Napoleon Bonaparte—Empire Builder

Home , Battle of Marengo, Joseph Bonaparte, Louis XVIII, Napoleonic Wars

Bonaparte’s Rise to Power

Napoleon Bonaparte was born on the island of Corsica, to a lawyer father of ancient Tuscan nobility. He was educated in France starting at age nine, and attended several schools, including the military academy in Paris. His first military assignment was as an artillery officer. In his spare time, he read a lot—both books on military strategy as well as the works of Voltaire and Rousseau. When he had the chance, he joined the Jacobins and soon became an active member. He was called back home to deal with family matters, and spent several years between Paris and Corsica, furthering his interest in the ideals of the Jacobins while fighting a civil war back home. He was appointed a commander in the National Convention’s army, and was then promoted to brigadier general. His efforts to lead the troops against British forces were highly regarded, and he was soon making his name known among the revolutionaries—at the young age of twenty-four. Bonaparte continued to be an asset to the French military when in 1795, royalists attempted a revolt against the National Convention. Bonaparte was appointed second in command and helped shoot down the columns of rebels marching toward the convention. Bonaparte saved the convention, and the Republic. As a result, Bonaparte was promoted to commander of the Army of the Interior, and then to adviser on military matters to the new government, the Directory. From there, Bonaparte’s rise to military greatness continued to flourish with countless military successes. At age thirty, Bonaparte was in his prime. He had an indestructible confidence and an insatiable ambition. He was intelligent, a good decision maker, and a hard worker. Because of his victories, he was expected to end the disorder of the Revolution, bring back peace, and meld the political and social conquests of the Revolution. He was a man of the Revolution, and in a way, a real-life symbol of the Enlightenment ideals.

The Napoleonic Wars

The Napoleonic Wars refers to the series of wars led by Napoleon Bonaparte between 1799 and 1815. These wars engaged almost all European nations, as well as Egypt, Syria, and Russia, and had an impact on North and South America. During this time, warfare changed from being a sport of sorts for kings, to being a way to advance a country and to “arm” a nation’s future security. Warfare also made use of more advanced weaponry and saw a shift from bright uniforms to dark blue or green uniforms, a precursor to modern-day camouflage. The first major war was the War of the Second Coalition. While Bonaparte was fighting the British in Egypt, a coalition formed in 1798 against France consisting of Russia, Britain, Austria, Portugal, the Ottoman Empire, and the Kingdom of Naples. Russian troops invaded northern Italy and Switzerland, but the French were able to stop their advances. The Russians withdrew from the coalition. Bonaparte tried to negotiate peace settlements with the remaining members of the coalition, but they declined. Bonaparte then led forces into Austria and defeated the Austrians at the Battle of Marengo in 1800. France was able to win several more battles until only Britain remained an enemy. Finally, in 1802, Britain made peace. Peace with Britain did not last long for France. In 1805, the War of the Third Coalition started. Once again, Britain formed alliances with other European powers to try to defeat France; this time, Britain

1 had a coalition with Russia, Austria, and Sweden. France was able to overpower Austria and Austria dropped out. Prussia joined the coalition in 1806. Bonaparte and his troops quickly defeated Prussia at the battle of Jena. By 1808, Bonaparte was a master at military warfare. But he started to make some political mistakes. He dethroned the king of Spain, Charles IV, and made his brother, Joseph Bonaparte, king. This caused a revolt in Spain. Spanish guerillas responded by driving the French out of Spain, with the help of British troops and Portuguese allies, and invaded southern France. Invasion of Russia Meanwhile, Bonaparte had issued an edict barring trade with Great Britain. Bonaparte wanted Russia to follow the edict, but Czar Alexander I felt the edict would ruin the Russian economy. Tensions between the two countries escalated. Even though his advisers counseled him to leave Russia alone, Napoleon decided to invade Russia. Despite having troops tied up in Spain, Bonaparte was able to gather a force of six hundred thousand troops. These soldiers came from every corner of the empire and included Italians, Poles, Germans, and French. With such a large army, Bonaparte expected to pour into Russia, engage them in battle, and be home in less than a month. That expectation was crushed. Rather than engage in battle, the Russians retreated, burning their countryside along the way. Bonaparte’s troops forged on, suffering through extreme summer heat. The Russians finally met the tired and weary French troops at the village of Borodino. They fought equally, but came to a standstill. The Russian troops withdrew. Bonaparte claimed victory but pushed forward to Moscow in order to defeat the Russians once and for all. When Bonaparte reached Moscow, it was in flames. The Russians set fire to their city before the French troops could come in and destroy it. Bonaparte demanded the czar accept defeat. Alexander ignored him at first, leaving Bonaparte to sit and wait for five weeks. The general finally decided he had to head back to France. He knew winter was coming and didn’t want to risk getting caught in the vast Russian countryside with a weakened army. But that is exactly what happened. Winter arrived early in 1812. Instead of enemy forces, the French soldiers battled freezing temperatures on their trek home. They ran out of food, their horses died, and they fought against disease, hunger, and the Cossacks. Bonaparte was able to fight off the advancing Russian army as they crossed the frozen Berezina River. It was an obvious retreat for the French army, but Bonaparte felt it was a victory upon arriving at home.

Exile and Return

In 1813, with an increasing number of enemies, Bonaparte felt that all he needed was another military victory and he would win back the support of his country. Napoleon engaged in several small skirmishes in central Europe, battering the Allies of the coalition. Bonaparte turned to Austria to ask for their support. The Allies did as well. Both sides hoped that Austria would join their cause. Austria wanted to remain neutral, and also wanted territory that Bonaparte had taken from them, returned. Bonaparte reacted by threatening to attack Austria, but Austria attacked first. They declared war on France on August 12, 1813, along with the backing of the Allies. Bonaparte was able to defeat them at first, but he knew he was close to a complete defeat. His armies were retreating all across Europe.

2 By 1814, the Allies had advanced across French borders and were encroaching on Paris. Bonaparte tried to rally his troops one last time, but they refused to fight. On April 12, 1814, Bonaparte renounced his throne. He was exiled to the tiny island of Elba off the coast of Italy. By the end of 1814, though, Bonaparte was making plans to return to France. In his absence, the Allies had restored the Bourbon monarchy, placing Louis XVIII on the throne. The advances of the Revolution turned backwards, the economy continued to sink, and the French people started to get restless again. On February 26, 1815, Bonaparte escaped the island and headed back to Paris. Inside French boundaries, he met royal troops who had been ordered to stop his return. He pleaded with them, asking them to rally in support of him. The royal troops marched with Napoleon back to Paris. Upon Napoleon’s return, Louis XVIII fled.

Waterloo

While Bonaparte was in exile in Elba, the Allies were arguing over how to organize post-war Europe. But upon his return, the Allies joined forces again to defeat Bonaparte, whom they declared “an enemy and a disturber of the tranquility of the world.” Seeing the reaction of the Allies, Napoleon soon lost the confidence that he had regained while on the island of Elba. However, he knew he had one last chance to regain his power. Hoping to drive a wedge between the British and the Prussians, he marched toward Waterloo (which is in present-day Belgium). The Duke of Wellington, Britain’s strongest military leader, was waiting at Waterloo. Wellington had 68,000 troops, with additional Prussian troops on the way. His troops waited for Napoleon’s advances. The heavy downpour the night before caused a mess for the French post. It took hours for troops to maneuver cannons in place. Meanwhile, Wellington ordered his men into strategic positions. When French cannons finally fired, British troops were able to avoid the attack, and then counter. With the help of the advanced Prussian troops, the French cavalry was destroyed. Bonaparte called in his Imperial Guard, a group of feared soldiers kept on the sidelines until most needed. Wellington’s troops fired upon the Guard, killing around four hundred guardsmen in one minute. Napoleon was defeated.

Exiled Again

Napoleon Bonaparte abdicated his throne a second time. He was exiled in 1815 to the remote island of St. Helena, thousands of miles from France in the South Atlantic Ocean. Six years later, he died from stomach cancer.