0:00

Hello, it's Vasha Cummings

0:02

here. I'm an editor at Tortoise, which is

0:04

the home of Sweet Bobby, Hoaxed, and many

0:06

more award-winning investigative podcasts.

0:09

I'm here to tell you about Tortoise Investigates,

0:12

where we curate the best of our chart-topping

0:14

investigations in one place. Everything

0:17

from extraordinary tales of deception

0:20

to a suspicious killing to one

0:22

mother's decades-long fight with the police.

0:25

Just search for Tortoise Investigates

0:27

wherever you get your podcasts.

0:30

Hello, it's Tominy from Tortoise, the newsroom

0:32

that brought you Hoaxed. Let me tell you about

0:34

Legacy, a new history podcast

0:36

from Wondery.

0:37

Everyone leaves a legacy. Some of

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them live on for just a few decades, others

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are passed down through the centuries. But

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most change over time. New

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generations re-examine old reputations,

0:50

and they don't always like what they find. Judgments

0:52

are revised and statues start to fall.

0:55

In this new podcast, writer Afua

0:57

Hirsch and historian Peter Frankapan

1:00

explore the lives of some of the biggest characters

1:02

in history and ask whether

1:04

they have the reputation they deserve.

1:07

Should Nina Simone's role in the civil rights movement

1:09

be more celebrated than it is?

1:11

When you find out what Picasso got up to in his studio,

1:14

can you still admire his art? And

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was Napoleon a hero or a tyrant?

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And while we're at it, was he even short?

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Legacy asks whether we can separate a person's

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work from the way they live their life and

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questions how their actions impact

1:29

us today. What does their past tell

1:31

us about our present? I'm about to play

1:33

you a clip from Legacy. If you'd like to hear

1:35

more, follow Legacy on the Wondery

1:38

app or wherever

1:39

you get your podcasts. Napoleon, famous

1:41

guy, big name, huge

1:44

in France, all over the world. What do you think

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when you hear about the name Napoleon? I used

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to be a lawyer and when I think Napoleon,

1:50

I think of the Napoleonic Code. When countries became

1:52

independent from Europe, they often adopted the Napoleonic

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Code. Right, I

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thought when you said you'd be a lawyer, you thought maybe you'd

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sue him. But it's about the law. legacy

2:00

of Napoleon as a lawmaker and administrator.

2:03

No battle of Waterloo. Nope. For me,

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he was this slightly vague figure

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with his arm tucked into his jacket and weird

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jokes about his height and the size

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of various other body parts that I never really

2:14

understood their origin.

2:15

Gosh, in the English education system,

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well, you have the Battle of Hastings and then the Battle of Waterloo. You can

2:20

do that for months.

2:20

Well, he's clearly a character that is still very

2:23

much in our popular culture. And now, Peter,

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we have a new Ridley Scott movie

2:27

starring Joachim Phoenix and

2:30

it said more books

2:31

written about him than anyone

2:33

else. Yeah, I heard 300,000 books. Wow.

2:36

More than about Jesus Christ or Muhammad. But look,

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either he's an enlightened despot or he's a

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great modernizer. He's a codifier

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of laws. He's a military hero. He's

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an enslaver. A lot of baggage. And

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maybe you could argue paved the way for

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all sorts of things that are slightly unexpected that we're

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going to talk about too. But let's let's try to figure this

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out. And for this, we're going to take you back in

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time to a crucial moment in Napoleon's

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life.

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The

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year is 1815. It's

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the 7th of March, just

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after 6 in the morning. We're in the out

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in the southeast of France. In

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the morning sun, no cap keep

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loom over a column of men and horses

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as it moves along a narrow mountain path.

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Hooves and boots stamp a steady rhythm

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punctuated with the clatter of tips and arms

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and parts and backs.

3:29

Napoleon's collar is turned up against

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the alkaline shell.

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He breathes in the pine scented air. There's

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nowhere he'd rather be. He's with his men.

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They're marching towards their besties. They

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are few in number. Napoleon has commanded

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much greater forces. But they

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are defeated.

3:47

He senses a change in pitch in

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the voice of the head and the steady stamping

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of the men's feet slowing, then stopping

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as word

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travels back through the ranks. Royalists.

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out with distaste. But there's

4:02

fear too. Napoleon can always

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sense it. He breathes out slowly,

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straightens his back and pushes through his men

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to the hunt of the column.

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No one says a word. He

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can hear a stream, no heavy

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branches creaking, and his own boots

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crunching on the path. Otherwise, silence.

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The royalist soldiers have formed a defensive position,

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some kneeling, and standing. Their

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muskets are raised, and they are pointing

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at him. He thinks he sees Thomas's

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smile or snarl. He

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throws back his head, stretches out his arms, and

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roars, if you want to kill your emperor,

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here I am. And wait for the

4:42

shot.

4:45

That

4:52

was a clip from Legacy, Wunderies

4:54

New History podcast. Listen to Legacy

4:56

now wherever you get your podcasts.

4:59

Or you can listen early and ad-free by

5:01

joining Wandry Plus in the Wandry app or

5:03

on Apple

5:04

Podcast.