-
Period: to
Makes his way up in the military
Napoleon proved himself to be a promising military leader during the years of 1793-1796. He successfully forced British troops out of the port of Toulon, and at age 26, stopped a royalist mob’s attempt to regain power in Paris. His victories gained him recognition and earned him the position of defending the French interior. As he rose in rank, he continued to rise to the challenge by keeping the borders of France secured, and winning territory for France. -
Period: to
Italian Campaign
Napoleon takes over the French "Army of Italy.” With his army, Napoleon has a major victory– he defeats the Papal States, drives the Austrians and Sardinians from Piedmont, and takes Venice. -
Coup D'etat- the transfer of powers
The Coup D'etat happened in November of 1799. This was when armed Napoleon supporters gathered and forced the members of the Directory legislature to turn the government over to Napoleon. It established Napoleon as the First Consul of France. -
Period: to
Napoleonic Wars
The Napoleonic wars were a series of wars begun by Napoleon on his journey to conquering Europe. During these wars, France became the dominant power in Europe, and was growing rapidly under Napoleon's power. These wars ended in 1815 along with Napoleon's military career. -
Napoleonic Code
The Napoleonic code made laws across France uniform. This code was drafted by Jean-Jacques de Cambacérès (the Second Consul under Napoleon and his trusted advisor), and while eliminating many injustices, it promoted authority and order over individual rights. -
Emperor Napoleon the I
Napoleon posed the question “do you want to declare France an empire?” to voters. Voters answered “yes”, leading to Napoleon being named Emperor Napoleon the I. Pope Pius VII travelled from Rome to crown Napoleon, but as he was about to be crowned officially, Napoleon grabbed the crown and placed it on his head himself– this action symbolized that no one other than himself can give him his authority and power. He wanted to build an empire, rule Europe, and extend his power to the Americas. -
Trafalgar and Austerlitz
In the battle of Trafalgar, the British navy defeated the combined French and Spanish navy. Two months after this defeat, Napoleon earned a land victory at Austerlitz against Prussian and Austrian troops. Austerlitz is seen as one of Napoleon's best battles, and his greatest victory. -
Russian Campaign
During the Russian Campaign, Napoleon gathered a massive army to march alongside him to Moscow. In August, the French and Russian armies finally clashed and suffered many casualties. The French came out victorious, and the The Russian army retreated. Napoleon and his remaining men pushed forward, and found Moscow deserted and burned to the ground. This left Napoleon's troops suffering, forced to make their way back to France with no shelter or food during the long Russian winter. -
Napoleon exiled to Elba
Napoleon suffered clear defeat at the Battle of Leipzig, forcing him to renounce his throne as emperor of France. He was exiled to the small island of Elba on the Mediterranean where he was still an emperor: he held power and even had his own Navy. -
Congress of Vienna
The Congress of Vienna was a long-lasting conference between representatives/ambassadors of the major powers in Europe. Their intention was to redraw Europe's political map after the defeat of Napoleon. -
French defeat at Waterloo
The Prussian, Seventh Coalition, and Anglo armies outsmarted Napoleon, and were able to defeat him. Napoleon's brief return to power ended with his defeat at Waterloo. -
Napoleon's 100 days
Napoleon escaped from exile in Elba, and marched to Paris collecting the army as he went. When he arrived in Paris, he had a brief return to power starting on March 20, and his period of renewed power was called Napoleon's “100 days”. -
Napoleon exiled to Saint Helena
Napoleon was captured by the British in his attempt to escape to the United States, and sent to exile in Saint Helena. He remained in Saint Helena for 6 years until his death.
