Famous Prohibitionists Of History: Napoleon Bonaparte

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When you think of anti-cannabis crusaders, names like former President Richard Nixon and former First Lady Nancy Reagan immediately come to mind. But Napoleon Bonaparte - the French emperor and general who was tastefully portrayed by Verne Troyer on TV's Jack of All Trades - is also among the ranks of history's prohibitionists.

According to historian Lukasz Kamienski - author of Shooting Up: A Short History of Drugs and War (2016) - Napoleon - who was born 247 years ago today - had an incursion with hashish during his military expedition in Egypt (1798-1801). Because alcohol was banned in the Muslim country, French soldiers found it difficult to unwind with a drink as they liked to do in their downtime. So when soldiers stumbled upon cafes selling hashish - a foreign substance to them - they quickly dabbled with cannabis resin along with the locals.

Napoleon wasn't happy when his commanders...

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