‘I know nothing of French, being all Italian’ Byron and French

This chapter argues that even though Byron read widely from the French and understood French well, his relationship with French language and culture was alienated. Byron’s dislike for French was likely because the language was too mainstream and lacking in exoticism for his liking. Byron was, however, particularly interested in two French figures—Rousseau and Napoleon—and he references them often in his writing. For Byron, Rousseau was a complicated figure, one who clearly influenced Byron’s writing and thought but whom he also regarded as ‘a madman’. Much has been written about Byron’s views of Napoleon and this chapter demonstrates how the poet continuously revisits the French leader in his writing. While Rousseau and Napoleon appear dominantly in Byron’s writing, contemporary writers like Chateaubriand surprisingly do not, despite their shared aristocratic background and contributions to European Romanticism.