“In order to govern, the question is not to follow out a more or less valid theory but to build with whatever materials are at hand. The inevitable must be accepted and turned to advantage.” Napoleon Bonaparte, leader of nations, conquer of worlds. As a leader he created something out of nothing many times in his life. He created a new era of warfare and took France to new heights of power, but by the end had brought her years of war and destruction(Dugdale-Pointon). He personally directed complex military maneuvers and at the same time controlled France’s press, police system, foreign policy, and domestic affairs (Blaufarb). So how did he accomplish these things?
Napoleon was born on August 15th, 1769 at Ajaccio on the Mediterranean island of Corsica (Chew). His birth name was Napoleone Di Buonaparte. Later in his life he changed it to Napoleon Bonaparte, and again to his now known name Napoleon I. Having 7 siblings, he was the second son of a family of kings, queens, princesses, and politicians. His father was a lawyer who had minor connections and was far from wealthy (Dugdale-Pointon). Surprisingly enough, he had no birth advantages or family wealth and all of his later achievements would be accomplished by his own skill and ability.
In 1796 he married his first wife Josephine de Beauharnais, a woman of French descent from Martinique in the West Indies. Her first husband had been executed by guillotine during the revolution. When Napoleon met her, she was a prominent leader of fashionable French society, six years older than him, and had two children by her first husband, Vicomte Alexandre de Beauharnais. His Second marriage was due mostly in part to his fear of what would happen to his kingdom when he was gone and so he ...
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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.
Bard, Mitchell G. The Complete Idiot's Guide to world War II, Macmillan Publishing, New York, New York, 1999
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 ...
5. Margiotta, Franklin D., Ed. “Brassey’s Encyclopedia of Military History and Biography”, Washington: Brassey’s, Inc. 1994
O'Neill, William L. World War II: A Student Companion. New York: Oxford UP, 1999. Print.
Napoleon was a great soldier that graduated from military school at the age of sixteen and quickly worked his way through the ranks. Napoleon was a brilliant leader in battle and consistently defeated armies larger than his own; including when he forced the Austrians to make peace after defeating four of their generals. In 1799 Napoleon and his colleagues overtook the French government and established power. He revised the constitution in 1802 to make himself consul for life, and then again in 1804 to make himself Emperor of France. Soon after Napoleon came to power he restructured the administration, simplified the court system, and began monitoring the schooling system; French law was also put in the Napoleon Code which guaranteed the rights and liberties that were gained through the revolution. Napoleons violent behavior caused war with Britain to break out, who allied with Russia and Austria. Prussia later allied themselves with Russia; creating a huge alliances against France and Napoleon. Napoleon successfully extended his reign over large parts of Europe and put each state under the Napoleon Code, which gave citizens new rights and privileges. In 1812 all of Europe turned against Napoleon, which lead to his exile in 1814. He regained power in 1815 just to loose it later that year. He died in exile in Saint Helena in 1821.
Napoleon Bonaparte was an undeniably strong leader of France, however he was not truthful to his inferiors who gave him his power. Napoleon believed he was the master of France and that he had complete power of the country. He looked down upon his peers and the other citizens of France. Bonaparte gained his popularity by standing with the common people during the revolutionary period of France but did not continue with the views he expressed during this period when he became Emperor. Napoleon Bonaparte had many views and beliefs that made him an absolute dictator of France including, making every decision himself, being above everyone in the class systems, and manipulating the citizens of France.
Trapp, James. The art of war: a new translation. New York: Chartwell Books, 2012. Print.
Napoleon had four children: Napoleon II, Eugene, Charles Leon, and Stephanie. He also had many grandchildren, including Augsaste de Beauharnais. Napoleon once stated, "Medicine is only for old people." He died on May 5th, 1821, from cancer at Longwood House, where he lived after being exiled to the Island of Saint Helena. Longwood House is on a windswept plain 61 miles from Jamestown.
But, most importantly, Napoleon did what he thought would make his country stronger. One of Napoleon’s first areas of concern was in the strengthening of the French government. He created a strong centralized government and pretty much got rid of the hundreds of localized law codes that had existed while under the control of the monarchy. He also created an army of government officials. He had the entire country linked under a rational administration.
Napoleon lived from the years 1769 to 1821. He became commander of the French Army in Italy in 1796 (pg. 589). He then made Austria make peace with Italy. From then he was completely in charge of the French Army as well as being the Emperor of France which gave him even more power. He led his men through great victories, all the while conquering much of Europe (http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/historic_figures/bonaparte_napoleon.shtml). In 1812 he decided that he wanted to take over Russia. He led his men into the harsh Russian terrain, thinking that they could easily and quickly take down the Russian Army. However he was very wrong. The Russians didn’t engage in any type of battle. Instead they went ahead and made sure that the French could no access any food or shelter, knowi...
This paper examines the factors that explain the rise and downfall of Napoleon Bonaparte I in France. His goal was to conquer all of Europe and throughout his life he nearly succeeded. He rose through the confusion of the French revolution to become Emperor of the French. Napoleon had once said, “I am the Revolution,” and he never ceased to remind the French that they owed to him the preservation of all that was beneficial in the revolutionary program. (Spielvogel, 2007)
Napoleon Bonaparte was born in 1769 in Corsica, Italy. He was part of a noble family, however it was undistinguished, and he had Italian linage. At age 10 he was sent to France for an education, later studied at the prestigious Military Academy in Paris.1 He prepared for a career as an artillery solder in the French military. It is widely assumed that Napoleon chose this field because there was less aristocracy than in other divisions. He was minor officer until 1793, but the seizer of power by the Jacobins gave him a chance to advance his career. He shared political ideas with the Jacobins. As a result, the Jacobins gave Napoleon the title Brigadier General for some of France and Italy. When the Jacobs fell, Napoleon gave his services to the government of the Directory.2 Napoleon led French soldiers on many campaigns around Europe and gained a lot of land for the French, he became a national hero. During one of Napoleons campaigns, it became known to Napoleon that the director...