Joseph Fouché: Portrait of a Politician

Joseph Fouché: Portrait of a Politician

This Plunkett Lake Press eBook is produced by arrangement with Viking, an imprint of Penguin Publishing Group, a division of Penguin Random House LLC.

This biography of the man Stefan Zweig viewed as "the most perfect Machiavelli of modern times" was written in 1929, before the full impact of Nazism and Stalinism was understood. In this gripping case study of ruthlessness, political opportunism, intrigue, and betrayal, Zweig portrays Minister of Police Joseph FouchÃ© (1759-1820), a "thoroughly amoral personality" whose only goal was political survival and the exercise of power.

Zweig traces FouchÃ©'s career, beginning with his stint as a math and physics teacher in provincial Catholic schools and evolving into a moderate and then radical legislator. FouchÃ© cultivated every political movement du jour, holding no convictions of his own. After preaching clemency for Louis XVI, FouchÃ© voted to send the King to the guillotine. After writing "the first communist manifesto of modern times" he became a multi-millionaire. He led the brutal repression of an anti-revolutionary movement, earning him the nickname "le mitrailleur (butcher) de Lyon". After serving Robespierre, FouchÃ© engineered his overthrow and rose to Minister of Police under the Directory, which he then helped to overthrow before putting his network of informants in Napoleonâ€™s service as his Minister of Police. After turning against the Emperor, FouchÃ© served the new King Louis XVIII â€“ whose brother he had helped send to the guillotine. Thus, FouchÃ© served the Revolution, the Directory, the First Empire and the Restoration.
Country USA
Manufacturer Plunkett Lake Press
Binding Kindle Edition
ReleaseDate 2012-01-17
Format Kindle eBook

Country	USA
Manufacturer	Plunkett Lake Press
Binding	Kindle Edition
ReleaseDate	2012-01-17
Format	Kindle eBook

Joseph Fouché: Portrait of a Politician

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