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Napoleon's Accomplishments
Although Napoleon certainly had his flaws, he was one of the best leaders in history. For starters, he was a dictator loved by all, which is something that rarely happens. Napoleon was also a strong military leader, conquering a huge chunk of Europe. -
Coup D'etat (Becoming Dictator)
The Directory had lost all political power early in the year. Napoleon was encouraged to seize control of the government, which is exactly what he did. -
Concordat
An agreement with the Pope that forged a new relationship with Church and State. This allowed the Church to gain more power again. -
Loss of American Territories
Due to unruliness within the colonies, Napoleon decided it was in his best interest to cut his losses and let them go. He decided to sell the Louisiana Territory to the United States, forever sealing their power and creating an enemy out of England. -
Napoleonic Code
Perhaps one of Napoleon's greatest accomplishments, this set of laws allowed the country to have a uniform judicial system. This also prevented many injustices from happening. -
Napoleon Crowned as Empire
With the popular vote behind him, Napoleon decided to crown himself Emperor of France. During the Coronation ceremony, Napoleon gestured that he was more powerful than the Church rulers before him. -
Conquering of Europe
Since he'd given up conquering the New World, Napoleon turned to the neighboring area of Europe. England persuaded Russia, Austria, and Sweden to join forces against Napoleon, but his army continued on unhindered. -
Continental System
In order to cut off the goods coming in to England, and to make Europe more self sufficient, Napoleon set up a blockade. However, his blockade wasn't very successful, as even his own family members disregarded it. -
Invading Russia (scorched earth policy)
One of Napoleon's fatal mistakes, he decided to break the alliance with Russia. However, as his army traipsed into Russia, the Russian army fell back burning everything and killing livestock. This left Napoleon's army with nothing to eat, and many of the soldiers died from starvation, exhaustion, and cold. -
Waterloo
After the defeat against Russia, Napoleon was exiled to a small island. However, when news of the new power reached him, Napoleon escaped to seize power again. Joyous crowds followed him into the city of Paris, but it was not that easy. The battle at Waterloo was provoked by England and they successfully ended Napoleon's reign. -
The Hundred Days
These were the days encompassing Napoleon's last vy for power.
