Doctor SpinThe PR BlogSocial PsychologyWhat If Napoleon Never Existed

What If Napoleon Never Existed

How to manufacture a conspiracy theory.

Cover photo: @jerrysilfwer

tl:dr;
What if Napoleon never existed? Explore this intriguing but false conspiracy theory and how efficiently it casts doubt on the existence of one of the most prominent figures of history.

What if Napoleon nevยญer existed?

Most of us are conยญvinced that Napoleon Bonaparte was an actuยญal hisยญtorยญicยญal figure.

Well, what if Napoleon nevยญer existed?

Here we go:

What If Napoleon Never Existed?

Ponder this:

1. Napoleon is just a variยญation of Apoleon or Apollo, and as God of the Sun, he was named Bonaparte, which means โ€œthe good part of the dayโ€ (when the sun shines).

2. Just as Apollo was born on the Mediterranean island of Delos, Napoleon was born on the Mediterranean island of Corsica.

3. Napoleonโ€™s mothยญer, Letitia, can be idenยญtiยญfied as Leto, Apolloโ€™s mothยญer. Both names mean joy and hapยญpiยญness, sigยญnalling the sun keepยญing the night at bay.

4. Letitia had three daughยญtersโ€‰โ€”โ€‰as did Leto, Apolloโ€™s mothยญer.

5. Napoleonโ€™s four brothยญers repยญresยญent the four seaยญsons. Three brothยญers became kings, except for one brothยญer who became Prince of Canino (derived from โ€˜cani,โ€™ white, winter, ageยญing).

6. Napoleon was drivยญen out of France by Northern armies, as Appolo, the Sun God, was drivยญen away by the North Wind.

7. Napoleon had two wives, as did Apollo. They repยญresยญent the Earth and the Moon. Apollo nevยญer had any chilยญdren with the Moon, but the Earth gave him a son, repยญresยญentยญing the ferยญtilยญizยญaยญtion of all green plants on Earth. Napoleonโ€™s son was allegedly born on the 21st of March, the equiยญnox in which the plane of Earthโ€™s equatยญor passes through the Sunโ€™s centre (the Summer Solstice).

8. Apollo saved Greece from the dragon Python, and Napoleon saved France from the horยญrors of revoluยญtion (derived from โ€˜revolvo,โ€™ someยญthing that crawls).

9. Napoleonโ€™s twelve genยญerยญals symยญbolยญise the twelve creatures of the zodiยญac, and his four genยญerยญals repยญresยญent North, West, South, and East.

10. Napoleon, the Sun Myth, always conquered the South but was always defeated by the cold winds of the North. Like the Sun, Napoleon rose in the Eastโ€‰โ€”โ€‰he was born in Corsica)โ€‰โ€”โ€‰and dawned in the Westโ€‰โ€”โ€‰he died on St. Helena.โ€

Above is how the British writer Rupert Furneaux demonยญstrates how to cast doubt on the existยญence of Napoleon Bonaparte, one of the most famยญous charยญacยญters in hisยญtory. 1Rupert Furneaux. (2023, April 8). In Wikipedia. https://โ€‹enโ€‹.wikiโ€‹peโ€‹diaโ€‹.org/โ€‹wโ€‹iโ€‹kโ€‹iโ€‹/โ€‹Rโ€‹uโ€‹pโ€‹eโ€‹rโ€‹tโ€‹_โ€‹Fโ€‹uโ€‹rโ€‹nโ€‹eโ€‹aux

Is there a serยญiยญous case for the non-existยญence of Napoleon, one of the most promยญinยญent figยญures in hisยญtory? This conยญspirยญacy theยญory demonยญstrates how easยญily it is to cast doubt over the existยญence of one of historyโ€™s most well-docยญuยญmented figures. 

With just a few cherry-picked arguยญments, itโ€™s posยญsible to make people believe that Napoleon wasnโ€™t a real man but a myth, a Sun god.

The Makings of a Conspiracy Theory

Studies have shown that we are susยญceptยญible to informยญaยญtion presenยญted in fragยญments that supยญport one speยญcifยญic posยญiยญtion while simยญulยญtanยญeously leavยญing out conยญtraยญdictยญory evidยญence. Itโ€™s cherry-pickยญing. 2Cherry pickยญing. (2023, September 24). In Wikipedia. https://โ€‹enโ€‹.wikiโ€‹peโ€‹diaโ€‹.org/โ€‹wโ€‹iโ€‹kโ€‹iโ€‹/โ€‹Cโ€‹hโ€‹eโ€‹rโ€‹rโ€‹yโ€‹_โ€‹pโ€‹iโ€‹cโ€‹kโ€‹ing

We shouldnโ€™t be surยญprised. We live in a time where a growยญing numยญber of conยญspirยญacy theยญorยญists are actยญively conยญvinยญcing themยญselves that the Earth is flat. Thatโ€™s how low the bar is set.

The point is that we seem to have an endยญless capaยญcity for belief in the absence of evidยญence. It doesnโ€™t matยญter if itโ€™s the media, govยญernยญments, reliยญgion, interest groups, or two friends in a bar.

Bullshit is a natยญurยญal human expresยญsion.
Try not to step into it.

List of Logical Fallacies and Biases

Logical Fallacies and Cognitive Biases - Doctor Spin
Logical falยญlaยญcies and cogยญnitยญive biases.

We easยญily fall prey to the tricks our psyยญchoยญlogy plays on us. These โ€œthinkยญing errorsโ€ exist because theyโ€™ve often aided our surยญvivยญal. However, knowยญing and underยญstandยญing variยญous types of comยญmon falยญlaยญcies and biases is helpยญful in everyยญday life.

Here are a few examples of logicยญal falยญlaยญcies and biases that Iโ€™ve come across while studyยญing pubยญlic relaยญtions and linguistics:

  • Fallacy of Composition
  • Fallacy of Division
  • The Gamblerโ€™s Fallacy
  • Tu Quoque (Who Are You To Talk?)
  • Strawman
  • Ad Hominem
  • Genetic Fallacy (Fallacy of Origin or Fallacy of Virtue)
  • Fallacious Appeal to Authority
  • Red Herring
  • Appeal to Emotion
  • Appeal to Popularity (The Bandwagon Effect)
  • Appeal to Tradition
  • Appeal to Nature
  • Appeal to Ignorance
  • Begging the Question
  • Equivocation
  • False Dichotomy (Black or White)
  • Middle Ground Fallacy
  • Decision Point Fallacy (Sorites Paradox)
  • Slippery Slope Fallacy
  • Hasty Generalisations (Anecdotal Evidence)
  • Faulty Analogy
  • Burden of Proof
  • Affirming the Consequent
  • Denying the Antecedent (Fallacy of the Inverse)
  • Moving the Goalposts
  • No True Scotsman
  • Personal Incredulity
  • False Causality
  • Texas Sharpshooter
  • Loaded Question
  • Chestertonโ€™s Fence
  • Survivorship Bias
  • Dunning-Kruger Effect
  • Confirmation Bias
  • Heuristic Anchoring
  • Curse of Knowledge
  • Optimism/โ€‹Pessimism Bias
  • Sunk Cost Fallacy
  • Negativity Bias
  • Declinism
  • Backfire Effect (Conversion Theory)
  • Fundamental Attribution Error
  • In-Group Bias
  • Forer Effect (Barnum Effect)
  • Cognitive Dissonance
  • Hostile Media Effect
  • Cherry-Picking (The Fallacy of Incomplete Evidence)
  • Spiral of Silence
  • Yes Ladder
  • Bystander Effect
  • Reciprocation Effect
  • Commitment and Consistency
  • Fallacy of Social Proof
  • Liking and Likeness
  • Appeal to Authority
  • Principle of Scarcity (FOMO)
  • Loss Aversion

Learn more: 58 Logical Fallacies and Biases

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Jerry Silfwer
Jerry Silfwerhttps://doctorspin.net/
Jerry Silfwer, alias Doctor Spin, is an awarded senior adviser specialising in public relations and digital strategy. Currently CEO at Spin Factory and KIX Communication Index. Before that, he worked at Kaufmann, Whispr Group, Springtime PR, and Spotlight PR. Based in Stockholm, Sweden.

The Cover Photo

The cover photo isn't related to public relations obviously; it's just a photo of mine. Think of it as a 'decorative diversion', a subtle reminder that it's good to have hobbies outside work.

The cover photo has

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