Napoleon was the first to try to unite Europe into a single commonwealth. The Great French Revolution raised him to the pedestal of glory and handed over the fate of the country. But he was not a darling who got a lucky ticket. Napoleon truly was a great statesman and had an amazing capacity for work. He opened the door to the nineteenth century and laid the foundations of a new Europe. Napoleon's Civil Code is still in force in France, and his campaigns of conquest destroyed the shackles of feudalism in many countries.

Beggar Corsican

The inhabitants of the island of Corsica belong to the Etruscan tribe, who also dominated northern Italy before the Romans appeared there. The Buonaparte family dates back to the 16th century and could rival the Romanov dynasty in its antiquity, therefore, when in 1810 the French emperor invited the Russian emperor to become related, it was not a misalliance.

Pregnant Letizia Buonaparte rode through the mountains, helping her husband fight for the independence of Corsica. Napoleon was born in Ajaccio on August 15, 1769, when it was all over. The boy's idol was Pasquale Paoli, the leader of the Corsican rebels. The petty aristocrat Carlo Buonaparte died early, but managed to place his sons Joseph and Napoleon on a royal scholarship to the college in Autun.

The move to France produced a revolution in the soul of the Corsican youth. What did local patriotism mean with the greatness of this country! Vague thoughts about future glory finally took shape. Not inclined to study languages, young Napoleon forces himself to learn French. All his life he would speak with a strong Italian accent, but his love letters and proclamations remain models of eloquence to this day.

Young Bonaparte is withdrawn, reads a lot and dreams of a career as a commander. His studies at a cadet school and the beginning of his military career are overshadowed by poverty. He sends part of his modest salary to his mother, taking on the role of head of the family, instead of his older brother Joseph. The love of family ties will cause Napoleon many problems in the future. His brothers, who became kings by his grace, did not have even a hundredth part of his talent, and the women he loved did not understand his greatness.

The collapse of the gallant century

Revolutions are destructive for society, but one of their advantages is beyond doubt - they provide a social lift to talented people from the lower classes. Not only did Napoleon have a spectacular career, becoming a general at the age of 23, but so did many of his marshals. Let's just mention Bernadotte. This son of a Béarn lawyer did not even have the dignity of nobility. Napoleon made him a marshal, and then sent him to Sweden to reign. Bernadotte's wife was a girl who was once courted by Napoleon himself, and her sister married Joseph Bonaparte, who became the king of Spain. How surprised would a silk merchant from Marseilles be if he were told that both of his daughters would become queens? The courtiers were no less surprised by the tattoo on the body of the late King of Sweden Charles XIV Johan - “Death to Kings”.

Anti-French coalitions are being created one after another. Conspiracies are brewing within the country and uprisings are breaking out. Revolutionary France needs talented commanders. In 1892 Bonaparte was already a lieutenant colonel in the National Guard. He had not yet shown himself in any way, but he had already formed an opinion about the revolutionary people. Being present at the next crowd outrage in the royal palace, he bitterly told his comrade Burien that this bastard should simply be shot from a cannon. Four or five hundred would have been killed on the spot, and the rest would have fled.

In September 1893, Bonaparte found himself in the Republican army besieging Toulon. The chief of the siege artillery, Dommartin, is seriously wounded, and General Carto knows nothing about military affairs. He is forced to use the services of a visiting artilleryman. Having carried out a brilliant operation to liberate an impregnable fortress, Bonaparte receives the rank of brigadier general and begins his path to glory.

On October 5, 1875, he suppresses a royalist rebellion, providing a service to the Thermidorian government of Barras. The traders who replaced the fanatics of the revolution are trying to keep the loot in their hands. They care as little about the position of the people as they do about the claims of the former aristocracy. The country is plunging into chaos and awaiting its deliverer.

The road to the throne

In this timeless time, Napoleon marries Josephine Beauharnais. The widow of the guillotined general is just trying to improve the disastrous situation by clinging to Bonaparte’s uniform. But he truly loves her and does not notice the betrayal for a long time. Josephine is frivolous. She will understand the significance of her husband after she becomes the first man of the republic, but it will be too late. Returning from Egypt, he demands a divorce. She is on her knees begging to stay. They will separate in ten years, when the emperor wants to become related to the Habsburgs.

The leaders of the Directory begin to fear the talented commander. In 1797, he was entrusted with a pathetic rabble called the Italian Army. Having dealt with the corrupt intendants and suppressed anarchy, Napoleon defeats the Austrians and drives them out of Italy. He himself concludes peace treaties and collects indemnities. Italy's wealth helped create a loyal and disciplined army that became the pillar of his power.

Now he decides for himself who to fight with. The shadow of Alexander the Great whispers to him about the land of the pyramids. Having deceived Admiral Nelson, he crosses the Mediterranean Sea and lands in Alexandria. The Mameluke troops are defeated, but the one-eyed naval commander manages to sink the French fleet. The British block Napoleon in the Mediterranean and set Turkey on fire. But France is already ripe for the coming of the Messiah. Abandoning his troops, General Bonaparte returns to his homeland.

Everyone expects decisive action from him. The leaders of the Directory help Napoleon carry out a coup d'etat, hoping to rule from behind his back. In the struggle for power, he beats the traders. According to the new Constitution, power is concentrated in the hands of the First Consul of the Republic. Bonaparte begins reforms.

During the ten years of the consulate, reforms were carried out that returned France to the status of a great power and restored its prestige. The system of taxes and government spending was completely restructured. The basis of financial stability was the gold and silver franc, which was in use until 1928. In foreign policy, the first consul sought the primacy of the French industrial and financial bourgeoisie in the European market. For this purpose, he organizes a continental blockade against the main competitor - the British, drawing all the defeated countries, including Russia, into it.

Russian campaign

In Russian historiography, Napoleon's invasion of Russia is considered without any connection with previous events. They make us understand that this was an ordinary occupation. This is not true, because Russia took part in almost all anti-French coalitions and was almost always defeated. The exception is Suvorov's crossing of the Alps under Emperor Paul. By the way, under him, Russia briefly became friends with France, but after the murder of Paul, with English money, she again entered into the conflict, only to be defeated at Austerlitz, Preussisch-Eylau and Friedland. Napoleon was twice anathematized by the Russian Orthodox Church, and in between received the highest award of the Russian Empire - the Order of St. Andrew the First-Called.

Having crossed the Neman in June 1812, Napoleon did not plan to go deep into the country, much less conquer Moscow. Russia openly violated the trade blockade against England provided for by the Treaty of Tilsit. The Emperor of France only wanted to defeat the Russians once again and impose on them a new treaty against the British. He miscalculated, never understanding the Byzantine cunning and noble arrogance of the Russians. Emperor Alexander was afraid not so much of Napoleon's victory as of the shame that would remain an indelible stain on his incompetent reign. On the advice of Bernadotte, the French are lured inland, burning everything around, including Moscow, in order to tire and disintegrate the victorious army. It was a brilliant plan. What came back from Moscow was not disciplined regiments, but crowds of marauders, who were finished off by severe frost, terrible roads and lack of food.

Drama of history

The last act of the play, which was the whole life of Napoleon Bonaparte, turned out to be the most brilliant. After his abdication in April 1814, he was given possession of the small island of Elba. He no longer has an army, money, or power, but he knows about the mood in France. The state created by Napoleon works like a clock, and the returning Bourbons are jealous of the glory and talent of the “usurper,” causing more and more hatred among the people. With a handful of soldiers, Napoleon returns to the country and conquers it without firing a shot. France, exhausted by wars, can no longer fight. At the Battle of Waterloo (June 18, 1815), he almost defeats the Duke of Wellington, but the Prussian troops of General Blucher arrive in time and deal a crushing blow to the young and inexperienced French soldiers.

The British understood that by killing Napoleon, they would put a crown of thorns on him. The abdicated emperor is sent to the island of St. Helena, whose climate is detrimental to health. From here Napoleon fires his last shot, the echo of which still resounds to this day. After his death on May 5, 1821, a will and memoirs, written by the hand of a brilliant writer, were sent to the continent. They contain all his thoughts, statements and exploits.

Napoleon I Bonaparte (1769-1821)

French emperor, brilliant commander. Born into the family of a small nobleman. In 1785, he graduated from the Paris Military School with the rank of lieutenant and served in a regiment in Southern France.

He was promoted to captain and sent to the troops besieging Toulon, captured by the British. Thanks to the plan developed by Napoleon, the British had to urgently leave the city.

Toulon fell, and Napoleon himself, who was only 24 years old, was immediately promoted to brigadier general. In 1795, he decisively suppressed the monarchist rebellion in Paris, after which he was appointed commander-in-chief of the army in Italy, where he showed his skill by defeating the Austrian and Italian troops. In 1798 he went on a military expedition to Egypt and Syria, but left his troops without permission to confront the army of A.V. Suvorov in Italy.

In 1799, on his way to Italy, he carried out a military coup in Paris, becoming one of the three consuls of France. In 1804 he became Emperor of France. He won a series of brilliant victories over the troops of the European coalitions - at Marengo (1804), at Austerlitz, Jena and Auersted (1806), Wagram (1809), which led him to rule over most European countries. Striving for world domination, Napoleon attacked Russia in 1812 and, as a result of heroic
resistance of the Russian army and people was defeated. The Napoleonic Empire was defeated, and Paris was taken by Allied troops in 1814.

Napoleon abdicated the throne and was exiled to the island of Elba, retaining the title of emperor. A year later he landed on the shores of France and moved towards Paris, where the government of King Louis XVIII was located.

The emperor's new reign lasted only one hundred days and ended with his defeat at the Battle of Waterloo in June 1815.

He had to abdicate the throne a second time. Napoleon was exiled to St. Helena, where he died six years later.

On December 2, 1804, General Napoleon Bonaparte was crowned Emperor Napoleon the First. This is how this man’s plan for reorganizing the world was fulfilled - not in the old monarchical way, but also not in the revolutionary way, in which there was no place for kings and church rituals.

Let me remind you that Notre Dame Cathedral under the Jacobins was rebuilt into the Temple of Reason. And Napoleon was crowned there almost as a “good Catholic.” Almost! Because the willfulness of the “great man” was felt in every gesture. As well as admiration for the completely pagan traditions of Rome (however, Napoleon was far from the first admirer of the aesthetics of the Caesars in Catholic Europe).

Before his coronation, he was the first consul of France and the first commander of Western Europe. Titles and honors were obtained by artillery fire and cavalry pressure. The Senate invited him to accept the title of emperor. General Bonaparte graciously agreed: he had already achieved unlimited power in his country, it was time to confirm it with a loud title.

By the beginning of December, the city was fancifully decorated. Flags and torches were blazing everywhere. The nobles recalled, leafing through the chronicles, how Charlemagne was crowned - and added more and more nuances to the ceremony. Parisian and Italian jewelers forged a copy of the crown of Charlemagne, lost in the revolutionary turmoil. And at the same time, fulfilling the will of the first consul, they created a golden laurel wreath in the Roman style.

But here’s the peculiarity of Bonaparte’s sweeping manner. Charlemagne was crowned in Rome, and Napoleon demanded that the Pope come to Paris. He admired the historical role of Rome, but believed that in the 19th century Paris could well lay claim to the role of the city to which all roads lead.

And so eight horses delivered a luxurious carriage to the temple. Napoleon and Josephine paraded in gilded brocade in front of an exalted audience. On the shoulders of the future emperor is a robe with ermine, which is supported by four respectable dignitaries.

...And then Pope Pius VII appeared in the cathedral. He was not at all a fan of Napoleon, but he could not resist large battalions. Bonaparte “took him by force.” At the climactic moment, when the pope said: “The Imperial crown receives...”, Napoleon stopped him with an imperious gesture. And with his own hands he placed the crown on himself and Josephine. The Pope humbly continued the sacrament. What is this - an example of human pride?

This event is best imagined with Beethoven's music - say, with the sounds of the Third Symphony, which the composer wrote just in those months and dedicated to Napoleon, who in those days was Beethoven's ideal hero. True, Beethoven did not welcome the restoration of the monarchy and began to become disillusioned with his idol.

It is also necessary that before your eyes there is a picture of David, which Napoleon liked. The artist admired Napoleon crowning Josephine. The picture makes an impression - like gold on velvet. And the portrait of Ingres is the apotheosis of the Napoleonic cult. The person who wins the crown flies even higher than the hereditary monarch.

Jacques Louis David. Consecration of Emperor Napoleon I and coronation of Empress Josephine
at Notre Dame Cathedral, December 2, 1804, 1806-1807

The old Republicans were sad. So much blood has been shed in the fight against the “kings” - and now again we need to bow to the great monarch. “Being General Bonaparte means becoming Emperor Napoleon. What a fall!” they repeated the saying of one journalist.

The only, but also the victorious, guarantor of Napoleonic power was the army. Great Army.

Both haters and admirers of the French Revolution are unanimous in this assessment: those events gave impetus to the development of military science, the careers of talented young commanders, and simply enterprising officers. In all battles with the Germans and Austrians this revolutionary advantage was demonstrated.

Only the Russian army could accept the challenge from France. Why? The impulse of Peter's reforms turned out to be no less strong than the revolutionary shake-up. Russia has become a military power. The entire nobility took arms. Yes, Peter the Third gave them a loophole, but until the end of the Napoleonic wars the military generation of nobles ruled the roost.

The young revolutionary general became famous throughout the world in 1796. Suvorov was then in exile, but tried to follow European events. In one of his letters, the Russian commander subtly analyzed the very essence of Bonaparte:

“Oh, how this young Bonaparte walks! He is a hero, he is a miracle hero, he is a sorcerer! He conquers both nature and people. He walked around the Alps as if they were not there at all. He hid their menacing peaks in his pocket, and hid his army in the right sleeve of his uniform. It seemed that the enemy only then noticed his soldiers when he rushed them, like Jupiter his lightning, spreading fear everywhere and striking the scattered crowds of Austrians and Piedmontese.

Oh, how he walks! As soon as he entered the path of military leadership, he cut the Gordian knot of tactics. Not caring about numbers, he attacks the enemy everywhere and defeats him completely. He knows the irresistible force of the onslaught - no more is needed.

His opponents will persist in their sluggish tactics, subordinate to cabinet pens, but he has a military council in his head. Free in action, like the air he breathes. He moves his regiments, fights and wins according to his will! This is my conclusion: as long as General Bonaparte maintains his presence of mind, he will be a winner.

Great military talents were his inheritance. But if, to his misfortune, he throws himself into a political whirlwind, if he betrays the unity of thought, he will perish.”

And so it happened. The genius of tactics was seduced by political honors and lost to his own pride. It is amazing that Suvorov guessed the possibility of such a fall long before the coronation.

In 1812, the tradition of demonizing Napoleon arose in Russia. The predatory, even sacrilegious habits of the invaders gave rise to this. But let’s try to soberly understand Napoleon and comprehend his political legacy.

Could he become a partner of Russia? Not an easy question. The enlightened French looked down on our country. But our tsar could not sympathize with the revolutionary leader. And long-standing trade and political ties with Britain were important.

In addition, by 1804, no one doubted that Napoleon was striving for world hegemony, for sole power over the world. Neither Alexander Pavlovich nor any other All-Russian Emperor could agree to second roles under the Parisian Caesar.

What's next? An attempt to redraw the political map of the world, change foreign policy traditions, blur the map of everyday life. The campaign in Russia, which Napoleon did not consider his main goal, turned into a disaster, followed by a war of annihilation, in which the “great man” was doomed to defeat.

You can guess as much as you like how the fate of Russia and Europe would have turned out if Napoleon’s alliance with Paul or Alexander had held out. The two great military powers found themselves cramped on the continent, and Britain was pushing Russia into direct confrontation with Bonaparte.

But Alexander did not give any reason to start the war! And Napoleon motivated the offensive of the Great Army to the East in June 1812 with strained, insufficiently substantiated claims against the Russian Empire. And he destroyed his empire, although after escaping from snowy Russia he resisted for almost another year and a half, demonstrating miracles of military will.

An important factor was the determination of the Russian emperor to fight Napoleon’s empire to the end. During the Hundred Days, they again had a reason to become allies: Napoleon sent Alexander a paper compromising the other leaders of the anti-Napoleonic coalition. They, together with Talleyrand, concluded a secret military alliance against Russia. The Austrians and the British were ready to stab in the back those who saved them from enslavement. After all, it was the Russian soldier who bore the main burdens of the campaigns of 1813 and 1814. There was not a single major battle in which less than half of the fallen Russians were...

And they - these grateful Europeans - were already preparing a strike on the Russian army. Alexander chose not to pay attention to this news. He did not punish the allies for their treachery - he simply began to treat Talleyrand and Metternich with even greater contempt.

As emperor and commander, Napoleon died. As a sick, tormented, disappointed man in everything, he lived on the island of St. Helena. And yet he managed a lot. He adapted the gains of the revolution for the average person, for the future of Europe. The Napoleonic Code conquered new heights even after the removal of the emperor.

The radicalism of the French Revolution could not establish itself for long: the country was engaged in self-destruction. Napoleon smoothed over the corners and stopped, for example, the persecution of the Church, which under the Jacobins turned into a war of extermination.

Of course, he, a son of the Age of Enlightenment and a slave of his own ambition, perceived faith in a utilitarian way. For preaching the idea of ​​a superman, Napoleon was considered the embodiment of the devil - and not without reason. True, many monarchs of former, epic times, who diligently visited the Temple and did not forget to consider themselves the Anointed of God, devoted all their strength to exalting their own “I” no less zealously than Napoleon. He simply threw away conventions - and how could it be otherwise in the post-revolutionary years?

One of Napoleonic sayings is known: “Without religion, a person can only wander in the dark; and the Catholic religion is the only one that gives man a true and infallible explanation of his essence and destiny. A society without religion is like a ship without a compass.”

True, this was said in order to win over the influential Milanese clergy, whom Napoleon sometimes treated disrespectfully. And yet, it was Napoleon who saved French Christians from the Jacobin distortions - an incorrigible proud man and adventurer who showed the world such a strength that we still remember him every day.

The great French Emperor and commander was born in the city of Ajaccio on the island of Corsica in mid-August 1769. He was the second of eight children in the family and was initially raised by his mother. Since his father was engaged in lawyering, he belonged to a noble family, but without an impressive income. Napoleon studied literacy and arithmetic from his mother until he was almost 6 years old, and after that he went to study at a private school. In 1779 he went to the military school in Brienne. But since I learned everything quickly, I didn’t stay there long. Then he goes to Paris and enters the military academy. After studying for about 1 year, he receives the rank of second lieutenant and serves in the artillery.

Napoleon's youth

Being a poor man, he leads a quiet and modest existence, studying literature and publications about military affairs. While on his native island of Corsica in 1788, he helped improve and fortify the land's defenses. But still, he considered literature to be his main thing, so he studied it constantly. The calculation was based on the fact that famous and venerable writers receive good fees and can manage expenses without taking them into account. But all the manuscripts, with the exception of the only one, remained unpublished and were filled with revolutionary content for France, forcibly holding the Italian island of Corsica.

Beginning of a military career

The Great French Revolution occurs in 1789. Bonaparte, meanwhile, is in the military division of Corsica, recruiting and forming soldiers of the national guard there. Having given himself up to the struggle for power on his native island, he enters into a fight with the patriot Paoli. But having lost the enterprise, he escapes to Paris, where he witnesses the lawlessness of the mob, who managed to take possession of the royal palace. Returning to Corsica again, he again became the leader of the National Guard troops with the rank of lieutenant colonel. There was a catastrophic lack of smart and thinking military men there, so they simply turned a blind eye to Bonaparte’s past failures and did not remember them.

After an unsuccessful attempt to take possession of the neighboring island of Sardinia, he and his family were declared traitors and traitors to their homeland. The family, which managed to hide in Toulon, lived there, and Napoleon was no longer in the mood to patriotically support his native island.

Later career in suppressing the uprising

The royalists and the bourgeoisie were preparing an uprising, which was supposed to serve as the beginning of similar actions throughout the country. The chief commander of the military forces, Barras, who knew Bonaparte from the old days, appoints him as his closest assistant. And he is not slow to take advantage of the situation. Artillery troops were effectively positioned on both banks of the Seine, stopping the rebels through terrible executions with grapeshot. After the events that occurred, Napoleon was immediately promoted to division general. and after the resignation of the commander-in-chief, he took over his post.

The provisional government of France, called the Directory, was already under the yoke of a critical situation. Having carried out a military coup, Bonaparte became consul in 1802, and then 2 years later Pope Pius 7 made him Emperor.

March on Russia

The result of the military actions of the new Emperor was the subjugation of Europe to him. Only a few form an alliance to stop the land invader. They become Russia, Prussia, and Austria. But Russian troops managed to defeat the French army advancing on them and after the collapse of Napoleon’s empire they were exiled to the island of Elba, where he briefly served his sentence. Having escaped, he again becomes the head of the army and this segment of the story is well known to everyone “100 days”. In a battle with numerous allies at Waterloo, Bonaparte lost the battle and was again captured. He spent the last 6 years of his life in exile on the island of St. Helena.

Napoleon's marriage

The wedding took place in 1796 and Josephine Beauharnais became the bride. After living together for several years, he admitted that his wife could not bear him a child. And in 1810 he decides to marry the daughter of the Emperor of Austria. A year later, the wife gives birth to the long-awaited heir. He died at a young age, without children of his own.

It is known for certain about Napoleon’s illegitimate children that there were two of them. One of the families continues to thrive to this day..

• Some historical facts about the Emperor
• He was a brilliant diplomat, politician and military leader.
• Possessing superior intelligence thanks to a phenomenal memory.
• Amazing performance. Could work for the benefit of the country 10-14 hours a day.
• I almost never got sick during my life.
• He loved hats and regularly added them to his collection. About 200 hats are known.
• At 24, young Napoleon became a brigadier general in the army.
• Nowadays, a variety of cognac and a cake are named after him.