The Napoleonic Wars
A Fragile Peace
The War of the Second Coalition ended
with Austria at the Treaty of Luneville in
Feb. 1801.
The British continued the war, forcing the
surrender of the French remaining in
Egypt in summer of 1801
The treaty of Amiens, signed in March
1802, created a fragile peace between
France and Britain.
War of the Third Coalition (1805-07)
Both sides were not content with current
peace.
In 1803, Great Britain renewed its war
against France.
In 1805, Austria and Russia joined the
coalition (Prussia remained neutral at the
outset.)
Napoleon moved into Germany, defeating
the Austrians at the Battle of Ulm on Oct
17, 1805.
War at Sea
Throughout 1804-1805, Napoleon planned
to invade Britain.
The British Navy blockaded French
controlled ports throughout Europe,
keeping most of the fleet bottled up.
Across the globe both sides engaged the
other, attempting to disrupt the trade of the
other side.
Battle of Trafalgar
Just four days after
Napoleon’s victory at Ulm,
the combined French and
Spanish fleets were
smashed at the Battle of
Trafalgar (Oct. 21, 1805).
The strategic daring of
Admiral Nelson and the
tactical superiority of the
British fleet won the day.
With reduced naval power,
Napoleon had to suspend
his invasion plans.
War on Land
Moving East from Ulm, Napoleon defeated
a combined Austrian and Russian force at
Austerlitz on Dec. 2, 1805.
Austria signed Treaty of Pressburg,
relinquishing most of its Italian
possessions (Third Coalition dissolves).
In July, 1806, Napoleon reorganized
western Germany into a satellite called the
Confederation of the Rhine (provided
buffer).
French Victories on Land
Napoleon dissolved the Holy
Roman Empire (Francis II
became Francis I of Austria)
War of Fourth Coalition begins.
Prussia entered the war, on
Oct, 14, 1806 Napoleon
defeated them a the Battles of
Jena and Auerstadt.
Napoleon took the capital Berlin
in late October.
Napoleon moved into East
Prussia in spring, 1807,
defeating the Russians at
Friedland on June 13th.
The Treaties of Tilsit
Napoleon meets with Tsar Alexander I and
Frederick William III of Prussia.
Treaties end War of Fourth Coalition.
Prussia losses half of its territory to
Saxony and The Grand Duchy of Warsaw
(Polish satellite of France)
Russia was given a free hand to deal with
the Ottoman Empire in return for support
against Britain.
1807
We Are Family…
Joseph Napoleon Bonaparte
Treaties allow Napoleon to place
his family members on the
thrones of Europe.
– Brother Joseph – King of
Naples (and later Spain),
replaced by Marshall Murat and
Napoleon’s sister Caroline.
– Brother Louis – King of Holland
– Brother Jerome – King of
Westphalia
– Napoleon divorces Josephine
in 1810, marring princes Marie
Louise of Austria (Habsburg)
and bears him a son the
following year.
The Continental System
Unable to beat the British at sea,
Napoleon launched the Continental
System with the Berlin Decrees of 1806
(expanded through the Milan Decree of
1807).
Any ship from Britain of caring British
goods were banned from European ports.
The British responded with the Orders in
Council, requiring all ships entering or
leaving European ports to stop at British
ports.
The Continental System
The two blockades caused considerable
economic hardship across Europe.
The blockade hurt British trade and
caused soaring unemployment and rioting
in 1811.
France suffered from a lack of imported
raw materials.
French satellites suffered as well, causing
widespread discontent, even though
smuggling was rampant.
The Peninsular War (1807-1814)
Portugal and France’s ally
Spain both failed to enforce
the Continental System.
In late 1807, the French
occupied both nations.
In early 1808, Napoleon
deposed the Bourbon
monarchy and installed his
brother Joseph on the
throne.
The Spanish rose in revolt,
which was brutally
Francisco Goya: The Third of May, 1808
suppressed by the French.
The Peninsular War (1807-1814)
The British sent troops under Sir Arthur
Wellesley (later Duke of Wellington) to
support the insurgents.
The British Naval superiority was used to
support the expeditionary force.
The war continued until 1814, slowing
wearing down the French and keeping
vital troops and supplies from other fronts.
War of the Fifth Coalition (1809)
Along with British and Spanish warfare on
the Iberian Peninsula, Austria rejoined the
fight against Napoleon in spring 1809.
Napoleon defeated the Austrians at
Wagram in July 1809, occupying Vienna.
Under the Treaty of Schonbrunn, Austria
ceded land to Bavaria, Warsaw and
France.
Napoleon takes Pope Pius VII prisoner for
opposing Continental System and
annexed the Papal States.
Changes in the Colonial Empires
Spain is convinced to
return Louisiana to France,
but due to French naval
inferiority, Napoleon sells it
to the United States in
1803.
In Haiti, a slave revolt led
by Toussaint L'Ouverture
leads to Haitian
independence in 1804.
The Spanish colonies took
opportunities as well under
Simon Bolivar to gain
independence.
The Russian Campaign, 1812
Tensions rise between
Napoleon and Tsar
Alexander I refuses to
support the Continental
System.
Napoleon raises a
“Grande Armée” of
691,501 men to invade
Russia in June, 1812.
By mid August, French
advance 300 miles with
no major battles.
Russians retreat, trading
for space and time and
burning all left behind
(“scorched earth”)
The Russian Campaign, 1812
On Sept.7, the Russians
under Mikhail Kutuzov battle
French at Borodino, 75 miles
west of Moscow; no clear
victor.
On Sept. 14, Napoleon
entered a burned Moscow.
Tsar Alexander refused to
surrender.
Low on supplies, Napoleon
began to retreat on Oct. 19th
The Russian winter soon set
in, and by December, only
22,000 men in the Grande
Armee remained alive.
French Troop Numbers in Russia
War of the Sixth Coalition (1812-14)
A.k.a. – Wars of Liberation.
Coalition of Austria, Prussia, Russia, Sweden,
the United Kingdom, and a number of German
States (notably Bavaria) to take advantage of
Napoleon’s Russian defeat.
Napoleon raises an army of around 400,000
French troops supported by a quarter of a million
French allied troops to contest control of
Germany.
In Germany, national resistance grows in
Bavaria, Prussia and Austria, who join the
Russians in opposing Napoleon.
Revolts in Spain continue to drain men and
resources.
The Battle of Nations
The Battle of Leipzig, Oct. 16-19 1813.
Napoleon soundly defeated by Russians,
Prussians and Austrians in the largest
battle in European history to that point.
The Fall of Napoleon
Napoleon was offered a peace settlement
keeping his throne, but he refused.
Nov. 1813, the Dutch revolted.
The British army led by the Duke of
Wellington advanced from Spain into
Southern France.
Jan. 1814, Russian, Prussian and Austrian
forces invade France and enter Paris on
March 31st.
The Abdication
Napoleon’s abdication order
April 11, 1814,
Napoleon abdicated.
Retains title and
exiled to island of
Elba.
Bourbons restored
with Louis XVIII
(r.1814-24), younger
brother of Louis XVI.
Reasons for Napoleon’s Fall
Imperial overreach –
the attempt to defeat all
enemies and dominate
Europe.
National resistance –
the despotic nature of
the empire led to
nationalist revolts.
Loss of support at
home – French war
weary after 25 years of
war.