A socio-political interpretation of the Empire. Review and perspectives

The socio-political history of the years of the Consulate and Empire have been long neglected, but the enrichment of the historiography during the last two decades permits a re-interpretation of the period. The synthesis here offered demonstrates that one can now better understand the attitudes of the French towards these regimes. By taking into account prosopography and biography, by observing specific social spaces, and by examining key moments, one can measure the continuities and innovations marking the period.