'Beneath the eagles of the great emperor': Napoleonic collaboration experiences in the Basque provinces of Spain.

This work is an analysis of the actions and thinking of certain Napoleonic collaborators during the French occupation of the Basque provinces of Spain (1807–13). First, the author singles out the enlightened elites that collaborated with the new regime. Second, he analyses some of the letters intercepted by guerrilla forces to grasp some collaborators' opinions on the occupation. Lastly, he uses judicial documentation to analyse not only elite collaborators, but a wider social spectrum. Throughout, he draws links between a local historical analysis and wider historiographical currents to disseminate the Basque case and inspire other studies. The resulting information facilitates a better understanding of the social profile of the Napoleonic collaborators and of their attitudes during a particularly turbulent period in history. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]