He sought to take part in the civil affairs of the Republic, and was desirous of becoming one of the five Directors, convinced that, if he obtained that object, he would speedily stand single and alone.

The fulfilment of this wish would have prevented the Egyptian expedition, and placed the imperial crown much sooner upon his head.

Intrigues were carried on in Paris in his name, with the view of securing to him a legal dispensation on the score of age.

He hoped, though he was but eight-and-twenty, to supersede one of the two Directors who were to go out of office.
-- [The Directors had to be forty years of ago before they could be appointed.]-- His brothers and their friends made great exertions for the success of the project, which, however, was not officially proposed, because it was too adverse to the prevailing notions of the day, and seemed too early a violation of the constitution of the year III., which, nevertheless, was violated in another way a few months after.
The members of the Directory were by no means anxious to have Bonaparte for their colleague.

They dissembled, and so did he.