stern-to-those-who/) [J. Christopher Herold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-christopher-herold/) > [“The English soldier was probably the worst-treated soldier in Europe, and judging from the English casualty rates during the Napoleonic wars, English generals were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-christopher-herold/the-english-soldier-was-probably-the-worst-treated-soldier-in-europe/) [J. Christopher Herold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-christopher-herold/) > [A collective insanity seemed to have seized the nation and turned them into something worse than beasts. The princess de Lamballe, Marie Antoinette's intimate…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-christopher-herold/a-collective-insanity-seemed-to-have-seized-the-nation-and-turned/) [J. Christopher Herold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-christopher-herold/) > [“Napoleon loved only himself, but, unlike Hitler, he hated nobody.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-christopher-herold/napoleon-loved-only-himself-but-unlike-hitler-he-hated-nobody/) [J. Christopher Herold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-christopher-herold/) > [“Madame Tallien shared honors with Josephine Beauharnais in being mistress to Barras, an ex-nobleman and ex-terrorist whose appetite for beautiful women, beautiful young men,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-christopher-herold/madame-tallien-shared-honors-with-josephine-beauharnais-in-being/) [J. Christopher Herold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-christopher-herold/) > [“The war against Napoleon was won not by England but by Russia, Austria, and Prussia; but England won the last battle and she won…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-christopher-herold/the-war-against-napoleon-was-won-not-by-england-but-by-russia-austria/) [J. Christopher Herold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-christopher-herold/) [Explore all 17 J. Christopher Herold quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-christopher-herold/) ## More Allies quotes > [I genuinely did not expect more than half our nation to choose to walk away from our long-term allies into the arms of our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-reade/i-genuinely-did-not-expect-more-than-half-our-nation-to-choose-to/) [Brian Reade](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-reade/) > [If the women in the factories stopped work for twenty minutes, the Allies would lose the war.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-joffre/if-the-women-in-the-factories-stopped-work-for-twenty-minutes-the/) [Joseph Joffre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-joffre/) > [As far as Japan is concerned, I want to help all of our allies, but we are losing billions and billions of dollars. We…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/as-far-as-japan-is-concerned-i-want-to-help-all-of-our-allies-but-we/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [ No wonder that Churchill described this effort \[the British codebreakers working at Bletchley Park\] as "Britian"s secret weapon," a weapon far more effective than… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-hilton/no-wonder-that-churchill-described-this-effort-the-british/) [Peter Hilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-hilton/) > [One of our great allies at present is the Church itself. Do not misunderstand me. I do not mean the Church as we see…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-lewis/one-of-our-great-allies-at-present-is-the-church-itself-do-not/) [C. S. Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis/) > [Our security depends on having good relationships with our allies. Donald Trump mainly shows contempt for them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-wolfowitz/our-security-depends-on-having-good-relationships-with-our-allies/) [Paul Wolfowitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-wolfowitz/) > [So Americans understand the costs of war. 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I summon Aquinas, Augustine, Paul \[of Tarsus\], Teresa of… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-barron/again-i-hear-almost-everyday-from-atheists-who-write-off-religion-as/) [Robert Barron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-barron/) > [My own take on the word "transgender" is that it's an umbrella term for anyone who breaks any rules, laws, guidelines or protocol of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-bornstein/my-own-take-on-the-word-transgender-is-that-it-s-an-umbrella-term-for/) [Kate Bornstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-bornstein/) [Browse all 1,053 Allies quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/allies/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The Allies had made war on Napoleon as a tyrant and an oppressor of nations; yet once they had got him out of the way, they did him the favor of representing him as the torchbearer of the French Revolution. 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