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Quotation from Napoleon's Maxims of War by Napoleon Bonaparte

“The first qualification of a soldier is fortitude under fatigue and privation. Courage is only the second; hardship, poverty and want, are the best school for a soldier”

Napoleon Bonaparte (spoken by Napoleon (as compiled by Burnod))

Napoleon's Maxims of War, Maxim LVIII, trans. G. C. D'Aguilar from Burnod (1831; 1862 reprint)

Portrait of Napoleon Bonaparte

The note recalls the ragged, starving Army of Italy that Napoleon took over in 1796.

Citation: "The first qualification of a soldier is fortitude under fatigue and privation. Courage is only the second; hardship, poverty and want, are the best school for a soldier" — Napoleon Bonaparte, Napoleon's Maxims of War, Maxim LVIII, trans. G. C. D'Aguilar from Burnod (1831; 1862 reprint). (id napoleons-maxims-of-war-q4)

Virtues: Fortitude

Portrait: The Emperor Napoleon in His Study at the Tuileries, Jacques-Louis David, Public domain.

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