The year is 1816 and Napoleon, held prisoner by the British on the island of St. Helena, is telling the young English girl Betsy his life story. His meteoric rise to military prominence begins with his victory over the Royalists in 1795, which is followed by campaigns in Italy and Egypt. He marries the young and capricious Josephine De Beauharnais, the love of his life, who unfortunately cannot bear him any children.

After a coup d'état he seizes power in France and crowns himself Emperor of France in 1804. After his decisive victory at Austerlitz, Napoleon reorganises Europe and makes his relatives into princes and kings. However, continuing resistance by the Spanish results in some initial losses.

Meanwhile, Napoleon is increasingly fascinated by other women, including the Polish patriot Maria Waleska, who bears him a son. Napoleon intends to found an imperial dynasty in order to strengthen his position. After divorcing Josephine, he marries the Austrian princess Marie-Louise, who gives birth to an imperial heir. Napoleon's attempt to bring the Czar of Russia to his knees results in a massive catastrophe for his army and prompts the European powers to form an alliance against him.

In 1814 he is defeated in the Battle of the Nations at Leipzig and is exiled to the island of Elba. However, Napoleon gathers all his strength one more time and returns to France to win the hearts of it's people again. With a new army he goes into battle against the Allies in 1815 at Waterloo.

Runtime:- 90 minutes (4 episodes)