InNo+RyanC2013+09.11.2010

To be edited....

Notes

Introduction

· From 1795 – 1799 France was governed by 5 men called Directors, backed up by two assemblies called Councils. · They did not rule France well.

Napoleon

· Napoleon was born on 1769, and was the second of eight children. o Because the island (Corsica) was bought Italy by the French King, therefore his parents were Italian yet he was French. · Napoleon was sent to school in France when he was 9 and after 7 years of military he school he graduated as a lieutenant in the French Army at age 16. · During the revolution the army size grew quickly which also allowed him to gain rank to general even faster. · Because Napoleon was a close friend of Robespierre (committee) he almost had his military post taken away, however authorities found no evidence to use against him.

Italian Campaign

· Under the Directors power France continued the Coalition war and had conquered Belgium and Holland. · Napoleon was given charge of their next target on Italy. He was promoted to commander of the Army of Italy to attack Austrian forces in Italy. · Over eighteen months Napoleon had won Italy and defeated the Austrian forces in brilliant battles (1793).

Egypt · Seeing his success in Italy the Directors put Napoleon in command to attack Britain’s trade routes with India. He began on Egypt halfway on the trade route. · Napoleon defeated the Egyptians at the battle of the Pyramids (1798), but never got to India. · This is because the ships that brought him over were sunk by the British Royal Navy and so he was stuck in Egypt because he couldn’t get back to France and couldn’t move onto India. · The French armies at the time were doing bad, a second Coalition of the France’s enemies drove France out of Italy and central Europe. · Napoleon learned of these defeats in the summer of 1799, when he also learned that the rebels had taken over most of Western France. o France was nearly bankrupt and the Directors weren’t looking so good. · Napoleon left his army in Egypt and went back to France, in an attempt to save France from defeat.

Power Seizing · Meanwhile a director had plotted against other directors to get rid of them and to close down the Council and set up a new government. · To do this he needed military backup, and therefore he asked Napoleon to provide it. · Napoleon joined the plot along with another director and his brother Lucien who was part of the Council. · On Sept. 19 1799 they took action. o First they made up a story that rebels were about to take Paris and that the Council needed to make a quick response. o The Council then made Napoleon commander of all the troops in Paris. o They then left Paris for a safer meeting letting the troops force the other directors to resign. · When Napoleon asked the Council to change the government, they had all ready figured out the story about the rebels was a lie. · At once the Council swore to protect the directory and when he arrived they pushed him around and called him an outlaw. · Some records say that they even tried to kill him however others say that it was not true. · Still the soldiers outside believed Napoleon was in danger and entered the hall. · Many council members fled the hall and some even jumped out window. Others stayed and voted to give Napoleon and his accomplices the power to run the country until a new type of government was formed.

Ruler of France Consulate · The new government of France was run by three consuls. The First being the one with the power to make decisions the other two were there to give advice. · Napoleon was given the position of first Council, and became head of the government. · To share the work of governing four more Councils were made: o The Council of State was the most powerful and helped Napoleon write new laws and advised him on his decisions. o A Senate, Tribunate, and Legislative Body also shared power in writing new laws and appointing officials. · A vote was taken amongst the people of France to see whether they liked the new government or not. · Out of 9 million, 3 million voted in favor, whiled 1,500 voted against. 6 million people didn’t bother too vote and Napoleon used this to say that it meant they were in favor.

Victory in War · As head of the Government his priority was to defend France against the Second Coalition. · He planned to do so by attacking the Austrian border from Northern Italy. Hoping for a surprise attack he took his army through Switzerland and across the Alps. · This dangerous gamble nearly failed because it took Napoleon longer to cross the Alps than anticipated. · When Napoleon finally reached Austria, the Austrians were already ready for him and a scrimmage broke out near a village called Marengo. · Napoleons troops were out numbered and exhausted, however on the verge of defeat reserve troops unexpectedly appeared and drove the Austrians back. o A French victory in the Battle of Marengo. · The Austrians left North Italy, and later lost another battle in Germany, The Battle of Hohenlinden. · A peace treaty was signed ending the war at Luneville (1801). o This treaty left France in control of Belgium, German territory on the river Rhine, and North Italy.

Making of a Legend · Napoleons victory made him even more famous. He was portrayed as a hero in newspapers and paintings. He had become a legendary figure. · Some historical pictures were inaccurate and were purposefully drawn to show genius. · However some pictures portrayed Napoleon in a pathetic manner, which were supported by records from Napoleon himself.

Concordat and the Catholic Church · With the war over Napoleon could focus on problems in France. · The most difficult problem was the Catholic religion. · This is because many church were closed down and France was “de-Christianized”, which caused millions of Catholics to turn rebellious, who tried to overthrow the government. · To keep his government stable he needed to control this issue. · He did this by taking off the ten-day week of the Revolutionary Calendar and allowed people to have Sundays off. · He told rebel leaders that he would listen to their religious complaints. · In 1801 Napoleon signed an agreement with the Pope called the Concordat. o This allowed Catholics to worship freely again. o In return the Pope gave Napoleon power to appoint all bishops of France and agreed that all priests would take an oath of loyalty to Napoleon. · This resulted in Catholics returning to church and Napoleon gaining millions in support.

Reforms · By 1802 Napoleon had made peace with Europe and had ended the religious conflicts in France. · The Senate increased his powers and pay and made him “Consul for Life”. o A vote was taken and it was 3.5 million for and 8,000 against. · With power for life Napoleon began reforming France. · In 1802 he began the reform on schools. o His main change was the creation of a new secondary school. · Under strict military discipline these pupils took up a curriculum provided by the government. · Upon leaving this school they needed to take a test called the Baccalaureate for entrance to universities. · Napoleon also created reforms on the French law and made it into seven books. o In 1804 he created a new Code of Civil Law called the Code of Napoleon. · These laws simplified France’s complex law, and also added individual rights, freedom of belief, and equality.

Emperor of France · In 1804 Napoleon increased his power by making himself Emperor. · With the support of millions he made turned France from a Republic to an Empire. · As Emperor Napoleon brought back many things from before the Revolution. · For Example he had a coronation ceremony and he also brought back titles. · Napoleon gave noble titles to his family members, his brother Joseph and Louis became Grand Elector and Grand Constable of the Empire. · In 1808 he created an Imperial Nobility, consisting of princes, dukes, counts, barons, and knights. · Nobles had to be rich because they needed to leave a certain amount of money if they wanted to keep the title in their family. · These nobles that Napoleon created had no advantages or privileges. · By 1804 Napoleon had replaced the Republic with an Empire and had restored Nobles and the Church. · The Revolution was over.

Summary Napoleon was a lieutenant of the French army, who was born on an island bought by France from Italy. He was able to quickly gain rank to general when the Revolution started because they French army had recruited more soldiers. Napoleon was then given charge of the French Army in Italy during the First Coalition War. Napoleon was able to defeat Austrian forces in Italy and was then given charge of destroying British trade routes with India. He first quickly attacked Austrian forces in India, however his transport ships were destroyed by the British Royal Navy, so he had no way to go back to France or move on to India. At the time France was faring badly, they had already lost control Italy and Central Europe, France was also being overrun by Rebels. Napoleon returned to France to save it from defeat. Above all a second Coalition was formed. Napoleon with another director and his brother Lucien a council member planned to get rid of the other directors and council and set up a new government. They lied to the Council that rebels were about take over Paris and that they needed to take immediate action. The Council then gave Napoleon power of forces in Paris. With the forces in France Napoleon was able to “force” the Council to set up a new government. A new government was set up quickly containing three members of a Consulate. Napoleon was put as the head of the consulate with the most power, becoming the head of the government. With advisers writing laws, appointing new officials, and advising Napoleons decisions. After this he needed to defend France against the second Coalition. He did so by attacking Austria with a surprise attack from the Alps. Austria was being pushed back, and had also lost another battle in Germany. Napoleon then signed a treaty at Luleville ending the war, with Napoleon taking North Italy and territories of Germany of the river Rhine. The Consulate then gave Napoleon full power of the government. Napoleon was a hero amongst France heroically portrayed in newspapers and paintings. These paintings were meant to capture genius. However many other paintings showed him differently. They showed him in pathetic situations, these accuracy of these paintings were supported by records from Napoleon himself. With the war over Napoleon focused on maintaining order in France. He first brought the Catholic religion back. With this action he was able to please mean Catholic rebels. Napoleon was also able to sing an agreement called the Concordat allowing Catholics to practice freely and also gave Napoleon loyalty of all priests. Napoleon was also able to reform all laws in the government. He created a new Code of Civil Law called the Code of Napoleon. This simplified many complex laws in France. After this he declared himself emperor and brought back titles for nobles. However these nobles did not have the same power that they did in the feudal ages.

Questions · What happened to the first coalition?