Napoleon: The Misguided Child of a Revolution

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The French Revolution inspired the idea that the subjects of any government have the right to freedom, politically, socially, and economically. The citizens of France needed a strong, powerful leader to take initiative and set France back on the track to become the great nation that it once was. Therefore, Napoleon was able to quickly rise through the ranks as a military commander, eventually crowning himself Emperor of France. Once Emperor, he led France to become a prosperous nation, while promoting, but also sacrificing some goals of the Revolution. Napoleon, “...would govern in the interests of the people as an enlightened but absolute ruler,”(7). Napoleon was a misguided child of the French Revolution who sacrificed some civil liberties of the French people in order to maintain power and carry out the goals of the Revolution to their full extent, both in France, and the rest of Europe as he saw fit.
Napoleon sacrificed many civil liberties the French citizens in order to establish his supreme power as a ruler, which he would eventually use to successfully establish many of the goals of the Revolution. He went to great lengths to quell all his opponents so that he could rule France with absolute power. Similar to Robespierre, Napoleon "...used the instruments of a police state: secret agents, arbitrary arrests, summary trials, and executions,"(5). Napoleon went to great lengths such as these, because, '"he loved 'power as a musician loves his violin,’ and ‘was determined never to lose it,"'(5). This power not only emboldened him, but also allowed him to maintain control of his beloved nation. Napoleon, despite his different views on society and freedom, was very similar to King Louis XVI politically, who, "... Clai...

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...at inspired him to reconfigure France and the rest of Europe. Napoleon appears a hypocrite, leading one to question whether he really is a true supporter of the French Revolution. This may be a logical assertion, but Napoleon only attempted to take back St. Domingue and quell the Slave Revolution because it was a very important colony that would benefit France. Everything Napoleon ever did as emperor was what he thought would benefit France the most, be it expand upon the French Revolution or stop the St. Domingue Revolution.
Napoleon maintained his power by sacrificing what he saw as small civil liberties, which enabled him to freely enforce the goals of the Revolution within France and throughout the rest of Europe, making him a true child of the French Revolution. Napoleon will forever remain in history as, “...the fearsome propagator of the Revolution…”(36).

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