Birth and early life

Napoleon was born in Ajaccio, Corsica on 15 August. The occupying French forces who ran the island had acquired it from Genoa the year before.

Though well off by local standards, Napoleon's parents were not rich, and their vigorous claims of noble descent fail to stand up to scrutiny. His mother Letizia and father Carlo were part of Corsica's bourgeoisie. Once involved in the Corsican resistance to French occupation, Carlo had made personal peace with the French when leader Pasquale Paoli was forced to flee and became assessor to the royal court. Little in the context of Napoleon's birth hinted at his remarkable future.