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napoleon bonaparte and the legacy of the french revolution
Napoleon bonaparte as a military leader
Napoleon bonaparte as a military leader
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A hero would emerge from the late 1700’s that will be willing to lead their country, unite them, and bring order to their society. That hero’s name is Napoleon Bonaparte. He created a well-known domestic system that improved the French society and is still used today. His experience in the battlefield and profound wisdom of tactics revolutionized military during his time and for years to come. He also led France to become a dominant nation in the world. Lastly from his many contributions, he created a sense of nationalism and identity nothing like the French had ever had before. All of these accomplishments not only improved France but the world as well.
Napoleon Bonaparte was born August 15, 1769 on his homeland Corsica. He was sent to France to go to school and at an early age of nine he started attending some of the most prestigious military schools throughout France. After the eruption of the French Revolution in 1789, he became a follower of the new government. There he swiftly rose through the ranks and directed the artillery at the siege of Toulon, a French city that rebelled against the revolutionary government after the Reign of Terror begins. Napoleon then successfully defeats the British ships at Toulon. Because of his performance at that victorious operation, at the early age of twenty-four, Napoleon was promoted to brigadier general and was in charge of the army of Italy in December 22, 1793.
However, in July 1794 Napoleon’s career experienced a setback when the radical revolutionary regime of Robespierre, with whom Napoleon had become associated with, fell. Robespierre is then killed in 1794 during the Thermidorian Reaction. This lead to Napoleon’s imprisonment for about a week and was released because of his perso...
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... to crumble. And on April 6, 1814 he was forced from his throne. He was exiled to an island called Elba. In about a year, he was able to gather about 1,000 soldiers and marched to Paris and regained his power. He ruled for a short time, and then he surrendered to the English. He was exiled to an island called St. Helena in the south Atlantic. There is stayed until he died on May 5, 1821. He allegedly died of cancer but there are speculation that he might have been poisoned.
He is considered as one of the greatest military and political genius in the history of mankind. His talent led him through extremely successful Italian campaigns, major battles against the Third Coalition and helped him rule politically to keep the expansion of the revolution. From his military conquests and political changes, he made France a great nation and became a hero to the French people.
Although he inspired new social, economic, and political ideas, Napoleon Bonaparte is better known for his military tactics. Even today, his battle plans are used and studied by many in the military. Napoleon, who started out as an extremely short and wimpy foreigner who rose to become Emperor of France, died in 1821 at St. Helena, a remote island in the South Atlantic. He was fifty-two years old. Th cause is uncertain: either he was poisoned or he died of a stomach ailment.
later he crowned himself as Emperor King. He turned the French against Europe and took over
He was a big supporter of the revolution and the Directory and served them well. According to the Salem Press Biographical Encyclopedia of January, 2013: “Napoleon’s remarkable early success was in part a matter of good fortune and in part the product of an unconquerable will and energy that took the maximum advantage of every political and military opportunity” (Rollyson). He was a brigadier general for the revolution, but was imprisoned when Jacobins were taken out of power and Thermidorean was sent into it. He however was soon released. With many great victories in Egypt and a powerful marriage, he was a very known and liked man. Napoleon was able to overthrow the Directory in 1799. Napoleon was a great leader and settled the chaos of the revolution down. He was able to restore France’s relationship with the Roman Catholic Church and the Pope in 1801. He proclaimed himself supreme Emperor of France in 1804. He also gave religious freedom to Protestants and Jews. He also published the Napoleonic Code/Civil Code of 1804. This code established political and legal equality for all adult men; therefore, religion no longer had a prejudice in court or people of authorities. With this code; however, he restricted the freedom of speech and freedom of the media. Throughout his career, he expanded France’s borders to the size of an empire. The only reason Napoleon was not able to take all of Europe
With such driving momentum, yet unstable, the French in the late 1700’s needed something or someone who was willing to lead their country, unite them, and bring order to their society. In 1799 Napoleon Bonaparte emerged to become that very man. Controversy wells up now a days as people begin to argue whether this man was a hero or tyrant, however I believe him to be a hero for doing exactly what the French needed at the time. He created a legendary domestic system that modified French society and is still used today, his warfare experience and keen sense of tactics revolutionized military then and for years to come and led France to become a dominant nation in the world, and lastly through his many contributions he created a sense of nationalism and identity nothing like the French had ever had before, all of these accomplishments not only bettering France but the world.
Napoleon’s military career is what eventually led to his prominence. Napoleon began his military career above most of the other men his age. He rapidly made his way through the ranks eventually gaining a great support system. As the directory leaned more and more heavily upon the military, a coup d’état developed. Because of his military expertise, he immediately became first consul of France. The empire of France was soon to grow once Napoleon was in reign. In the 1790s the French army was near one million men, an advantage in the Austrian wars as well as future ventures. Wars raged with other European countries in the early 1800s. Napoleon was able to beat the continental coalition, thus gaining territory for France. France annexed some of Italy but also controlled states such as Spain, Holland ...
...ig concepts, such as equality before the law, but he also did what would benefit his country. It is important to understand that since France had just exited a revolution, it was pretty fragile; one big mistake and France might have ended up in another one. Napoleon was not only a child of both the French Revolution and the Enlightenment, he was also a very intelligent person. His cunning and his wits led him to be one of the greatest, if not the greatest enlightened despot of all time.
During Napoleon’s reign there were numerous events that changed the world however for this essay I will only address three significant events. The first event I will discuss is the Code of Napoleon followed by the Haitian Revolution and finally the sale of Louisiana.
One of the most controversial figures in European History, Napoleon Bonaparte has never ceased to be a generator of debate and analysis among historians, authors, and students. Napoleon has been closely scrutinized by many in attempts to defend or demote his motives, ambitions, and actions as Emperor of France. Nonetheless, those with true qualities of a ruler are few and far between – and Napoleon possessed the drive and ambition to bring these qualities to their full potential. Napoleon was the hero of nineteenth-century France, restoring the country to its former glory after the violence, instability, and turmoil of the French Revolution. Napoleon was the classic underdog, originally viewed as a “second-class Frenchman” due to his Corsican origins, but rising to success based on his own hard work and determination. He demonstrated the most improbable capacity for resilience; although he faced defeat on multiple occasions, he persevered and continually refused to surrender. As well, Napoleon was a protector and enforcer of “Liberté, Egalité, Fraternité” through the promotion of religious freedom and the nationwide application of French laws throughout his rule.
Although in another country Napoleon was still an active member of the Jacobions, (who had just overthrown and murdered the King of France Louis XVI) which angered the monarchist the King of Corsica, who declared the Bonapartes outlaws. Napoleon immediately fled with his family back to France, and rejoined the French military.
...nterests of France”(The Rise and Fall of Napoleon). If Napoleon had not been so greedy and power hungry, he never would never have been defeated. Even though he managed to escape from exile and regain power, and “War was renewed during Napoleon’s ‘Hundred Days,’ but his army was defeated decisively at the Battle of Waterloo(Biesinger), and he was exiled again, this time to Saint Helena, and he stayed there until he died. His last words were “I wish my ashes to rest on the banks of the Seine, in the midst of the French people which I have loved so much…I die before my time, killed by the English oligarchy and its hired assassins” (Godechot).
Napoleon was a excellent military and governmental leader in France during the 1790s. He tried to create an excellent country and even more excellent government system that would make the country better. He was one of the greatest leaders in human history. One of his greatest achievements was the creation of the code of Napoleon. The code of Napoleon was the first time that France had tried to put together a reasonable government system that was fair to everyone. He also changed the tax system in France. He made it where everyone in France was required to pay taxes, and no one was exempt from the taxes. He promoted agriculture in France as well. He went of the building ideas of the Roman Empire and the designs of all his buildings that he build
Napoleon Bonaparte was a ruthless killer who hungered for power alone. He sacrificed much in order to contribute a great deal to the world by winning battles and discovering things such as the Rosetta Stone in Egypt. His thirst for control and power cost him everything he worked so hard for consequently leading to exile.
Because Genoa had sold Corsica to France, it meant that the Bonaparte children could get scholarships and study there. Had this not happened, Napoleon probably would have attended a university in Italy, like his father and would go into business with very little room for advancement anywhere. While he excelled in his courses, Napoleon was not a very popular boy with his classmates. He was often made fun of because he did not learn to speak and write French until the age of ten and he spoke with a thick accent that he kept all his life. He would even say later in life about his schooling, “I lived separately from my schoolmates. I looked for a corner in the school garden and retired there to dream undisturbedly…I was not loved at school: it takes time to acquire people’s love…” In 1784, a 15 year old Napoleon entered France to begin his career as a cadet in the army. He wasa enrolled in the Ecole Royale Militaire (ERM). It has been said that the young Napoleon did not take well the new school. The students there were also of noble blood and as Napoleon would later say they were “infected”, imbeciles who hated all who were not ‘hereditary asses’ like themselves.” After final exams in 1785, He becomes the youngest, 16, and only Coriscan appointed as an officer, lieutenant of the artillery, as he tells his mother in a letter that he works almost nonstop. “I have no diversions here, except work. I wear the new uniform [that of
With all the glory and the splendour that some countries may have experienced, never has history seen how only only one man, Napoleon, brought up his country, France, from its most tormented status, to the very pinnacle of its height in just a few years time. He was a military hero who won splendid land-based battles, which allowed him to dominate most of the European continent. He was a man with ambition, great self-control and calculation, a great strategist, a genius; whatever it was, he was simply the best. But, even though how great this person was, something about how he governed France still floats among people's minds. Did he abuse his power? Did Napoleon defeat the purpose of the ideals of the French Revolution? After all of his success in his military campaigns, did he gratify the people's needs regarding their ideals on the French Revolution? This is one of the many controversies that we have to deal with when studying Napoleon and the French Revolution. In this essay, I will discuss my opinion on whether or not was he a destroyer of the ideals of the French Revolution.
French Revolution brought a great number of great ideas, but ideas are not beneficial unless they are realized and stabilized. The man to stabilize the concepts of French Revolution was Napoleon Bonaparte. He started out as an Italian general and ended up being one of the greatest historical figures. First, Directors requested Napoleon's support while organizing a coup d'etat. Then, Bonaparte fought Britain in order to benefit France. Lastly, he was called to help creating a new constitution and ended up as the First Consul of France. At home, he ruled using flattery, but also he strongly resisted the opposition. Napoleon is a pro-revolutionist because he denied all the privileges of the aristocracy, created a new constitution, and also established the Napoleonic Code.