Napoleon

Early Life

• Born (1769) in Corsica to poor family

• Character traits from the Enlightenment– Creative, scientific,

non-traditional, liberal

“The truest conquests, the only ones that give rise to no regrets, are those gained over ignorance. The most honorable as well as the most useful activity of nations is to contribute to the advancement of human knowledge. The real strength of the French Republic should henceforth lie in its determination to possess every new idea, without a single exception.”

— Napoleon Bonaparte (upon his election to the National Institute of France)

Hero of France• 1795 - Took advantage of an

opportunity to defend France.

• 1796 - Given more responsibility to lead an Army:– Won a series of victories in Italy– Then led an expedition to Egypt.. But

failed…– Was able to keep this failure out of the

newspaper.

• Remained a French Hero…

• 1799 – Directory lost control of France – and the French people…

• Napoleon seizes power…

– Napoleon, quoted in Thorpe, Scott, How to Think Like Einstein, Barnes & Noble Books, Inc., 2000, p.167.

"A man will fight harder for his interests than for

his rights."

Coup d’Etat – “blow to the state”

• November 1799 – troops under Nap’s control surround national legislature

• Lawmakers left, vote to dissolve the Directory

• Established a group of 3 Consuls… Napoleon is First Consul (dictator)

First Consul (1799-1804)• Supported laws that would both strengthen

the central government and achieve some of the goals of the Revolution.

• Economy – tax collection and established a

national banking system • ended corruption and inefficiency in

government. – dismissed corrupt officials – government-run public schools.

– MERITOCRACY

First Consul contd…

• Napoleon signed a concordat, or agreement, with Pope Pius VII.

• Result:• The government recognized

the influence of the Church, but rejected Church control in national affairs.

• Separation of Church/State

Napoleonic Code

• The Napoleonic Code . – uniform set of laws

that eliminated many injustices.

– But…. – limited liberty and

promoted order and authority over individual rights

"I closed the gulf of anarchy and brought order out of chaos. I rewarded merit regardless of birth or wealth, wherever I found it. I abolished feudalism and restored equality to all regardless of religion and before the law. I fought the decrepit monarchies of the Old Regime because the alternative was the destruction of all this. I purified the Revolution.“

– Napoleon Bonaparte

Still at War…• 1799 – Britain, Austria and

Russia want Nap out of power.

• Napoleon able to get all three to sign peace agreements with France.– How???

• Europe was at peace for first time in 10 years… Napoleon focuses on France.

Domestic Policy as First Consul

• Code of Napoleon• Bank of France• Centralized state government• Relations with Catholic Church• Education system• Support of science

Emperor (1804-1814)• French senate made him their emperor

– Disappointment for some• Attempts to increase presence in America• Territorial expansion and war

• Establishing an empire– Spain – Blockade of England– Trafalgar

French Empire

• Empire was huge, but unstable…

• Rulers of other countries were Nap’s puppets

• Held it for only 5 years (1807-1812)

Napoleon's Coronation– Jacques Louis David

Napoleon’s Downfall

• Read pages – 668-671 and create a chart to recognize effects of Napoleon’s Downfall

• Battle of Trafalgar (p. 667)• Blockade / Continental System• Invasion of Spain / Peninsular War• Invasion of Russia • Battle of Waterloo• Hundred Days

Defeat – 5th Coalition (1809-1815)

• Russian campaign– 1812– Lost

400,000 men

– Abdicated in 1814 and sent to Elba

The Hundred Days (1815)

• Escape from Elba• King Louis XVIII fled

France• Ruled for short

period • Battle of Waterloo• Sent to St. Helena• 1840—Napoleon’s

remains moved to Paris

Congress of Vienna

• Restructuring Europe after Napoleon– Conference in Vienna– 6 heads of states

• Guiding principles– Legitimacy– Restore boundaries– Hedge-in France

Thank You