He began his career as a court cleric and rose to become bishop of Autun, a position he retained until his involvement in the radical reorganization of the chur

Born into the high aristocracy, where rank meant more than wealth, Charles Maurice de Talleyrand-Perigord was to become one of the great politicians of all time

From church establishment figure to revolutionary, supporter of Napoleon Bonaparte to promoter of the Bourbon Restoration, the twists and turns of Charles Mauri

The extent of Talleyrand's political complicity as foreign minister and his resultant important influence in the two coups d'etat--the coup du 18 fructidor and