Bonaparte on the other hand had different views. He was the opportunist incarnate. He had no patriotism as such, for he had no country as Corsica had been barred to him while France was no more than a pedestal to a source of power to him. All the reforms that he made were to his benefits. He made it sure that he had only the best of officers by ensuring privileges to those who had the abilities to win and outshine other competitors. He banished the overthrown kings and reigning dukes out of their palaces. He dragooned their soldiers into his armies, where they became military helots. His system of taxation was deliberately punitive and it was the only way the empire could be saved from bankruptcy. To prevent such incidents and finance his campaigns, he would resort to pillaging and looting. Once he had the necessary funds gathered, he would set out to do what he did best, conqueror the enemies.
He was a deadly destroyer of his opponent's military capacity. He paid constant attention to the role of calculation in wars by consulting maps and using his mathematical abilities to the fullest, which on other war generals at the time did. He used speed both to secure the maximum disparity between his own forces and the enemy's by attacking the latter before they were fully mobilized and deployed, and also to secure surprise, both strategically and tactical. Hitler also employed similar strategies in his wars. His fast moving approach to war was so successful that he defeated Poland, Norway, Netherlands, Belgium and France in over a short period of seventeen weeks. He named his strategy as Blitzkrieg. But he could not apply the same strategy to Britain as the English Channel proved to be a nuisance to him. He lacked confidence when it came to naval warfare. Napoleon too had the same lack of confidence when it boiled down too naval warfare and disliked it very much as Hitler did.
These two dictators would do anything if it meant that they would still be in the contention of victory in a war; even if it meant sacrificing the lives of their soldiers. Hitler showed very little concern over the number of Germans who died in wars. Late in wars, when all the chance of victory had disappeared, he gave orders that resulted in thousands of German soldiers being unnecessarily killed. When commanders refused to carry out such orders, he would simply have them executed. Bonaparte too had little concerns over human lives and the life of his soldiers. He disregarded losses provided his objectives were secured. He repeatedly abandoned his soldiers to their fate and hastened back to Paris to secure his political position.
Hitler and Bonaparte shared the same fate towards the end of their lives. Napoleon was confined on Saint Helena after he was defeated by the Sixth Coalition and later died due to cancerous ulcer. He also developed much physical incapability during his war campaigns. Hitler on the other hand was confined but it was all due to his ill health. Even though when he was fifty years old, he looked much older. His hair had gone grey, his body was stooped and he had difficulty in walking. Because of these reasons, he was confined to his house. After being defeated by the Soviet Troops, he committed suicide.
