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Napoleon, ruthlessly ambitious, young general
Young Napoleon was seen to be a brilliant military general. He has had many successes with his army. During these years he has forced British troops out of Toulon, led royalists to flee out of Paris, won many victories over Italian and Austrian armies in Italy, won territory for France and kept the borders safe. -
Coup D'etat, Napoleon the Dictator
The forced transfer of power from the Directory to Napoleon was the start of his dictatorship. The Consulate wanted the Directory to be the government of France, however members voted for Napoleon as the first Consul.
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The Napoleonic Wars
To succeed in his goal to rule Europe, Napoleon began a series of wars called the Napoleonic Wars. During these series of wars, France instantly became dominant over other European nations. However, Great Britain remained France’s greatest enemy. Napoleon knew if he defeated Great Britain that there would never be peace in Europe. After the Battle of Waterloo, both France and Great Britain suffered many casualties, which ended Napoleon’s military career and ended the Napoleonic Wars. -
Napoleonic Code
With Napoleon’s leadership, he created the Napoleonic Code, which made laws uniform across the nations and eliminated many injustices. However, this code made the authority of men over their families greater and deprived women of any individual rights.
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Napoleon the Emperor
Pope Pius VII came from Italy to crown Napoleon as the new emperor of France, but when he went to put the crown on his head, Napoleon took the crown and placed it on his own head. By doing so, this proved that no one could Napoleon his authority and that he took it for himself. Since becoming emperor, Napoleon wanted to build an empire, extend French power to America, and rule Europe. -
The Russian Campaign
Napoleon and his army rushed across the Russian border, but Napoleon's new recruits were not fully loyal to him. Many supplies were lost or spoiled and the heat made men and horses miserable. The French won the battle, but the casualty rate was very high. Eventually, the harsh winter set in, starving and killing thousands of men. The 94,000 out of 600,000 soldiers came back without their leader, Napoleon, who left his men and left by sleigh. -
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Defeat and Exile to Elba
Napoleon raised another group of inexperienced soldiers, preparing for the Battle of Leipzig. Unfortunately, it was a clear defeat for Napoleon, resulting in the surrender of his throne. He was able to keep the title of emperor, but his new Mediterranean island empire, Elba, was tiny. He then went into exile with a pension and around 400 guards. -
The Hundred Days
After a year in exile on Elba, Napoleon managed to get his way back to France. Louis XVIII panicked and fled to Belgium and the French people who despised Napoleon for dragging them through warfare were not happy. However, thousands of others were happy to see him. On March 20, Napoleon arrived in Paris which was the beginning of the Hundred Days, a period of renewed glory for Napoleon and of problems for his enemies. -
The Battle of Waterloo
After some indecisive battles, Napoleon was up against British troops’s Duke Wellington where they met on June 18, 1815. Napoleon’s army was no match for both the British troops and the British troops’ ally, Prussia. In the end, both the French and British had heavy losses, but this was a crushing defeat for Napoleon; it was the end of his military career and the end of the Napoleonic Wars. -
Napoleon’s Final Days
After the defeat at Waterloo, Napoleon was sent to the island of Saint Helena off the coast of Africa. He ultimately died six years later at the age of 51. His death was never determined definitively.