Unofficially known as the Little Corporal and the Corsican, Napoleon Bonaparte was one of the world’s greatest military leaders.
NapoleoN Buonaparte was born on Aug. 15, 1769, in Ajaccio on the French island of Corsica to the wealthy family of Carlo and Marie Letizia Buonaparte. He later adopted a French spelling of his surname, by which he was forever known.
Young Napoleon had an early knack for the military. In 1779, at the age of 9, he enlisted in a military academy in Brienne.
Five years later, he enlisted in the Parisian Ecole Royale Militaire.
He graduated the three-year course in just one year with the rank of second lieutenant.
He became involved in military and political affairs and was a supporter of Pasquale Paoli, a Corsican patriot and leader who was also a former patron of his father, Carlo. But Napoleon later opposed Paoli when civil war broke out in Corsica, and fled to France.
The climate in France was in flux because of the revolution. In 1793, Napoleon was arrested for treason, but his political ties saved him.
In 1795, then-Gen. Bonaparte became a hero after defending the French government against counterrevolutionary forces. He quickly became one of the country’s most important military figures, and married Josephine de Beauharnais.
A year later, France attacked Austria. Napoleon took control of the French army and shaped it into a successful military force that defeated the stronger Austrian army – sometimes more by luck than by might.
In 1798, Napoleon took on a military campaign in Egypt to boost French trade interests and restrict Britain’s access to its Indian Empire. The French army enjoyed victories in land battles led by Napoleon, but Britain, thanks to its superior navy, emerged as the victors.
Still, during Napoleon’s exploits in Egypt, important discoveries were made by French scientists, including the Rosetta Stone, which explained how to decipher Egyptian hieroglyphics.
Upon his return to France, Napoleon turned to politics, establishing treaties that brought peace to Europe. Next, he began working on reforming the French economy, legal system, church, military and government with his famous
Code Napoleon, which laid the bureaucratic foundation for the modern French state.
In 1802, Napoleon was elected consulate for life. Two years later, he was elected Emperor of France.
On April 30, 1803, after abandoning plans to build a French empire within the new United States, Bonaparte sold land that was held by France to the United States.
The Louisiana Purchase doubled the size of our country overnight, and was a coup for American President Thomas Jefferson.
The peace in Europe was short-lived. Napoleon’s Grande Armee defeated enemies from Britain, Austria and Russia. He dominated Europe for eight years and put relatives and friends into positions of power. He became a patron of arts and sciences.
In 1810, Napoleon married his second wife, Marie-Louise. A year later, the couple had a son, whom they named Napoleon II.
The year 1812 marked the beginning of the end of Napoleon’s reign. He went to war against Russia, with an army of more than 400,000 soldiers. In the Battle of Borodino, more then 80,000 soldiers were killed. Russia refused to surrender, torching Moscow instead and forcing Napoleon to retreat. The Grande Armee suffered from starvation. In the end, only 10,000 soldiers remained. Napoleon had destroyed his army and his military reputation. A plan was already in place to remove him from power.
Britain was bearing down on France and approaching Paris. Although Napoleon tried to fight, he could not do it without public support. On March 30, 1814, he abdicated as Emperor and was exiled to the Island of Elba.
In 1815, he returned to France in secret and reclaimed his seat of power for a period of only 100 days. But the general’s glory days were over.
Napoleon suffered his final defeat at the Battle of Waterloo, in what is today Belgium, resulting in the end of his rule and his exile to the British island of St. Helena, where he died six years later, on May 5, 1821.
ACTIVITIES
Use the Internet, encyclopedia or other reference source to learn more about Napoleon Bonaparte.
WRITE an essay on his military career. Do you think he was a good military leader?
Why or why not?
Napoleon authorized the Louisiana Purchase. Learn more about this all-important transaction and write a newspaper-style article about it.
Today’s lesson fulfills the following standards: ELA 1c, 3c, 3d, 4a, 4b, 5a Social Studies Standards 2