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Napoleon and the church
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To regain peace among the people of France, Napoleon sought to end the factionalism that had been so rampant during the Revolution. He started by bring all the different factions into his fold and offering their leaders positions in his government. For their inclusion into his government, Napoleon required the factions to be loyal not only to France, but also to him. Undoubtedly, there were factions that refused to submit to Napoleon’s terms; however, they were all brutally massacred by his secret police.
Napoleon also sought to bring the church under the state. During the revolution, the factions had made it so that a true Frenchman would not consider himself a Christian and had largely dismantled Christianity in France. Napoleon’s goal was
Napoleon just maintains the goals of the French Revolution since he needed to secure and reinforce his own energy. Amid his ascent to power, Napoleon stuck to the goals obediently. In his discourse to his troops, Napoleon said, "We are taking up arms as liberal foes, and we wish just to squash the despots who subjugate [the Italian people]" (Document 1). He instructs them to be deferential of different nations, to give them rights they have the privilege to appreciate. This takes after Locke's illumination thoughts, that everybody has natural rights that can't be taken away.
Napoleon Bonaparte’s attitude towards the French Revolution is one that has often raised questions. That the revolution had an influence on Bonaparte’s regime cannot be denied – but to what extent? When one looks at France after Napoleon’s reign it is clear that he had brought much longed for order and stability. He had also established institutions that embodied the main principles of the revolution. However, it is also evident that many of his policies directly contradict those same principles. Was Napoleon betraying the same revolution that gave him power, or was he merely a pragmatist, who recognised that to consolidate the achievements of the revolution he needed to sacrifice some of those principles?
After the Reign of Terror, Napoleon Bonaparte rose to authority. When he was in power, Napoleon only kept some of the ideas that were used in the French Revolution. For example he was for equality, but disregarded liberty. Napoleon started many wars for France, in hopes of gaining land. France did win some land, but more times than not France lost the wars, putting them into extreme war debt.
Napoleon was a military general that participated in multiple war victories. His interests included history, law, and mathematics. His strengths as a leader benefitted in planning financial, legal, and military plans. His aspiring attitude made him believe he was destined to be the savior of France (Coffin & Stacey, 494). He favored a republic over a constitutional monarchy. When Napoleon came to power, he immediately consolidated personal power by overthrowing the five-man Directory and created a Republic. Napoleon used his status and power during the Revolution to bring out and surface Revolution ideals and help his people. Napoleon’s role in European history was the savior of the French Revolution due to the fact he accomplished most objectives that the people hoped for. Goals of the French Revolution included overthrowing the old regime of an absolute monarch, write a basic and worthy constitution, and give more rights to the third estate and limit the first and second estates power in the Estates-General.
One of Napoleon’s first areas of concern was in the strengthening of the French government. He created a strong centralized government and pretty much got rid of the hundreds of localized law codes that had existed during under the control of the monarchy. He also created an army of government officials. He had the entire country linked under a rational administration. He also was able to get an easy supply of taxes and soldiers under his new and improved French government. Before he could get very far, however, he had to gain public favor and shape the public opinion. To do this he used reforms of propaganda and thus caused people to think that they were getting the better end of the deal, but were actually, subconsciously giving Napoleon their approval for his actions. Among some of the methods he used for propaganda included getting all of the printers and book sellers to swear an oath to Napoleon and all newspapers fell under state control, so Napoleon gained access to almost everything that the citizens of France were able to read. Many of the gains from the French Revolution were kept, such as equality before the law, and careers open to talent. Some anti-revolution actions that Napoleon took included repressing liberty, restoring absolutism, and ending political liberty. He believed that allowing political freedom would end with a state of anarchy. He believed that he could solve these problems by acting in favor of the people’s interests as an enlightened desp...
Napoleon was a great soldier that graduated from military school at the age of sixteen and quickly worked his way through the ranks. Napoleon was a brilliant leader in battle and consistently defeated armies larger than his own; including when he forced the Austrians to make peace after defeating four of their generals. In 1799 Napoleon and his colleagues overtook the French government and established power. He revised the constitution in 1802 to make himself consul for life, and then again in 1804 to make himself Emperor of France. Soon after Napoleon came to power he restructured the administration, simplified the court system, and began monitoring the schooling system; French law was also put in the Napoleon Code which guaranteed the rights and liberties that were gained through the revolution. Napoleons violent behavior caused war with Britain to break out, who allied with Russia and Austria. Prussia later allied themselves with Russia; creating a huge alliances against France and Napoleon. Napoleon successfully extended his reign over large parts of Europe and put each state under the Napoleon Code, which gave citizens new rights and privileges. In 1812 all of Europe turned against Napoleon, which lead to his exile in 1814. He regained power in 1815 just to loose it later that year. He died in exile in Saint Helena in 1821.
Almost every ruler in history can be accused of having some kind of religious fanaticism. This religious fervor has led to persecution, civil war, unrest, instability, ignorance, and even genocide. The enlightenment taught philosophes and scholars religious tolerance by lessening the importance of religion and God in everyday life. As a child of the enlightenment, Napoleon had a similar immunization to the devout and was able to use religion as a tool to accomplish his political ideas and goals. An example of this is the fact that whatever new land he conquered, he adopted the religion of that land in order to gain the acceptance of the general population. In France, he was Catholic. In Egypt, he was Muslim. But the only insight we have to his actual religious beliefs are that he said he followed his own "star" indicating that he pursued a somewhat mystical belief in destiny and fate. He completely regar...
French citizens did not dare question his authority, as they respected him more than their former absolute monarch, King Louis XVI. During Napoleon’s reign, France participated in many gruesome battles, building a reputation as one of the most powerful countries in Europe. Napoleon’s armed forces carried the nationalistic ideologies of the French revolution. Soon, nationalism would be regarded a political epidemic poisoning neighbouring kingdoms and empires, many of which were multi-nation states. Collective groups who were forced to co-exist with one another were outraged, as they believed that they all deserved their own territory and sovereignty. If the revolution was able to transform France into the most powerful nation on the continent, why wouldn’t it work out for everyone else? Soon enough, nationalism would be dividing nation-states rather than unifying
This was the basis of the education system Napoleon strived for. The Education reforms which Napoleon introduced in 1802 called lycees allowed this equality to occur and enhanced the way of learning for all of the citizens. Finally, the serious rift with the Roman Catholic Church (which was created during the French revolution) was healed when The Concordat was introduced by Napoleon. Mending the rift between the Church and State allowed freedom of religion and rejuvenated the beliefs within the people of France. This contribution to France ended in French domestic tranquility.
Napoleon’s “coup d’etat of 18 brumaire was an insurance against both the Jacobin revolution and the Royalist restoration.” The French people expected Napoleon to bring back peace, order and to consolidate the political and social conquests of the Revolution. Napoleon considered these conquests to be “the sacred rights of property, equality and liberty.” If Napoleon gained power with the promise of upholding the principles of the French Revolution, how did he betray the revolution? Many historians argue that Napoleon was an effective but ambitious leader.
The biggest and the most important thing that Napoleon did in order to preserve the French Revolution was the Napoleonic Code or the Civil Code of 1804.
Kirchberger, Joe H. The French Revolution and Napoleon. New York: Facts on File inc, 1989.
With all the glory and the splendour that some countries may have experienced, never has history seen how only only one man, Napoleon, brought up his country, France, from its most tormented status, to the very pinnacle of its height in just a few years time. He was a military hero who won splendid land-based battles, which allowed him to dominate most of the European continent. He was a man with ambition, great self-control and calculation, a great strategist, a genius; whatever it was, he was simply the best. But, even though how great this person was, something about how he governed France still floats among people's minds. Did he abuse his power? Did Napoleon defeat the purpose of the ideals of the French Revolution? After all of his success in his military campaigns, did he gratify the people's needs regarding their ideals on the French Revolution? This is one of the many controversies that we have to deal with when studying Napoleon and the French Revolution. In this essay, I will discuss my opinion on whether or not was he a destroyer of the ideals of the French Revolution.
Napoleon Bonaparte is often seen as a tyrant, however; through Napoleon’s strong tactics and military leadership he led France through a time of great turmoil and provided the stability and guidance France so desperately needed. During his reign, Napoleon was able to bring an end to the French Revolution, a series of wars that had fractured the French at their core. After the resolution of the revolution, Napoleon developed the Civil Code or Napoleonic code to unite all of France under one governing law. The Civil Code blended the governing laws of the Roman law practiced in the South with the customary law practiced in the North. Through the Code, Napoleon brought unity to France, improved the rights and lives of citizens, and allowed for France’s own growth and development. The Civil Code is considered one of Napoleon’s
How did a man with a promising military career loose it so quickly? Napoleon was one of the greatest military minds but did not always use it correctly, which eventually led to his downfall. This essay will explain what led to the downfall of Napoleon.