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Siege of Toulon
The Seige of Toulon was Napolean’s first victory, setting the tone for his career in the military. Toulon was a major arsenal and navy port for the French, so it could not be under the control of the enemy. During the battle, the commander of the La Fére artillery regiment had fallen and Napolean as the second lieutenant was appointed to take his place. Using his strategic mind and understanding of the terrain, Napolan was able to reclaim a hill form which they were able to control the battle. -
Coup of 18 Brumaire
The bloodless coup d’état that overthrew the Directory government and replaced it with the Consulate Government. They had to convince the assemblies to vote in a new constitution that would validate their coup. At the end of the second day, the new constitution was approved replacing the old Directory with a new consular government consisting of 3 counsels, the first being Napolean, thus marking the beginning of Napolean’s rise to power. -
Bank of France
The Bank of France was created by Napolean in response to the strong recession from the Revolutionary period and its purpose was to encourage economic regrowth. Initially, the bank’s responsibilities were to give banknotes to the people. Then in 1946, the bank was nationalized, but in 1993 the bank was privatized to prepare for the change from Frances to Euros. Today the bank is still responsible for creating credit and monetary policies and making sure the banking system is running smoothly. -
Lycées
Lycées are upper-level secondary schools that prepared students for the degree required to attend university. Through this new system teacher training greatly improved and literacy levels through France increased drastically since more people had access to education. Because of Napolean’s growing impact, other countries around the world started adopting his educational reform thus increasing access to education globally. This meant more teachers, thinkers, and engineers. -
Concordat of 1801
The Concordat of 1801 was an agreement between Napolean and Pope Pius VII that solidified the Roman Catholic Church as the majority church of France. It was stated Napolean was allowed to appoint bishops and establish seminaries and the pope would have to stop financing wars. The Concordant made it possible for Napolean to win over the Catholics in France while also controlling Rome. The people no longer feel they must pick a side during civil wars, state versus the church. -
Napoleonic Code
The code mainly addressed property and family matters but also included ideas such as freedom of speech, religion, and public trial by jury. The biggest ideas were giving all male citizens equality in the eyes of the law, as well as, more authority over their families, therefore denying woman’s individual rights. To this day the effects of the Napoleonic Code can be seen through its influence in the civil codes of numerous European and Latin American countries. -
Coronation of Napolean I
The French Senate declared Napolean the Emperor, so to gain more support from the French people he asked the Pope to crown him at his Coronation. The French people had very deep religious roots, so rekindling the relationship with the church would be vital. The Pope showing his support for Napolean would earn him respect in the minds of the french people. Napolean was able to use religion to further his own political agenda while making it look like he was doing the most for the french people. -
The Battle of Austerlitz
The Battle of Austerlitz, also known as the Battle of Three Emperors was one of Napolean’s Greatest victories. Napoleons’s 68,000 troops defeated around 90,000 Rusian and Austrian troops. This battle showcased Napoleans’s superior battle skills and photographic memory. The win ended the War of the 3rd Coalition. -
The Battle of Waterloo
The Battle of Waterloo marked the final defeat of Napolean Bonaparte. In response to Napolean reclaiming his title as Emperor, the European allies prepared for war. On June 18, 1815, Napolean marched into battle where the British and the Prussian armies were waiting. They fought for two days before Napolean’s troop exhausted and in poor health gave up. It is said Napolean made a number of tactical and decisional mistakes during this battle that led to his downfall. -
Analysis
Napoleon Bonaparte should be remembered as a chaotic neutral man who was too ambitious. Through his actions, it is understood he was a calm and calculated person, at least on the battlefield. In reality, he was a power-hungry man aiming for the title of Mr. Universe. It was that ambition that led to his demise, but it’s also why we should remember him. He has one of the greatest impacts on our society today. We can not ignore his work, the bad and the good.
