Napoleon-Rise to Fall

Napoleon came to power when France was at its most turbulent time in its political history. He fertilized the concepts of Nationalism and freedom, and used his military genius to route all of the enemies of France on main-land Europe, and establish a great French empire, bringing sweeping changes to France and Europe. Napoleon’s downfall was caused by the very changes he made, which were for the better of the entire continent. France would have been in a far worse situation if it was not for Napoleon, who brought with him new concepts such as the famous Code Napoleon, and the nationalist spirit that Napoleon nourished gave France a superior seat in Europe at least until the Second World War. Napoleon cleaned up the mess that was France.

The Coup d’état on November 9th was not just another familiarity in the political instability that was France, that the French people had come to live; it was a turning point in the history of Europe as a whole. It brought stability from the fear of the past . The times before the coup were turbulent, full of political factionalism and violence, but now Napoleon took command, and the French people looked upon him for strength. He was a great general, and a strong individual, so would brin

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He is historically also seen as a humanist, especially for his tolerance and treatment of the Jews, such as bringing them out of the French Ghetto . The Code Napoléon was so successful; it was even adopted as far away as Japan and in South America . Not only was France better for him, but the whole of Europe as well. There are several reasons for the fall of France, and Napoleon with it. Pressures from outside were also a major concern, and it seemed that the French had simply taken more land than their security forces could hold. He improved the education, administration, and judicial systems. This was the start of the end for the new French empire.

With the defeat of the Austrians, and then the Prussians, and the treaty of Tilsit still holding the Russians at bay, Napoleon only had one main force left to deal with; England. Napoleon sought to tighten the grip of his government on the French people by heavily regulating the media, and personally appointing favorable allies to certain bureaucratic positions. Europe at the time of Napoleon was a continent made up of many small and weak nations, especially in the Germanic regions to the east. Wherever he went he imposed the benefits of the Civil Code, and abolished feudalism. Teaching the French system of government, and showing the conquered lands what a nation could do with a strong national sentiment, and the political and military machine to suit it, showed the states of Europe what could be achieved by nationalism. The Concordat of 1801 gave the French Catholic Church its restoration, and immediately gave Napoleon millions of new supporters within France . Within a few years he ruled France and half of the European Continent as no other man in history, sweeping kings and queens aside, he shook the foundations of Europe, and introduced new ideas and revolutionary systems of government.

Nationalism in the rest of Europe was nowhere near the level of where it was in France.

Approximate Word count = 2211
Approximate Pages = 9 (250 words per page double spaced)

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