“Napoleon Bonaparte was unusually short.”

The persistent image of Napoleon Bonaparte as a notably short man is a widespread misconception, largely fueled by a combination of historical circumstances and deliberate propaganda. At the time of his death, Napoleon's height was recorded as 5 feet 2 inches in French units. However, the French inch (pouce) of that era was longer than the modern English inch. When converted to contemporary English measurements, his height was approximately 5 feet 6 inches or 5 feet 7 inches, which was an average or even slightly above-average height for a Frenchman of his time.

The myth's origins can be traced back to British caricaturists, most notably James Gillray, who began depicting Napoleon as "Little Boney" in satirical cartoons around 1803. These highly influential drawings portrayed him as a diminutive, temperamental figure, serving as effective wartime propaganda to undermine his authority and ridicule him in the eyes of the British public. Additionally, his affectionate nickname among his soldiers, "le Petit Caporal" (the Little Corporal), was often misinterpreted. "Petit" in this context was a term of endearment and camaraderie, not a literal description of his stature.

The misconception was further cemented by the fact that Napoleon often surrounded himself with his elite Imperial Guard, who were typically much taller than average men and wore tall bearskin hats, making him appear comparatively smaller. This visual contrast, combined with the successful British propaganda and the confusion over differing measurement systems, allowed the myth of a "short Napoleon" to take root and persist in popular culture for centuries, even inspiring the psychological term "Napoleon complex."