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Napoleon's Birth
In the year 1769, Napoleon Bonaparte was born on the Mediterranean island of Corsica. -
Became a Lieutenant
In 1785, in the age of 16, he became a lieutenant in the artillery. Then, he joined the army when the Revolution broke out. -
Chance of Glory
In October of 1795, Napoleon got a chance of glory: he defended delegates from royalist rebels, causing the attackers to leave, so he became hero of Paris and was known as the savior of the French republic. -
Leading French Army
In 1796, Napoleon was appointed to lead a French army (against the forces of Austria and the Kingdom of Sardinia) and had a lot of remarkable victories. Napoleon then led an expedition to Egypt (with the purpose of protecting French trade interest and to disrupt British trade with India), where his naval forces got defeated. -
French Army
In 1796, Napoleon was appointed to lead a French army (against the forces of Austria and the Kingdom of Sardinia) and had a lot of remarkable victories. Napoleon then led an expedition to Egypt (with the purpose of protecting French trade interest and to disrupt British trade with India), where his naval forces got defeated. -
Seizure of Power
In November 1799, Napoleon took action to seize power. His troops surrounded national legislature and its members. This sudden seizure of power is called the Coup d’Etat. -
Constitutionally Chosen Leader
Napoleon pretended to be the constitutionally chosen leader. In 1800, a plebiscite was held to approve the new constitution. The people approved and gave all real power to Napoleon (he was now a consul). -
Napoleonic Code
Napoleon didn’t return to the nation when King Louis XVI was still there. He supported laws that strengthened the central government, and achieved goals from the Revolution, and also he wanted to stabilize economy. Napoleon built a relationship between church and the State, and gained their support. Then he made the Napoleonic code which he made to get rid of injustices, but it did the opposite thing. -
Sugar Industry
In 1801, Napoleon decided to take the colony back and to restore its sugar industry; however, the French forces were devastated by disease and the rebels were great fighters. Napoleon then decided to cut his losses in the Americas and offered to sell all Louisiana Territory; President Jefferson’s administration agreed to buy it for $15 million. Napoleon got rewarded in two ways when he sold the territory: he gained money for future operations and he punished the British. -
Napoleon as Emperor
In 1804, Napoleon made himself emperor and the French voters supported him. In December 2, 1804, Napoleon walked down the Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris. The pope had the crown in his hand and Napoleon took it from him, since Napoleon wanted to show that he was more powerful than the church. -
Period: to
Expand his influence
1804: Napoleon turned to Europe as he abandoned New World Imperial ambitions, and he looked to expand his influence. In 1804, the British persuaded Sweden, Austria, and Russia to join against France. 1805: After the battle of Austerlitz, Napoleon issued a proclamation that made rulers of Austria, Prussia, and Russia signed peace treaties. This helped him build the largest European empire. -
Expand his influence
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Continental System
In November 1806, Napoleon set up a blockade to prevent all communication/trade between Great Britain and other nations; this was known as the Continental System, as it was supposed to make continental Europe self-sufficient. This blockade wasn’t tight enough, however, as there was still trade going on between Britain and Europe, so the British decided to create their own blockage. -
Defeated by Spain
When Napoleon tried to get to Portugal through Spain, many Spanish people were against the idea. Due to their anger, he put his brother as the King of Spain, and that infuriated the Spanish people. In response, they Spanish guerrillas attacked French armies, and also the British gave aid to the Spanish. This act was the Peninsular War, and Napoleon lost a lot of men. -
Fear of losing his empire
Napoleon was scared of losing his whole empire after he died, and that’s why he wanted to have a son so he could lead after the death. He divorced his current wife, Josephine, because she couldn’t have babies. Then he married with Marie Louise. This year, he had a son, Napoleon II, with Marie Louise. -
U.S. congress declared war on Britain
The British began stopping neutral ships bound for the continent (to tax and search them), so the U.S. congress declared war on Britain in 1812 (they were one of the neutral ships stopped by Britain); the war lasted for only 2 years and had little impact on Britain’s struggle with Napoleon. -
Russian Invasion
Napoleon decided to invade Russia, but Alexander refused to send out his troops (when the battle was clearly unfair, since Napoleon went with an army of 420,000). Due to this, the Russians practiced a scorched-earth policy, where they would burn grain fields and slaughter livestock so that their enemy would have nothing. -
Battle of Borodino
On September 7, 1812, two armies clashed in the Battle of Borodino and Napoleon moved on to moscow, but Alexander set it up in flames so that his enemies couldn’t have it; Napoleon stayed in the destroyed city until the middle of October, when he wanted to return to France. In early November however, Russian raiders attacked Napoleon’s retreating army; the retreat from Moscow had a huge impact against the Grand Army (only 10,000 were left to fight). -
New Army
Napoleon managed to raise a new army in a few months, and he was ready to face the allied armies of the European powers outside Germany in October 1813. The allied forces defeated his inexperienced army and the French resistance crumbled quickly. -
Napoleon Surrenders
By January of 1814, the armies were headed towards Paris; two months later, King Frederick William III (of Prussia) and Czar Alexander I (of Russia) led their troops through a triumphant parade on the French capital. Napoleon wanted to fight but his generals denied. In April 1814, Napoleon accepted to surrender and give up his throne, so he was exiled to Elba (tiny island off Italian shore). -
Napoleon's Death
When King Louis XVI died, Napoleon tried to regain power. He escaped from Elba on March 1, and was well received in Paris and he returned to be the emperor of France. Then, in the battle of Waterloo, the British and Prussian armies defeated Napoleon and took all the power he had. Later he got exiled to St. Helena and died there (May 5, 1821).
