CHAPTER TWO:
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE
THE DIRECTORY
In 1794, after the collapse
of the radical Jacobin leadership, new elections resulted in the leadership by
a moderate group of delegates who asserted control in the National
Convention. The dominant popular feeling was that
The Directory leadership
abandoned most of the radical policies enacted by the Jacobin
government: voting was once again restricted to property owners, ending
universal male suffrage (and thus the movement towards mass democracy);
government control over prices and wages, and distribution of food ended.
The Directory reinstated a limited government, ending the practice of expanded
governmental responsibility for social and economic conditions.
However, this liberal
government, while more moderate, was still not stable and thus the revolution
was still not over! Many groups continued to challenge this new
government and its new constitution. The poor had lost many gains achieved
during the Jacobin period and reacted with street violence. The Directory
crushed these popular riots with military force. Conservative/Old Order
groups in
Thus, very real threats
remained which called into question revolutionary achievements of liberty and
equality. To make matters worse, the Directory was ineffective in dealing with
these threats. Directory leaders soon gained a deserved reputation for
corruption, stupidity, and sheer incompetence. The Directory started
eliminating rights and ruling with more dictatorial power. The fragile
revolutionary gains of rights, limited government, and the end of feudal based
privileges were being lost. Popular discontent and insecurity created a
political situation ripe for yet another change in government. And there
was someone poised and ready to take power from the unpopular Directory -
Napoleon Bonaparte.
A MAN OF THE
REVOLUTION
Napoleon Bonaparte has
emerged as one of the notable and controversial figures in European history. He
is often portrayed as nothing more than a ruthless, ambitious dictator; what is
ignored is Napoleon's direct connection to the French Revolution. In fact, his
story cannot be understood except as a reflection of this revolution. Napoleon
*was* a "man of the revolution"; he played a critical and
contributing role in the preservation and even spread of its achievements.
In 1799, Napoleon was
already known in
Napoleon was a military
hero in revolutionary
In fact, Napoleon's
leadership of
INTERNAL ACTIONS
- PRESERVING THE REVOLUTION
Even if one abhors the
dictatorial power he accumulated, one must recognize that Napoleon did solidify
and help preserve some of the gains of the previous years of the revolution. In
particular, Napoleon was very much a supporter of Enlightenment concepts of
equality of opportunity and law (as mentioned before - he hated the privileged
aristocracy.) He also was Enlightened in his ideas of a rational,
efficient, "modernized" state, doing away with entrenched,
traditional and ineffective patterns and policies. And Napoleon supported
the Enlightenment idea of religious tolerance.
Napoleon is best remembered
for codifying the many legal twists and turns the French Revolution had taken.
He ordered the creation of a unified, explicit written code of French law to
clearly assert and put into writing the key rights won through the
revolution - this civil code is the "Code de Napoleon" or the Napoleonic
Code. Liberal gains such as equality before the law and protection of
certain rights such as those involving property, were now permanently
established in
Even the actions by later conservative
French governments could not abolish this code - or the rights it protected.
This law code still stands today as the basis of French
law. And, the Napoleonic Code was also influential on a global scale; the
French applied and spread this law code throughout the colonial empire of
The other area where Napoleon
had an important constructive role was in reconciling a country long divided
into very hostile groups. He welcomed both radicals and counter revolutionary
aristocrats back under a general amnesty - and offered positions in his
government to former Jacobins, and former aristocrats. He also
negotiated an agreement ("Concordant") with the Pope. The Catholic
Church was paid for some its lost land, but it was NOT reinstated as the
state religion. Napoleon preserved the revolutionary policy of religious tolerance.
By achieving at least a partial "cease fire" with radicals and
aristocrats, and the Catholic Church, Napoleon created a stability that had not
been known for over a decade, a stability that many French citizens desperately
desired.
ACCUMULATION OF
POWER
The complex reality of
Napoleon is that while he was preserving some liberal gains of rights and
equality, he was creating a dictatorship. He soon made himself consul for life
- and then threw away all pretense and crowned himself Emperor in 1803.
Representative government was ended. Those who spoke out against Napoleon
were often imprisoned; presses that printed negative stories were shut down.
Many freedoms of expression were suspended or ended. Thus liberties of speech
and the press disappeared.
Recognize, however, that in
spite of this consolidation of power, Napoleon sustained an enormous degree of
popular support from the majority of the French people. For even though he
eliminated representative government and many rights, he was NOT reinstating
the worst abuses of absolutism, he was not allowing the privileged elites to
return - he was not returning to all the elements of the Old Order. By
strengthening the country, he was in fact securing some of the important gains
and stabilizing everyday life, something much desired by those weary after over
a decade of revolution. In a strange way, he was creating what can be called a
revolutionary dictatorship. Some rights remained, under the very effective rule
of a strong-man leadership.
THE GRAND EMPIRE
From the perspective of
world history, the most important contribution of Napoleon was that he
literally spread the revolution throughout the continent of
Between 1800 - 1810,
virtually no army could stand up to these troops. By 1810, considered the
peak of the "Grand Empire" of
SPREADING THE
REVOLUTION
This period of French
expansion, the Grand Empire of Napoleon, proved to be a watershed - creating
irreversible changes. Wherever French troops marched into new
territories, they brought with them their revolutionary spirit. French
control of territory resulted in the spread of key revolutionary ideas,
policies and laws. For example, in those areas Napoleon absorbed or ruled
through puppets, absolutist monarchs were thrown out of power and their
traditional based rule was completely disrupted - many dynasties were never
able to securely re-gain their thrones. Feudalism was abolished in
all conquered/occupied territories of
In some areas under French
conquest and control, the Napoleonic Code was used, exposing people directly
to the intoxicating experience of rights and equality. Even
after Napoleon was defeated and the old powers returned, there would be NO way
to erase these effects and memories - after the revolution there were continued
struggles to regain these briefly experienced political and social advances.
In another interesting way,
Napoleon spread the revolution - by spreading the emotional ideal of nationalism.
To better rule diverse territories, he eliminated existing borders and
consolidated small states. Thus, he merged over 300 petty principalities and
states in
Bottom line, with the
massive movement of French troops and policies under Napoleon throughout the
continent, the French Revolution became truly a European revolution. It
will prove to be impossible for Old Order advocates to erase these influences,
impossible to restore the traditionally based injustices of absolutism. It was impossible
to go back - thus the term watershed in describing this revolution.
Napoleon's power reached
its peak in 1810. After this, he faced increasing problems.
This failed
attempt to invade
The French Revolution,
launched over a decade earlier, was over, however, the long-term consequences
and aftermath of the French Revolution continued - to the present day.
The persistent echoes of revolutionary spirit and goals are now felt globally -
born out of this watershed event.
Interesting
Links
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE: LINKS
NAPOLEON
BONAPARTE: WARS
NATIONALISM
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