Napoleon Bonaparte
(1769-1821)
•His rise to power
•His domestic and
foreign policies
Napoleon
• Born into a poor family of lesser nobles
• Ajaccio, Corsica. This island had been
annexed by France in 1768.
• Became a French artillery officer.
• 1793 he saved Toulon from British takeover
• Lead French forces to victory and take-over
of most of Italy and Switzerland by 1797.
Political fear: Response of Directory
• 1797 elections give Royalists a majority
• Fearing an end to the Republic anti-royalists
staged a coup.
• They imposed censorship (so much for free
speech), installed their own people in the
legislature (good-bye freedom of
association), and exiled some of their
political opponents.
Establishment of the Consulate
(1799)
• Grossly misguided
members of the Directory
seeking a more powerful
executive hope to control
Napoleon while gaining
his military support.
• He becomes First Consul
and a new constitution
gave him dictatorial
powers.
What this all means:
1. Closed the revolution in France.
2. Effectively gave power to leading
elements of the Third Estate (the
bourgeoisie)
3. Ended hereditary privilege; one would
succeed on merit.
4. Peasants saw an end to feudal privileges.
Napoleon as First Consul: Act I
• Eliminates any
opposition…like a
good dictator should.
Joseph Fouche carries
this out as Minister of
Police.
• Censored newspapers
and the theatre.
• Exiled Jacobins to
Seychelles Islands.
• In 1802 he becomes
“Consul for Life”
Napoleon’s Domestic Policies…your
turn
• For each of the following Topics explain
Napoleon’s Policy and What problem did it solve.
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Bank of France
Tax Reform
The Concordat
Napoleonic Code
Education
• That’d be three columns and six rows.
Napoleon as Emperor: Act II
• In 1804 crowned himself Napoleon I
Emperor of the French Empire.
• A conscripted army gave him a numerical
advantage over any opponent.
• Could command up to 100,000 men in a
single battle. Had 700,000 men in arms.
The Defeat of Napoleon
• Britain always an enemy…did have a truce,
but…
• French troops in Haiti alarmed Britain of
French ambitions in the Americas.
• And, his control of much of the continent
meant a balance of power was upset, and
so..
• An ultimatum sent 1803. War declared.
Haitian Rebellion
• François-Dominique Toussaint
L'Ouverture was one major
leader.
• Defeated Napoleon’s army: many
were Polish and they were
incorporated into Haiti.
• 1803 Haiti declared a republic.
• Second oldest in Western
Hemisphere.
Battles and Results
1. Trafalgar 1805
2. Ulm 1805 Austria
3. Austerlitz 1805
Alexander I of
Russia & Francis II
of Austria
4. Eylau 1807
5. Lisbon 1807
1. France loses; Britain
controls seas.
2. France wins; takes
over Vienna
3. France wins; takes
northern Italy
4. …
5. …
6. Russia 1811-1812
7. Leipzig 1813
8. Waterloo 1815
6. ...
7. …
8. …
How would this
cartoon promote
nationalism?
“This is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased”
War in the Early 19th
Century
Napoleonic Wars
The Battle of Leipzig 1813
Some facts on the Battle of
Nations…
• More than half a million men.
• Five armies involved.
• The commanding general for the Swedish army
was French, Jean Bernadotte.
• Napoleon domineering leadership was part of his
failure; no one could competently assume
leadership independent of Napoleon.
• Napoleon loses his best trained troops; hence
forward they are mostly raw recruits.
Technology on the battlefield
• William Congreve –
the rocket
• Lieutenant General
Henry Shrapnel –
improvement in
artillery.
Waterloo 1815
The battle that ended an era…
• British led by Wellington for Britain
• General Blucher for Prussia
• In less than one day 115,000 men lay dead
on the field; 60,000 are French.
• A battle of attrition: the expendability of
troops in the field for a political and military
objective.
Key Terms for the Napoleonic Era
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Napoleonic Code
Continental System
Confederation of the Rhine
Coalitions
Conscripted armies
What caused the
downfall of Napoleon?
Take a position on the following
question:
• To what extent can an economic embargo
be seen as an act of war?
Napoleon the Warrior
• 1800 victory over Austrians
• 1806 Continental System
(hegemony over Europe, except
Sweden, Ottoman Empire, &
Britain)
• 1807 Treaty of Tilsit (w/
Alexander I of Russia): Napoleon
master of Eur.
• 1808 Spanish resistance (guerrilla
war).
• Nationalist movements against
France.
• 1812 War w/ Russia …oops.
Looser!
• Scorched earth policy
• 1813 Battle of Nations at
Leipzig.
• 1814 Abdication to Elba.
• 1814 Congress of Vienna
• 1815 Napoleon returns
• Defeated at Waterloo
• Exiled to Saint Helena
Elba & Saint Helena
The Spanish Inquisition 1478-1834
• Religious purity (Catholic)
against non-Catholics and
non-Christians.
• Censorship
• Expulsion, torture, and
execution (relaxation).
• Napoleon’s occupation
ended this (temporarily).
The French were able to take-over
European countries after defeating their
armies because:
1. Napoleon was a military genius, fighting
unpredictable battles.
2. He only had to defeat paid government
armies. His army initially was one of
ideals.
3. The French army entered countries as
liberators against autocracy and therefore
were welcomed…at first.
The reality of French liberation &
Why the Napoleon’s Empire Ended
• Napoleon bled occupied territories by
taxing them.
• Fraternity, equality, and egalitarianism were
not experienced in the French occupied
territories.
• Men in occupied territories were
conscripted into the French army.
Cont’d
• The Continental system backfired:
• The Spanish resisted, as did the Russians
• Two front war: especially the invasion of
Russia.
A Historical Analysis
of Napoleon
Study the two pictures. Determine the direction a historical
interpretation would follow if it were based on A or B.
A.
B.
Evaluation cont’d
1. What aspects of Napoleon’s career would each
of these four perspectives highlight?
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Political
Military
Social justice
Economic
2. Develop your own ground rules for evaluating
the success or failure of historical figures such
as Napoleon.