Napoleon was indeed a masterful general for his time period, and everyone must remember he deemed himself a soldier many times, although he seemed to mainly work for his own plans, and the propaganda he used was a bit underhanded (Like the letters from "soldiers" making it sound like they beat the Russians), he was in most aspects a powerful leader for his country. His methods seem cruel and horrid by todays standards, but think about many US generals marches during the civil war, raizing town after town.
On a side note, Ingres painting (Napoleon on his Imperial Throne) comes to mind, and the fact that Napoleon hated it, makes me wonder what he really wanted to be. The painting compared him to former kings, and it is my understanding that he hated the idea of a monarchy.
And, if you think he was completely heartless, research the painting, and newspaper baron Bertan, another of Ingres painting subjects. This man was exiled twice by Napoleon for basically trash talking him in his newspapers, but he respected him for having the guts to say those things so much, he never had him killed. Napoleon was an interesting historical figure, and played an important, yet short part in the worlds history. I am no expert on him, but I do enjoy learning about him.