Abstract
Conscription in the history of Napoleonic Europe has been well studied in recent years, particularly in terms of resistance to it, and its place in the process of the creation and modernization of state bureaucracies. This article approaches the subject from the rather different angle of ideology and cultural history. Drawing on archival research, it centres on the subjective aims and prejudices that influenced French officials in the Kingdom of Italy and the imperial departments of Italy. It traces French attempts to coerce the Italian upper classes into military service, and the impact of this on the policy of ralliement.
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