--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Napoleon, the greatest of the conquerors…" description: "\"“Napoleon, the greatest of the conquerors, is a sufficient proof that great men of action are criminals, and therefore, not geniuses. One can understan..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/32f/otto-weininger-11319_action_napoleon-the-greatest-of-the-conquerors_442633.png" --- # Napoleon, the greatest of the conquerors, is a sufficient… ![“Napoleon, the greatest of the conquerors, is a sufficient proof that great men of action are criminals, and therefore, not geniuses. One can understand him by thinking of the tremendous intensity with which he tried to escape from himself. There is this element in all the conquerors, great or…” quote by Otto Weininger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/32f/otto-weininger-11319_action_napoleon-the-greatest-of-the-conquerors_442633.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/32f/otto-weininger-11319_action_napoleon-the-greatest-of-the-conquerors_442633.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/32f/otto-weininger-11319_action_napoleon-the-greatest-of-the-conquerors_442633.png) > ““Napoleon, the greatest of the conquerors, is a sufficient proof that great men of action are criminals, and therefore, not geniuses. One can understand him by thinking of the tremendous intensity with which he tried to escape from himself. There is this element in all the conquerors, great or small. Just because he had great gifts, greater than those of any emperor before him, he had greater difficulty in stifling the disapproving voice within him. The motive of his ambition was the craving to stifle his better self.”” [Otto Weininger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/otto-weininger/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Great conquerors often battle inner conflict, making their ambition a struggle against their own conscience. **In simple terms:** Powerful people wrestle with inner doubts and moral tension. Key Takeaway Recognize the inner moral conflict behind ambition. Themes psychology ambition ethics Mood thoughtful analytical Type philosophical psychological When to use this quote - leadership decisions - personal growth - ethical dilemmas Key Concepts existentialism self‑control Questions to Reflect On - How does inner conflict shape a leader’s actions? - Can ambition be reconciled with moral integrity? A Different Perspective Ambition can blind one to self‑criticism and moral cost. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Action](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/action/) [Ambition](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ambition/) [Conqueror](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conqueror/) [Conquerors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conquerors/) [Emperor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/emperor/) [Escape](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/escape/) [Great men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/great-men/) [Leader](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/leader/) [Napoleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/napoleon/) ## Related quotes > [“Napoleon the greatest of the conquerors, is a sufficient proof that great men of action are criminals, and, therefore not geniuses. One can understand…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/otto-weininger/napoleon-the-greatest-of-the-conquerors-is-a-sufficient-proof-that/) [Otto Weininger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/otto-weininger/) > [“He thought himself a mighty prince, but before the Lord (that is, in God's account) he was but a mighty hunter. Note, Great conquerors…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-henry/he-thought-himself-a-mighty-prince-but-before-the-lord-that-is-in-god/) [Matthew Henry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-henry/) > [“If one man conquer in battle a thousand times thousand men, and if another conquer himself, he is the greatest of conquerors.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/various/if-one-man-conquer-in-battle-a-thousand-times-thousand-men-and-if/) Various > [“I wish you to recollect that the greatest conquerors are not always the greatest kings. 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Jemisin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/n-k-jemisin/) > [“Be suspicious of history that is written by the conquerors.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-gantos/be-suspicious-of-history-that-is-written-by-the-conquerors/) [Jack Gantos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-gantos/) > [The "social contract," in the only sense in which it is not completely mythical, is a contract among conquerors, which loses its raison d'être…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bertrand-russell/the-social-contract-in-the-only-sense-in-which-it-is-not-completely/) [Bertrand Russell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bertrand-russell/) > [“They were conquerors, and for that you want only brute force—nothing to boast of, when you have it, since your strength is just an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-conrad/they-were-conquerors-and-for-that-you-want-only-brute-force-nothing-2/) [Joseph Conrad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-conrad/) > [They were conquerors, and for that you want only brute force--nothing to boast of, when you have it, since your strength is just an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-conrad/they-were-conquerors-and-for-that-you-want-only-brute-force-nothing/) [Joseph Conrad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-conrad/) > [“You see, that's the thing with conquerors, they cannot stop conquering, for then they would have to start ruling, and my guess is Jarasandh…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gourav-mohanty/you-see-that-s-the-thing-with-conquerors-they-cannot-stop-conquering/) Gourav Mohanty > [“As far as we can tell, then, Aha and Narmer were the first conquerors of the North, the unifiers of the kingdom, and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-william-king/as-far-as-we-can-tell-then-aha-and-narmer-were-the-first-conquerors/) [Leonard William King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-william-king/) ## More by Otto Weininger > [Woman, in short, has an unconscious life, man a conscious life, and the genius the most conscious life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/otto-weininger/woman-in-short-has-an-unconscious-life-man-a-conscious-life-and-the/) [Otto Weininger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/otto-weininger/) > [ No one suffers so much as he \[the genius\] with the people, and, therefore, for the people, with whom he lives. For, in a… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/otto-weininger/no-one-suffers-so-much-as-he-the-genius-with-the-people-and-therefore/) [Otto Weininger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/otto-weininger/) > [“Only from within himself can a person know the depth of the world: in him lie the interconnections of the world.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/otto-weininger/only-from-within-himself-can-a-person-know-the-depth-of-the-world-in/) [Otto Weininger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/otto-weininger/) > [No men who really think deeply about women retain a high opinion of them; men either despise women or they have never thought seriously…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/otto-weininger/no-men-who-really-think-deeply-about-women-retain-a-high-opinion-of/) [Otto Weininger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/otto-weininger/) > [“Napoleon the greatest of the conquerors, is a sufficient proof that great men of action are criminals, and, therefore not geniuses. 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He has no object outside himself; lives for nothing else; he is far removed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/otto-weininger/man-is-alone-in-the-world-in-tremendous-eternal-isolation-he-has-no/) [Otto Weininger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/otto-weininger/) > [“No men who really think deeply about women retain a high opinion of them”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/otto-weininger/no-men-who-really-think-deeply-about-women-retain-a-high-opinion-of-2/) [Otto Weininger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/otto-weininger/) > [All genius is a conquering of chaos and mystery.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/otto-weininger/all-genius-is-a-conquering-of-chaos-and-mystery/) [Otto Weininger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/otto-weininger/) > [With ordinary men the moments which are united in a close continuity out of the original discrete multiplicity are very few, and the course…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/otto-weininger/with-ordinary-men-the-moments-which-are-united-in-a-close-continuity/) [Otto Weininger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/otto-weininger/) > [Not only virtue, but also insight, not only sanctity but also wisdom, are the duties and tasks of mankind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/otto-weininger/not-only-virtue-but-also-insight-not-only-sanctity-but-also-wisdom/) [Otto Weininger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/otto-weininger/) > [Everything evil is revenge.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/otto-weininger/everything-evil-is-revenge/) [Otto Weininger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/otto-weininger/) > [The fixed stars signify the angel in man. That is why man orients himself by them; and that is why women have no appreciation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/otto-weininger/the-fixed-stars-signify-the-angel-in-man-that-is-why-man-orients/) [Otto Weininger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/otto-weininger/) > [A nation orients itself by its own geniuses, and derives from them its ideas of its own ideals, but the guiding star serves also…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/otto-weininger/a-nation-orients-itself-by-its-own-geniuses-and-derives-from-them-its/) [Otto Weininger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/otto-weininger/) > [To understand a man is really to be that man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/otto-weininger/to-understand-a-man-is-really-to-be-that-man/) [Otto Weininger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/otto-weininger/) [Explore all 59 Otto Weininger quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/otto-weininger/) ## More Action quotes > [I always say there are two things to be successful. 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