Napoleon Bonaparte Research Paper

1541 Words4 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: French revolution and its impact in Europe

2. Historical Context

Napoleon Bonaparte- He was the first Consul of France and his armies had many victories. By 1807 France had control over land that stretched from Portugal to Italy and north of the river Elbe. However, Napoleon was unable to conquer the remainder of Europe. Napoleon was defeated in Moscow in 1812 and later Napoleon was exiled to the Island of Elba in 1814. By next year Napoleon was able to return to France and gain power. In 1815 France lost to the Duke of Wellington at the Battle of Waterloo. France lost at the Battle of waterloo caused Napoleon to be exiled to the island of St Helena, which is where he eventually died.

http://www.infoplease.com/biography/var/napoleonbonaparte.html

Napoleon Bonaparte is relevant …show more content…

It is evident that the Napoleonic wars were ending at the beginning of the novel because according to the novel, “Napoleon was the king of the Isle of Elba, ruling over a population of five or six thousand after hearing the shots of “Long live Napoleon!” from a hundred and twenty million subjects in ten different languages, was regarded by these people as a man whose downfall is complete and final (20).” Napoleon was sent to the Island of Elba in 1814 and the Napoleonic wars concluded in …show more content…

Symbols from the French Revolution were mention throughout the novel. Equality and the guillotine are symbol of the French Revolution and on page 21 it says,”Robespierre represented ‘lowering’ equality: he brought kings to the guillotine, while Napoleon represented an ‘elevating’ equality: he raised the people to the level of the throne.” Also the French Revolution allowed new people into the elite, which allowed women like Mercedes to become a countess.

Louis XVIII- After the French revolution Louis XVIII became the first ruler of the restored monarchy. After most of Louis XVIII family died during the French Revolution, he declared himself monarch. Louis XVIII reign was the first test with constitutional monarchy in France. He was able to stay in throne till his death.

http://www.biography.com/people/louis-xviii-21341443

Louis XVIII is relevant to the novel because it is because of Louis XVIII reinstatement that Villefort, from the novel, decides to become a royalist. It is evident that Villefort is a Royalist because on page 21 he says, “I am a royalist and my name is Villefort.” During the bethrothal feast Villefort and other Royalist “toast to King Louis XVII” (20), which shows Louis XVII significance in the

Show More
Related

  • DBQ On Napoleon Bonaparte's Rule In France

    673 Words  | 2 Pages

    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.

    Read More

  • Louis XIV's Similarities to Machiavelli's The Prince

    781 Words  | 2 Pages

    Louis XIV was born on September 5, 1638, and ruled as King of France and of Navarre from May 14, 1643 until his death at the age of 76. He took over the throne a few months before his fifth birthday, but didn't actually assume actual control of the government until his First Minister, Jules Cardinal Mazarin, died in 1661. He was to become King of France after his father, Louis XIII, died of tuberculosis. He achieved the role of king by ways of hereditary monarchy, which is one of the ways to become a ruler, as stated by Machiavelli. Louis XIV is known as the 'The Sun King' and also known as 'Louis the Great.' He ruled over France for seventy-two years, which is the longest reign of any French or any other major European ruler and increased the power and influence of France in Europe, by fighting three major wars. These wars are known as the Franco-Dutch War, the War of the League of Augsburg, and the War of the Spanish Succession. Under Louis XIV, France achieved political and military pre-eminence, and also achieved cultural dominance with various cultural figures. He worked to successfully create an absolutist and centralized state.

    Read More

  • How much does Napoleon owe to the French Revolution?

    1006 Words  | 3 Pages

    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.

    Read More

  • King Louis Xiv Research Paper

    1292 Words  | 3 Pages

    O: Rage and revolt can describe the country of France at the time of the Revolution faced because of turmoil and struggle they faced. Different estates were formed based on what you did and your class in society. The people of society wanted more say in the government and decisions that King Louis XVI made. The public didn't approve with much of what King Louis did. His lack of ability to be a strong king and leader affected his reputation to the public eye. King Louis was tried for committing treason to the country of France. Treason is the attempt to kill a sovereign and overthrow the government. Some of the reasons were his attempt to flee to Varennes, living in Versailles which was not in Paris, and reforms he passed as a ruler. These actions performed by King Louis isn’t what a King does, but that doesn’t prove any

    Read More

  • Mid term exam

    877 Words  | 2 Pages

    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.

    Read More

  • Napoleon's Conflict with Russia

    883 Words  | 2 Pages

    Napoleon's Conflict with Russia Napoleon was one of the greatest military leaders of all time. By 1812 Napoleon had expanded the territory of France all over Europe including Spain, Italy, Holland, and Switzerland. The countries that Napoleon did not directly control, he was usually allied with.

    Read More

  • Louis XIV

    669 Words  | 2 Pages

    Louis XIV is a paradigm of European monarchs. He was known as Louis the Great, The Grand Monarch, and the Sun King. Louis lived from 1638 until 1715. He reigned as king of France from 1643 until 1715. He was actually in power from 1661 until 1715.

    Read More

  • napoleon and frederick the great

    541 Words  | 2 Pages

    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.

    Read More

  • Liberté, Egalité, Fraternité: The French Revolution

    2154 Words  | 5 Pages

    Kreis, Steven. "Lecture 15: Europe and the Superior Being: Napoleon." The History Guide Main. 28 Feb. 2006. 28 Apr. 2009

    Read More

  • The Most Successful Absolute Monarch in Europe was Louis XIV of France

    1549 Words  | 4 Pages

    In order to gain the power he desired as an absolute monarch, Louis used a few key techniques that were very successful. His first and most necessary step to get all control was to take all of the nobles’ power, and make it so they were completely under his control. He first did this by taking the nobles’ positions of power, and either getting rid of them by doing it himself, or giving the jobs to loyal middleclass or some nobles who were completely loyal and under his control. Louis had very simple reasoning for doing this, which was that if the nobles had any power or control, they would have a better chance of overthrowing him, and that since there can only be so much total power, the more they had, the less ...

    Read More

  • The Enlightment Caused the French Revolution

    1409 Words  | 3 Pages

    Prior to the revolution, King Louis XVI was at the top of the ancien régime, the social, economic, and political structure in France, which means he had absolute power. When he received the throne in 1774, it came along with insoluble problems. The people were split into three estates which divided social class. The first estate consisted of 100,000 tax exempt nobles who owned 20% of the land. The second estate consisted of the 300,000 tax exempt clergy who owned 10% of the land. The third estate consisted of the remaining 23.5 million French people who were 90% peasants. The third estate was the only estate that paid taxes. Their taxes ensured the financial well-being of the clergy, state, and nobles (French Revolution Overview 6).

    Read More

  • Napoleon's Return to France

    1027 Words  | 3 Pages

    Napoleon returned to home to France with only about 10% of his Army still alive. He lost most of his soldiers during the Great White Death, which is one of the largest French disasters to date. Since all the coalition allies knew he was in trouble, they decided to follow him and take him out while he was down and burned out. This is when he decided to give himself up and be exiled to Elba with 1000 guards. Before he left though, he promised his men that he, “… would return when the flowers bloomed.” And that was a promise that Napoleon kept.

    Read More

  • Napoleon: Hero or Tyrant?

    1475 Words  | 3 Pages

    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 ...

    Read More

  • King Louis XIV: A Disastrous Ruler

    886 Words  | 2 Pages

    King Louis XIV's 72 year reign was incredibly influential in shaping French history. King Louis XIV’s childhood was traumatic because of “La Fronde” which was a noble rebellion against the monarchy. This experience taught King Louis XIV to distrust the nobles. It was for this reason that he eventually excluded nobility from the council and surrounded himself with loyal ministers whom he could control. He also separated the aristocracy from the people of France by moving the court to the Palace of Versailles. One of the most notable of King Louis XIV’s decisions was that he refused to appoint another Prime Minister after the death of Prime Minister Mazarin. Every decision, from the declaration of war to the approval of a passport, went through him personally. During his reign as king, France participated in several wars including the War of Devolution, in Anglo-Dutch War, and the War of the Spanish Succession. Another major action he took was the proclamation of the Edict of Fontainebleau, which revoked the Edict of Nantes, imposing religious uniformity through Catholi...

    Read More

  • Louis Xvi's Major Mistakes

    840 Words  | 2 Pages

    Louis XVI was the king of France prior to the revolution and during the first few years of the revolution. His reign ended with him being beheaded due to his mistakes during the revolution. Although he had power for a number of years prior to the revolution and his family held power for a number of years before this, the public no longer saw a king as the right fit for their lifestyle. They wanted a say in how their country was run. They wanted to be a part of the country’s politics.

    Read More

More about Napoleon Bonaparte Research Paper

Open Document