Napoleonic era

The French Emperor with his army before his victory over the Austrians at the Battle of Wagram in 1809. Napoleon launched a massive attack on the Austrians led by the Archduke Charles at the village of Wagram near Vienna. During the battle, one of the heaviest concentrations of artillery fire recorded in history took a terrible toll, with many casualties on both sides.

Period of European and French history 1799–1815 named after Napoleon (I) Bonaparte, ruler of France as dictator from 1799, conqueror of most of Europe from 1803, and emperor of the French 1804–14 and 1814–15.

Napoleon was born into a minor aristocratic family on the Mediterranean island of Corsica in 1769. Despite his lowly beginnings, he rose to be the undisputed ruler of France and influenced the fate of Europe. He fought a series of wars against all the states of Europe, and redrew the borders of the continent many times. He also passed a wide range of laws within France, and established a variety of new institutions as part of his system of government.

Rise to power By 1799 Napoleon was already famous in France as a talented and popular general. His huge successes in Italy in 1796 and 1797, and expedition to Egypt 1798–99, ensured that he had become the leading military figure of the day. In 1799, Napoleon returned to France amid popular acclaim, to find the Directory corrupt, disliked, and facing rebellion. The coup of Brumaire followed, and Napoleon became one of the three ‘consuls’ who would share power as the new government of France. However the Directors' plans to use Napoleon to make themselves all powerful were soon overturned by the ambitious Corsican, and by the end of 1799 Napoleon had seized absolute power, and was the undisputed leader of France.

Domestic policies Napoleon inherited a French nation which was still unsettled following the French Revolution of 1789. The ten years from 1789 to 1799 had not led to a peaceful new system of government and society in France (see France: history 1515–1815). Constant splits between different groups of revolutionaries, coupled with the effects of seven years of war, had led to the overthrow of the revolution by Napoleon in 1799. Napoleon set about reforming France internally, both by building on the changes made by the revolution and by introducing his own more traditional ideas.

Constitution In December 1799 Napoleon drew up a new constitution for France, known as the ‘Constitution of the Year VIII’. This constitution gave him total control over the government of France. Although there were elections, the elected members had no powers. Napoleon also reorganized local government in France by creating 98 départments. Each one had a prefect appointed by Napoleon and responsible only to him. The new organization gave Napoleon total control of France. The constitution also confirmed the property rights of all those who had bought land taken from the Catholic Church during the revolution. This measure increased Napoleon's support among the key middle classes.

Education in France Napoleon worked to introduce a system of education that would produce highly skilled civil servants, engineers, and soldiers. He introduced the Ministry of Education (University of France) in 1808 to control education. In 1809 Napoleon introduced the baccalaureate, an examination that standardized French education. Napoleon ensured that education was available to his supporters in the middle classes, as well as reserving one-third of all places in his lycées (schools) for the sons of the military. The education of women received little interest from Napoleon.

Honours and titles In 1802 Napoleon introduced the Légion d'honneur (Legion of Honour). This was the highest order of award that could be received by a French citizen, and reflected Napoleon's wish to reward those who served him loyally. In 1804 Napoleon reintroduced the nobility to France. Napoleon's new nobles were state servants, both in government and the army or navy. By 1814 Napoleon had created 32,000 nobles, of whom over three-quarters had been nobles in 1789.

Religion Napoleon had little personal interest in religion, but he recognized that the revolution's attacks on the Catholic Church had been disastrous. In 1801 Napoleon forced Pope Pius VII to sign the Concordat that allowed the Catholic Church to return to France, although it remained heavily under the control of Napoleon and the French government. The appointment of bishops and priests was controlled by Napoleon, and their wages were paid by the state, making them servants of Napoleon. In order to underline the change in the position of the Catholic Church in France, the Catholic faith was recognized only as the religion of the ‘majority’ of Frenchman; under the ancien régime of pre-1789, it had been the official religion of France. Napoleon also made it clear that the lands and property taken from the Catholic Church and sold during the revolution would not be returned. In 1804 Napoleon forced the pope to take part in his coronation as emperor.

Economy Napoleon took steps to solve long-running weaknesses within the French economy that the revolution had failed to tackle adequately. In 1800 he established the Bank of France, which was a central government bank modelled partly on the Bank of England. Napoleon was able to borrow money from this bank at much lower rates of interest than could be obtained from private lenders. The burden of taxes was increased and, more importantly, their collection was made much more effective. Taxes were mainly on property and income, with the main burden falling on the peasantry. However, despite his efforts, Napoleon was never able to create a surplus in the government's account because of his constant warfare across Europe.

Napoleon also established the Continental System, which had an impact on domestic economic affairs. The Continental System forced all occupied or allied nations to trade within the French Imperial area, and banned trade with Britain. The System, which was established following the Berlin Decree (1806) and the Milan Decree (1807), opened up vast markets for French merchants and industrialists to exploit.

Law Between 1789 and 1799 the governments in power during the revolution issued 360 new law codes. Napoleon decided to unify all these laws and pre-1789 law into one clear text. He also aimed to include some of his own ideas. Work on the new law code started in 1800 and was completed in 1804. It became known as the ‘Code Napoléon’, and remains the basis of French law.

War and foreign policy France under Napoleon was almost constantly at war between 1799 and 1815. During this time Napoleon managed to defeat every European power in battle except Britain. Napoleon managed to combine his own military genius with the vast resources of the French nation, as well as using the resources and strengths of other nations to support his campaigns.

In European history, the wars fought by France with other European nations between 1791 and 1802 are known collectively as the Revolutionary Wars; those fought from 1803 to 1815 are known as the Napoleonic Wars.

Italy 1796–97 Napoleon had made his name during the French campaign in Italy between 1796 and 1797. The armies under Napoleon's command won 13 battles in 12 months, and totally defeated the Austrians in Italy. In the Treaty of Campo-Formio (1797), signed with Austria, Napoleon redrew the Italian borders. France gained Lombardy in Italy, as well as Belgium and the Ionian Islands.

Egypt 1798–99 In 1798 Napoleon led a force of French troops to Egypt. His aim was to block Britain's trade routes to the Middle East and India. Control of Egypt would also give the French power over the Eastern Mediterranean. At first Napoleon was successful, and took Malta and Alexandria with his 40,000 troops. Although the French were successful on land in Egypt, the persistent problem of British sea power ended the potential success of the whole mission. At the Battle of Aboukir Bay (1798), also known as the Battle of the Nile, the British admiral Horatio Nelson led the Royal Navy to complete victory over the French, sinking most of their fleet. Without naval support for his troops, Napoleon would be unable to dominate Egypt or the Eastern Mediterranean for any length of time. Indeed Napoleon abandoned his ‘Army of Egypt’ in August 1799 to return to France and stage the Coup of Brumaire, in which he seized power.

Peace of Luneville (1801) Between 1799 and 1801 the French fought against the Second Coalition led by Britain and Russia. The Russian general Aleksandr Suvorov had been successful in defeating the French in Italy 1798–99, but this situation was soon reversed by Napoleon. In 1800 his army invaded northern Italy and occupied Milan before defeating the Austrians at the Battle of Marengo in June 1800. Austria was forced to hand over control of northern Italy to France. By 1801 the members of the Second Coalition, with the exception of Britain, realized that they could not defeat the French, and in February 1801 the Peace of Luneville was signed, which reconfirmed the Treaty of Campo-Formio and extended French control in Italy.

Peace of Amiens (1802) The Peace of Amiens, signed by Britain and France in 1802, ended the period of the Revolutionary Wars. Britain and France left Egypt, which was restored to Turkey; Malta was to be restored to the Knights of Malta; and agreement was reached over their overseas gains. However, the peace treaty did not mark the acceptance of defeat by either side. Both parties recognized that they could not defeat the other at that time, both for financial and military reasons – Britain was all powerful on the seas and France was all powerful on land. The peace treaty was regarded purely as a temporary measure before a return to war.

Piedmont, Parma, and Piacenza 1802 During 1802 Napoleon used the peace he had with the major powers of Europe to defeat some of the minor states that bordered France. The northern Italian states of Piedmont, Parma, and Piacenza were finally crushed, and were absorbed into the French Empire.

Third Coalition 1805 Peace between Britain and France was short-lived. Britain objected to the continuing expansion of Napoleon's power in Europe and backed a royalist conspiracy in France; Britain also refused to give up Malta, its naval stronghold in the Mediterranean. In August 1805 Austria joined the alliance of Britain and Russia to form the Third Coalition against Napoleon. War followed on the mainland of Europe, with the Austrians and Russians supplying the troops and Britain providing money to support its allies' war efforts.

On land the war turned rapidly into a disaster for the Third Coalition. The French defeated the Austrians at the Battle of Ulm (September–October 1805), a victory that prevented the Austrian and Russian armies from linking up. Napoleon followed up the battle by occupying Vienna, the Austrian capital. In December 1805 Napoleon's French forces totally crushed the Austrians and Russians at the Battle of Austerlitz. The Treaty of Pressburg brought an end to the war between France and the Austrian and Russian alliance.

Austria was forced to pay a heavy price for its defeat in 1805. In 1806 the Holy Roman Empire was abolished, and its German territory split up. The Confederacy of the Rhine was formed, a union of German states under Napoleon's control that included Saxony, Württemburg, Bavaria, and Baden. France also took territory in Venetia and the Tyrol.

Battle of Trafalgar (1805) In 1805 Napoleon had gathered a vast invasion army and fleet at Boulogne. His aim was to cross the English Channel and defeat the British on land. The cost of this army and fleet effectively bankrupted the Bank of France. However, in August 1805 Napoleon abandoned his immediate plans of invasion and marched his army to meet the Austrians at Ulm. While Napoleon was engaged in the war against the Austrian and Russians, the French admiral Pierre Villeneuve led the combined French and Spanish fleets against the British Royal Navy under Admiral Nelson. At the Battle of Trafalgar on 21 October 1805 Nelson destroyed the French and Spanish fleets. His victory confirmed Britain's complete control of the seas, and ended any plans Napoleon had for invading his enemy.

Prussia, Russia, and the Treaty of Tilsit 1806–1807 Prussia did not enter the Third Coalition, but was provoked into war with France by Napoleon in August 1806. Napoleon was entering into peace negotiations with England and Russia, and Prussia feared that an Anglo-French alliance would mean the loss of Hanover, which the British wanted to hold. Prussia was almost instantly defeated, however, losing disastrously at the battles of Jena and Auerstadt in October 1806. The French occupied the Prussian capital of Berlin, humiliating the Prussian king Frederick William III. The Russians, who had joined the war on the side of the Prussians, were also quickly defeated. At the battles of Eylau and Friedland, the French were totally victorious.

Napoleon followed up his victories over Prussia and Russia with the Treaty of Tilsit (1807). The talks were held on a raft in the River Niemen near the town of Tilsit, eastern Prussia. Russia and Prussia were forced to become allies of the French, and to enter into Napoleon's Continental System, which forbade trade with Britain. Napoleon hoped to damage Britain's economic power by blocking its trade. Prussia also lost one-third of its lands, and the recently destroyed country of Poland was recreated as the Duchy of Warsaw under Napoleon's domination.

Peninsular War 1808–14 In 1807 Napoleon invaded Spain and Portugal. The Portuguese were refusing to comply with the Continental System, and had previously allied with Britain and Spain against France in 1793. Spain had been forced to sign a treaty of alliance with France in 1796, but had suffered heavy defeat with the French fleet at Trafalgar, and its economy was damaged by the ban on trade with Britain. Napoleon was concerned about the loyalty of Spain. Having sent in troops to enforce French power in Portugal and Spain, Napoleon placed his brother Joseph Bonaparte on the Spanish throne in 1808. The Spanish refused to recognize Joseph as their king and rose in a war of liberation. In 1808 Britain landed in Portugal to join forces with the Spanish and Portuguese, and take part in a land war for the first time in the Napoleonic Wars. French troops faced constant guerrilla attacks from Spanish partisans, as well as British troops led by Arthur Wellesley, the future Duke of Wellington. In France the Peninsular War became known as the ‘Spanish Ulcer’, as it was a constant drain on French resources. Although Wellington won a number of victories, the results were never conclusive, and the war only came to an end when Napoleon was forced to abdicate in 1814.

Renewal of war with Austria 1809 Austria was encouraged by the success of the British and Spanish in the Peninsular War, and in 1809 launched a new campaign against France. However, as with all Austria's previous attempts to defeat France since 1789, the war was unsuccessful. Napoleon entered Vienna in May and won the Battle of Wagram in July 1809. The Austrians now allied themselves to the French, hoping to preserve their nation. As part of this agreement, the Austrian emperor's daughter, Marie Louise, was married to Napoleon in 1810, following his divorce from Josephine.

Russian campaign 1812–13 In 1809 Napoleon appeared to be all-powerful in Europe. His only difficulties seemed to be the war in Spain and the continuing presence of Britain as an enemy of France. He controlled Prussia, Russia, and Austria, as well as all the other smaller states of Europe. However, Napoleon's apparent control was deceptive – his so-called allies were not supportive friends but defeated enemies waiting for a chance to strike back at France. Napoleon also faced the problem that Tsar Alexander I of Russia had stopped enforcing the Continental System because of the damage that it was doing to Russia's vital trade with Britain.

Fearing that Russia would form an alliance with Britain, in 1812 Napoleon launched a ruinous campaign against Russia that would ultimately end his power in Europe. The campaign was dogged by disaster and mistakes. At first Napoleon appeared to be enjoying success. The Russians were defeated at the Battle of Borodino in September 1812, and the French were able to march on Moscow. However, the retreating Russian army had destroyed the towns, villages, and fields in their path, leaving Napoleon's troops without food supplies and he was forced to retreat. Already slowed by the sick and wounded and the poor road network, the army was hit by the Russian winter of 1812–13, which proved to be one of the coldest and longest in Russian history. Napoleon's ‘Grand Army’, originally 500,000-strong, was reduced to less than 100,000 men when it finally marched out of Russia in 1813.

Defeat of Napoleon 1813 As Napoleon left Russia, he faced an array of revived enemy powers who joined forces in the War of Liberation. Russian troops pursued the retreating French forces from the rear. Prussia re-entered the war with a newly remodelled army led by Blücher. The Austrians also broke their alliance with France and sent troops to attack Napoleon. Weakened by the disaster of his Russian campaign and under attack on all fronts, Napoleon appeared doomed. However, he managed to rally his troops, raise a new army using troops from Spain and new recruits from France, and fight the combined forces of Russia, Austria, and Prussia.

In October 1813 at the Battle of the Nations (also known as the Battle of Leipzig) the Austrian, Prussian, and Russian armies were victorious. Following his defeat, Napoleon was forced back into France to face the forces of the three victors of Leipzig. British troops, who had defeated Napoleon's forces in Spain, crossed the Pyrenees and proclaimed Louis XVIII, king of France.

In March 1814 the allies entered Paris, and in April Napoleon was forced to abdicate his throne. He was exiled to the Mediterranean island of Elba, where he was given full control of the island, including an army. Meanwhile, Louis XVIII was proving unpopular, and the army was annoyed when French émigrés, those nobles who had left during the French Revolution and allied with France's enemies, were given military commands. The coalition had also broken up after quarrelling over the settlement of territory.

Napoleon hoped to take advantage of the situation. He escaped from Elba and returned to France in March 1815, where he led a triumphant procession from the south coast to Paris. The French army flocked to his side, and he marched into Belgium to begin regaining his empire. Although Napoleon defeated the Prussians under Blücher at Ligny, he failed to follow up the victory. In June 1815 Napoleon was defeated by the British under Wellington and the Prussians under Blücher at the Battle of Waterloo. The defeat brought the Napoleonic Wars and the era of Napoleon to a close. Napoleon abdicated in Paris on 22 June, and surrendered to the British on 15 July 1815.