At the start of the new year Napoleon wrote to Josephine to ask her to return to Paris. While he waited for her, he embarked on a campaign to win the Directors over to his scheme for the invasion of Egypt. A quick tour of the army camps and ports of the Channel coast armed him with the ammunition to fill his reports on the unfeasibility of any invasion of Britain.At the same time he was busy planning for the expedition to Egypt, bombarding the Directors with analyses of the strategic advantages of a campaign to cut across England’s trade with the east, with a view to eventually wresting India from the grasp of the East India Company.

Meanwhile, Talleyrand began his own manoeuvres, pointing out to Barras the diplomatic possibilities of moving an army into Egypt. The vast Ottoman empire was crumbling and the Sultan was near to losing any authority over the governors of his provinces. If the Sultan could be won over to the side of France then the entire Levant could be denied to English ships.

The Directory asked Napoleon to advise them on the scale of the forces needed. He replied early in March. Twenty-five thousand infantry, fifteen hundred gunners and three thousand cavalry, most of whom could be mounted once the army arrived in Egypt. A strong naval escort would be required to protect the convoy across the Mediterranean, and with good fortune they might be able to seize Malta on the way.

A few days after he submitted his report, Napoleon was called to the Luxembourg Palace to meet the Directors. He was there nearly all day and only returned home as dusk closed over the capital, bringing with it thick clouds and a heavy downpour of icy rain. Josephine was waiting for him and helped to take off his sodden cape when he entered the house. He strode through to the sitting room where a fire glowed in the grate, casting an orange hue over the room and causing Napoleon’s blurry shadow to waver behind him, huge and brooding.

‘They have appointed me to command the army.’

Josephine stood beside him, slipping her arm through his. ‘It’s what you hoped for.’

‘Yes. I thought so.’ Napoleon turned towards her, and cupped her cheek in his hand as he kissed her on the lips. ‘Until now.’

‘How long will you be away?’

Napoleon was silent for a moment before he replied. ‘At least a year. I’ve offered Eugène an appointment on my staff.’

‘I know. He told me.’

‘I think it will be the making of him. His father would have been proud to see his son in uniform. You should be proud of him too.’

‘Oh, I am. But it’s hard not to think of him as my little boy.’ A fond smile flickered across her lips. ‘Do you want me to come with you?’