He did this by supporting the French Revolution and raised French nationalism with his bold moves to ruin Britain, France's greatest enemy. In 1799, Napoleon began his journey towards harnessing all of France's power by presenting a constitution that appealed to the Third Estate. In 1802, Napoleon created another constitution that allowed him to have all the power he could obtain by establishing himself as consul for life. In 1804, Napoleon executed an innocent man for the assassination plot on Napoleon without fair trial and broke an international law. In that same year, Napoleon abolished the consulate with a new constitution and became the Emperor of France by convincing France that a dynasty would make France secure and assassinations futile.
Napoleon Bonaparte improved culture in France setting the foundation for change in Europe, creating Frances first structured set of laws, allowing freedom of religion in his empire, and finally breaking the boundary that divided the social classes. Le Code Napoleon brought revolutionary ideas to France and all of Europe. It brought rules and discipline to France: “The Code Napoleon is the French civil code… established under Napoleon 1 in 1804…” The Code gave post-revolutionary France its first coherent set of laws concerning property, colonial affairs, the family, and individual rights. It was the first modern legal code to be adopted with a pan-European scope. Strongly influencing the laws of many countries formed during and after the Napoleonic Wars.
From First Consul to the Emperor of the French, Napoleon took advantage of his triumph to rise in power. He once said, “Nothing has been simpler than my elevation…It is owing to the peculiarities of the time.” Napoleon was fit to revive France from the ruins it was in after the French Revolution. In this quote he acknowledges the situation the country was in and how it benefited him in terms of rising in power. He began by placing the first set of laws the French ever had in 1804 named, “The Code Napoleon.” It promoted equality, freedom of conscience, right for individuals to choose own professions, and protects
Secondly, another two key repressive policies of William Pitt were the ‘Two Acts’, the Seditious Meetings Act and Treasonable Act, both of 1795. The Treasonable Act appeared to be a vicious attack on personal liberties. Similarly to the suspension of Habeas Corpus, it was put it in by Pitt to install fear into radicals by extending the definition of the word ‘treason’ to both speaking and writing. However, this was arguably more effective than the abolition of Habeas Corpus as it lowered the amount of people writing about the cause to gain support, as people such as Paine and Hardy were effectively spreading the radical message
Arguably the strongest viewpoint is that Napoleon’s regime post-1804 is more obvious and the façade Napoleon established to consolidate his power is dropped. The events of 1804 were not a pivotal turning point in the style of Napoleon’s rule but simply embodied his continued authoritarian rule over France. Throughout Napoleon’s rule he made significant and important changes in the area of Government. After the Coup d’état, Napoleon became First Consul (1800) this power was then increased when in 1802 Napoleon became Consul for life, thereby enabling him to choose his successor. This ability was a feature of hereditary rule yet it can be said that Napoleon’s appointment to Emperor in 1804 is the distinctive turning point in the establishment of his hereditary regime.
Locke’s Effect on The French Revolution There is no doubt that the Enlightenment influenced the French Revolution. The Enlightenment ideals such as natural rights, were prevalent in almost every document written up by the revolutionaries, such as article one of the Declaration of the Rights of Man, “1. Men are born and remain free and equal in rights. Social distinctions may be founded only upon the general good.” (1, DotRM). While some may argue that other philosophes such as Rousseau or Montesquieu impacted the revolution the most, the enlightened thinker that influenced the French Revolution the most is John Locke.
While this calendar may have seemed very logical, promoting religious and social reform, it actually did much more harm than good. These problems would contribute to the discontinuation of the French calendar by Napoleon in 1806. First of all, the adoption of this new calendar just seemed logical. After the biggest shift in global politics it only seemed appropriate to completely change everything. While the leadership and system of government in France had to change, so did the calendar.
Do you agree with the suggestion that Henry VIII and Wolsey conducted an effective Foreign Policy between the years 1515-1525? Henry VIII’s foreign policy orchestrated by Wolsey in the years 1515-25 was considered to be both a success and a failure. This essay will counter argue both sides of the argument as to whether it was a success or a failure. My personal opinion was that the foreign policy was a failure due to most of the aims not being met. The aims set to be achieved by Henry was to; Capture France, become a ‘Warrior king’ and to be known as one of the leading country’s in the world.
Cardinal Richelieu also helped Louis XIV gain control of France by ceasing the rebellion of the Huguenots and stripping them of all of their political and military power. He promised Louis XIV that he would “…ruin the Huguenot party…” and rises up Louis XIV good name. (Cardinal Richelieu, 1624). According to Louis XIV in his “Memoires for the Instruction of the Dauphin, “Important as it is to be ruled only by a single person, it is just as important for the one who performs this function to be placed so far above the others…” (Louis XIV, n.d.). Louis XIV believed in his absolutist views as King and wanted to instill them in his son.
Napoleon Bonaparte was born on August 15, 1769, and grew up to become French general, first consul in 1799, and eventually the emperor of the French in 1804. Napoleon had many accomplishments including his legal reform, the Napoleonic code, in addition to his Napoleonic Wars, which helped spread the ideas of the French Revolution to other parts of the world (Moore). Because of Napoleon's accomplishments, he was truly a hero for the people of France, and the followers of the French Revolution. Napoleon is a hero because he was an outstanding military leader during France's time of need. In 1793, Napoleon was able to drive out a British fleet from the French port of Toulon.