Talleyrand: The Art of Survival

I initially heard about this EXTREMELY intelligent,witty,evasive and resourceful statesman in Chapter 14:"Pose as a Friend,Work as a Spy"of the GREAT book:"The 48 Laws of Power"...Ever since then I've been really wanting to learn more about Napoleons"Right hand man"/"Thorn in his side!" This very informative book was JUST what the doctor ordered!!Talleyrand is revealed as the EPITOME of a survivor!! Talleyrand manages to not only survive,but THRIVE amid malicious enviers,treacherous seductresses and constantly changing regimes in a France wrecked by political turmoil and tumultuous,chaotic uprisings and coups...Talleyrand impressively manages to weather(and deftly weave through)all of these storms(with minimal hurt)thanks to his foresighted,tactful(usually highly manipulative)manuevers!! All of Talleyrands brilliant and effective methods can be used as a template for ANYONE who is striving with treacherous individuals who want to see them ruined!! This book does a exemplary job of showcasing Talleyrands perpetual struggles in his rise in becoming Napoleons Foreign Minister..This is a book that should be made REQUIRED reading for all individuals facing adversity,because Talleyrand clearly demonstrates that survival IS indeed an art-form!!

Jean Orieux's biography of Talleyrand reads like a novel, which, considering his subject, is only just. Talleyrand, descended from the cadet branch of a noble family as old as that of the king, survived and prospered under every regime in France from monarchy thru the directorate and Napoleon's empire and beyond. (On taking his oath of allegiance to King Louis Phillipe, Talleyrand remarked, "Well, sire, that makes my thirteenth.") A major force in the post-Napoleanic world, his air of mystery and his laconic manner earned him the nickname "The Sphinx." In both virtues and vices, he was an odd mix; greedy, vain, amoral in many respects, but he had an iron will and an unquenchable love for France, no matter who ruled her. Orieux's book is both informative and eminently readable