Download The Napoleonic Era French History 1794 - 1815

The Napoleonic Era
French History 1794 - 1815
Napoleon Bonaparte
A. After the Terror ended, a new constitution was created with a gov’t led by 5
executives called the Directory
1. Passed some reforms, but was weak & corrupt
2. High prices, bankruptcy, & citizen unrest remained
3. France desperately needed a strong leader
B.
Beginning in 1793, Napoleon Bonaparte won a series victories for the French army in
Europe
1. In three years he went from the rank of captain to general
2. Only one loss, Battle of the Nile in 1798 against the English navy led by
Admiral Horatio Nelson
Rise to Power
C.
French wanted stability after years of revolution & were willing to give up freedoms for if
he could bring peace, prosperity & glory
1. In 1799,Napoleon formed the Consulate (gov’t w/three leaders)
2. took over power from the Directory in a coup d’etat – a forced transfer of
power where he ruled as a dictator
D. As 1st Consul, Napoleon wanted to make his own power permanent and hereditary
1.
In 1804, he submitted a plebiscite -a question put before all the voters
a. The people vote yes, an Napoleon became an emperor
b. Crowned Emperor with his wife, Josephine, at Notre Dame Cathedral in 1804
Napoleon’s Empire
E. France & England had been enemies for hundreds of years before the French Revolution & this
intensified under Napoleon
1. Engaged European nations in the Napoleonic Wars b/w 1804 -1815
a. Conquered much of Europe, he decided to enact the Continental system to
blockade (prevent) overseas trade w/England
b. To pay for this, he let go of French lands in Haiti & the US (Louisiana )
F. While trying to enforce the continental system, Napoleon brought France into conflict with
other nations
1. Peninsular War -Portugal & Spain refused stop trading with England, so
Napoleon conquered them
a. The Spanish began guerilla warfare to defeat Napoleon’s troops
b. He placed his brothers & sisters as monarchs throughout the lands that he
conquered
H. Established order & made the revolutionary ideas of equality under the law a reality
1. The Napoleonic Code - Law Code that promoted order at the expense of
individual rights
2. Concordat –acknowledged that most people were Catholic, but religious
toleration was still the law
3. Bank of France –to regulate the economy
4. Built schools & universities to encourage a meritocracy (earning a position of
authority based on intellectual achievement)
5. helped fuel the spread of nationalism—a sense of identity and unity as a people
Invasion of Russia
I. In June of 1812, Napoleon brought 600,000 troops to teach Czar Alexander I of Russia a lesson
not to defy his Continental system
1. He pushed towards Moscow but the Russians burned their homes & crops, in
order to survive his troops retreated
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2. The harsh Russian winter & attacks by peasants left France w/ only 94,000 of the
original 600,000
J. After defeat in 1814, Napoleon surrendered & agreed to live in exile on the Isle of Elba
1. France brought back the monarchy w/ Louis XVIII, Louis XVI brother, ruling
2. After a year Napoleon returned for the Hundred Days in which he raised an
army to fight the united European nations led by the Duke of Wellington, a
British general, in Belgium at the Battle of Waterloo
3. Napoleon was finally defeated & sent into exile at St. Helena
K. In 1815, conservative leaders of Europe met at The Congress of Vienna led by Prince
Klaus von Metternich tuned the clock back to 1789
1. Redrew political boundaries
2. Put pre-Napoleon monarchies back in power