Napoleon Bonaparte has been called a hero by some and a villain by many others. He was the First Consul of France, then the emperor of France, and finally an outlaw. Napoleon had a meteoric rise to power in the late 18th century, and lasted to the early 19th century. He was able to rise to power through his great military victories and he was able to keep his power by fending off enemies in wars and with some reforms. Napoleon started his life good, but different than many French rulers. Napoleon Bonaparte was born on August 15, 1769 to two Italian parents (Chew 1). He was born on the island of Corsica. Originally Napoleon wouldn't have been able to become emperor of France because at the time Corsica wasn't under French Rule (Moore 1). Corsica was a self governed state run by a political leader named Pasquale Paoili until 1769. The French took it over in a war that ended in 1770 and all the citizens became part of France. This opened the door for any Corsican citizen to have the ability to run for political office and gain power within the French government. That meant that in the future Napoleon would be able to become emperor because of this take over. It was easy to see that Napoleon would be a military leader at a very young age. When Napoleon was 14 he won a scholarship to a French military school where he was a very good student (Chew 3). Even if he didn’t get this scholarship Napoleon was still very well connected; his father was a rich lawyer. After this he went on to a naval academy where he progressed greatly. Napoleon’s great schooling, where he excelled, and his power earned him a good military position where he gained respect and strong military leadership qualities very fast. Napoleon start... ... middle of paper ... ...te: Napoleonic: Wars: History: Military: Battles: Navy: 3 Oct.1999.Web.02.Apr.2010.. Paret, Peter. Lexis Nexis, 5 Mar. 2010. Web. 3 Apr. 2010. . Paschall, Rod.”Russia Against Napoleon.” MHQ: The Quarterly Journal of Military History Spring 2010: 95. Student Resource Center- Silver. Web. 6 Apr. 2010. Rude, George F.E. The French Revolution. New York: Weidenfield & Nicholson, 1988. Print. Satterfield, George D. "Waterloo: the end of an age." Calliope Apr. 2004: 24+. Elite 500. Web. 10 May 2010.<. http://find.galegroup.com/gps/infomark.do?&contentSet=IAC-Documents&type=retrieve&tabID=T003&prodId=IPS&docId=A119781153&source=gale&srcprod=SP00&userGroupName=phil72249&version=1.0>.
Napoleon Bonaparte ruled in France from 1789 to 1815. Napoleon came to power in 1789 and immediately became a powerful figure in the French government. However, some thought Napoleon was such a great leader. The Napoleonic Empire started to grow France’s territories. Some might have believed that Napoleon was too eager with his rule, while losing and failing to succeed against the power of England, in an attempt to blockade their trade, and of Russia, where he led his army to a defeat and retreat back to France. Even in his success over Spain, the battle still costed Napoleon and his army in men and resources. Napoleon was mostly viewed as a powerful and militaristic leader in some aspects, but others saw him as a coward and terrible leader in other ways.
Only a year before Napoleon was born, Genoa had been forced to sell Corsica to France. In one of history’s amazing coincidences, this would forever tie Napoleon to France, even going so far as to change his name to a more French sounding name. Had Genoa kept hold of Corsica, Napoleon would have been born an Italian, and the thousands of books since written about him would have ceased to exist. Alas, fate had a role to play, and Napoleon found himself a part of a minor noble family in an island wishing for independence. From a young age Napoleon would wish to be a part of the struggle to regain sovereignty for Corsica. Here is where he would become fascinated with history in an attempt to write a history of his homeland. At that time one could not learn about history without learning about the great empire of Rome. This knowledge of Rome would influence Napoleon’s actions for the rest of his life.
The book Napoleon by Paul Johnson is a monograph on the life of Napoleon. Napoleon was born on August 15,1769 on an island called Corsica which was a French island south of the mainland. Ironically his future enemy Duke of Wellington was also born in 1769. Napoleon was born in the lower nobility class, and gifted with mathematics. He admired the Royal Navy and wanted to join as a midshipman. At the age of ten, Napoleon left Corsica for a military school in Brienne, France. On completion of his studies at Brienne in 1784, Napoleon was admitted to the elite military school in Paris. He trained to become an artillery officer. His full height was five feet and five inches tall and Napoleon was promoted to first lieutenant by 1791. Napoleon knew that war meant war promotion, and he was eager to move up in command. He controlled the entire army of France by age of 26. He was a genius in artillery and believed that making his opponents fearful on the battlefield means the battle is already half won. A lot of military genius comes from his chief of staff Louis Berthier, who translated his ...
By that time, Napoleon had ruled France and surrounding countries for twenty years. Originally an officer in the French Army, he had risen to become Emperor among the political chaos following the French Revolution in which the old ruling French kings and nobility had been destroyed.
Napoleon was not only a great leader, he was also a military genius. As a military genius, Napoleon won many battles to expand France and was always welcomed back to France as a hero. His use of strategic warfare throughout many battles allowed him to be seen as a hero not only in France but all of Europe. Although his army was outnumbered by the Russians and Austrians on December 2, 1805, Napoleon's brilliant strategies resulted in a defeat of the opposing armies in the Battle of Austerlitz.
Napoleon Bonaparte was born in Corsica on August 15th, 1769 (Kishlansky, Geary, and O'Brien). Napoleon was a complex man who served in the revolutionary war working his way up in rank and ultimately using his military successes to gain political popularity and power (Kishlansky, Geary, and O'Brien). In 1799, Napoleon became the First Consul by overthrowing the directory and he would control France, eventually, making himself Emperor (Kishlansky, Geary, and O'Brien). This essay is going to expand on domestic and military accomplishments of Napoleon, as well as his greatest success and failure.
Napoleon was born in Corsica and went to military school where at that time France was at war with Britain, Austria and Russia. Being in the military he led the French army and achieved victory from the Austrians in 1797 who also negotiated with other nations such as Britain (MORAN 6-22). He established a new Napoleon code which had traditional laws resembling the new revolution in France. He later crowned himself emperor of France and combined social rehabilitation with his own arbitrary power. He also worked a covenant with the Catholic Church where there was a purification of Napoleon and Empress Josephine, who was from a wealthy family. His rise created a new empire which covered much of Europe apart from Britain (MORAN 6-22). He used his family, relatives and friends to power the European countries, hence to why his pride and aspiration led Europe to unite against him. His fall was brought by the detested of French rule all over
Before you can get into how he became a military genius you have breakdown how is life really was before his military career began. Napoleon was born in Ajaccio, Corsica, on August 15th 1769 to Carlo Buonaparte, a lawyer and political opportunist, and his wife, Marie-Letizia Buonaparte. The Buonaparte's were a wealthy family from the Corsican nobility, although when compared to the great aristocracies of France Napoleon's kin were poor and pretentious. Due to his parents connections he was able to enter the Military academy in Brienne in 1779. He moved to the Parisian Ecole Royale Militaire in 1784 and graduated a year later as a second lieutenant in the Artillery. When the civil war broke out the Buonaparte’s fled to France and adopted the French version of their name Bonaparte. When the political situation in France flipped around, Napoleon was tried for treason, but if not for his roots in politics, he would have been executed but his families connections saved him from death. In 1795 Napoleon became a hero again and helped fight the revolutionary forces off. As a result of that, he grew to be one of the most respected military leaders in France.
Napoleon Bonaparte is considered to be one of the greatest conquers and captains of modern times. In history perhaps no one person has ever aroused so many intense opposite emotions. Perhaps no one had ever claimed as much of the admiration, fear, and hatred of all men as did Napoleon. Napoleon was a man with many sides. He started many of his challenging voyages and defeats as a young child and they continued throughout his life. He had many accomplishments and many defeats that affect the world in which we live. Napoleon plays a very big part in history.
Napoleon was an emperor, military officer, husband, and father to many. He ruled France before being exiled and lived a long life, leaving behind a lasting legacy and impression that most people will not forget.
Enlightened despotism is when there is an absolute ruler, in some cases a tyrant, who follows the principles of the Enlightenment through reforms. Permitting religious toleration, allowing freedom of the press and speech, and expanding education are a few main guidelines to being and enlightened despot. Napoleon I is often referred to as one of the greatest enlightened despots. Although, he did not follow the ideas of the enlightenment entirely, he managed his country in a way that he maintained complete authority as well as many of the gains of the French Revolution. Yes, Napoleon did want to do a few things for himself, but he also ruled for the majority in most cases, promote government-funded education, and supported many other enlightened ideas. But, most importantly, Napoleon did what he thought would make his country stronger.
Napoleon Bonaparte was an interesting ruler in that he was compromised of attributes of both a tyrant and a hero. Napoleon had a strong following throughout his reign and even during his two exiles. He was the emperor of France between 1799 and 1815, following the fall of the Directory. Despite the efforts of the French Revolution to rid the country of an autocratic ruler, Bonaparte came to power as Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte I in 1804. He claimed that he preserved the goals of the Revolution, which can be easily argued as his rule became more dictatorial as it progressed. Despite his departure from some of the gains of the Revolution, he overall was a hero for the French people. Through his military ventures, political changes and social reform, Napoleon proved himself as a hero. This is not to say that there were aspects of his reign that were tyrannical, but he was overall beneficial for France.
When we think of Napoleon, we think of massive military conquest comparable to the Roman Empire. However, there are also the numerous reforms he made to domestic policy during his reign of 1799 to 1815. There are three main viewpoints relating to his domestic policy. The first is by Godechot who believed Napoleon "changed the history of France and the world". He thought that Napoleon's policies truly benefited France. However, a contrary viewpoint is made by Seward who thought Napoleon was a demagogue who had an "obsession with power". A third median of the two extremes was proposed by Soboul. Soboul thought that Napoleon advantaged France in some ways but hindered in others.