Assassination at St. Helena Revisited - Hardcover

Weider, Ben; Forshufvud, Sten

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0471126772 ISBN 13: 9780471126775

Publisher: Wiley, 1995

Synopsis

ASSASSINATION AT ST. HELENA REVISITED

Was Napoleon murdered? This baffling question has been sparking hot debates for nearly two hundred years. But, according to Swedish toxicologist Sten Forshufvud and Napoleonic scholar Ben Weider, the answer is an irrefutable yes.

In 1978, their Assassination at St. Helena stunned historians the world over. One of history's most important homicide investigations, it revealed startling yet convincing evidence implicating a nobleman once severely punished by Napoleon. At St. Helena, the nobleman became the defeated leader's most praised and rewarded attendant . . . and his executioner.

In the years since Assassination at St. Helena first appeared, it has come to be regarded as a classic, a historical investigation par excellence. Now new, definitive evidence is presented for the first time in this revised and expanded edition. Assassination at St. Helena Revisited reveals further corroboration of the authors' acclaimed account of Napoleon's final, tragic years.

Carefully researched, with forewords by David G. Chandler and David C. Hamilton-Williams, two of the most respected Napoleonic scholars in the world, this superb volume combines clearly presented scientific evidence with a historical detective story unrivaled in the annals of royal intrigue. Assassination at St. Helena Revisited will surprise, delight, and enthrall Napoleonic buffs everywhere.

BEN WEIDER is internationally known in two fields: sports and Napoleonic history. In the sports field, Dr. Weider is President of the International Federation of Body-Builders (IFBB) and heads the Montreal-based Weider Sports Equipment Co., Ltd., which is dedicated to promoting total fitness. He has been honored by governments in over twenty countries and was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize in 1984. His honors include the Order of Canada, the highest award a Canadian can receive.

Dr. Weider is also a leading Napoleonic historian, having published several books on the life and times of the emperor Napoleon, including Assassination at St. Helena (1978) and the bestselling Murder of Napoleon (1982). He is President of the International Napoleonic Society, with headquarters in Montreal, and a member of the council of Souvenir Napoléonien in Paris. He owns one of the largest private collections of Napoleonic artifacts in the world.

The late STEN FORSHUFVUD was a Swedish scientist who pursued research in the fields of biology and toxicology in many European laboratories. He published numerous papers on subjects in these fields, including the circulation of blood and its functions, plasma, and poisons. His broad knowledge of toxicology, combined with his reading of Napoleonic history, including journals of Napoleon's last days, led him to deduce the true nature of Napoleon's death.

David C. Hamilton-Williams, Bt., B.Sc., ARHist.S, a respected authority on the political and intelligence operations of the Napoleonic period, is the author of Waterloo: New Perspectives and The Fall of Napoleon: The Final Betrayal.

David G. Chandler, M.A. (Oxon.), D.Litt., FRHist.S, considered by many to be one of the foremost living authorities on the military aspects of Napoleon's life, is the former head of the Department of War Studies at the Royal Military Academy of Sandhurst, England. He is the author of The Campaigns of Napoleon and, most recently, On the Napoleonic Wars.

Winner of the International Napoleonic Society's Golden Laurel Award as the most important book on Napoleonic research ever undertaken.

How did Napoleon meet his end? It is a question that has baffled historians and Napoleonic buffs alike. Now, a newly revised, expanded edition of the authors' classic work reveals startling new evidence that Napoleon was murdered in exile, and presents the compelling case against the trusted nobleman who was his assassin. History and mystery are potently combined in Assassination at St. Helena Revisited.

About this title

Review:

Napoleon was poisoned! The academic elite hated this theory when Sten Forshufvud first introduced it in 1961, but over the years, working with experts across the globe, he built an increasingly forceful case that an assassin killed Napoleon with arsenic. Assassination at St. Helena Revisited presents the most complete argument yet, and a growing number of authorities now accept its premise as an established fact. (See, for instance, Alan Schom's biography Napoleon Bonaparte.) Forshufvud and coauthor Ben Weider reveal their science and also detail Napoleon's final years of exile on St. Helena. The culprit, they believe, was Comte Charles-Tristan de Montholon, an opportunistic man who had both the motive and means to do the deed. A minor classic of historical and scientific detective work, Assassination at St. Helena Revisited will continue to spark debates, but for now it looks like the conspiracy theorists have the upper hand.

From the Publisher:

An updated reissue, expanded with new evidence, of the classic book on how Napoleon died. Presents a well-argued case for who murdered Napoleon that is supported by today's leading experts on Napoleonic history. Contains exhibits of scientific evidence to establish who orchestrated and financed Napoleon's death.

About this edition

• Publisher: Wiley
• Publication date: 1995
• ISBN 10: 0471126772
• ISBN 13: 9780471126775
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 555