Napoleon as the Betrayer to the French Revolution
Napoleon Bonaparte has remained one of history's most furiously
debated characters. This is because there has been much speculation
and many differing interpretations of his actions as leader of France
from 1799-1815. Most historians tend to have been torn between the
portraits of Napoleon as the heir of the Revolution or as the
destroyer of the Revolution's most sacred principles. However, a third
opinion has emerged that suggests that Napoleon made revolutionary
ideas practical and therefore acted as a bridge between the Ancien
Regime and the lofty ideals of the Revolution.
Napoleon can be seen as the defender of the French Revolution for
several reasons. When the Revolution broke out in 1789, Napoleon
approved of its rational ideals and carried several of these through
to the Consulate he created in 1799. In fact, Napoleon's Consulate
retained many of its features of the previous two constitutions for
the Directory set up after the Revolution. Napoleon continually used
plebiscites to justify his actions, which implies that his rule was
not one of total autocracy. The legal system was reformed with the
Code Napoleon, which was one of Napoleon's greatest achievements. The
Revolution had wanted to produce one code of laws for the entire
country, which is exactly what Napoleon did. In this way he can be
seen as the 'Son of the Revolution' carrying the teachings of liberty
and equality forward, as he continually asserted that liberty and
equality were at all times his chief concern. Napoleon confirmed the
abolition of the remains of feudalism and ensured that the absolute
monarchy ...
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...ried to find a compromise.
Napoleon created a new form of government in France, reshaped the
boundaries of Europe and influenced revolutionaries and nationalists
all over the world. Emperor Napoleon I had created a new kind of state
in which certain revolutionary ideas (equality under the law, careers
open to merit rather than birth, the abolition of feudalism) were
combined with an authoritarian state structure and a new nobility to
those who served the state well. As time passed, Napoleon increasingly
emulated the court of the old regime monarchy. He hoped to take his
place among the legitimate monarchs of Europe and even married a
Hapsburg to establish his credentials. Therefore I conclude that
Napoleon can neither be defined as either the betrayer or the defender
of the Revolution only as mixture between the two.
During his rule, Napoleon called himself an emperor, but he acted like the kings before him. The French Revolution stood against the idea of one leader with all authority over one country and promoted liberty, equality, and fraternity. The French citizens did not glorify Napoleon as a king because he gave his people sovereignty over political situations. He used plebiscites or voting to spread equality, however, the majority was always in favor of Napoleon. This happened due to fear because he was the strongest man in Europe at the time. He idolized himself as a hero, saving the French people from the
When one looks at France after Napoleon’s reign, it is clear that he had brought much longed for order and stability. He had also established institutions that embodied the main principles of the revolution. However, it is also evident that many of his policies directly contradict those same principles. Was Napoleon betraying the same revolution that gave him power, or was he merely a pragmatist, who recognised that to consolidate the achievements of the revolution he needed to sacrifice some of those principles? Firstly, in order to determine whether Bonaparte betrayed the revolution, it is necessary to define what one means by “the revolution”.
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.
Over a period of time Napoleon's party overthrew Robespierre's party. Soon enough, Napoleon was the dictator of France. The French soldiers who fought in the American Revolution came back from the war with new ideas and reasons for revolution. These ideas included the right to take up arms against tyranny, all men should have liberal freedoms, and a republic superior to a monarchy.
Napoleon was a graduate from military school and was immediately given command of a French Regiment. After leading his men in several pivotal battles in the French Revolution, he was considered a hero by a majority of the French. Along with several high-ranking French officials, he successfully completes a coup d'état, or overthrow, of the Directory. Napoleon named himself "First Consul" for ten years; but after rewriting the Constitution, he established his power indefinitely. Napoleon devised a series of wars to overthrow European governments. When the French overthrew a government, they quickly established a new one; the locals were treated fairly, and the objective was to have one unified government in Europe.
In order to investigate the claim that ‘Napoleon betrayed the revolution’, it has to be determined what is the French revolution? And what are the revolutionary ideals that Napoleon allegedly betrayed? If Napoleon betrayed the Revolution then he betrayed the ideals of liberty, equality and fraternity. However if Napoleon did not betray the revolution, he consolidated the revolutionary ideals. The only way of determining whether Napoleon consolidated or betrayed the revolution is to explore his actions such as his military success, Dictatorship and social reforms. The difficulty of this analysis is that Napoleons motives for his actions determine whether he consolidated or betrayed the 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.
... 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 wits led him to be one of the greatest, if not the greatest, enlightened despots of all time. Works Consulted (none of the above).
How did a man with a promising military career loose it so quickly? Napoleon was one of the greatest military minds but did not always use it correctly, which eventually led to his downfall. This essay will explain what led to the downfall of Napoleon.
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.
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.
Perhaps Napoleon’s most productive reform was his Civil Code, later renamed the Napoleonic Code. This code, which was the first major revision of French laws since the Roman era, enacted many of the reforms demanded for by the Revolution, such as the end of feudalism and equality for all male citizens, and addressed new issues such as freedom of reli...
For example, when he seized power he acquired the title of First Consul and eventually he crowned himself emperor. This demonstrates that Napoleon is selfish because he believed that he was the best person for the job and didn’t think anyone could fulfill the position like he could. The painting “The coronation of Napoleon” by Jacques-Louis David, shows when the egotistical tyrant was crowning himself emperor. This action taken by the emperor led to negative impact in France because it was taking things backwards for France. At this point, France was trying to get rid of a monarchy but when Napoleon crowned himself emperor, it created more of a monarchy. The traitor to the revolution was showing that he cared more about the power belonging to himself rather than the people of France and giving them the option to share their opinions. By becoming emperor, Napoleon did not live up to the revolutionary ideals because he did not try to overthrow the monarchy. One major goal of the revolution was to abolish a monarchy, but Napoleon was encouraging it when he crowned himself. A absolute monarchy is what Napoleon made France even though France was trying to become a constitutional monarchy. This point of the revolution was go away from the ideals and goals, and Napoleon was to blame. The reason that Napoleon crowned himself emperor was because he wanted to have full control over France; having ultimate power. When someone has ultimate power, it contradicts against the idea of liberty because it is not giving people the freedom to say what they
Napoleon Bonaparte is often seen as a tyrant, however; through Napoleon’s strong tactics and military leadership he led France through a time of great turmoil and provided the stability and guidance France so desperately needed. During his reign, Napoleon was able to bring an end to the French Revolution, a series of wars that had fractured the French at their core. After the resolution of the revolution, Napoleon developed the Civil Code or Napoleonic code to unite all of France under one governing law. The Civil Code blended the governing laws of the Roman law practiced in the South with the customary law practiced in the North. Through the Code, Napoleon brought unity to France, improved the rights and lives of citizens, and allowed for France’s own growth and development. The Civil Code is considered one of Napoleon’s
The French Revolution, which occurred from 1789 to 1799, was a time where the monarchy was overthrown, a republic was formed, and limits were put on the church. The French Revolution ended with the rule of Napoleon Bonaparte in 1799. The French Revolution created France’s legislative assembly, which is still in place today. Many would argue that the Enlightment was a cause of the French Revolution, but the Enlightment was not one of the main drivers for the Revolution. The bad living conditions, France’s monarchy, and the involvement in the American Revolution and other wars caused the French Revolution.