Mr. White’s World History

After this section, we should be able to answer these questions:◦ How did Napoleon

come to power, and then lose it all?

◦ In the end, was Napoleon good for France, or did he do more harm?

By the end of all this, Napoleon will have…◦ Conquered much of

Europe, then lost it◦ Changed the face of

modern warfare, then made one of the biggest military mistakes in history

◦ Challenged the power of monarchs in Europe, but created the desire to strengthen them again

How does this happen?

After Napoleon took power, he proclaimed a new constitution◦ Supposedly set up a

republic, but actually a dictatorship, under Napoleon

◦ This was known as the Consulate

Napoleon wanted to bring order to the country

Tried to keep revolutionary reforms, but got rid of some◦ Replaced elected officials with appointed ones

Placed education under control of the national government

Set up schools to create well-educated, patriotic government workers

Napoleon also changed the country’s financial system◦ Created national Bank of France◦ Required all citizens to pay taxes◦ Brought inflation and high prices under control

1802 – Napoleon named himself Consul for life◦ This was overwhelmingly approved by a plebiscite, or popular vote

Napoleon wrote a new code of law, which would become known as the Napoleonic Code

Based on Enlightenment ideas◦ Equality of all citizens◦ Religious toleration◦ Advancement based on ability, not nobility

Placed the needs of the state above the individual◦ Limited freedom of speech and press –

censorship◦ Women lost many political rights that they had

gained in the revolution

Napoleon was very interested in building a strong and powerful France through military conquest

Treaty of Amiens – peace between Britain and France, lasts about a year

1804 – Napoleon names himself Emperor of the French

Napoleon had persuaded Britain and Russia to stop fighting France, and had defeated Italy and Austria

Napoleon set his sights on invading Britain and making it part of his empire

Napoleon wasn’t able to defeat the British navy, though◦ Battle of Trafalgar – British defeat French navy

off the southern coast of Spain, Napoleon can’t invade Britain

Napoleon ordered all European nations he had conquered, plus Russia and Prussia, to stop trading with the British – the Continental System◦ French navy would attack any ship headed to

Britain British – all ships headed to Europe had to

stop at a British port British navy maintained control of the

seas, and gradually hurt French trade

By 1812, French controlled much of Europe, directly or indirectly

Easily crushed the Prussian army People under Napoleon’s rule many times

didn’t like it – this resulted in nationalism◦ Strong feelings of national pride and

independence◦ Revolts against French rule sprang up around

the continent

Russia viewed Napoleon’s control of Europe as a threat

The Continental System had hurt Russia Russia resumed trade with Great Britain, in

opposition to France Napoleon goes to war with Russia

Napoleon assembles an army of 600,000 troops to invade Russia◦ Many conscripted, poorly trained

Russians adopted a scorched-earth policy, denying Napoleon’s army the ability to live off the land

French capture Moscow after the battle of Borodino, but can’t defeat the Russian army

Russians set fire to Moscow, denying French food and shelter

Russian winter begins to set in◦ French must find shelter soon◦ Napoleon delays, finally orders a retreat

Russians harass and attack the French troops on the retreat

About 400,000 of the 600,000 French troops die trying to get out of Russia

This map uses the lines to show the size and location of Napoleon’s army on its march into and out of Russia. The tan line shows the French headed in, the black line shows them headed out.

Russian defeat of Napoleon gives everyone else courage – Russia, Prussia, Spain, England, and Austria ally against France◦ Napoleon is defeated at Leipzig in October,

1813 By 1814, Napoleon surrenders and

abdicates as emperor Napoleon is exiled to Elba, off the coast of

Italy

Napoleon escaped captivity and returned to France in March of 1815, getting broad support from people

Announced that France didn’t want any more territory

European governments didn’t trust him – Prussia, Great Britain, and the Netherlands defeated Napoleon at the Battle of Waterloo in June, 1815

Napoleon is exiled again, for the last time

Napoleon protected the revolution in France

He also spread ideas such as equality, religious tolerance, and ability over nobility throughout Europe

Set standards of government, reformed tax systems, promoted education, improved agriculture and industry

However, many of the leaders in Europe wanted to undo what had happened, and prevent it from happening again