Napoleon Bonaparte was noted for conquering new territory for France, not giving away a huge portion of North America at the cost of mere pennies an Acre. A strange, haunting series of events made the Louisiana Purchase possible, and with it the acquisition of land that later became 15 new states. Those events included the brutal attempts to suppress the only successful slave rebellion in all human history, the unseasonal and unprecedented freezing over of an important Dutch Harbor, plus the skill and flexibility of American leaders who managed to overcome the partisan divisions that had begun to paralyze the young Republic.

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