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Napoleon
Bonaparte, who is also known as the "little Corsican," was born on August
15,1769 in Ajaccio, Corsica. Napoleon was known as the little Corsican
because of his height of 5 feet 2 inches. He had 7 brothers and sisters.
His original name was Napoleone Buonaparte in Corsican but it became Napoleon
Bonaparte in French.
Napoleon
was the fourth child and second son of Carlo (Charles) Buonaparte (1746-1785)
and Letizia Ramolino Buonaparte (1750-1836).
When Napoleon was nine, his father sent him to a French military academy
at Brienne-le-Chateau, near Troyes. Then in 1784, Napoleon was selected
for the elite École Militaire in Paris. While there, he was constantly
teased by the French students. At the age of 16, he joined the French
army.