Hocker Grove
French One & Two

Napoleon Bonaparte (1769-1821) 

                                                               Considered one of the world's greatest military leaders, Napoleon Bonaparte was born on August 15,                                                                      1769, in Ajaccio, France. Napoleon studied at the military college of Brienne before moving on to the                                                                      military academy in Paris. In 1795, he saved the government from counter-revolutionary forces. For his                                                                  efforts, Napoleon was soon named commander of the Army of the Interior. In addition he was a trusted                                                                advisor on military matters.

 

                                                               In 1796, Napoleon took the helm of the Army in Italy. Under his direction the army won numerous                                                                          important victories against the Austrians, greatly expanded the French empire, and helped make                                                                              Napoleon the military's brightest star. After squashing an internal threat, Napoleon was on the move                                                                     again, this time to occupy Egypt and disrupt English trade routes. But this military campaign proved                                                                         disastrous. Napoleon's image was greatly harmed by the loss, and Britain, Austria, Russia and Turkey                                                                       formed a new coalition against France. In the spring of 1799, French armies were defeated in Italy,                                                                           forcing France to give up much of their territory there.

 

                                                              In October, Napoleon returned to France and used his great political skills to create the position of “first                                                                 consul”, which amounted to a dictatorship. Napoleon reformed many aspects of the country, including                                                                    the economy, legal system, and education. He also began the  Napoleonic Code, which forbade privileges based on birth, allowed freedom of religion, and gave government jobs to the most qualified. Internationally, he negotiated a European peace.

 

Napoleon's reforms proved popular. In 1802 he was elected consul for life, and two years later he was                                                   proclaimed emperor of France. In 1803 France again returned to war with Britain, Russia, and Austria. Other                                             victories soon followed, allowing Napoleon to expand the French empire and installing his government in                                                 Holland, Italy, Naples, Sweden, Spain and Westphalia. However, in 1812 France was devastated when its                                                     invasion of Russia turned out to be a colossal failure. Out of an original fighting force of some 600,000 men,                                                    just 10,000 soldiers were still fit for battle after the Russian invasion. News of the defeat reinvigorated                                                 Napoleon's enemies, both inside and outside of France. With international pressure mounting and his                                                  government lacking the resources to fight his enemies, Napoleon surrendered to allied forces on March 30,                                                 1814. He went into exile on the island of Elba, just off the coast of Italy.

 

But Napoleon wasn’t done yet. In 1815 he escaped the island. The 5th Regiment was sent to stop him just                                                     south of Grenoble on 7 March 1815. Napoleon approached the regiment and, when he was within gunshot                                                 range, shouted, "Here I am. Kill your Emperor, if you wish.” The soldiers responded with, "Vive L'Empereur!"                                                 (Long Live the Emperor!) and marched with Napoleon to Paris, where he triumphantly returned to power.                                                          Napoleon immediately led his country back into battle. He led troops into Belgium and defeated the                                                         Prussians on June 16, 1815. But then, two days later, at Waterloo, he was soundly defeated in a raging battle against British, who were reinforced by Prussian fighters.

 

On June 22, 1815, he gave up his powers for good. In an effort to continue his dynasty,  Napoleon pushed to have his young son,                                                                                                   Napoleon II, named emperor, but his enemies rejected the offer. Additionally, fearing a repeat                                                                                    of his earlier return from exile, the British government sent him to the remote island of St.                                                                                         Helena in the southern Atlantic, over 1,000 miles from the west coast of Africa. His health began                                                                                to deteriorate, and by 1817 he showed the early signs of a stomach ulcer or possibly cancer.                                                                                     However, even today there are people who believe he was deliberately murdered, as the drinks                                                                                  and medicine he was given contained a higher than normal amount of arsenic, a popular                                                                                             poison at the time. Napoleon died on May 5, 1821.