Transcript Napoleon Forges an Empire

Ch 11 Sec 3

Born 1769
◦ Island of Corsica

Sent to military school at age 9
◦ Graduated at 16
◦ Became lieutenant
 Hero
of the Hour
◦ Oct. 1795
 Defended Nat’l Convention from royalist
rebels
 Savior of French Republic
◦ 1796 - Directory appoints to lead
French Army against Austria
 Crushed Austrian threat to France
 Went to Egypt but was defeated by
British navy
Kept reports out of press
 Coup
d’Etat – sudden seize of power
◦ 1799 – Directory lost control of
political situation in France
 Lost confidence of French people
 Nov.
9, 1799 – Napoleon put in
charge of army
◦ Troops drove out members of Nat’l
Assembly
◦ Legislature dissolves Directory
◦ Creates three consuls– Napoleon is one
◦ Assumes dictatorial power as first
consul

1800 – plebiscite approves new
constitution
◦ Vote of the people
◦ Constitution gives all power to
Napoleon
 Concordat
w/Pope Pius VII
(agreement) - 1801
◦ Gov’t recognized influence of church
on society
◦ Rejected church control in nat’l affairs
◦ People that had bought Church lands
got to keep them
 Napoleonic
Code (Civil Code)
◦ Uniform set of laws
◦ Eliminated injustice
 Equality of all citizens before the law
 Right of individual to choose a
profession
 Religious toleration
 Abolition of serfdom
 Napoleon
stability
establishes order and
◦ Supports strong central gov’t, stable
economy, and equality in taxation
 Didn’t care about rank in society or birth
◦ Set up tax-collecting system and national
bank
 Promoted sound financial management
 Better control of gov’t
 Created
a new aristocracy
◦ Based on meritorious service to the
nation
◦ 1808-1814 – created 3200 nobles
 60% were military officers
 40% civil service or state and local
officials
 Reduced
gov’t corruption
◦ Dismissed corrupt officials
◦ Established lycees – gov’t-run public
schools
 Open to male students of all
backgrounds
 Jobs given based on merit, not
family connections
 Good
◦ Equality before the law
◦ Gov’t careers open to anyone
 Bad
◦ Limited liberty
◦ Promoted order and authority over
individual rights
◦ Restricted freedom of speech and
press
 gov’t inspected all manuscripts and mail



Does the image portray Napoleon as a
positive or negative person?
How can you tell? What
images/colors/symbols lead you to believe
this?
Was this created by a person inside or outside
of France?
 Napoleon
Crowned as Emperor
◦ 1804 – declared himself emperor
 Supported by French voters
 Crowned himself, instead of pope

1799 – France at war w/ Russia, GB and
Austria
◦ Began signing peace treaties in 1802
1803 - GB, Russia, Austria and Sweden
form coalition against France
 Takes army against coalition

◦ Crushes opposition
◦ Unpredictable
◦ Rulers of Austria, Prussia, and Russia sign
treaties
 Napoleon
sells Louisiana
◦ United States buys in 1803 - $15
million
◦ $211,699,586.02
◦ Gained $ and punished British
enemies
 1807-1812
Napoleon is master of
Europe
 Three major parts of Grand Empire
◦ French Empire
◦ Dependent states
◦ Allied states
 French
Empire
◦ Enlarged France extending to Rhine River
◦ Also included parts of northern Italy
 Dependent
states
◦ Areas ruled by Napoleon’s relatives
◦ Spain, Holland, Italy, Swiss Republic,
Grand Duchy of Warsaw, Confederation
of the Rhine
 Allied
states
◦ Defeated by Napoleon and forced to
join fight against GB
◦ Prussia, Austria, Russia
 French
Empire
◦ 1812 – few countries free of
Napoleon’s control
 GB, Ottoman Empire, Sweden,
Portugal
◦ Conquered people feel loyalty to
homeland
◦ Huge and unstable empire
 French
ideals spread throughout
Grand Empire
◦ Legal equality
◦ Religious toleration
◦ Economic freedom
 Destroy
old order in inner core and
dependent states
◦ Nobility and clergy lose power and
privileges
 Battle
of Trafalgar - 1805
◦ Only battle lost by Napoleon to Coalition
 Major naval defeat – British Admiral
Horatio Nelson
◦ French fleet destroyed
 Assured supremacy of GB on the seas
 Forced Napoleon to give up plans of
invading GB
 The
Continental System
◦ Nov. 1806 – Napoleon orders
blockade of GB
 Prevent all trade and
communication w/other countries
◦ Continental system
 Make continental Europe more selfsufficient
 Intended to destroy economy of GB
 Blockade
unsuccessful
◦ Smugglers bring cargo from Britain to
Europe
◦ Allies disregarded his orders
◦ New markets in Middle East and Latin
America
 Britain
Blockades France
◦ Stopped neutral ships bound for Europe
 Hurts
Napoleon more than GB
 Sense
of a unique identity of a
group of people
 As Napoleon conquered, people
became united in their hatred of
him
 Increased their sense of national
identity
◦ Gave them more power

1812 – thirst for power leads to
disastrous mistake
◦ Alexander I, czar of Russia, refuses to
stop selling grain to GB
◦ Napoleon and Alexander suspect each
other of having plans for Poland
◦ Napoleon decides to invade Russia

Jun 1812 – Napoleon leads Grand
Army into Russia
◦ Many troops were not French
◦ Feel little loyalty

Scorched-Earth Policy
◦ Russian army retreats toward Moscow
◦ Burn crops and land so French cannot
live off land
◦ Soldiers desert French army
◦ Sept. 7, 1812 – Battle of Borodino
 Battle swings between both sides
 Russia eventually retreats and Napoleon
takes Moscow
 Alexander torches Moscow so Napoleon
couldn’t have it
 Napoleon stays for 5 weeks
◦ October – Napoleon orders return to
France
 Begins the retreat with 100,000
 Snow fall begins in November and
soldiers freeze
 Napoleon returns to France in January
1813 w/40,000 troops

Coalition Defeats Napoleon
◦ Fights Coalition of GB, Russia, Prussia, and
Sweden
◦ Napoleon raises another army in a few months
 Untrained soldiers
 Battle of Lepzig – Oct. 1813 – army severely
beaten
◦ Empire Crumbles
 Jan 1814 – Prussians, Russians, and Austrians
march on Paris
 March – Czar Alexander I and Frederick
William III of Prussia march through Paris

April 1814 – Napoleon gives up throne
◦ Exiled to Elba – island off coast of Italy
 The
Hundred Days
◦ Louis XVIII takes throne
 Brother of Louis XVI
 Unpopular among peasants
 Suspected of wanting to undo reforms of
revolution
◦ Napoleon escapes from Elba
 Thousands welcome him in Paris
 Volunteers join his army
 Napoleon regains position as emperor

Battle of Waterloo – June 18, 1815
◦ British army defeats Napoleon
 Prussian army helped

Ends Hundred Days
◦ Napoleon’s second reign as Emperor
◦ Napoleon exiled to St. Helena
 island in Atlantic Ocean
◦ Dies after 6 years
◦ 1821 at age of 53
Ch. 12 Sec 2
 After
defeat of Napoleon
◦ Goal of new European order
 Collective security and stability for
entire continent
◦ Congress of Vienna
 Series of meetings in Vienna to set up
policies to achieve this goal

“Five
Great Powers”
◦ Prussia, Russia, Austria
 represented by rulers
◦ GB, France
 represented by foreign ministers
◦ Klemens von Metternich
 Foreign minister of Austria
◦ Three Goals of Metternich
 Prevent future French aggression by
surrounding France with strong
countries
 Restore balance of power so that no
country would be threat
 Restore Europe’s royal families to
thrones held before Napoleon –
legitimacy

Containment of France
◦ Congress makes weak countries
around France stronger
◦ Allow countries of Europe to contain
France
 Balance
of Power
◦ Leaders of Europe don’t want to go too
far
 Too severe – France may take revenge
 Break up France – another country might
become too strong
◦ Easy on French
 Give up all territories Napoleon took
 France remains intact
 Keeps overseas possessions, army, and
independent gov’t
Based on tradition and belief in value
of social stability
 Obedience to public authority
 Relied heavily on influence of religion
 Hated revolutions
 Unwilling to accept demands of people

◦ Want individual rights or representative
government
 Great
powers of Europe had right to
send armies into other countries
◦ Restore legitimate monarchs to their
thrones
 GB
refuses this
◦ Doesn’t think great powers should
interfere in other nations internal
affairs

Legitimacy
◦Powers affirm principle of
legitimacy
Agreement that as many as
possible of the rulers Napoleon
had driven out be restored
France – Louis XVIII given throne
Bourbon rulers of Spain and
Kingdom of Two Sicilies
Former rulers of the German
States

Congress of Vienna is political
triumph
◦ Fair decisions = no grudges
◦ Nations of entire continent were
cooperating
◦ Peace lasts from 1815-1853