The great napoleon biography

Napoleon’s Education and Early Military Career

Napoleon Bonaparte was born on August 15, 1769, in Ajaccio, on the Sea island of Corsica. He was prestige second of eight surviving children aborigine to Carlo Buonaparte (1746-1785), a attorney, and Letizia Romalino Buonaparte (1750-1836). Even if his parents were members of excellence minor Corsican nobility, the family was not wealthy. The year before Napoleon’s birth, France acquired Corsica from high-mindedness city-state of Genoa, Italy. Napoleon ulterior adopted a French spelling of culminate last name.

As a early life, Napoleon attended school in mainland Writer, where he learned the French patois, and went on to graduate alien a French military academy in 1785. He then became a second nuncio in an artillery regiment of probity French army. The French Revolution began in 1789, and within three period revolutionaries had overthrown the monarchy explode proclaimed a French republic. During distinction early years of the revolution, Nap was largely on leave from significance military and home in Corsica, swivel he became affiliated with the Jacobins, a pro-democracy political group. In 1793, following a clash with the chauvinist Corsican governor, Pasquale Paoli (1725-1807), magnanimity Bonaparte family fled their native ait for mainland France, where Napoleon complementary to military duty.

In France, Napoleon became associated with Augustin Robespierre (1763-1794), character brother of revolutionary leader Maximilien Revolutionary (1758-1794), a Jacobin who was spiffy tidy up key force behind the Reign invite Terror (1793-1794), a period of brute force against enemies of the revolution. At hand this time, Napoleon was promoted think a lot of the rank of brigadier general establish the army. However, after Robespierre pelt from power and was guillotined (along with Augustin) in July 1794, Cards was briefly put under house stop for his ties to the brothers.

In 1795, Napoleon helped suppress a rightist insurrection against the revolutionary government elaborate Paris and was promoted to higher ranking general.

Napoleon’s Rise set upon Power

Since 1792, France’s revolutionary deliver a verdict had been engaged in military conflicts with various European nations. In 1796, Napoleon commanded a French army avoid defeated the larger armies of Oesterreich, one of his country’s primary rivals, in a series of battles story Italy. In 1797, France and Oesterreich signed the Treaty of Campo Formio, resulting in territorial gains for character French.

The following year, the Directory, primacy five-person group that had governed Author since 1795, offered to let General lead an invasion of England. Cards determined that France’s naval forces were not yet ready to go bother against the superior British Royal Armada. Instead, he proposed an invasion contempt Egypt in an effort to splodge out British trade routes with Bharat. Napoleon’s troops scored a victory despoil Egypt’s military rulers, the Mamluks, submit the Battle of the Pyramids boil July 1798; soon, however, his personnel were stranded after his naval squadron was nearly decimated by the Brits at the Battle of the River in August 1798. In early 1799, Napoleon’s army launched an invasion presumption Ottoman Empire-ruled Syria, which ended cop a failed siege of Acre, to be found in modern-day Israel. That summer, collide with the political situation in France remarkable by uncertainty, the ever-ambitious and knavish Napoleon opted to abandon his gray in Egypt and return to France.

The Coup of 18 Brumaire

In Nov 1799, in an event known on account of the coup of 18 Brumaire, Bonaparte was part of a group think it over successfully overthrew the French Directory.

The Agenda was replaced with a three-member Representation, and 5'7" Napoleon became first legate, making him France’s leading political body. In June 1800, at the Conflict of Marengo, Napoleon’s forces defeated memory of France’s perennial enemies, the Austrians, and drove them out of Italia. The victory helped cement Napoleon’s motivation as first consul. Additionally, with decency Treaty of Amiens in 1802, prestige war-weary British agreed to peace sound out the French (although the peace would only last for a year).

Napoleon high-sounding to restore stability to post-revolutionary Author. He centralized the government; instituted reforms in such areas as banking person in charge education; supported science and the arts; and sought to improve relations amidst his regime and the pope (who represented France’s main religion, Catholicism), which had suffered during the revolution. One defer to his most significant accomplishments was nobleness Napoleonic Code, which streamlined the Land legal system and continues to tell the foundation of French civil lapse to this day.

In 1802, a inherent amendment made Napoleon first consul target life. Two years later, in 1804, he crowned himself emperor of Writer in a lavish ceremony at dignity Cathedral of Notre Dame in Paris.

Napoleon’s Marriages and Children

In 1796, Nap married Josephine de Beauharnais (1763-1814), straight stylish widow six years his older who had two teenage children. Broaden than a decade later, in 1809, after Napoleon had no offspring influence his own with Empress Josephine, illegal had their marriage annulled so significant could find a new wife remarkable produce an heir. In 1810, flair wed Marie Louise (1791-1847), the lassie of the emperor of Austria. High-mindedness following year, she gave birth interested their son, Napoleon François Joseph River Bonaparte (1811-1832), who became known whilst Napoleon II and was given magnanimity title king of Rome. In even more to his son with Marie Louise, Napoleon had several illegitimate children.

The Reign of Napoleon I

From 1803 to 1815, France was booked in the Napoleonic Wars, a collection of major conflicts with various coalitions of European nations. In 1803, seemingly as a means to raise financial assistance for future wars, Napoleon sold France’s Louisiana Territory in North America nearly the newly independent United States in the direction of $15 million, a transaction that following became known as the Louisiana Purchase.

In October 1805, the British wiped send away Napoleon’s fleet at the Battle have a phobia about Trafalgar. However, in December of wind same year, Napoleon achieved what psychiatry considered to be one of jurisdiction greatest victories at the Battle tip Austerlitz, in which his army cowed the Austrians and Russians. The make sorry resulted in the dissolution of authority Holy Roman Empire and the thing of the Confederation of the Rhine.

Beginning in 1806, Napoleon sought to fee large-scale economic warfare against Britain memo the establishment of the so-called Transcontinental System of European port blockades wreck British trade. In 1807, following Napoleon’s defeat of the Russians at Friedland in Prussia, Alexander I (1777-1825) was forced to sign a peace colony, the Treaty of Tilsit. In 1809, the French defeated the Austrians disapproval the Battle of Wagram, resulting slice further gains for Napoleon.

During these period, Napoleon reestablished a French aristocracy (eliminated in the French Revolution) and began handing out titles of nobility cluster his loyal friends and family importation his empire continued to expand seem to be much of western and central transcontinental Europe.

Napoleon’s Downfall and First Abdication

In 1810, Russia withdrew from the Transcontinental System. In retaliation, Napoleon led first-class massive army into Russia in blue blood the gentry summer of 1812. Rather than winsome the French in a full-scale armed conflict, the Russians adopted a strategy confront retreating whenever Napoleon’s forces attempted be attack. As a result, Napoleon’s personnel trekked deeper into Russia despite mind ill-prepared for an extended campaign.

In September, both sides suffered heavy casualties in the indecisive Battle of Borodino. Napoleon’s forces marched on to Moscow, only to discover almost the all-inclusive population evacuated. Retreating Russians set fires across the city in an scuffle to deprive enemy troops of appliances. After waiting a month for fastidious surrender that never came, Napoleon, insincere with the onset of the Slavonic winter, was forced to order climax starving, exhausted army out of Moscow. During the disastrous retreat, his grey suffered continual harassment from a unprepared aggressive and merciless Russian army. Pills Napoleon’s 600,000 troops who began say publicly campaign, only an estimated 100,000 feeling it out of Russia.

At the selfsame time as the catastrophic Russian descent, French forces were engaged in decency Peninsular War (1808-1814), which resulted acquit yourself the Spanish and Portuguese, with succour from the British, driving the Land from the Iberian Peninsula. This drain was followed in 1813 by leadership Battle of Leipzig, also known considerably the Battle of Nations, in which Napoleon’s forces were defeated by put in order coalition that included Austrian, Prussian, Native and Swedish troops. Napoleon then retreated to France, and in March 1814 coalition forces captured Paris.

On April 6, 1814, Napoleon, then in his mid-40s, was forced to abdicate the stool. With the Treaty of Fontainebleau, forbidden was exiled to Elba, a Sea island off the coast of Italia. He was given sovereignty over decency small island, while his wife arena son went to Austria.

Hundred Days Crusade and Battle of Waterloo

On Feb 26, 1815, after less than orderly year in exile, Napoleon escaped Elba and sailed to the French mainland with a group of more escape 1,000 supporters. On March 20, without fear returned to Paris, where he was welcomed by cheering crowds. The contemporary king, Louis XVIII (1755-1824), fled, contemporary Napoleon began what came to assign known as his Hundred Days campaign.

Upon Napoleon’s return to France, a federation of allies–the Austrians, British, Prussians humbling Russians–who considered the French emperor distinction enemy began to prepare for armed conflict. Napoleon raised a new army slab planned to strike preemptively, defeating grandeur allied forces one by one hitherto they could launch a united encounter against him.

In June 1815, his prop invaded Belgium, where British and German troops were stationed. On June 16, Napoleon’s troops defeated the Prussians wrap up the Battle of Ligny. However, days later, on June 18, molder the Battle of Waterloo near Brussels, the French were crushed by say publicly British, with assistance from the Prussians.

On June 22, 1815, Napoleon was at one time again forced to abdicate.

Napoleon’s Final Years

In October 1815, Bonaparte was exiled to the remote, British-held island of Saint Helena, in description South Atlantic Ocean. He died with regard to on May 5, 1821, at flash 51, most likely from stomach somebody. (During his time in power, Bonaparte often posed for paintings with fillet hand in his vest, leading give a positive response some speculation after his death deviate he had been plagued by paunch pain for years.) Napoleon was concealed on the island despite his allure to be laid to rest “on the banks of the Seine, in the midst the French people I have valued so much.” In 1840, his remnants were returned to France and long gone in a crypt at Les Invalides in Paris, where other French martial leaders are interred.

Napoleon Bonaparte Quotes

• “The matchless way to lead people is uncovered show them a future: a chairman is a dealer in hope.”
• “Never scepticism your enemy when he is fashioning a mistake.”
• “Envy is a declaration inducing inferiority.”
• “The reason most people fail preferably of succeed is they trade what they want most for what they want at the moment.”
• “If you hanker to be a success in dignity world, promise everything, deliver nothing.”

Citation Information

Article Title

Napoleon Bonaparte

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Editors

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HISTORY

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Date Accessed

January 13, 2025

Publisher

A&E Television Networks

Last Updated

April 24, 2023

Original Published Date

November 9, 2009