Napoleon Forges an Empire

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Chapter 7-3

• Napoleon Forges an Empire

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Goals and objectives

• Upon completion students should be able to
• Explain how Napoleon came to power.
• Summarize how Napoleon restored order in France
• Describe the extent and weaknesses of Napoleons
  empire.

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Napoleon Grasps the Power

• Napoleon was recognized as one of the worlds
  greatest military geniuses and deeply impacted
  the western world.
• Napoleon Bonaparte was born in 1769 in Corsica
  went to military school at age 9.

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Making a name for himself

• He joined army of the new government at the start
  of the revolution.
• He made a name for himself by defeating royalists
  on a march at the National Assembly.

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Napoleon Grasps the Power

• In 1796 the Directory appointed Napoleon to lead
  the French army and he won key battles to save
  the French Republic
• He became hero for defending France against
  Austria and Sardinia forces

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Napoleon takes power

• Upon his return from Egypt in 1799, Napoleon ,
  with the help of his wife Josephine, seized
  political control from the Directory (coup
  detat)
• Napoleon quickly set up dictatorship.
• Eventually Napoleons successes on the
  battlefield led to peace in Europe, and he
  focused on restoring order in France.

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II) Napoleon Rules France

• Napoleon in 1800 set up a plebiscite or vote of
  the people to try to create the image of being a
  freely elected dictator.
• Napoleon gained power when voters approved the
  4th constitution in 8 years, giving all power to
  Napoleon as 1st counsel.

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Napoleon as administrator

• Napoleon supported the ideas of the revolution
  and created a strong central government.
• Napoleon also created a centralized tax system
  and national bank while making the government
  more efficient free of corruption.
• He created a system of public schools known as
  lycees.

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Napoleon Rules France

• Napoleon signed a concordat (agreement) with Pope
  Pius VII starting a new relationship with the
  church.
• The government would appoint bishops but the
  bishops would appoint the parish priests.

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The Napoleonic Codes

• Napoleon thought his greatest achievement was the
  publishing of his comprehensive systems of laws
  know as the Napoleonic Code.
• The code eliminated many injustices, but it took
  away some rights and restored slavery.
• Napoleon gave France order and stability, and
  crowned himself as emperor of France, taking the
  crown from the Pope and placing it on his own
  head.

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III) Napoleon Creates an Empire

• Napoleon was not satisfied being the head of
  France, he wanted to control all of Europe
  making France the power in the world.
• Napoleon unsuccessfully sold the Louisiana
  Territory to the United States for 15 million
• Napoleon abandoned his imperial ambitions in the
  New World and turned his attention to Europe.
• Fearful of Napoleons ambitions, Britain
  persuaded Russia, Austria, and Sweden to ally
  against France.

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Napoleon Creates an Empire

• Napoleon met this challenge with his usual
  boldness, and in a series of brilliant battles
  crushed the opposition.
• Eventually the rulers of Austria, Prussia, and
  Russia all signed peace treaties with France, and
  Napoleon built the largest European empire since
  the Romans.
• Although he conquered much of Europe, but his
  navy was defeated by the British in the Battle of
  Trafalgar.
• Napoleons power made conquered people more
  conscious of their own national loyalty.
  (nationalism)