Napoleon's Obsession: The Quest for Egypt

In 1798, the 28-year-old Napoleon Bonaparte realized his dream of reaching Egypt, where he intended to emulate the feat of his hero Alexander the Great, by making his own conquest of the country. Napoleon brought 40,000 soldiers with him to Egypt, as well as several artists, scholars and scientists to establish the Institut de l’Egypte. Their work and the work of the soldiers led to the discovery of the Rosetta stone and the birth of modern Egyptology.