On August 5th, 1769, a child entered the world, and his effect upon history would be profound, Napoleon Bonaparte would one day control an empire that spanned across Europe and Asia, but he would not stop there, for Napoleon would seek to establish the entire world as his empire. The hard-fought wars Napoleon Bonaparte faced upon this conquest coupled with the naval prowess of the English would present a formidable challenge for Napoleon and had he not been stopped at Trafalgar, the world just may have become something completely different than we know it today.
Napoleon Buonaparte was born into a poor Corsican family and through many years of struggle and hard work by his father, Carlo, was schooled in a very prestigious preparatory academy in Champagne, France. One would expect that the most successful dictator and military tactician of all time would have been a genius at a very young age right? Well, in the Case of Napoleon Bonaparte it was indeed the opposite, Napoleon Graduated 48th of his 52 person class with terrible marks within his studies. Although, this may just represent his lack of interest in traditional Victorian society because “At 15, Napoleon pursued his studies at the École Militaire in Paris, and a year later—about half the time it took most cadets to graduate—he was assigned as a second lieutenant in the artillery regiment of Le Fere, a kind of training school for young artillery officers.” (Napoleonic Wars 6). At a very young age, Napoleon entered the military and quickly excelled, working his way up the ranks, through military engagements and corrupt political alliances and by 1804 Napoleon Bonaparte had crowned himself emperor of france.
Now, the Emperor of France “Napoleon Bonaparte set about once a...
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...er the British mainland and established the British isles as part of his empire. Had that occurred the life we live now may become completely different and the world as well. Horatio Nelson effectively changed the course of History with his pivotal naval victory at Trafalgar, so much so the sheer degree of its importance may have been underestimated during the early 19th Century.
Works Cited
Showalter, Dennis. “Trafalgar, Battle of”. Europe 1789-1914: Encyclopedia of the Age of Industry and Empire. Ed Jolen Merriman and Jay Winter, Vol. 5. Detroit: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 2006. Facts on File Inc. 2005.
Richie, Martin; “Napoleonic Wars”. Encyclopedia of Wars vol. 2; Britannica School. Encyclopedia Britannica Inc. 2014.
“Horatio Nelson”. Encyclopedia of World Biography. 2nd edition. Vol. 11. Detroit: Gale 2004. Gale virtual Reference library.
An Historiography Review of Napoleon failed invasion of Russia using Clausewitz and Theodore Evault Dodge books
Napoleon just maintains the goals of the French Revolution since he needed to secure and reinforce his own energy.
DBQ- 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.
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 ...
Napoleon Bonaparte was born on August 15, 1769, to a well-off Corsican family . Legend says that, in a rush to enter the world and fulfill his destiny, Napoleon was delivered abruptly in the Bonaparte household on a threadbare rug that depicted heroic scenes from The Iliad. This story has been dismissed, explaining that the Bonapartes were not wealthy enough to have luxuries such as rugs in their home, and even so, any rugs would have been put away during a hot summer in Corsica . Nonetheless, the legend illustrates that, from birth, Napoleon possessed the drive and ener...
In 1805, while Thomas Jefferson was the President, the world balance of power shook when the British navy defeated the French navy at the battle of Trafalgar, but the French military defeated the British...
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.
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).
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.
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 ...
Reasons for Napoleon's Success · One of Napoleon's great strengths as leader was the devotion of his men. His soldiers adored him. · Despite his generally unprepossessing appearance, when he wished to charm he could quickly win over anyone he met, however initially hostile they might be. Within a couple of days he had completely captivated the officers and crew of Bellerophon taking him to St. Helena in 1815, much alarming the British government.
Monarchs and emperors are prevalent in almost all of European history. But there is one example in European history where there was a leader with a monarch’s mentality without the title. In French history, Napoleon made himself to be that leader. In the era following the French Revolution, Napoleon Bonaparte created for himself – and allegedly the French people – an empire that swept the majority of Europe during the late 18th and early 19th century. Napoleon Bonaparte did in fact make the dreams of the French Revolution a reality but only through manipulation of the vulnerable French people. Although he gave them the peace, nationalism, and equality they desired, he used these as excuses to further his quest for a French empire. This makes
Napoleon Bonaparte is one of the famous figures in French history by 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 in the prestigious capitals of Europe, Milan, Vienna (twice), Berlin, Madrid and Moscow. Napoleon has greatly influenced the Western way of war, not only by the new organization of armies, but also by the optimization of different capabilities and the combination between leadership and creativity in the battlefields.