Chapter 7: Brienne Military Academy

"Yes, Father, you heard me correctly. I want to go to the Brienne Military Academy," Roland repeated loudly, as if worried that Louis hadn't heard him the first time.

 Upon hearing Roland's words, the room fell into silence. Louis had never imagined that his son would choose that particular school.

 Taking a deep breath to calm himself, Louis turned to Roland and asked, "Can you tell me why you've chosen to go to that school? You've never mentioned wanting to become a soldier before, and you must understand that France is at war everywhere right now. It's extremely dangerous to become a soldier at a time like this."

 "Because I admire my uncle Napoleon so much, Father. I want to be a great general like him," Roland replied loudly.

 "What? You want to follow Napoleon?" Louis exclaimed in surprise. He knew that his son had admired Napoleon since childhood and had even joked about joining the army to fight alongside him, but he never thought Roland would be serious about it.

 Louis felt a headache coming on. He didn't want his precious son to mix with someone like Napoleon, who he considered to be "good-for-nothing."

 "I'm serious, Father. I've already made up my mind to join the army. And what you said isn't entirely true. While France is facing difficulties, they won't send a student like me to the frontlines. I'll be safe. Besides, I have Uncle Napoleon! After joining the army, I can go to him for help. With his assistance, I won't be in any danger," Roland reasoned, approaching his father gently.

 After listening to Roland's words, Louis found some merit in them. With Napoleon's influence, perhaps Roland could find a safe position in the army, like the one he currently held as a military supplier. Louis considered Roland's intelligence and figured he might make something of himself in the military.

 Carefully considering the situation, Louis finally agreed, "Alright, I'll allow you to attend the Brienne Military Academy. But be prepared, life at the academy is tough. Even your Uncle Napoleon struggled there."

 Lastly, Louis reminded Roland, knowing how much he admired Napoleon, "Rest assured, Father. I'll be fine," Roland assured confidently.

 The news of Roland's decision to apply to Brienne Military Academy spread like wildfire through the Bonaparte family. Almost everyone in the family knew: the grandson of the Bonaparte family was planning to attend military school.

 Roland's mother and grandmother initially opposed the idea, but eventually, they relented in the face of Roland and Joseph's insistence.

 Upon learning of Roland's decision, Napoleon expressed his admiration and pledged to take Roland into his army after graduation. He even publicly declared Roland as his ideal successor.

 In June 1795, after completing the necessary procedures, Roland accompanied by Louis, went to Brienne Military Academy to enroll.

 He would spend four years there, but Roland planned to complete all the courses within two years and then proceed to the Royal Military School in Paris for further studies.

 Brienne was a small town located in eastern France, not far from Paris. It was one of the 14 Royal Military Academies before the French Revolution and considered the cradle of French military leaders.

 After the Revolution, due to the shortage of military talents, these military academies were not abolished but retained and even received increased funding from the revolutionary government.

 With the help of Napoleon and Louis, Roland easily gained admission to the academy.

 After completing the enrollment procedures, Roland bid farewell to Louis and embarked on his journey of independence. From now on, he would live alone for four years in Brienne.

 Dressed in the academy's distinctive light blue and red-trimmed military uniform and dark blue breeches, Roland looked spirited as he stepped onto the dusty campus. This would be his home for the next four years.

 The academy was not luxurious; instead, it was rather humble. The high walls enclosed a few old stone buildings, their roofs covered in moss. However, the campus was not lacking in trees, with rows of trees planted everywhere, adding a touch of vitality.

 Accompanied by a senior student, Roland arrived at the dormitory area. Each grade was organized into a company, with a dormitory for each company. Each dormitory housed three to four students, totaling around 300 to 350 students in the entire academy, mirroring the military structure of France.

 Roland's dormitory was at the southernmost end of the school. It was a small room, one of about fifty rooms connected together, appearing quite dilapidated.

 Inside were four beds and four old desks. Three boys slightly older than Roland were sitting together chatting. When they saw Roland enter, they stopped talking and looked at him expectantly.

 Roland knew they were his roommates. He introduced himself confidently, "Hello, everyone. I'm Roland, from Marseille. I hope we can get along well in the days to come."

 "Welcome, Roland! We arrived yesterday, and now we're just waiting for you. Let me introduce myself. I'm John Davis, from Metz," said a tall, dark-skinned boy who stood up to greet Roland warmly.

 He then pointed to a boy sitting on the edge of a bed, "He's Marin Hoffman, from Paris."

 "And his name is Jobes, from Marly," John finished introducing the last boy, who was sitting by the window, neatly dressed and fair-skinned.

 As they were all still children, it didn't take long for them to become acquainted. From their conversations, Roland learned that John was the son of a worker, Jobes's father was a farmer, and Marin's father was a soldier.