A good leader?

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A good leader?

• What do you think makes a good leader?
• With a partner, draw out the 6 characteristics
  of the leader that you would like to live under.

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The Short Corsican
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Background

• Born to Corsican nobility (Corsica is an island
  off the coast of France).
• When he was a boy, Corsica was taken over by
  France.
• His father sent him to military school in Paris
  to improve his life chances. Napoleon resented
  him for this.
• Napoleon did not fit in (his classmates were the
  children of French nobles, they made fun of him)
• He poured his energy into military studies

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Background continued

• Napoleon Bonaparte would have never had a chance
  to become a general under the Old Regime (the
  French were snobby toward outsiders).
• Under the Revolution, all men are created equal.
  If you have talent, intelligence, and a great
  work ethic, then you can be a somebody during the
  Revolution.
• Napoleon had these characteristics.

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French Governments since beginning of Revolution

• Old Regime Monarchy/Estates General
• National Assembly
• Legislative Assembly
• National Convention
• The Directory
• Napoleon

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The Directory

• 1795 National Convention Completes Constitution
• Two house Legislature
• Executive 5 individuals the Directory
• Faced financial difficulties and became unpopular
• Bourgeoisie were leading the government did not
  connect with common people
• Known for corruption (taking bribes, favoritism,
  etc.)

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Napoleon
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Napoleon

• Achieved fame through wars with England and
  Austria between 1795 and 1799 under the directory
• Very short 5 feet two inches
• Very charismatic
• Excellent military strategist
• Married Josephine de Beauharnais a socialite
  her influence had him immediately promoted to
  commander of the French Army

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Napoleon

• Won control of northern Italy for France
• Attacked Egypt to cut of British trade
• England, Austria, Russia allied against France
  many believed only Napoleon could protect France
• 1799 Directory forced out of office by troops
  Napoleon seized command of the government coup
  d etat

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Napoleon 1769-1821

• Since one must take sides, one might as well
  choose the side that is victorious, the side
  which devastates, loots, and burns. Considering
  the alternative, it is better to eat than be
  eaten.
• With this quote from Napoleon to his brother,
  what do you think this means, in relation to the
  French Revolution?

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Napoleon 1799- 1814

• Consulate first five years of Napoleons Rule.
• Executive Branch three consuls w/ Napoleon as
  head consul
• Plebiscite put his new constitution to a popular
  vote

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Napoleon Becomes Emperor

• Napoleons supporters wanted to make his power
  permanent and hereditary
• 1804 Plebiscite declares that Napoleon should be
  emperor
• Grabs crown from Pope and declares himself emperor

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• Napoleon quickly rose up the ranks in the French
  army, specifically after forcing out British
  troops in the French city of Toulon (12/1793)
• By 1799, he was a military leader and now a
  political one as well.
• He helped overthrow the Directory, and created
  the Consul (with him as one of the governmental
  powers).
• By 1802, after yet another Constitution, he had
  himself named Consul for life.

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Emperor of the French?
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• Napoleon asks the Pope to preside over the
  ceremony, but takes the crown from the Popes
  hand and places it upon his own head.
• What do you think this shows?
• As Emperor, Napoleon continually consolidated
  power.
• Consistently strengthening the Central
  Government, and yet the people kept supporting
  him.
• Why?

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 Tax collection was made more fair and orderly
so France could rely on a steady supply of
money. Dishonest government workers were
removed.
Napoleons changes He started lycées-a new public
school for ordinary citizens. He gave the church
back some of its power and signed a concordat or
agreement with the pope to gain support of the
organized church.
 
He wrote a new set of laws called the Napoleonic
Code which gave all French citizens the same
rights. However, some individual rights were
removed. Free speech was limited and slavery was
restored in the French colonies.
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The Napoleonic Code, or Code Civil, entered into
force on March 21, 1804. Even though the
Napoleonic code was not the first legal code to
be established in a European country it is
considered the first successful codification and
strongly influenced the law of other
countries. The Napoleonic Code, formally said,
dealt only with civil law issues, such as
filiation and property It also did not deal with
how laws and regulations were to be passed
which is reserved for a constitution. The Code,
with its stress on clearly written and accessible
law, was a major step in establishing the rule of
law.
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Napoleon hoped to expand his empire in Europe and
the New World. In 1803, Bonaparte faced a major
setback when an army he sent to re-conquer Haiti
and establish a base was destroyed by a
combination of yellow fever and fierce
resistance. Recognizing that the French
possessions on the mainland of North America
would now be indefensible, and facing imminent
war with Britain, he sold them to the United
States the Louisiana Purchasefor less than
three cents per acre. The dispute over Malta
provided the pretext for Britain to declare war
on France in 1803 to support French royalists.
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The Battle of Trafalgar in 1804 was a humiliating
defeat for France
The defeat prevented any possibility of an
invasion of England for Napoleon.
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• Mistake 1
• In 1806 Napoleon attempted to blockade British
  ports to hurt their economy. This Continental
  System was to make the continent more self
  sufficient. The British Navy put their own
  blockade around Europe which weakened Europes
  economy.

The Collapse of Napoleons Empire
Mistake 3 In 1812 Napoleon attempted to conquer
Russia.The Russians retreated and followed a
scorched-earth policy leaving no livestock or
grain for the French Army. The onset of Winter,
attacks and deserters left only 10,000 of the
original 400,000 troops.

• Mistake 2 Napoleon made his brother King of
  Spain in 1808. The Spanish people were loyal to
  their own king. The peasant fighters called
  guerrillas fought against Napoleon in a war
  called The Peninsular War.

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Surrender at Madrid
Retreat from Moscow
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An alliance of Britain, Russia, Prussia, Sweden
and Austria attacked France and defeated
Napoleons Army in 1813 at Leipzig. The Battle of
Leipzig or the Battle of the Nations (16-19
October 1813) was the largest conflict in the
Napoleonic Wars and the most decisive defeat
suffered by Napoleon Bonaparte. Fought on German
soil, it also involved German troops on both
sides, as a large proportion of Napoleon 's
troops actually came from the German
Confederation of the Rhine.  
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First exile

• After some unfortunate battles, Napoleon gives up
  the throne and Louis XVIII is named king. He was
  Louis XVI brother.
• Napoleon is sent to the island of Elba.
• Napoleon returned victoriously with soldiers
  lining the street to follow his return to
  prominence.
• Louis flees France in fear, and Napoleon will be
  Emperor again.

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Ten months after his exile Napoleon escaped,
returning to France. His destination was the city
of Paris. He gained support along his route to
Paris.
He finally marched into Paris with a thousand of
his old soldiers and new supporters. He took over
the city and was back in power for a short period
of time that is now known as "The Hundred Days".
Napoleon's return led him to a final campaign in
Belgium. He was defeated in the Battle of
Waterloo.
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Waterloo 6/18/1815

• The British under Duke of Wellington, with the
  help of the Prussians, crushed the French in
  battle.
• Napoleons loss prompts him to lose power and be
  exiled yet again.
• This time to St. Helena.
• The difference he never returns

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What truly was Napoleon?

• Was he the Revolution on Horseback as he claimed?
• Or was he a traitor to the revolution?

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Where this leads

• The Congress of Vienna (9/1814 to 6/1815)
• This was in the pursuit of peace.
• The Map of Europe was redrawn
• Hereditary monarchies were restored (yep, Louis
  XVIII is back)
• Most powerful person during this process is
  Austrian Prince Clemens von Metternich.
• They never united Germany, which will cause
  problems later.

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End thoughts

• What are your thoughts on Napoleon?
• Was he as bad as some say, or was he truly a
  historic and great leader?