Napoleon 's Rise Of Power

By that time, Napoleon had ruled France and surrounding countries for twenty years. Originally an officer in the French Army, he had risen to become Emperor among the political chaos following the French Revolution in which the old ruling French kings and nobility had been destroyed.

Napoleon Bonaparte was an undeniably strong leader of France, however he was not truthful to his inferiors who gave him his power. Napoleon believed he was the master of France and that he had complete power of the country. He looked down upon his peers and the other citizens of France. Bonaparte gained his popularity by standing with the common people during the revolutionary period of France but did not continue with the views he expressed during this period when he became Emperor. Napoleon Bonaparte had many views and beliefs that made him an absolute dictator of France including, making every decision himself, being above everyone in the class systems, and manipulating the citizens of France.

During the Napoleonic Era, from 1799 to 1815, France became a military power gaining and controlling land throughout Europe. While some historians believe Napoleon Bonaparte was a ruthless dictator, his military accomplishments far outweigh any atrocities he committed. He helped France gain stability after the French Revolution and he also abolished the Feudal contract. Napoleon was a brilliant strategist using military tactics to cause fear and to defeat whatever enemies stood in his way. Throughout his rule, Napoleon continually gained ground, and by the end of his reign, his empire encompassed all of Spain, Italy, and a small portion of land by Russia and Austria. (see map) He is one of

During his reign he strived to reestablish French aristocracy, which was eliminated in the French revolution. He began this by putting his family and loyal friends into power giving those titles of the nobility. His power continued to expand across much of western and central continental Europe. It wasn’t until Russia left the continental system that the French would engage in a full scale battle. This battle lead to the downfall of Napoleon rule. With the invasion of Moscow, his army suffered heavy casualties which would then be considered the Battle of Borodino. Russians set fire to the city, forcing Napoleons army to starve, due to harsh weather freeze, and die off. This action became the defeat and end of the Napoleonic Wars.

Impressed by his feats the five main military leaders asked Napoleon to invade England, instead he offered a plan to invade Egypt. After he got the okay to do so Napoleon took over the Egyptian army and its main leaders (www.history.com, www.thefreesource.com). In 1799 Napoleon overthrew the French Directory in an attempt to gain more power. After the defeat he was the leading political figure to most historians (www.history.com). As leader Napoleon improved not only the military of France but also the economy and other parts of the French empire. He helped reform the banks and education system as well as improving the arts and sciences. But his biggest contribution was the Napoleonic code, which was a big part of the legal system in France.(www.history.com, www.thefreesource.com, www.bbc.co.uk). In 1804 Napoleon declared himself emperor of France, which was meant he was the sole leader of this great empire (www.history.com). Napoleon won many battles and his reign stretched from the edge of the border of Spain to Italy and also some parts in Austria and Egypt. It was a strong and powerful empire at the time. The start of Napoleon’s downfall began when Russia broke agreements with France. So Napoleon brought about 600,000 troops into Russia to attack but the Russians were prepared and had the perfect strategy to defeat the French army. The Russians would retreat and keep the French marching

Consequently, as most people of such a high status, Napoleon was expected to do immense things for his country. Such things include bringing peace to France and stopping the political disorder within the country. Most importantly, people wanted him to completely encompass the things that they fought for during the French Revolution. Napoleon himself had said that he had kept the best policies and ideas from the Revolution. With all of these things that Napoleon needed to do, many people looked up to him, making him an even higher figure than before. This let him use his power to generate funds for a more nationalist and patriotic country. He had solved many of the problems people were talking about after rising to power, such as making peace between the government and the church.

Napoleon continued in the Revolutionary tradition of liberating and introducing revolutionary ideals to the territories he claimed for France. In the areas he conquered Napoleon granted constitutions, introduced law codes, abolished feudalism, created efficient governments and fostered education, science, literature and the arts. However these reforms always failed as Napoleon was always attempting the politically impossible. This did not stop Napoleon from continuing his conquests. Napoleons battles were fought in order to consolidate his dictatorship. His Military success initially consolidated the revolution, but once he turned France into a military dictatorship he betrayed the revolution.

Napoleon came to power in France in 1799, when he became the first consul, and shortly after that the emperor of France. The first issue he caused for the Americans was his reacquisition of the Floridas and New Orleans from Spain. Spain allowed the Americans to sail out of the port at New Orleans, but with Napoleon

After the French monarchy was overthrown on August 10, 1792, Napoleon decided to make his move up in the ranks. After this, Napoleon started becoming a recognized officer. In 1792, Napoleon was prompted to the rank of captain. In 1793, he was chosen to direct the artillery against the siege in Toulon. He seized ground where he could get his guns in range of the British ships. Soon after Toulon fell, Napoleon was promoted to the rank of brigadier general. In 1795, he saved the revolutionary government by controlling a group of rioting citizens by using a famous technique of his. He loaded a bunch of pellets into a cannon and fired it at the crowd. Napoleon was made commander of the French army in Italy. He defeated four Austrian generals in succession, and each army he fought got bigger and bigger. This forced Austria and its allies to make peace with France. But after this, Napoleon was relieved of his command. He was poor and was suspected of treason. Napoleon had no friends. No one would have suspected what Napoleon would do next. In 1796, Napoleon was appointed to put down a revolt in Paris. He calmly took complete control of the situation. He had his men shoot all the rebels in the streets. The French government was saved, but they decided to form a new government called the Directory. Under the new government, Napoleon was made commander of the French army in Italy. During this campaign, the French realized how smart Napoleon was. He developed a tactic

- After his triumph driving the British out of Toulon Napoleon was made a brigadier general. With two successful campaigns 1796 he drove the Austrians north of Italy. He was able to make the government of France very dependent on him. His dealings with Italians produced a "Cisalpine" republic modeled after the French with Milan as its capital. After seizing political power in France in a 1799 coup d’état, he crowned himself emperor in 1804. ending when Napoleon Bonaparte staged a coup d'état and declared himself the ruler of France. Essentially, Napoleon ended the French Revolution. Napoleon was successfully leading military campaigns, succeeding both abroad and squelching counter-revolutionary activities at home. While the people

Napoleon Bonaparte was a French military leader and eventual political leader in France who was able to seize power during the end of the French Revolution of the late 1790's and early 1800's. Napoleon was the leader of France from 1804 to 1815 and mostly remembered as a leader in a cycle of European battles. He institutionalized the changes brought about by the French Revolution and sought to spread them throughout Europe. It has been long debated the factors that allowed Napoleon to seize power and eventually crown himself emperor. Such factors that have been considered have been Napoleon's personality, his military exploits, the failings of the Directory, support of the people and army and even sheer luck.

Napoleon Bonaparte will remain in the heart of many French nationals as one of the greatest military leaders that the nation has had when it comes to warfare history. In 1799, Napoleon launched a series of wars, which historian call, “Napoleonic wars” in a bid to extend the territory of France in Europe. Many historians argue that the Napoleonic wars were a continuation of the earlier war under the tag, French revolution in 1789. The French revolution in itself had so many influences in Europe, especially with the armies who felt the greatest impact of the revolution. The revolution brought with it many changes, especially in the production of modern mass weapons with the conscription in place. The new improvements in weaponry made Napoleon seek hegemony in the entire Europe sparking his quest to expand and increase the revolutionary and territorial borders of France. Napoleon, Corsican aristocrat, who was a minor, rose to the position of emperor in France because of the revolution and his idea was to sweep the entire Europe with the reforms brought about by the revolution (Dwyer 32). The idea was to liberate the continent so that all citizens had a chance to take the helm of leadership and do away with the issue of kinship rule. Napoleon was a symbol of change, and although at some point, he comes out as a dictator, he was progressive and created rationalization of governance and all the social

In the late 1790’s, Napoleon Bonaparte was like the rest of the people in France—they were tired of war, revolution and violence. Led by Napoleon, they carried out a coup d’ etat. Napoleon was born on the island of Corsica in 1769 and he became an officer in France. He commanded in many battles and led France to victory with his brilliant tactics. However, he was a general with great ambition, who wanted to rule France.

Napoleon Bonaparte was a French military leader who conquered most of Europe in the early nineteenth century. After a coup in 1799 he crowned himself emperor in 1804. He abdicated the throne after the French attempted to invade Russia in 1812 and exiled, but he returned to power a few years alter only to resign once again after a crushing defeat at the battle of Waterloo and exiled to the island of Saint Helena and died at age 51. Bonaparte was known as an astute, ambitious, and extremely skilled military strategist as he waged war and expanded his empire.

“The presence of sound military forces indicates the presence of sound laws.” France had to assert dominance over the nations around it to show that the revolution did not weaken its resolve to be powerful. Napoleon was a very military-minded man. Even from a young age he was considered a prodigy. An early transfer to the highest military school in France, Ecole Militaire, was granted to him. An instructor there is quoted as saying, “He is most proud, ambitious, aspiring to everything. This young man merits our attention.” Eventually named general at age 24, he successfully led troops throughout Italy. The Italian peninsula was conquered in a year. Military power was burned into him. Once crowned emperor, he he knew claimed control. One of his key policies was conquering the continent around him. As expansion continued outwards, riots at home were easily crushed by the power he possessed. Any discontented citizen in the homeland was placed under watch and taken by the state to ensure relative