Napoleon Bonaparte's height was approximately 5 feet 6.5 inches (169 centimeters) in modern measurements, which was about average for a Frenchman of his era. The commonly held belief that he was very short stems from a misunderstanding of French units of measurement and British propaganda. His recorded height of "five foot two" was in French feet, which were longer than British feet, leading to confusion. Additionally, Napoleon often surrounded himself with very tall soldiers in his elite guard, which made him appear shorter by comparison. Historical estimates place his height between about 5'6" and 5'7" (1.68 to 1.70 meters), making him average or even slightly taller than many of his contemporaries