Napoleon Bonaparte is regarded as one of the greatest military and political masterminds in the history of man. Napoleon’s brilliance led him through extremely successful Italian campaigns, major battles against the Third Coalition and helped him rule politically to keep the gains of the revolution. Napoleon, through his military conquests and political alterations, made France a great nation.
Napoleon Bonaparte was born on August 15th, 1769 in small town of Ajaccio on the island of Corsica. He had seven siblings, and his father was a lawyer whose family stemmed from the Florentine nobility. In 1779, Napoleon went to school at Brienne in France. There he took a great interest in history, especially in the lives of great ancient generals. Napoleon was often badly treated at Brienne because he was not as wealthy as his fellow classmates were, and being short for his age did not help. Along with those shortcomings he did not speak French well, because mainly Italian was spoken in Corsica. He studied very hard so that he could do better than those who mocked him. Napoleon attended the Ecole Military School in Paris in 1784. This is where he received his military training to become an artilleryman and an officer. Napoleon finished his training and joined the French army at the age of sixteen years old. He was appointed to an artillery regiment, and commissioned as a lieutenant. Napoleon spent the next seven years reading the works of the philosophers, and educating himself in military matters by studying the campaigns of great military leaders of the past.
The French Revolution and the European wars broadened Napoleon’s sights and presented him with new opportunities. Napoleon was a supporter of the French Revolution; he went back and forth between Paris and Ajaccio, working for the Republic. Napoleon rose quickly through the ranks and became a captain in 1792. At the age of 25, only one year after becoming captain, Napoleon performed so well that he was promoted to the rank of Brigadier General. He was given command of the artillery at Toulon, and in December of that same year, the French forced the English out of Toulon. The commander in chief wrote: “I have no words to describe the merit of Bonaparte. Much science, as much intelligence, and too much bravery.”
In August of 1794 Napoleon was arrested because he had been a supporter of Robespierre, a radica...
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...aty of Pressburg Napoleon made himself king of Italy, his brother Joseph, king of Naples, and another brother Louis king of Holland. In October of 1806 Napoleon went to war again. He defeated the Prussians in the battle of Jena, and captured Berlin. The Prussian king fled to Russia and Napoleon advanced through Poland. While away he was in constant communications with Paris. He received word every day of its internal affairs even though he was 1500 miles away. On February 8th, 1807, Napoleon fought a battle with the Russians at Eylan Germany to a draw. Then on June 14th he destroyed the Russian army at Friedland, Germany. After this battle Napoleon and Alexander I met at Tilsit. Together they divided Europe with Napoleon obviously claiming the larger share. Now except for England, the Bonaparte family now ruled the whole of Western Europe. ix
Napoleon Bonaparte is regarded as one of the greatest military and political masterminds in the history of man. Through his extremely successful Italian campaigns, his revolutionary changes in the French government and battles against the Third Coalition Napoleon gave France total domination over Western Europe and to become a great nation.
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.
Napoleon was a military general that participated in multiple war victories. His interests included history, law, and mathematics. His strengths as a leader benefitted in planning financial, legal, and military plans. His aspiring attitude made him believe he was destined to be the savior of France (Coffin & Stacey, 494). He favored a republic over a constitutional monarchy. When Napoleon came to power, he immediately consolidated personal power by overthrowing the five-man Directory and created a Republic. Napoleon used his status and power during the Revolution to bring out and surface Revolution ideals and help his people. Napoleon’s role in European history was the savior of the French Revolution due to the fact he accomplished most objectives that the people hoped for. Goals of the French Revolution included overthrowing the old regime of an absolute monarch, write a basic and worthy constitution, and give more rights to the third estate and limit the first and second estates power in the Estates-General.
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’s “coup d’etat of 18 brumaire was an insurance against both the Jacobin revolution and the Royalist restoration.” The French people expected Napoleon to bring back peace, order and to consolidate the political and social conquests of the Revolution. Napoleon considered these conquests to be “the sacred rights of property, equality and liberty.” If Napoleon gained power with the promise of upholding the principles of the French Revolution, how did he betray the revolution? Many historians argue that Napoleon was an effective but ambitious leader.
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 was born on August 15, 1769, at Ajaccio, in Corsica. His parents were Charles Marie Bonaparte and Marie-Letizia Ramolino who also lived in Corsica.. Although Corsica was Napoleon's home most of his schooling was conducted in France. On December 15, 1778, at the age of nine, Napoleon left Ajaccio to go and study the French Language at a school in Brienne. Later, at the age of sixteen, Napoleon decided to enter the artillery so that maybe his brains and industry would balance his lack of outward advantages. On October 28, 1785 he joined the LA Fere located in Valence. A little over ten years later he decided to get married to Joshephine de Beauharnais from Martinique in the Indies. After many years of marriage, Napoleon realized that his wife was getting older and he had no heirs, so in 1809 he divorced her to look for a younger bride. In 1810 he met and married Archduchess, Marie Louise the eighteen-year-old daughter of Emperor Francis I of Austria. During their marriage Napoleon and his new wife conceived one child, a boy also named Napoleon.
Bonaparte was born in Corsica and trained as a military officer in. He became a commander
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 during under the control of the monarchy. He also created an army of government officials. He had the entire country linked under a rational administration. He also was able to get an easy supply of taxes and soldiers under his new and improved French government. Before he could get very far, however, he had to gain public favor and shape the public opinion. To do this he used reforms of propaganda and thus caused people to think that they were getting the better end of the deal, but were actually, subconsciously giving Napoleon their approval for his actions. Among some of the methods he used for propaganda included getting all of the printers and book sellers to swear an oath to Napoleon and all newspapers fell under state control, so Napoleon gained access to almost everything that the citizens of France were able to read. Many of the gains from the French Revolution were kept, such as equality before the law, and careers open to talent. Some anti-revolution actions that Napoleon took included repressing liberty, restoring absolutism, and ending political liberty. He believed that allowing political freedom would end with a state of anarchy. He believed that he could solve these problems by acting in favor of the people’s interests as an enlightened desp...
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.
Napoleon Bonaparte is one of the most famous figures in French history for the importance of his internal reforms. However, he remains primarily in global memory as one of the greatest military commanders in history. Indeed, Napoleon Bonaparte delivered more battles than Alexander the Great, Hannibal, or Caesar. His campaigns covered all Europe from Spain to Russia, without forgetting the East with Egypt and Syria. The French Emperor entered the prestigious capitals of Europe, Milan, Vienna (twice), Berlin, Madrid and Moscow.