THE PENNSYLVANIA STATE UNIVERSITY SCHREYER HONORS COLLEGE DEPARTMENT OF HISTORY NAPOLEON IN THE NINTEENTH CENTURY AMERICAN CONSCIOUSNESS MADISON KANTZER Spring 2010 A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for baccalaureate degrees in History and Art History with honors in History Reviewed and approved* by the following: Mark Neely McCabe Greer Professor of History Thesis Supervisor Catherine Wanner Associate Professor of History and Religious Studies Honors Adviser * Signatures are on file in the Schreyer Honors College. i ABSTRACT This thesis examines the role of Napoleon Bonaparte in the nineteenth century American consciousness, and the different aspects of the French emperor that were emphasized by different factions of American society. The figure of Napoleon Bonaparte was especially prominent in the American consciousness during the War of 1812 and the Antebellum and Mexican War Eras, two periods in which Americans struggled to determine what it mean to be a republic as they struggled to define themselves in relation to the powers of Europe. As the European figure that figured most prominently in the American political and popular culture, Napoleon became instrumental in helping different elements of American society articulate ideals and maxims they wished to apply to the evolving republic. To different elements of American society Napoleon represented completely opposite ideals, either the ultimate threat to the fledgling America republic, or the ultimate example of heroics and military might. He became the antithesis of manhood or the ideal to which young men should aspire. The way in which Americans envisioned Napoleon in the eighteenth century thus reflects the way in which they envisioned an ideal American society and its leaders. ii TABLE OF CONTENTS FIGURES………………………………………………………………………………………...iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS……………………………………………………………..………iv Chapter 1: Introduction……………………………………....……………………………...…….1 Chapter 2: Napolen, Patriotism and the First American Party System……....................................4 Federalists and Patriotic Displays of Francobia…………………………………..……….....8 Republicans and the Napoleonic Paradox…………………………………..........................23 Future Implications of the Early Nineteenth Century Napoleonic Image….………………………..27 Chapter 3: Napoleon in American Popular Culture ..................................................... …...……..29 Chapter 4: Ideals of Napoleonic Manhood in Antebellum America…………………...………..47 Napoleon as a Role Model for Martian Men...…………………………………………………...49 Restrained Manhood, or Napoleon as a Warning………………………………………………...63 Chapter 5: Conclusion and Implications …..………………………………………………….....70 Bibliography……………………………………………………………………………………..71 Appendix A: Antebellum Song Sheets……………………………………………………………………76 iii LIST OF FIGURES Figure 3-1 Napoleon Crossng the Alps………………………………………………………..…33 Figure 3-2: Napoleon, Emperor of France………………...…………...……………………......34 Figure 3-2: Napoleon in the Highest Degree of Prosperity……………..……………………….35 Figure 3-4: The Battle of Waterloo………………………………………………………………37 iv ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to thank Dr. Mark Neely for keeping me on task, helping me to make sense of my research, recommending primary and secondary sources that were instrumental in the final formation of my Thesis, and for editing my work and pointing out problems as I went. I would also like to thank Dr. Amy Greenberg for teaching me how to do historical research and for sparking an interest in American History, and Dr. Silvia Neely for everything I know about Napoleon. 1 Chapter 1 Introduction to Napoleon and Nineteenth Century America Born to a minor Corsican noble shortly after the island’s occupation by France, Napoleon Bonaparte was a highly intelligent individual who profited from skill and circumstance to change the course of European history. At the age of nine he was admitted to a French military school, where he became an extremely successful student despite constant ridicule about his humble origins by his aristocratic schoolmates. Due to changes instituted during the French Revolution, in which army offices were declared open to talent rather than pedigree, Napoleon was able to rise through the ranks of the French Army and was ultimately conferred the rank of General. After successful campaigns in Italy and Egypt General Bonaparte began to achieve fame and notoriety within France. On November 9, 1799, with the help of the Abbe Sieyes and Roger Ducos, Napoleon overthrew the Directory and established himself as the First Consulate of France. Upon his ascension to power Napoleon promptly set about restoring order to a France that had been ravished by revolution and war. Bonaparte began by reconciling with the émigrés (nobles who has left France after the start of the Revolution) and establishing peace treaties with Austria and England, countries with which France had been at war. During the proceeding 14 months of peace, Napoleon instituted the Code Napoleon, which formally harmonized legal traditions of the past. During this time Napoleon also began establishing himself as the Emperor of France, effectively revitalizing the court culture of the Ancient Regime. In 1803, the peace with England dissolved, and for the remainder of his reign Napoleon constantly engaged in warfare with the nations of Europe. Between 1805 and 1809 Napoleon undertook a series of campaigns in Central Europe, which ultimately led to French dominance of the continent, and a 2 continental boycott of British goods. Following the failed invasion of Russia, Napoleon was forced to abdicate and in 1814 was exiled to the Isle of Elba. He remained there until 1815, when he reentered France, and reigned for 100 days. On June 18, 1815 Napoleon was finally defeated by the Duke of Wellington at the Battle of Waterloo, and he spent the remainder of his life imprisoned by the British on the Island of Saint Helena. 1 From the beginnings of his military career though his final defeat at the Battle of Waterloo and through the present day, the figure of Napoleon Bonaparte has occupied a significant place in the American consciousness. Whether Americans see the French Emperor as a great military hero, tyrannical usurper of the French crown, or an exemplar of manhood, Napoleon Bonaparte has become a looming presence in the American consciousness, a European figure whose cult rivals that of American national heroes such as George Washington and Ulysses S. Grant. The nineteenth century in American history was a dynamic era, which saw the rapid growth of American institutions and the development of a national identity and culture. The first half of the century focused on the establishing the nation as a viable political entity with a stable system of government, while the middle of the nineteenth century is better described as a phase of social evolution and an attempt to cope with these changes.2 Throughout the growth and evolution of America during this time Napoleon Bonaparte remained a prominent figure in the American consciousness. 1 Rafe Blufarb, Napoleon Symbol for an Age: A Brief History with Documents (Boston: Bedford/ St. Martins, 2008), 2-19. Contains a brief outline of Napoleon’s life and career and includes key primary documents from Napoleon’s life. Sylvia Neely, French Revolution and the Napoleonic Era: Class Lectures (Penn State University, Spring 2008). Some information in this section is taken directly from course notes, from a course taught by Dr. Neely in the Spring of 2008. 2 William Chambers. “Party Development and the American Mainstream,” in The American Party Systems: Stages of Political Development, ed. William Nisbet Chambers and Walter Dean Burnham (New York: Oxford University Press, 1975), 23. 3 The figure of Napoleon Bonaparte took on particular significance during the War of 1812 and the Antebellum and Mexican War Eras, two periods in which Americans struggled to determine what it mean to be a republic; how they wanted to define themselves in relation to the powers of Europe. For different political, social, and intellectual factions of society during these periods, the character of Napoleon in the American consciousness personified the hopes and fears of these different and often competing elements of society. During the War of 1812, as Americans came to terms with the political realities of a two-party republican system and began to redefine its relationship with the powers of Europe, politicians and political leaders used the person of the Emperor to define what it meant to be “patriotic.” After the War of 1812, as American social institutions and maxims evolved, and Americans became more confident in their republic, the figure of Napoleon began to embody more complex issues, and helped Americans articulate the traits of an ideal political leader, or the ultimate American man. Additionally, Napoleon began to provide American political and intellectual leaders with lessons in republicanism, expansionism and morality. Napoleon thus occupies a multifaceted place in the American consciousness, and provides the historian with insight into the evolution of American thought. 4 Chapter 2 Napoleon, Patriotism and the First American Party System When the Constitutional Convention met in 1787 to reorganize the government of the United States of America, the founding fathers believed that they had laid the foundations of a government in which petty rivalries among opposing factions would be eliminated. They believed that with the new Constitution, they had created a form of