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The Age of Napoleon. 18.4. Napoleon Bonaparte Rises to Power. Born in Corsica, Napoleon Bonaparte was sent to Italy at age 9 to study for a military career.
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The Age of Napoleon 18.4
Napoleon Bonaparte Rises to Power • Born in Corsica, Napoleon Bonaparte was sent to Italy at age 9 to study for a military career. • During the French Revolution he won several battles as a lieutenant, eventually became a general, helped overthrow the French Directory, and established a 3 man governing board known as the Consulate. • In 1801 Napoleon became the Emperor of France. At each step in his career he won the popular vote as a plebiscite.
Napoleon Reforms France • To restore economic prosperity he set prices, supported new industries, issued public works projects, and with the Concordat of 1801 made peace with the Catholic Church. • Encouraged émigrés to return to France • Peasants were given lands they bought from the Church. • Napoleonic Code- equality among citizens, religious tolerance, and abolished feudalism. • women lost rights as a result of this
Napoleon Builds An Empire • Napoleon’s conquests caused the map of Europe to be redrawn. • Developed a new plan for each battle to keep opposing generals off balance. • He annexed, or added, the empires of the Netherlands, Belgium, and parts of Italy and Germany. • Friends and relatives were placed on the thrones of defeated nations. • Bonaparte was unable to defeat Britain in battle so he attacked their economy. • The Continental System was designed to blockade British goods from European ports. The system failed due to Britain’s navy protecting non-European trade routes to India and the U.S.
Napoleon’s Empire Faces Challenges • Nationalism helped rally the French people behind Bonaparte, but also caused the citizens of other European nations to resent French influence. • Spanish patriots conducted guerilla warfare through hit-and-run attacks. • France invaded Russia in the winter of 1812 • Once allies, Napoleon and Tsar Alexander I agreed to divide Europe if the tsar backed the Continental System. • To avoid fighting France, the Russians retreated and practiced scorched earth policy, burning crops and villages as they went east.
Napoleon Falls From Power • In 1815 the British and Prussians defeated Napoleon at the Battle of Waterloo. • Napoleon was forced to abdicate. • The Congress of Vienna was a meeting of European diplomats. • They met to restore stability to Europe by establishing hereditary monarchs through legitimacy. • This group met periodically as the Concert of Europe to discuss issues.