The legend of Napoleon I, particularly vivid in France and Poland throughout the nineteenth century, begins to support, at the end of this period, the nationalist or independence propaganda, reflecting the political situation in each country. The portraits of Napoleonic soldiers, presented in Les Demi‐solde by Georges d'Esparbès and in a couple of novels written by Polish writers of the same time (Gąsiorowski, Przyborowski, Przerwa‐Tetmajer, Morawska), carry great similarities which this paper intends to analyse. Above all, one may observe nostalgia for the glorious past, dignity despite material difficulties, sense of courage, attachment to the notions of honour and duty going beyond death.

The legend of Napoleon I, particularly vivid in France and Poland throughout the nineteenth century, begins to support, at the end of this period, the nationalist or independence propaganda, reflecting the political situation in each country. The portraits of Napoleonic soldiers, presented in Les Demi‐solde by Georges d'Esparbès and in a couple of novels written by Polish writers of the same time (Gąsiorowski, Przyborowski, Przerwa‐Tetmajer, Morawska), carry great similarities which this paper intends to analyse. Above all, one may observe nostalgia for the glorious past, dignity despite material difficulties, sense of courage, attachment to the notions of honour and duty going beyond death.