For a decade, historians have focused on conflicts of years 1800-1815 a new look, to go beyond the traditional reading event. This publication provides a summary and returns to what it really means for the war all the men who were then enrolled. Departure of conscripts to fight, a soldier of the Empire led to live in a world hitherto ignored by these young men. The book also highlights the cosmopolitanism of the Napoleonic armies: Polish, Belgian example Illyrians were part. The refusal of conscription, now well known in the French case, called for new studies presented here. This book also provides insights into the recent war everyday, for the military and for civilians.