Napoleon Forges an Empire Section 7 3 Napoleons

Napoleon Forges an Empire Section 7 -3

Napoleon’s Background n Was a very small man 5’ 3 & he had little man’s syndrome n Was a revolutionary hero (protected the National Convention delegates from attacking royalists) and defeated Austria & Serbia n Could not defeat Britain in Egypt but kept news of his setbacks there out of the papers so not many knew of them

Coming to Power n The Directory had lost control of the political situation and confidence of the people in France n Napoleon returned from Egypt and with the urging of his friends, he staged a coup d’ etat (military take over of the government) and took control of France n He drove out most of the National Legislature and created a 3 Consul system (he made himself 1 st Consul)

Coming to Power (cont. ) n Napoleon held a plebiscite - a vote by the people to okay a new constitution that gave him all of the political power n He did this to make it appear that he was achieving power through proper channels and the people were tired of instability n He brought peace to France by ending the war with Britain, Russia, Austria, and other nations

Napoleon’s Domestic Issues n Didn’t change much (kept laws that strengthened the government and upheld Revolution values) n Fixed the economy (established a national bank & began efficient tax collecting) n Dismissed many corrupt government officials & set up lycees - government run public schools n Graduates were appointed to public positions based on merit rather than family connections

Domestic Issues (cont. ) n Signed a Concordat – agreement that recognized the church’s influence but did not allow it to interfere in national affairs n Napoleonic Code – in his opinion this was Napoleon’s greatest achievement. It was a uniform set of laws that ended injustices but also restricted many personal rights n Crowned himself emperor in 1804 to show the people that he was not being controlled by anyone else

Napoleon’s Foreign Issues The Louisiana Purchase n Louisiana Purchase – the selling of French owned land in the US (Jefferson is the President) n Did this to get money for France and to hurt Britain n “the sale assures forever the power of the US and I have given England a rival who sooner or later will humble her pride” Napoleon

Napoleon’s Foreign Issues The Battle of Trafalgar n Napoleon gave up on the new world and turned his focus to Europe n He beats up on every European nation around (England, Spain, Austria, Russia etc…) n Until the Battle of Trafalgar-a sea battle between Napoleon’s navy and the British led by Horatio Nelson n Nelson split the French up and captured much of the fleet, this victory ensured the supremacy of the British navy and stopped all plans of invading Britain

Napoleon’s French Empire n n n Only areas that were free of Napoleon’s control by 1812 were England, Sweden, Portugal, and the Ottoman Empire Split into 3 parts French Empire-captured by & directly controlled by Napoleon Independent nations that were ruled by Napoleon’s puppets or family members (Spain, Warsaw, and Germany kingdoms) Allies – Russia, Austria, and Prussia who were easily controlled through military threat