Napoleon’s Military Fame
a Irony of Napoleon’s father’s decision to remain
in Corsica after the French conquered it?
a Artillery officer in the French Army
a One of the most successful French officers in
the wars against the European coalitions
 1796-1797  he conquered most of northern
Italy for France  developed a taste
for governing.
 Early Jacobin– supporter of moderate/radical social
change
 Was able to rise up through the chain of command
quickly because of war time and emigration of many
noble officers
The Rosetta Stone
Jean Francois Champollion
Greek & Hieroglyphs
Napoleon ‘Saves’ the Directory
• the Directory was unpopular
– One reason- even though France had finally started
to win wars, the country relied on plunder from other
countries to run its economy, so the wars continued
– Helps explain growing disillusionment in other
countries in regards to the revolution
• By 1799, mobs were protesting against the
Directory on the streets of Paris
• Afraid of a mob coup, the Directory called on
Napoleon to return to Paris to protect it
• Napoleon later remarked that he had quieted the
crowds with ‘a whiff of grapeshot’
Napoleon as “First Consul”
a With the government in
disarray, Napoleon launched a
successful coup d’ etat on
November 9, 1799.
a He proclaimed himself “First
Consul” [Julius Caesar’s title]
and did away with the
elected Assembly [appointing
a Senate instead].

In 1802, he made himself sole
“Consul for Life.”

Two years later he proclaimed
himself “Emperor.”
The Empress Josephine
Josephine’s Bedroom
Napoleon’s
Throne
Napoleon’s Bed Chamber
The Imperial Image
Revolutionary
• Plebiscite each time he gave
himself more power
– What is a plebiscite?
– Why would he do this?
– Why would the French
people vote for him?
• Parts of the Napoleonic
Code
– Government jobs were filled by
merit rather than birth
– Laws were the same for
everyone- no estates
or
Tyrant?
• Rose to emperor…
– Crowning Ceremony
Shows his Power
Over the Pope
• Parts of the Napoleonic
Code
– No freedom of
speech
– No freedom of the
press
Napoleon and His Code
“Consecration of the Emperor Napoleon & the Empress Josephine,” 1806 by
David
December 2, 1804
“Napoleon on His Imperial
Throne”
1806
By Jean Auguste
Dominique Ingres
So you’re just
another tyrant,
are you?!
Beethoven
• Beethoven had originally conceived of dedicating the symphony to
Napoleon Bonaparte. The biographer Maynard Solomon relates that
Beethoven admired the ideals of the French Revolution, and Napoleon as
their embodiment… He … gave the work the title of Bonaparte.
• When Napoleon proclaimed himself Emperor of the French in May 1804,
Beethoven became disgusted and went to the table where the completed
score lay. He took hold of the title-page and scratched the name
Bonaparte out so violently with a knife that he created a hole in the paper.
He later changed the title to Sinfonia eroica, composta per festeggiare il
sovvenire d'un grand'uomo ("heroic symphony, composed to celebrate the
memory of a great man").
• His assistant Ferdinand Ries tells the story in his biography of Beethoven:
• “In writing this symphony Beethoven had been thinking of Buonaparte, bu
Buonaparte while he was First Consul. At that time Beethoven had the
highest esteem for him and compared him to the greatest consuls of
ancient Rome. Not only I, but many of Beethoven's closer friends, saw this
symphony on his table, beautifully copied in manuscript, with the word
"Buonaparte" inscribed at the very top of the title-page and "Ludwig van
Beethoven" at the very bottom. …I was the first to tell him the news that
Buonaparte had declared himself Emperor, whereupon he broke into a
rage and exclaimed, "So he is no more than a common mortal! Now, too,
he will tread under foot all the rights of man, indulge only his ambition; now
he will think himself superior to all men, become a tyrant!" Beethoven wen
to the table, seized the top of the title-page, tore it in half and threw it on
the floor. The page had to be re-copied and it was only now that the
symphony received the title "Sinfonia eroica.
Napoleon and the
Catholic Church
Concordat of 1801
a Napoleon wanted to heal
the divisions within the
Catholic Church that had
developed after the
confiscation of Church
property and the Civil
Constitution of the Clergy.
a But, Napoleon’s clear intent
was to use the clergy to
prop up his regime.
Concordat of 1801
a
Catholicism was declared the religion of the majority
of Frenchmen.
a
Papal acceptance of church lands lost
during the Revolution.
a
Bishops subservient to the regime.
Napoleon’s
Wars
Europe in 1800
Napoleonic Europe
Louisiana Purchase, 1803
$15,000,000
“Crossing the Alps,”
1805
Paul Delaroche
Napoleon Ensures Loyalty!
Jerome Bonaparte  King of Westphalia.
Joseph Bonaparte  King of Spain
Louise Bonaparte  King of Holland
Pauline Bonaparte  Princess of Italy
Napoléon Francis Joseph
Charles (son) King of
Rome
e Elisa Bonaparte  Grand
Duchess of Tuscany
e Caroline Bonaparte  Queen
of Naples
e
e
e
e
e
British Cartoon
“The Spanish Ulcer”
a Napoleon conquered
and occupied Spain
a The Spanish mounted
a guerrilla war against
Napoleon
a This forced Napoleon
to spend a great deal
of money and lock
down a great number
of his soldiers in Spain
“Third of May, 1808” by Goya (1810)
Napoleon’s First Major Loss
1805:
France 
Sea
Power
 Britain
Trafalgar (Lord Nelson: Fr. Navy lost!)
Battle of Trafalgar
The Continental System
Napoleon’s Fatal Flaw
• Never satisfied with his victories
• When Russia ignores the
Continental System Napoleon
raises his largest army yet
(the Grand Army) and
invades
The “Big Blunder” -- Russia
a
In July, 1812 Napoleon led his
Grand Armee of 614,000 men
eastward across central Europe
and into Russia.
a
The Scorched Earth Policy

The Russians avoided a direct
confrontation with Napoleon.

They retreated to Moscow, drawing the French into the interior of
Russia [hoping that it’s size and the weather would act as “support”
for the Russian cause].

The Russian nobles abandoned their estates and burned their
crops to the ground, leaving the French to operate far from their
supply bases in territory stripped of food.

Don’t forget that the French military plans called for armies to
live off of what they could take from the enemy
Russia
and The
Scorched
Earth
Policy
Napoleon’s Troops at the Gates of Moscow
a
September 14, 1812  Napoleon reached Moscow,
but the city had largely been abandoned.
a
The Russians had set fire to the city.
Russian General Kutuzov
The Russian army defeated or at least tied the French
at Borodino.
Napoleon’s Retreat
from Moscow (Early 1813)
100,000 French troops retreat—40,000 survive!
Napoleon’s Defeat at Leipzig
(October 16-17, 1813)
“Battle of the Nations”
Memorial
Napoleon Abdicates!
e
Allied forces occupied Paris on March 31, 1814.
e
Napoléon abdicated on April 6 in favor of his
son, but the Allies insisted on unconditional
surrender.
e
Napoléon abdicated again on April 11.
e
Treaty of Fontainbleau  exiles Napoléon to
Elba with an annual income of 2,000,000
francs. Why be so nice to him?
e
The royalists took control and restored
Louis XVIII to the throne.
Napoleon’s Abdication
Napoleon in Exile on Elba
Louis XVIII (r. 1814-1824)
th
“The War of the 7 Coalition”
1815: France 
e
Napoleon’s
“100 Days”
 Britain, Russia.
Prussia, Austria,
Sweden, smaller
German states
Napoléon escaped Elba and landed in France on
March 1, 1815  the beginning of his 100 Days.
Napoleon’s Defeat at Waterloo
(June 18, 1815)
Duke
of
Wellington
Prussian
General
Blücher
Napoleon
on His Way
to His
Final Exile on
St. Helena
Elba
St. Helena
Napoleon’s Residence on St. Helena
Napoleon’s Tomb
Hitler Visits Napoleon’s Tomb
June 28, 1940
End of Napoleon
The Congress of Vienna
(September 1, 1814 – June 9, 1815)
Key Players
at Vienna
Foreign Minister,
Viscount Castlereagh (Br.)
Tsar Alexander I
(Rus.)
The “Host”
Prince Klemens von
Metternich (Aus.)
King Frederick
William III (Prus.)
Foreign Minister, Charles
Maurice de Tallyrand (Fr.)
Key Principles Established
at Vienna
V
Balance of Power
V
Legitimacy
V
Compensation
e
Coalition forces would occupy France for
3-5 years.
e
France would have to pay an indemnity of
700,000,000 francs.
Main Objectives
e
It’s job was to undo everything that Napoléon
had done:
V Reduce France to its old boundaries  her
frontiers were pushed back to 1790 level.
V Restore as many of the old monarchies as
possible that had lost their thrones during
the Napoléonic era.
Europe After the Congress of Vienna