biographies

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NAPOLEON I

Napoleon's life was a very interesting one. Starting a poor boy, hated by most, rising to rule a huge empire, and then finally being destroyed by his own arrogance and ending his life humbled, remembering what he had doe, and leaving it all in his memoirs for the world to read.

Napoleon was born in 1769, on the Island of Corsica. His parents, Carlo and Letizia Bonaparte, were poor nobles. When Napoleon was just 10 years old, his father helped to get him a mathematical scholarship to a military school at Brienne. In the school, Napoleon was hated and considered a foreigner. With no friends, Napoleon concentrated on academics, but still only graduated 42nd in us class of 58. he then continued his education at the Military academy of Paris. After one year there, he became second Lieutenant of artillery, at the age of 17. As a Lieutenant, Napoleon did a lot of reading, mainly in the subjects of history, geography, economic affairs, and philosophy.
Napoleon was assigned to a post at the Valence garrison when he became a Lieutenant, but spent most of his time in Corsica, without permission. During one of these visits, Napoleon had trouble with a Corsican nationalist, named Pasquale Paoli, and Napoleon and his family fled to Marseille in 1793.
Later in 1793, the beginning of the French revolution, Napoleon led an artillery brigade to push out a British fleet that the Royalists had allowed in. Napoleon's mission was a success, and he was promoted to general, and was assigned to the army in Northern Italy.
During the early part of the revolution, Napoleon had supported Maximilien Robespierre's revolutionary group, and when Robespiere was overthrown in 1794, Napoleon spent two months in jail for being associated with him.
When he was released from jail, Napoleon refused to fight a rebellion in Vandee, and he lost his military position for it.
In 1795, Paul Barras, the military leader of a soon to be implemented government, asked Napoleon to fight a revolt in Paris, Napoleon accepted, and quickly ended the revolt. When the directory, the government Barras was part of, came into power, they rewarded Napoleon by appointing him the commander of the army of the interior in 1796. He also married Josephine de Beauharrais in the same year.
Later in 1796, Napoleon launched a campaign to push the Austrian and Sardinian armies out of Northern Italy. Napoleon quickly defeated the Sardinians at Mandovi (about 25 miles from current French borders). In a treaty with the Sardinians, France was given Nice and Savoy. He then went further into Italy, pushing into the Lombardy region. He took the stronghold at Mantua after a long siege, and was heading toward Venice with little resistance when the Austrians surrendered, and Napoleon negotiated the treaty of Campo Formio, which ended what is now called the war of the first coalition. While in Italy, Napoleon took large amounts of money and art to bring to France.
When Napoleon returned from Italy, it was suggested that he invade England. Instead, he decided to invade British-owned Egypt. After sneaking by the British navy, Napoleon landed in Egypt, and quickly carried out the occupation. While Napoleon as inland, the British destroyed the French fleet, leaving Napoleon stuck in Egypt.
In early 1799, the Ottoman empire declared war on France. To stop the Ottoman's from invading Egypt, Napoleon invaded Syria, but was turned back by Turkish troops. By mid-1799, the second coalition (formed by the Ottoman's and Austrians) were defeating French forces in Europe, so Napoleon decided to return to France.
When Napoleon arrived in Paris, he began a conspiracy to overthrow the government. He succeeded, and created a new government called the consulate, of which Napoleon became the first consul.
As consul, Napoleon made many good changes in France. He created the Napoleonic code, which set up a complex code of civil law in the nation. He worked with the Pope to reestablish the Roman Catholic faith in France. He also stabilized the French economy, balancing the budget, established a national bank, and restored the value of French bonds.
In the mean time, Napoleon defeated Austria in Marengo, Italy, and signed the treaty of Luneville, ending the war of the second coalition. He also made peace with Britain with the treaty of Amiens. For his accomplishments in his first years in office, Napoleon was made consul for life in late 1802.
In this time of peace, Napoleon began to try to gain more territory, and exert influence on Europe. He started to attempt control in Holland, Switzerland, and an area called Savoy-Piedmont.
In 1804, a failed assassination attempt on Napoleon drove the senate to tell Napoleon to begin a hereditary dynasty, making him emperor. At his crowning, Napoleon took the crown from the Pope and crowned himself. This shows the arrogance that Napoleon was capable of. As an emperor, he began to value family ties, and he put much of his family in high positions, and had many of them marry people of power. Even Napoleon himself divorced Josephine and Married the daughter of Emperor Francis of Austria, Marie Louise, who he quickly had a male heir with.
In 1803, Britain once again became angry with Napoleon's actions, and war began again. Napoleon took the offensive and took an army of 170,000 to invade Britain. He failed to draw the British navy away from Britain, and didn't have enough power to face them. This, combined with Austria renewing war, forced Napoleon to return to France. Toward the end of 1805, the fleet Napoleon had taken was destroyed by the British at the Battle of Trafalgar, ending the threat of a French invasion of Britain.
After this victory, Britain formed the third coalition and was preparing revenge for the attempted invasion of Britain. However, Napoleon had created the extremely powerful grand army, and, after easily pushing through southern Germany, crushed the Austrians and Russians at Ulm.
After taking Ulm, Napoleon went on to occupy Vienna, one of his largest victories came soon after. The Austrian and Russian forces attacked Napoleon in Austerlitz, in an attempt to cut him off from Vienna. However, Napoleon easily defeated the combined forces in what is now called the battle of Austerlitz. In the treaty of Pressburg, the Austrians gave Venice and Dalmatia to the kingdom of Italy, owned by France.
In 1806, not long after the defeat of the third coalition, Prussia organized the fourth coalition. In the battles of Jena-Auerstadt, Eylau, and Friedland, Napoleon completely annihilated the Prussians and Russians, forcing them to surrender and sign the treaties of Tilsit, giving more land to France.
Angry at the power and defiance of Britain, Napoleon decided to eliminate their economic influence on the mainland. His plan was called the continental system. It was a blockade of British trade. Portugal refused to follow this policy, and France sent troops into the Iberian Peninsula, starting the Peninsular war.
Austria took advantage of the conflict in Portugal and started the fifth coalition. Napoleon quickly won many battles and finally defeated the Austrians at Wagram. The treaty of Schonbrunn ended the fifth coalition in 1809, only four months after it had begun.
In 1802, Napoleon made the decision to invade Russian, in spite of the raging war in Iberia. The Russians fell back and allowed Napoleon to take Moscow with little resistance. While in Moscow waiting for a Russian surrender, Russian reinforcements surrounded the city while arsonists set much of it on fire. Famine and the onset of winter made Napoleon's only option to break out of the city and retreat. Napoleon's army narrowly escaped, and he quickly went to Paris to renew his forces.
The nations of Europe once again took advantage of Napoleon's time of weakness. The Prussians, Russians, British, and Swedes organized the sixth coalition in 1813. Napoleon had foreseen such an attempt, and had rebuilt his grand army. Napoleon's victories at Lutzen and Bautzen brought about a short peace, but later in the year, Austria joined the coalition, and war began again. Napoleon won the battle of Dresden, but was defeated while outnumbered two to one in the Battle of the Nations near Leipzig. He then fled to Paris, refusing to give up any territory, fearing that doing so would result in an overthrow.
In 1814, the coalition invaded France. Napoleon tried to take advantage of the distance between the armies approaching Paris by picking them off one by one, but was eventually outnumbered. Napoleon gave up his rule and was exiled to the island of Elba, and giving small amounts of governmental power there. Louis XVII took the crown of France. Aware of the French peoples dissatisfaction with Louis XVII's rule, Napoleon returned to France in 1815. Napoleon marched toward Paris, going through areas in which he was popular, and King Louis fled the nation.
Napoleon said that he wished to return in peace, but the allies prepared to push him out. Napoleon won several early victories against the rush of allied attackers, but was defeated for the last time at the battle of Waterloo. Fleeing back to Paris, Napoleon once again stepped down, and surrendered to the British ship Bellerophon. The British exiled him to the Island of Saint Helena.
Napoleon spent the remaining six years of his life living with his secretary and a few friends. There, he dictated his memoirs. He died on May 5, 1821.
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