Napoleonic Code Pros And Cons

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Napoleon was out to build an empire, but force, and to aggrandize him-self and France. The people of France, for a while, accepted this ego boost and went along with it (until the deaths started happening). In the USA people wanted to build the USA as a country, but mostly by occupying and developing what they considered empty or under used land (the land that Napoleon conquered,was with people and highly used for farms). While both wanted to annex more land, their view of the land and those people's were widely different. On March 21, 1804, Napoleon instituted the Napoleonic Code, otherwise known as the French Civil Code, parts of which are still used around the world today. The Napoleonic Code forbade privileges based on birth, allowed freedom of religion, and stated that government jobs be given to the most qualified. …show more content…

The Napoleonic Code followed Napoleon's new constitution, which created the first consul position amounted to nothing less than a dictatorship. Following the Revolution, unrest continued in France; in June of 1799, a coup resulted in the left-wing radical group, the Jacobins taking control of the Directory. Working with one of the new directors, Emmanuel Sieyes, Napoleon hatched plans for a second coup that would place the pair along with Pierre Roger Ducos atop a new government called the Consulate. With the new guidelines, the first consul permitted to appoint ministers, generals, civil servants, magistrates and even members of the legislative assemblies. Napoleon would of course be the one who would fulfill the first consul's duties. In February 1800, the new constitution was easily

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