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Napoleon's Birth
Napoleon was born on August 15, 1769 in Corsica, an island in Italy. He was born into a second-estate family with 7 other siblings. Even though they were nobles, his family was very poor. -
Napoleon's Education
At the age of 9, Napoleon was sent to a military school in France. By 1785, 7 years later, he graduated as a lieutenant in the artillery. These skills would help him later on in life. -
American Riots
The people in America demanded the National Assembly to give them the same rights they gave the French, and the Assembly declined. A civil war began between the colonies when African slaves wanted to be free. They were led by Toussaint L'Ouverture. -
Hero of the Hour
Napoleon defended the delegates during a royalist rebellion. He made the attackers surrender. He became the hero of the hour since he saved the French Republic and the National Convention. -
Appointed as Leader
Napoleon was appointed to lead the army against Austria and Sardinia. He also wanted to protect French trade by disrupting British trade with India. He then moved on to Egypt but is army was defeated by Horatio Nelson. However, this defeat was not published so he was still a good leader. -
Coup d'Etat
Napoleon took control of the political power and overthrew the National Legislature. He then appointed three consuls and assumed the powers of a dictator. This was called the coup d'Etat because it was a sudden seizure of power. -
Peace and Order
After Britain, Austria, and Russia attacked France, Napoleon wanted to do something about it. Napoleon led his troops in Paris and eventually defeated these three countries. They all signed peace treaties for the first time in 10 years. -
Napoleon loses the Americas
After trying to take back his American colonies in 1801, Napoleon finally accepted defeat. He decided to cut his ties with America and sold the Louisiana Territory. President Jefferson bought it for $15 million in 1803. -
Reforms lead to coronation
Napoleon wanted to restore order to France, so he held a plebiscite to change the constitution. He made the economy and trade better, improved tax collection, set up lycées (schools), and signed the concordat with the pope. His most important reform was the creation of the Napoleonic Code, his comprehensive set of laws. Because of all this, he crowned himself emperor of France on December 2, 1804. -
Conquering Europe
Napoleon made the Austrian Netherlands and Italy part of France and controlled the Swiss government. The British feared Napoleon, and convinced Russia, Austria, and Sweden to attack France with them. After the heavy losses from these countries, Napoleon was proud of his army after the Battle of Austerlitz in 1805. -
Napoleon's Fall Begins
Napoleon set up a blockade to stop trade between Europe. Instead, he created the Continental System in 1806 and expected every nation to follow it. But, Napoleon was disobeyed and the British defended Europe with their strong navy. -
The Peninsular War
Napoleon wanted Portugal to accept the Continental System. He then sent an invasion force through Spain. The spanish people protested and Napoleon decided to remove the Spanish king and add this brother Joseph to the throne. The Spanish were worried he would attack the Church. -
Napoleon Invades Russia
Napoleone made a huge mistake. Napoleon decided to invade Russia even though he and Alexander were allies. Napoleon took his Grand Army of 420,000 soldiers to Russia. Alexander refused to fight the battle so the practiced a scorched-earth policy in order to keep Napoleon from grabbing all the fields and eating or having shelter. -
Napoleon's dominance comes to an end
Napoleon was such a winner around Europe that the only areas outside of his control were Britain, Portugal, Sweden, and the Ottoman Empire. He had government puppets all over Europe that followed his instructions. Even Russia, Austria, and Prussia were slightly controlled by him. But, even though this started in 1807, it only lasted 5 years and collapsed in 1812. -
The Clash in the Battle of Borodino
Russia and France finally clashed in the Battle of Borodino. The fought for multiple hours, and finally Russia let Napoleon move into Moscow. Napoleon entered Moscow and the city was in flames. Napoleon stayed in the useless city til October, and then moved back to France. -
Napoleon is Defeated
Napoleon raised another army but this time it was a weak one. On October of 1813, Napoleon faced allied armies of Europe outside the city of Leipzig. The allied forces defeated his army and the French Resistance lost. -
The Battle of Waterloo
Napoleon was exiled to Elba, but he managed to escape. After escaping, he landed in France. Napoleon gained power and build a new army. The European allied merged their armies in order to defeat Napoleon. Napoleon attacked, but the European army would not give up. The British and the Prussians attacked the French and defeated Napoleon. -
Napoleon's Death
Napoleon was exiled to St. Helena after his defeat. Napoleon was considered a military genius, but he still killed millions of people. Napoleon died in 1821 due to cancer.
