The Consulate
Three man governing board
- Napoleon gave himself the title of
First Consul.
 Napoleon held a plebiscite- popular vote
by ballot
- The French people strongly supported
him, but he still held absolute power.

Napoleon Reforms France
“Order, security, and efficiency” replaced
the French Revolution slogan of “liberty,
equality, and fraternity”
 Concordat of 1801- kept the church under
state control but recognized religious
freedoms for Catholics.
 Opened jobs to everyone based on talent.

Napoleonic Code
It used Enlightenment principles- equality
of all citizens, religious toleration, and
abolished feudalism.
 Women lost most of their newly gained
rights- could not exercise rights of
citizenship.

Continental System

Napoleon’s economic warfare against GB
– Blockade- forcible closing of sea ports
– Napoleon ordered a blockade that cut Great
Britain off from trade with the rest of Europe.
Hurt France and rest of Europe worse than it
hurt Great Britain.
– Scarcity of goods in Europe, inflation of
prices, and overall hatred of French power.
Napoleon’s Empire
Napoleon controlled most of Europe by
military conquest, diplomacy, or alliances.
Only nation that defied him was GB
French and Spanish navies met up with
the British navy off of the coast of Spain
(Cape Trafalgar) in 1805.
British navy was led by Horatio Nelson – he
was killed by a French sharpshooter, but
the British defeated the French.
Battle of Trafalgar

Significant because it…
– Established GB as the #1 naval power
– Forced Napoleon to give up plans of a British
invasion
– Britain’s Winning Strategy: Crossing the T
 Approach the enemy fleet at right angles
 Makes your fleet less of a target, while doubling
your firepower against the enemy.
Napoleon’s Empire
Collapses
The Peninsular Campaign
The Spanish revolted against French rule
in Spain
 Napoleon sent 300,000 troops to Spain,
but they were ineffective.

– Duke of Wellington from England assisted
guerillas
 New type of warfare – hit and run tactics
1809 – Napoleon divorced Josephine
because he wanted an heir.
 Married Marie Louise; 1811- Napoleon II
was born.
 1812 – Napoleon invaded Russia. Why?

1.) Czar Alexander I defied the Continental
System and resumed selling grain to GB.
2.) Napoleon was paranoid and feared a BritishRussian alliance.
The Grand Army (600,000) entered Russia
in June.
 Logistical problems – impossible to supply
such an enormous army so far away from
home
 Rather than engage in battle, the Russian
army retreated east.

– scorched-earth policy: torched fields, burned
crops so that the French could not live off the
land.
– The French were forced to euthanize army
horses.
Other problems: terrible roads, heavy
equipment, delayed supplies
 September 7 – Battle of Borodino

– 70 miles outside Moscow
– 44,000 Russian casualities/30,000 French
– Indecisive, but the Russians retreated and
Napoleon entered Moscow 1 week later.

Napoleon waited for a surrender for 5
weeks. Russians set fire to their city. No
housing or food.
October – decided to turn back for France
but it was too late. Winter came early.
 Temps reached 30 degrees below zero.
 “Many of the survivors were walking
barefoot, using pieces of wood as canes,
but their feet were frozen so hard that the
sound they made on the road was like
that of wooden clogs.” – French sergeant
 As few as 20,000 troops made it back.
 Starvation, disease, hypothermia, and
desertion


1813 – Battle of Leipzig
– Napoleon’s enemies took advantage of his
weakened state.
– Britain, Russia, Prussia, Sweden, and Austrian
joined against him.
– “Battle of Nations” – largest battle before
WWI.

1814- Napoleon abdicated the throne and
was exiled to Elba
– Received a pension and 1,000 soldiers
– Louis XVIII restored to the throne

1815 – Napoleon escaped from Elba and
reclaimed the French throne
– “Hundred Days” back in power

June 15 – Battle of Waterloo
– British and Prussian armies defeated
Napoleon.
– Exiled to St. Helena
– Died six years later in 1821.