Napoleon’s first exile island was Elba. After his forced abdication in 1814, the Treaty of Fontainebleau sent him to this Mediterranean island off the coast of Tuscany.
Elba was not a prison in the usual sense. Napoleon retained the title of emperor and was made sovereign of the island, with a personal guard of about 400 soldiers. From his residence at Portoferraio, he introduced administrative, economic, and public-works reforms, although limited funds restricted what he could accomplish.
His exile lasted less than a year. Napoleon escaped from Elba on 26 February 1815 with roughly 1,000 men and returned to France, beginning the Hundred Days. He regained power rapidly because the restored government of Louis XVIII was unpopular and many French troops rallied to their former commander.
The escape from Elba is often confused with Napoleon’s later exile. After Waterloo, he was sent to Saint Helena in the South Atlantic, where he remained until his death in 1821. Corsica, by contrast, was Napoleon’s birthplace, not an exile destination.