Napoléon et ses hommes (in French)

 
From the publishers:
The creation of an imperial household – a web of services dedicated entirely to his person – was Napoleon's way of establishing France's new reigning power and reintroducing a Court, similar to those that had previously served the kings of France. He would subsequently be able to receive the rulers of Europe in a manner befitting his position, rallying to his cause both the old nobility and the new order elite. This imperial house was constructed with all his usual methodical diligence: as well as imposing a rigid civilian and military hierarchy and tight budgetary restrictions, he also implemented fastidious regulations and a certain degree of impenetrability, designed to put it beyond all external interference. Every member of his “maison” – from his closest advisers to the humblest servant, from the officers and soldiers of the imperial guard to the skivvies slaving away in the kitchen – was employed exclusively to his ends, so much so that they quickly became a state within a state, benefitting from sizeable budgets beyond the control of the department of public finances, and enabling the emperor to pursue his own parallel, at times even secret, policies.
 
Until now, no-one has taken the time to examine in detail the accounts and huge swathes of correspondence relating to the Maison de l'Empereur, from the beginnings of the regime to the miniature Court on the island of Elba, its resurrection during the Cent-Jours, and including its shadowy incarnation on St Helena. Pierre Branda's account brings to life a swarm of characters, in which more well-known figures – such as Duroc and Bertrand – rub shoulders with less-remembered individuals, laundry women and coachmen long forgotten.

You can read the introduction to Napoléon et ses hommes here (in French), reproduced on napoleon.org with the kind permission of Fayard.