Event, result: There is a military coup in France on 18 Brumaire. As a result of the coup, Napoleon came to power in France, taking the post of First Consul of the Republic.

Event, result: Napoleon defeats Italian and Austrian troops at the Battle of Marengo. As a result of this battle, the Italian region of Lombardy retreats to France.

Event, result: Defeated Austria is forced to cede its lands to Napoleon. The border between the states now runs along the rivers Rhine and Etsch.

Event, result: The English fleet defeated Napoleon's fleet in the famous Battle of Trafalgar off the coast of Spain.

Event, result: Napoleon defeated his opponents from the "third coalition" in the legendary battle of Austerlitz. In it, the Russian Empire and Austria-Hungary opposed Napoleon. The battle is called in history "the battle of the three emperors"

Event, result: A toy Confederation of the Rhine was created, with which Napoleon "crushed" Germany under him. He received the right to keep his troops there and from France to direct German affairs.

Event, result: Entered with troops in Warsaw (Poland)

Event, result: The Treaty of Tilsit was concluded, which completely secured the rule of Napoleon in Germany, and now in Poland

The date: February 1808

Event, result: Napoleon's troops occupied the "eternal city" of Rome and annexed it to the possessions of their commander

Event, result: He defeated the troops of the Austrian emperor, who, after so many years, did not want to surrender, at the battle of Wagram

The date: July 1810

Event, result: Napoleon annexed Holland to France

Event, result: Napoleon attacked Russia. His troops crossed the border river Neman without any declaration of war.

Event, result: Battle for Smolensk. The beginning of a nationwide war against the invader. Smolensk was taken by Napoleon only with great efforts.

Event, result: Battle on the Borodino field near Moscow. Huge loss of both armies. Actual draw.

Event, result: Commander-in-Chief Mikhail Kutuzov decided to surrender Moscow to Napoleon. Bonaparte enters the city with an army. But there is no food in the city and it is set on fire by the retreating.

Event, result: Bonaparte and the French leave the burnt empty Moscow, which has become useless to them. The retreat of the French through half of Russia back to Europe begins. Bonaparte's army suffers severely from malnutrition, sudden attacks by Kutuzov's army, partisans and bad weather.

Event, result: Battle of the Berezina. Napoleon throws into the will of the enemy 21 thousand (more than half of the army) of his soldiers at the crossing over the Berezina River, ordering the bridges to be burned. And goes to the border.

Event, result: Bonaparte returns to Europe with nothing. Less than 10 percent of his soldiers are with him. Almost all of the French army abandoned by him perished in the Russian snows from frost and hunger. France seethes with indignation. Napoleon's authority is destroyed.

Event, result: The battle of Waterloo with the seventh coalition of European powers, where Russia did not participate. Complete defeat of Bonaparte.

Event, result: The Paris Peace Treaty was signed in Europe. In France, following its results, the royal throne was returned to the previously reigning Bourbon dynasty. Bonaparte is forced to go into exile on the remote island of St. Helena. where he later died.

The Napoleonic Wars (1799-1815) were fought by France during the years of the Consulate and Empire of Napoleon I against coalitions of European states. They chronologically continued the wars of the French Revolution of 1789-1799. and at first they had some progressive significance, since they objectively contributed to the destruction of the foundations of the feudal system, the development of advanced capitalist relations for that era in a number of European countries. However, as the Napoleonic wars developed, they lost these progressive features and turned into predatory ones. They were carried out in the interests of the French bourgeoisie, which enriched itself by robbing the peoples conquered by Napoleon and striving to win military-political and commercial-industrial dominance in Europe, pushing the British bourgeoisie into the background. The main opponents of France during the Napoleonic Wars were England, Austria and Russia.

The beginning of the Napoleonic Wars is considered to be the establishment in France during the coup of 18 Brumaire (November 9-10), 1799, of the military dictatorship of Napoleon Bonaparte, who declared himself First Consul. At that time, the country was already at war with the 2nd anti-French coalition, which was formed in 1798-1799. Russia, England, Austria, Turkey and the Kingdom of Naples. (The 1st anti-French coalition consisting of Austria, Prussia, England and a number of other states fought against revolutionary France in 1792-1793).

The French army dealt the first blow to the Austrian troops stationed in Italy. Having made a difficult transition through the St. Bernard Pass in the Alps, Napoleon defeated the Austrians at the Battle of Marengo on June 14, 1800. In December of the same year, General J. V. Moreau in Bavaria inflicted a decisive defeat on Austria. In February 1801, Austria was forced to conclude peace with France and recognize its possessions of the territory of Belgium and the left bank of the Rhine.

After the withdrawal of Austria from the war, the 2nd coalition actually collapsed. England, which continued military operations alone, agreed to sign the Peace of Amiens in March 1802 with France and her allies. However, it was only a temporary respite, which both sides used to prepare for further struggle. Already in 1803, the war between them resumed, and in 1805 the 3rd anti-French coalition was formed, consisting of England, Russia, Austria and the Kingdom of Naples. Bonaparte, proclaimed Emperor Napoleon I in 1804, hatched plans for a French expeditionary army to land in England. But on October 21, 1805, the combined Franco-Spanish fleet was defeated at the Battle of Trafalgar by the English fleet led by Admiral G. Nelson. This defeat forever deprived France of the opportunity to compete with England at sea. At the same time, on the continent, Napoleon's troops won one after another important victories: in October 1805, the Austrian army of General Mack capitulated at Ulm without a fight; in November, the French marched victoriously into Vienna; On December 2, the combined forces of the Russians and Austrians were defeated on the Field of Austerlitz. Austria was again forced to sign a peace treaty with France, recognizing the Napoleonic seizures and pledging to pay a huge indemnity. In 1806, Napoleon forced Franz I to resign his title of Holy Roman Emperor.

The war against Napoleon was continued by England and Russia, which were soon joined by Prussia and Sweden, concerned about the strengthening of French domination in Europe. In September 1806, the 4th coalition of European states was formed. However, a month later, during the battles of Jena and Auerstedt, the Prussian army was destroyed. Napoleon solemnly entered Berlin. Prussia was occupied.

The Russian army, moving at that time to help its allies, met the French at Preussisch-Eylau. The first battle, despite its fierceness, did not give an advantage to any of the opponents, but in June 1807, at the Battle of Friedland, Napoleon defeated the Russians. On July 7, 1807, in the middle of the Neman River near the city of Tilsit, a meeting of the French and Russian emperors took place on a raft and a peace treaty was concluded. According to the Treaty of Tilsit, Russia recognized all the conquests of the Napoleonic army in Europe and joined the "Continental blockade" of the British Isles proclaimed in 1806.

In the spring of 1809, England and Austria united again and formed the 5th anti-French coalition, but already in May 1809 Napoleon's army entered Vienna, and in July the Austrians were again defeated in the battle of Wagram. Austria paid a large contribution and joined the blockade. A significant part of Europe was under the rule of Napoleon.

The military successes of France in the first decade of the 19th century. largely due to the fact that it had the most advanced military system for its time, born back in the years of the French Revolution. The new conditions for recruiting into the army, the constant attention of the generals, and above all Napoleon himself, to the fighting spirit of the soldiers, maintaining their high military training and discipline, the important role of the guard, formed from veteran soldiers, had a lot of influence on the victories of France. The use of the latest tactical techniques in the course of battles, the increasing role of artillery and cavalry, skillful maneuvering of grandiose army formations, and possession of the initiative - all this also contributed to success.

An important role in the victories of the Napoleonic army was played by the military talent of the famous French marshals and generals - L. N. Davout, I. Murat, M. Ney, J. J. Soult, J. E. Macdonald, L. A. Berthier, Moreau, B. Bernadotte and others. Napoleon Bonaparte himself was the greatest commander and military theorist.

Both the conquered countries of Europe and the states that were politically dependent on France were placed at the service of the interests of the Napoleonic empire. They gave Napoleon's army significant parts of the auxiliary troops. Requisitions and open robbery in the conquered territories were carried out not only for the purpose of supplying the army: wars served as a constant and significant source of enrichment for the big French bourgeoisie and the military-political elite of Napoleonic society.

Over time, the national liberation movement against the invaders is expanding in different countries. It has acquired the greatest scope in Spain and Germany. The rise of the national liberation struggle in Europe was the first blow to the stability of the French empire. However, her fate was finally decided during Napoleon's campaign in Russia. During the Patriotic War of 1812, more than 400,000 "Great Army" was destroyed. The aggressive plans of the French emperor were thwarted thanks to the heroic struggle of the Russian people and the Russian army, led by the talented commander M. I. Kutuzov.

The defeat of the Napoleonic army in Russia caused a new upsurge in the national liberation struggle of the peoples of Western Europe. In a number of states, people's militia was created, and calls to overthrow the rule of Napoleon were heard louder. In 1813, the 6th anti-French coalition was formed, which included Russia, England, Prussia, Sweden, Austria and a number of other states. Confident in their strength, enriched by military experience, relying on the support of the population, the Allied armies opposed the significantly bled-out forces of Napoleon. In October 1813, as a result of the “battle of the peoples” near Leipzig, the territory of Germany was liberated from the French. The Napoleonic army withdrew to the borders of France, and then was defeated on its own land. On March 31, the Allied troops entered Paris, and on April 6, Napoleon I signed the abdication and was expelled from France to the island of Elba.

In March-June 1815, he made a last attempt to regain his former power during the "Hundred Days". His defeat at the Battle of Waterloo on June 18, 1815, inflicted by the troops of the 7th Coalition under the command of Duke A.W. Wellington and Marshal G.L. Blucher, completed the history of the Napoleonic wars. The Congress of Vienna (November 1, 1814 - June 9, 1815) decided the fate of France, secured the redistribution of the colonies and territories of European countries in the interests of the victorious states. The "Holy Alliance" of European monarchs, created to suppress the national liberation and revolutionary movement in Europe, symbolized the onset of reaction. This revealed the inconsistency of the nature of the wars of liberation that were waged against France. They were started as wars for independence, but the interests of the monarchist governments and the ruling circles of the states that were part of the anti-French coalitions gave the wars against Napoleon reactionary features. They set as their ultimate goal a new redistribution of Europe, the restoration of the feudal-absolutist order, the struggle against the revolutionary thought sown in Europe by the Great French Revolution.

(1804-1814, 1815) against anti-French coalitions of European states and individual countries of the world with the goal of us-ta-no-vit its military-po-lytic and eco-no-mic domination in Europe, joining France new ter-ri-to-rii and li-sew Ve-li-ko-bri-ta-niyu sta-tu-sa mi-ro-vo-go-li-de-ra.

At the initial stage, the Napoleonic Wars were able to raise the national-os-in-bo-ditious movement in the European countries, on -ho-div-shih-sya under the yoke of the Holy Roman Empire, overthrow of the monarchic regimes, for-mi-ro-va-nia sa -m-sto-yatelnyh national states. One-on-a-re, soon, Na-po-le-he I himself for-captured and sub-chi-nil a whole number of countries, on-ro-dy someone’s eyes were under oppression of foreign for-voe-va-te-lei. The Napoleonic wars became-whether for-grip-no-che-ski-mi, turned into a source-to-ho-yes for on-a-le-o-new France .

By the time of coming to power Na-po-le-o-na Bo-na-par-ta France was in a state of war with the 2nd an-ti-French koa-li-qi-ey (created-da-na in 1798-1799) in the co-hundred-ve We-li-ko-bri-ta-nii, Ko-ro- the lion-st-va of both their Si-qi-liy, the Holy Roman, Russian and Os-man-im-periy. As a result of unsuccessful military actions, France, by the autumn of 1799, found itself in a difficult situation. Continued Egypt-pet-ex-pe-di-tion Na-po-le-o-na Bo-na-par-ta, from-re-zan-naya from the metro-ro-po- lii ex-peditionary army on-ho-di-las in a critical position. Ge-ge-mon-tion of France in Italy would-la ut-ra-che-na in re-zul-ta-te Italy-yan-sko-go-ho-yes of 1799. The Austrian army on the upper Rei-wouldn’t-la-la go-it-va to invade the pre-de-ly of France. French ports would you b-ki-ro-va-ny by the British fleet.

As a result of the state re-in-ro-ta on November 9, 1799 (see In-sem-on-dtsa-toe bru-me-ra) Na-po-le-on Bo-na- the party became the first con-su-lom of the 1st French Republic-pub-li-ki and fak-ti-che-ski the whole half-but-that power co-medium-do-that-chil in its own their hands. In the aspiration-le-nii you-weigh France from that-pi-ka Na-po-le-he made a decision in the first place whether to sew Ve-li-ko -bri-ta-nia of its main union in Europe - the Holy Roman (since 1804 Austrian) im-pe-rii. For this, hidden but sform-mi-ro-vav army near the southeastern borders, Na-po-le-on Bo-na-part in May 1800 moved to Italy Leah and June 14th in the battle at Ma-ren-go Bo-na-part raz-gro-mil the imperial troops-ska, which is pre-d-opre-de-li-lo is - the course of the entire campaign. In December 1800, the French army attacked the new in-par-the-same-tion of the imperial troops in Germany near Go-gen-lin-de-n, in re -zul-ta-te someone-ro-go was for-klu-chen Lu-ne-vil-sky world of 1801. In October 1801, Na-po-le-on Bo-na-part made peace do-go-vo-ry with Os-mansky and the Russian Empire. We-whether-co-bri-ta-nia, after-the-ryav-their co-yuz-ni-kov, would-la you-well-well-dena make a key with France Am -en-sky world-ny to-go-thief of 1802, someone-ry-ry-shil-pad dis-pad of the 2nd an-ti-french-tsuz-coa-li-tion. France and its so-uz-ni-ki ver-well-li for-hwa-chen-nye We-li-ko-bri-ta-ni-her co-lo-nii (except for the islands of Ceylon and Tri-ni-dad), having promised, in turn, to free Rome, Neapolis and the island of Elba. On-stu-pee-la non-long-lived peace re-breathe. One-to-do-go-thief in Am-e-didn’t set-ra-nil pro-ti-vo-re-chi me-zh-du go-su-dar-st-va-mi, and 22.5 .1803 Ve-li-ko-bri-ta-niya ob-i-vi-la war-nu of France.

On-on-le-on Bo-on-part on May 18, 1804, he began to co-medium-do-to-chi-vat si-ly on the se-ve-re of France (in Bou-lon-sky la-ge-re) for org-ha-ni-za-tion for-si -ro-va-niya of the English Channel and you-gardens of the ex-peditionary army in Ve-li-ko-bri-ta-nii. Obes-en-en-ing these, ang-li-cha-more than once-ver-well-whether active diplomatic activity to create but- howling coalition against Na-po-le-o-na I. Russian empire for-key-chi-la with We-li-ko-bri-ta-ni-she Pe-ter -burg-sky so-yuz-ny before-go-thief of 1805, in-lo-living-shiy on-cha-lo 3rd an-ti-french coa-li-tion (We-li -co-bri-ta-nia, Russian-si-sky, Holy Roman-sky and Os-man-sky im-pe-rii; ho-tya Sweden, Ko-ro-left-both -their Si-qi-liy and Dania for-mal-but will not join the coal-li-tion, but in the si-lu for-the-key-chen-nyh in 1804 before-go-in- ditch with the Russian im-pe-ri-her fak-ti-che-ski became her teaching-st-nick-mi). In the Tra-fal-gar-battle of 1805, the total French-Spanish fleet suffered a devastating attack from the British es -cad-ry under the command of Admiral G. Nel-so-on. This is a de-build-lo French plans for the second in We-li-ko-bri-ta-ny. France lost its own military fleet and pre-kra-ti-la struggle for dominance on the sea.

The coalition forces are significant-chi-tel-but pre-vos-ho-di-li si-ly on-on-le-o-nov-sky army. In any case, this, Na-po-le-he I decided in the na-chav-shey-sya Russian-av-st-ro-French war of 1805 comp-pen- si-ro-vat pre-sun-move-st-in the forces of the coalition-li-tion with swift actions of the French troops with the goal of breaking up against-against-no-ka for an hour -tyam. In October, Na-po-le-he I ok-ru-lived and defeated the Austrian army in the Ulm battle of 1805. The Russian troops, who had gone up, looked one on one with the pre-eminent French army. Commander of the Russian troops, Infantry General M.I. Ku-tu-zo-vu managed to escape from ok-ru-zhe-niya, in the Krems battle, beat the French cor-pus mar-sha-la E. Mor-tier and connect with the os-tat-ka-mi of the Austrian army. But in the Au-ster-face-com-s-s-s-s-ne-nii of 1805, the Russian-Austrian troops are ter-pe-whether in-ra-same-nie.

MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AND SCIENCE

RUSSIAN FEDERATION

FEDERAL AGENCY FOR EDUCATION

RUSSIAN FEDERATION

SEI HPE "BLAGOVESCHENSKY STATE PEDAGOGICAL UNIVERSITY"

Faculty of History and Philology

Department of World History

COURSE WORK

on the topic

Analysis of the era of the Napoleonic wars

Blagoveshchensk

Introduction

1. Personality of Napoleon Bonaparte

2. Napoleonic Wars

2.1 War of the Second Coalition (1798-1802)

2.2 War of the Third Coalition (1805)

2.3 War of the Fourth Coalition (1806-1807)

2.3 War of the Sixth Coalition (1813-1814)

2.4 Capture of Paris and end of campaign (March 1814)

3. Results and significance of the Napoleonic wars

Conclusion

List of used sources and literature

Appendix

INTRODUCTION

The relevance of the topic is due to the rapid development of public international law in connection with the cardinal changes in the international situation periodically occurring in recent decades. The modern world, like Europe during the Napoleonic wars, is shaken by a series of grandiose events: international conflicts, civil wars, natural, man-made and humanitarian disasters.

The Napoleonic Wars made the whole world shudder. And at the same time they contributed to the unification of many countries against Napoleonic rule.

A significant amount of work has been written on this topic.

The study of the era of Napoleon Bonaparte in Soviet historiography proceeded in two directions. One of the directions was the study of personality and political biography (E.V. Tarle, A.Z. Manfred). The work of E.V. Tarle "Napoleon", published in 1936. and then withstood more than 10 reprints. E. V. Tarle worked on it for almost 20 years. The main task of the author was “to give the most clear picture of the life and work of the French emperor, his characterization as a person, as a historical figure, with his properties, natural data and aspirations. Monograph E.V. Tarle influenced the formation of views on the history of Europe by many modernist historians, and was simply popular among non-specialists.

A.Z. worked in the same direction. Manfred. In 1971 published his monograph "Napoleon Bonaparte". In the preface to it, he writes that the work of E.V. Tarle had a huge influence on him. However, he considers it necessary to revisit this topic due to the fact that the source base has expanded. A.Z. Manfred for the first time in the history of the study of the life of Bonaparte drew on his literary heritage to study political views. He pays great attention to Napoleon's desire for self-education, his talent as a commander and a person who, in a difficult situation, can lead the masses behind him.

From the first direction gradually by the end of the 70s. the second one also stands out, where the study of the role in the formation of Bonapartism and the political regime of France during the period of the consulate and the empire (D. M. Tugan-Baranovsky) was carried out.

At present, the problem of the significance of the Napoleonic wars has been fully explored. But this does not prevent researchers from finding other approaches to the study of that era. Today's historians are more interested in Napoleon's diplomacy (V. G. Sirotkin), the military history of Napoleon's campaigns (Internet sites and forums dedicated to Bonaparte's army), his psychological state at different periods of his life. The range of methods used in conducting research has significantly expanded due to contacts between Russian and foreign researchers, after the fall of the Iron Curtain, the opportunity to work in European archives appeared.

The theme of the course covers the time of the Napoleonic wars, namely 1799 -1814. The upper limit is determined by the fact that in 1799. Napoleon came to power in France. In 1814, Napoleon abdicated, ending the era of the Napoleonic Wars.

The geographical scope of this work covers the whole of Europe.

The purpose of this work is to analyze the era of the Napoleonic wars

To study the personality of Napoleon as a commander

Describe the wars of the second, third, fourth, fifth, sixth coalitions

Reveal the significance of the Napoleonic Wars for France, and for Europe in general.

We can judge Napoleon's foreign policy by the normative documents of that time, as well as by the problematic works of historians. Thus, it is supposed to be possible to combine sources into groups. The first group includes Napoleon's personal works, namely, the essays "17 remarks" on a work called "Discourses on the Art of War" (Napoleon. Selected Works) reflects Napoleon's personal position on the successes and failures of his foreign policy.

To the second group we will include the international treaties of the Napoleonic era. According to the agreement on the creation of the Confederation of the Rhine, Napoleon was proclaimed king of Italy ("protector"). The “Protectorate” consisted in the unquestioning fulfillment of the will of the autocratic ruler. As for the Peace of Amiens, it turned out to be only a brief truce. In general, this treaty did not infringe on the interests of France. The Treaty of Pressburg finally buried the Franco-Russian agreements, strengthened Napoleon's power over Austria and served as Napoleon's first step on the path to world domination. The creation of the Confederation of the Rhine made sixteen German states completely dependent on France, thus expanding Napoleon's sphere of influence over the German principalities.

With the signing of the Treaty of Tilsit in 1807. Napoleon became the complete ruler of Germany, in addition, a continental blockade was created, which caused considerable damage to the economy of England. Those. in general, the treaty was pro-Napoleonic in nature. According to the Schönbrunn Peace Treaty of 1809. Austria actually became a state dependent on France. In addition, Prussia pledged to close its ports to England, which is a continuation of Napoleon's policy of continental blockade. All this undoubtedly strengthens the position of France.

The peace of Paris on May 30, 1814, brilliantly crowned the efforts of England. Napoleon fell, France was humiliated; all seas, all harbors and shores opened again. When writing a term paper, these works were used in full.

1. The rapid rise of Napoleon is due to the "concentration" in one person of genius, ambition, a correct understanding of the situation around him.

2. As a result of continuous wars and conquests, a huge Napoleonic empire was formed, supplemented by a system of states directly or indirectly subject to France.

3. Despite a number of private victories won at the beginning of 1814 by the French army over the troops of the allies who entered the territory of France, it was eventually defeated.

1. PERSONALITY OF NAPOLEON BONAPARTE

Napoleon French statesman and commander, first consul of the French Republic (1799 - 1804), emperor of the French (1804 - 14 and March - June 1815). He was born on August 15, 1769 in the family of a poor Corsican nobleman lawyer Carlo Buonaparte. Napoleon's character from early childhood turned out to be impatient and restless. “Nothing appealed to me,” he later recalled, “I was prone to quarrels and fights, I was not afraid of anyone. I beat one, scratched another, and everyone was afraid of me. Most of all, my brother Joseph had to endure from me. I beat and bit him. And they scolded him for this, because it happened even before he came to his senses from fear, I would already complain to my mother. My cunning did me good, because otherwise Mother Letizia would have punished me for my pugnacity, she would never have tolerated my attacks! . Napoleon grew up as a gloomy and irritable child. His mother loved him, but she gave him and her other children a rather harsh upbringing. They lived economically, but the family did not feel the need. The father was a man, apparently, kind and weak-willed. The true head of the family was Letizia, a firm, strict, industrious woman, in whose hands was the upbringing of children. Napoleon inherited his love for work and strict order in business from his mother. The situation of this island, secluded from the whole world, with its rather wild population in the mountains and forest thickets, with endless inter-clan clashes, with tribal blood feuds, with carefully concealed, but stubborn hostility to the French aliens, was strongly reflected in the young impressions of little Napoleon. At the age of ten he was placed at the Autun College in France, and then in the same 1779 he was transferred to a state scholarship at the Brienne military school. In 1784 he successfully graduated from college and transferred to the Paris Military School (1784 - 85). In February 1785, his father, Carlo Bonaparte, died of the same disease from which Napoleon himself later died: stomach cancer. The family was left almost penniless. There was little hope for Napoleon's older brother, Joseph: he was both incapable and lazy, the 16-year-old junker took care of his mother, brothers and sisters. After a year's stay at the Paris Military School, on October 30, 1785, he entered the army with the rank of second lieutenant and went to the regiment stationed in the south, in the city of Valence. Life was hard for the young officer. (Appendix 1) He sent most of the salary to his mother, leaving himself only for the meager food, not allowing himself the slightest entertainment. In the same house where he rented a room, there was a second-hand book dealer, and Napoleon began to spend all his free time reading books that the second-hand book dealer gave him. He shunned society, and his clothes were so plain that he did not want and could not lead any secular life. He read voraciously, with unheard-of greed, filling his notebooks with notes and notes. Most of all he was interested in books on military history, mathematics, geography, travel descriptions. He also read philosophers.

Brought up on the advanced ideas of the French Enlightenment, a follower of J.J. Rousseau, G. Reynal, Bonaparte accepted the Great French Revolution with warm approval; in 1792 he joined the Jacobin Club. His activities took place mainly in Corsica. This gradually brought Bonaparte into conflict with the Corsican separatists led by Paoli, and in 1793 he was forced to flee Corsica. During a long and unsuccessful siege by the republican army of Toulon, captured by the monarchist rebels and the English interventionists, Bonaparte proposed his plan for capturing the city. December 17, 1793 Toulon was taken by storm. For the capture of Toulon, the 24-year-old captain was promoted to brigadier general. From this time begins the rapid ascent of Bonaparte. After a short-term disgrace and even arrest during the days of the Thermidorian reaction for being close to O. Robespierre, Napoleon again attracted attention - already in Paris - with energy and determination in suppressing the monarchist rebellion on 13 Vendemière (October 5), 1795. Following that, he was appointed commander Parisian garrison and in 1796 - commander in chief of the army created for operations in Italy. [ 1 p. 45].

In the subsequent military campaigns of Napoleon, the aggressive tendencies intensified more and more. The Peace of Campoformia of 1797 revealed Napoleon's diplomatic abilities. On November 9-10, 1799 (Brumaire 18-19 of the 8th year), he carried out a coup d'état, which established the consulate regime and actually granted him, although not immediately, full power.

In 1802 Napoleon achieved his appointment as consul for life (Reader on modern history, ed., and on April 18, 1804, the Senate passed a resolution giving the first consul, Napoleon Bonaparte, the title of hereditary emperor of the French (Appendix 2) [9 p. ​​130]. ​​To strengthen the new , the bourgeois monarchy and give it an external shine, Napoleon I created a new imperial nobility, a magnificent imperial court, annulled the marriage with his first wife Josephine and entered into marriage in 1810 with Maria Louise - the daughter of the Austrian emperor Franz I.

Victorious wars with coalitions of powers, a huge expansion of the territory of the empire and the transformation of Napoleon I into the actual ruler of all Western (except Great Britain) and Central Europe contributed to his extraordinary glory. The fate of Napoleon I, who reached unparalleled power in 10 years, forcing the monarchs of Europe to reckon with his will, seemed inexplicable to many of his contemporaries and gave rise to all sorts of “Napoleonic legends”. A man of great personal talent, exceptional capacity for work, strong, sober mind and unbending will, merciless in achieving goals, Napoleon I was an outstanding representative of the bourgeoisie at a time when it was still a young, rising class; he most fully embodied all the strengths inherent in her then, as well as her vices and shortcomings - aggressiveness, self-interest, adventurism.

In the field of military art, Napoleon I developed and improved what was new that had previously been created by the armies of revolutionary France. The merit of Napoleon I was that he found the most expedient in the given historical conditions the tactical and strategic use of the colossal armed masses, the appearance of which was made possible thanks to the revolution.

Napoleon knew the map and knew how to handle the map like no one else, he surpassed in this his chief of staff and the learned cartographer Marshal Berthier, surpassed in this all the generals who had thundered in history before him, and at the same time the map never connected him, and when he broke away from her, riding out into the field, inspiring the troops with his appeals, issuing orders, tossing and turning in huge dense columns, then here too he found himself in his own, that is, in the first and inaccessible place. His orders, his letters to the marshals, and some of his sayings still have the value of, as it were, basic treatises on the question of fortresses, on artillery, on the organization of the rear, on flank movements, on detours, on the most diverse subjects of military affairs.

He proved to be a remarkable master of strategy and maneuvering tactics. Fighting against a numerically superior enemy, Napoleon I sought to separate his forces and destroy them piecemeal. His principle was: "compensate for numerical weakness with speed of movement." On the march, Napoleon I led the troops dispersed, but in such a way that they could be assembled at the right time at any point. This is how the principle of “going apart, fighting together” developed.

Napoleon I perfected the new tactics of maneuvering columns in combination with loose formation, based on the clear interaction of various branches of the military. He made extensive use of rapid maneuver in order to create superiority in decisive directions, he knew how to deliver surprise strikes, carry out detours and envelopments, and build up efforts in decisive areas of the battle. Considering the defeat of the enemy forces as his main strategic task, Napoleon always sought to seize the strategic initiative. The main way to defeat the enemy for him was a general battle. Napoleon sought to develop the success achieved in the general battle by organizing a persistent pursuit of the enemy. Napoleon provided a wide opportunity for initiative to commanders of units and formations. He knew how to find and promote capable, talented people [8 p. 70].

But the rapid rise of Napoleonic France and the victory of French arms were explained not so much by the personal qualities of Napoleon and his marshals, but by the fact that in a collision with feudal-absolutist Europe, Napoleonic France represented a historically more progressive, bourgeois social system. This was also reflected in the military sphere, where the art of general Napoleon had an undoubted advantage over the backward, routine strategy and tactics of the armies of feudal Europe, and in the superiority of the system of bourgeois social relations, boldly introduced in the countries of Western Europe by Napoleonic legislation, over backward patriarchal-feudal relations. However, over time, the Napoleonic wars lost their earlier (despite their aggressive nature) progressive elements and turned into purely predatory ones. Under these conditions, no personal qualities and efforts of Napoleon could bring victory. The Patriotic War of 1812 not only destroyed Napoleon's "great army" but also gave a powerful impetus to the national liberation struggle against Napoleonic oppression in Europe. The inevitable defeat of Napoleon under these conditions, completed by the entry of the allied troops into Paris (March 1814), forced him to abdicate (April 6, 1814). The victorious allies retained the title of emperor to Napoleon and gave him possession of Fr. Elbe. The landing of Napoleon in France (March 1, 1815) and the "Hundred Days" (March 20 - June 22, 1815) of his second reign again showed not only his talent, but to an even greater extent the significance of the social forces behind him. The unprecedented "conquest" in 3 weeks without a single shot of France became possible only because the people considered Napoleon capable of expelling the Bourbons and aristocrats hated by the masses from France.

The tragedy of Napoleon was that he did not dare to fully rely on the people who supported him. This led to his defeat at Waterloo and his second abdication (June 22, 1815). Exiled to about. St. Helena, he died after 6 years as a prisoner of the British (May 5, 1821).

Thus, the era in which Napoleon Bonaparte lived contributed to his rapid rise, his brilliant career. Napoleon was certainly a talented man. Having set himself a goal in his distant youth - to achieve power, he walked consistently and patiently towards it, using all his potential. The Great French Revolution, the Republican Wars allowed a number of talented, but not noble commanders to rise, including Bonaparte. The rapid rise of Napoleon was due to the “concentration” in one person of genius, ambition, and a correct understanding of the situation around him.

2. NAPOLEONIC WARS

2.1 War of the Second Coalition (1798-1802)

The conditional date of the start of the Napoleonic Wars is considered to be the establishment in France during the coup of 18 Brumaire (November 9), 1799, of the military dictatorship of Napoleon Bonaparte, who became the first consul. At this time, the country was already at war with the 2nd anti-French coalition, which was formed in 1798 - 1799 by England, Russia, Austria, Turkey and the Kingdom of Naples (the 1st anti-French coalition consisting of Austria, Prussia, England and a number of other European states fought against revolutionary France in 1792-1793). Having come to power, Bonaparte sent the English king and the Austrian emperor a proposal to start peace negotiations, which was rejected by them. Then Napoleon set himself the task of a war with England, which was to be fought not on the English coast, in the face of the mighty British fleet, but on the European continent , against the allies of England, primarily against the Austrian Empire. . France began to form a large army on the eastern borders under the command of General Moreau. At the same time, on the Swiss border, in secrecy, the formation of the so-called "reserve" army was going on, which dealt the first blow to the Austrian troops in Italy. Having made a difficult transition through the St. Bernard Pass in the Alps, on June 14, 1800, at the Battle of Marengo, Bonaparte defeated the Austrians operating under the command of Field Marshal Melas. In December 1800 Moreau's army of the Rhine defeated the Austrians at Hohenlinden (Bavaria). In February 1801, Austria was forced to conclude peace with France and recognize her seizures in Belgium and on the left bank of the Rhine. After that, the 2nd coalition actually broke up.

On March 27, 1802, the Treaty of Amiens was concluded between England, on the one hand, and France, Spain, and the Batavian Republic, on the other. Peace negotiations took place in Amiens, dragged on for a little less than six months, but already on October 1, 1801, all hostile actions between France and England ceased after the signing of a "preliminary peace" in London. In Amiens, Napoleon and Talleyrand succeeded in securing favorable peace terms. True, Napoleon agreed to the evacuation of French troops from Egypt and the return of Egypt to Turkey. But England abandoned almost all of its colonial conquests (except for Ceylon and the island of Trinidad in the Atlantic Ocean). But, most importantly, England took upon itself the obligation not to interfere in the affairs of Holland, Germany, Italy (the Apennine Peninsula), Switzerland (the "Helvetian Republic"). She even undertook to evacuate Malta over time. The peace of Amiens could not be very long, England did not yet feel so defeated. But at that moment, when in Paris and in the provinces they learned about the signing of a peace treaty with England, they were completely satisfied. The most formidable, the richest, the most stubborn and implacable enemy seemed to admit defeat, approved with his signature all the conquests of Bonaparte. The long, hard war with Europe ended, and ended in complete victory on all fronts.

Thus the second anti-French coalition fell apart. The fierce war between France and England became the center of all diplomatic combinations and intrigues of the near future.

2.2 Third anti-French coalition

War of the Third Coalition (also known as the Russo-Austrian-French War of 1805) - a war between France, Spain, Bavaria and Italy, on the one hand, and the Third Anti-French Coalition, which included Austria, Russia, Great Britain, Sweden, the Kingdom of Naples and Portugal - with another. In 1805 Russia and Great Britain signed the Treaty of St. Petersburg, which laid the foundation for a third coalition. In the same year, Great Britain, Austria, Russia, the Kingdom of Naples and Sweden formed a third coalition against France and its allied Spain. While the fleet of the coalition fought successfully at sea, the armies were unsuccessful and were defeated, so the coalition fell apart rather quickly - in December. Napoleon had been planning an invasion of England since the Treaty of Amiens in 1802, signed by Cornwallis for England and Joseph Bonaparte for France. At this time (summer 1805), Napoleon's 180,000-strong army (the "Great Army") stood on the French coast of the English Channel, in Boulogne, preparing to land in England. These ground forces were quite enough, but Napoleon did not have enough navy to cover the landing, so it was necessary to pull the British fleet away from the English Channel. With regard to military operations at sea, an attempt to distract the British by threatening their dominance in the West Indies failed: the Franco-Spanish fleet under the command of the French admiral Villeneuve was defeated by the English squadron on their way back to Europe at Cape Finisterre, and retreated to Spain, to the port of Cadiz, where it was blocked. Admiral Villeneuve, despite the poor state of the fleet, to which he himself brought him, and having learned that they were going to replace him with Admiral Rossilli, went out, following the instructions of Napoleon, at the end of October to the sea. At Cape Trafalgar, the Franco-Spanish fleet took the battle with the English squadron of Admiral Nelson and was completely defeated, despite the fact that Nelson was mortally wounded in this battle. The French fleet never recovered from this defeat, losing control of the sea to the English fleet. As for military operations on land, in order to finally protect itself from the French invasion, England hastily put together another anti-French coalition, unlike the first and second, no longer anti-republican, but anti-Napoleonic. By joining the coalition, Austria, taking advantage of the fact that most of Napoleon's army was concentrated in northern France, planned to unleash hostilities in northern Italy and Bavaria. To help the Austrians, Russia moved two armies, under the command of generals Kutuzov and Buksgevden. Having received information about the actions of the coalition forces, Napoleon was forced to postpone the landing on the British Isles for an indefinite period and move troops to Germany. It was then that Napoleon said: “If I am not in London in 15 days, then I should be in Vienna in mid-November” [9 p.150]. Meanwhile, the 72,000-strong Austrian army under the command of Baron Karl Mack von Leiberich invaded Bavaria, without waiting for the Russian troops, who had not yet reached the theater of operations. Napoleon left the Boulogne camp and, having made a forced march to the south, reached Bavaria as soon as possible. The Austrian army capitulated at the Battle of Ulm. The corps of General Elachich managed to escape capture, however, he was subsequently overtaken by the French Marshal Augereau and capitulated. Left alone, Kutuzov was forced to retreat with rearguard battles (the Battle of Merzbach, the battle of Hollabrunn) to join with the Buxgevden army that had not yet approached. Napoleon occupied Vienna without serious resistance. Of the entire Austrian army, only the formations of Archduke Charles and Archduke John, as well as a few units that managed to connect with Kutuzov's army, continued the war. The Russian Emperor Alexander I and the Austrian Emperor Franz II arrived at the army. At the insistence of Alexander I, Kutuzov's army stopped its retreat and, without waiting for the approach of Buxgevden's troops, entered the battle with the French at Austerlitz, in which it suffered a heavy defeat and retreated in disorder. The French victory was complete.

Emperor Franz humbly asked Napoleon for a truce, to which the winner agreed, but under the condition that Russian troops be removed from Austrian territory (December 4). On December 26, Austria concluded the Treaty of Pressburg with France, which deprived the Habsburg monarchy of possessions in southwestern Germany, Tyrol and the Venetian region (the first were divided between Baden and Württemberg, the second was annexed to Bavaria, the third to the Kingdom of Italy), finally abolishing the Holy Roman Empire and who granted the royal crowns of Naples and Holland to Napoleon's brothers.

Russia, despite heavy losses, continued military operations against Napoleon as part of the fourth anti-French coalition, also organized with the active participation of England. On July 12, 1806, between Napoleon and many German sovereigns (Bavaria, Württemberg, Baden, Darmstadt, Klöve-Berg, Nassau, etc.), an agreement was concluded, under the terms of which these sovereigns entered into an alliance, called the Rhine, under the protectorate of Napoleon and with the obligation to keep for him a sixty thousandth army [2 p.215]

The formation of the union was accompanied by a new mediatization, that is, the subordination of small direct holders of the supreme power of large sovereigns. The mediatization of 1806 had the same effect in Germany as it did in 1802-1803. - secularization: Paris again became the center of the distribution of all sorts of favors, where the German princes used all possible means, some to prevent their own mediatization, others to mediatize other people's possessions in their favor. The Ligurian Republic (Genoa) and the Kingdom of Etruria were annexed to France. The very next day after the conclusion of the Treaty of Pressburg, Napoleon announced by a simple decree that "the Bourbon dynasty in Naples has ceased to reign", because Naples, contrary to the previous agreement, joined the coalition and allowed the landing of the troops that arrived in the Anglo-Russian fleet. The movement of the French army to Naples forced the local court to flee to Sicily, and Napoleon granted the Kingdom of Naples to his brother Joseph. Benevent and Pontecorvo were given, as fief duchies, to Talleyrand and Bernadotte. In the former possessions of Venice, Napoleon also established a significant number of fiefs, which were combined with the ducal title, gave large incomes and complained to French dignitaries and marshals. Napoleon's sister Elisa (after Bacciocchi's husband) received Lucca even earlier, then Massa and Carrara, and after the destruction of the kingdom of Etruria, she was appointed ruler of Tuscany. To his other sister, Paulina Borghese, Napoleon also gave possession. In the kingdom of Italy, Lucca, Tuscany and Naples, many French orders were introduced. Napoleon's brother, Louis, reigned in Holland.

Thus, Napoleon's wars with England at sea were unsuccessful, but on land Bonaparte won a number of significant victories, as a result of which Austria withdrew from the anti-French coalition, Napoleon was declared Emperor of Italy.

2.3 War of the Fourth Coalition (1806-1807)

The war against Napoleon was continued by England and Russia, which were soon joined by Prussia and Sweden, concerned about the strengthening of French domination in Europe. In September 1806, the 4th anti-French coalition of European states was formed. A month later, during two battles, on the same day, October 14, 1806, the Prussian army was destroyed: near Jena, Napoleon defeated parts of Prince Hohenlohe, and at Auerstedt, Marshal Davout defeated the main Prussian forces of King Frederick William and the Duke of Brunswick. Napoleon solemnly entered Berlin. Prussia was occupied. The Russian army moving to help the allies met with the French first near Pultusk on December 26, 1806, then at Preussisch-Eylau on February 8, 1807. Despite the bloodshed, these battles did not give an advantage to either side, but in June 1807 Napoleon won the battle of Friedland over the Russian troops commanded by L.L. Benigsen.

On July 7, 1807, in the middle of the Neman River, a meeting of the French and Russian emperors took place on a raft, and the Peace of Tilsit was concluded, under the terms of which Prussia lost half of its possessions. [3 p. 216] From the Polish lands that Prussia inherited under the first two sections of the Commonwealth, the Grand Duchy of Warsaw was organized, which came under the rule of the Saxon king. All her possessions between the Rhine and the Elbe were taken away from Prussia, which, in conjunction with the electorate of Hesse, Braunschweig and southern Hanover, formed the kingdom of Westphalia, headed by Napoleon's brother, Jerome, who also joined the Rhine Union. In addition, Prussia had to pay a huge indemnity, maintain the French garrisons at its own expense until the final reckoning, and observe various restrictive conditions that are beneficial to France (about, for example, military roads). . Napoleon became the complete ruler of Germany. In many places, French orders were introduced, which were the fruit of the revolution and the organizational activity of Napoleon. The despotism of Napoleon and local rulers, constant recruitment into the army, high taxes resounded heavily on the German people, who felt their humiliation before a foreign ruler. After the Peace of Tilsit, Napoleon left the city of Erfurt behind him as a rallying point for the troops of the Rhine Union. By agreeing that France should dominate the West, Emperor Alexander I had in mind the same domination in the East. An alliance of two emperors was created against England, whose trade Napoleon sought to strike with the so-called continental system. Russia was supposed to close its ports to the British, to withdraw its ambassadors from London. [6 p.84] Both powers undertook to demand that Sweden, Denmark and Portugal, who had until then acted in agreement with England, join the continental system. England responded to this by ordering her fleet to seize neutral ships leaving the ports of France or states allied with her.

Thus, the consistent, merciless observance of the rules of the "continental blockade" becomes the center of all the diplomatic and military activities of Napoleon.

Meanwhile, Austria decided to try her luck in a war of liberation. In April 1809, the Austrian emperor moved his military forces at once to Bavaria, Italy and the Grand Duchy of Warsaw, but Napoleon, reinforced by the troops of the Rhine Union, repelled the attack and was already in Vienna in mid-May. The Habsburg monarchy, apparently, was about to collapse: the Hungarians were already invited to restore their former independence and elect a new king for themselves. Soon after, the French crossed the Danube and won a victory on July 5-6 at Wagram, followed by the Armistice of Znaim (July 12), which was the threshold of the Vienna or Schönbrun peace (October 14). Austria lost Salzburg and some neighboring lands - in favor of Bavaria, western Galicia and part of eastern Galicia with Krakow - in favor of the Grand Duchy of Warsaw and Russia and, finally, lands in the southwest (part of Carinthia, Krainu, Trieste, Friul, etc. .), which, together with Dalmatia, Istria and Ragusa, constituted the possession of Illyria, under the supreme authority of Napoleon. At the same time, the Vienna government undertook to join the continental system. This war was marked by a popular uprising in Tyrol, which, at the conclusion of the Peace of Vienna, was pacified and divided between Bavaria, Illyria and the Kingdom of Italy. On May 16, 1809, in Schönbrunn, Napoleon signed a decree that abolished the secular power of the pope: the Church area was annexed to France, Rome was declared the second city of the empire. Austria had to recognize this change as well. In July 1810, Napoleon, dissatisfied with his brother Louis, who did not respect the continental system, annexed Holland to France; Hamburg, Bremen and Lübeck, the Duchy of Oldenburg and other lands between the Elbe and the Rhine, as well as the Swiss canton of Wallis, with a mountain road through Simplon, were also annexed.

The French empire reached its greatest extent, and, together with vassal and allied states, included almost all of Western Europe. In addition to present-day France, it included Belgium, Holland and a strip of northern Germany to the Baltic Sea, with the mouths of the Rhine, Ems, Weser and Elbe, so that the French border was only two hundred miles away from Berlin; further, the entire left bank of the Rhine from Wesel to Basel, some parts of present-day Switzerland, and finally Piedmont, Tuscany and the Papal States. Part of northern and central Italy was the Kingdom of Italy, where Napoleon was the sovereign, and further, on the other side of the Adriatic Sea, on the Balkan Peninsula, was Illyria, which belonged to Napoleon. As if with hands, in two long stripes both from the north and from the south, Napoleon's empire covered Switzerland and the Rhine Union, in the center of which the city of Erfurt belonged to the French emperor. Heavily curtailed Prussia and Austria, bordering on the Rhine Union and Illyria, had the first - on its eastern border, the second - on the north, the Grand Duchy of Warsaw, which was under the protectorate of Napoleon and put forward as a French outpost against Russia. Finally, Napoleon's son-in-law Joachim I (Murat) reigned in Naples, and his brother Joseph reigned in Spain. (Appendix 3) Since 1807, Denmark has been in alliance with Napoleon.

Thus, only England and Russia remained rivals of France, one at sea, the other on land, which determined the further foreign policy of Napoleon.

2.5 War of the Sixth Coalition (1813-1814)

The formation of the sixth coalition was preceded by Napoleon's campaign in Russia, where the fate of his empire was decided. Napoleon counted on support from Turkey, which was at war with Russia, and from Sweden, which was ruled as crown prince by the former Napoleonic marshal Carl Bernadotte. With Turkey, Kutuzov, who turned out to be not only a wonderful strategist, but also a brilliant diplomat, managed to conclude just on the eve of the war - in May 1812 - a peace very beneficial for Russia, skillfully bringing the grand vizier to panic. Upon learning of this sudden reconciliation between Russia and Turkey, Napoleon exclaimed in a rage that he did not know until now what fools rule Turkey. With regard to Sweden, two proposals were made to Bernadotte. Napoleon offered Finland to Sweden if Sweden opposes Russia, and Alexander offers Norway if Sweden opposes Napoleon. Bernadotte, having weighed the benefits of both proposals, leaned on the side of Alexander, not only because Norway is richer than Finland, but also because the sea protected Sweden from Napoleon, and nothing from Russia. Napoleon later said that he should have abandoned the war with Russia already at the moment when he learned that neither Turkey nor Sweden would fight Russia. Immediately after the outbreak of the war, England concluded an alliance with Alexander. With such a balance of power, the war of 1812 began and ended. Diplomats from all over Europe followed with intense attention the behind-the-scenes struggle that went on, especially at the very end of the war, between Alexander and Field Marshal Kutuzov. It was, in fact, a struggle between two mutually exclusive diplomatic attitudes, with Kutuzov pursuing his views in a number of strategic actions, and the tsar triumphed over Kutuzov only in Vilna, in December 1812 and January 1813. Kutuzov’s point of view, expressed by him before the English agent General Wilson, and before General Konovnitsyn, and other members of his staff, was that the war began on the Neman, and must end there. As soon as there is no armed enemy left on Russian soil, the fight should be stopped and stopped. There is no need to shed any more blood to save Europe—let her save herself by her own means. There is no need in particular to strive to completely crush Napoleon - this will bring the most benefit not to Russia, but to England. If this "cursed island" (as Kutuzov called England) completely fell through the ground, it would be the best thing. So thought Kutuzov. Alexander, on the contrary, believed that the business of retribution with Napoleon was just beginning. England struggled to support the king in his aspirations.

During the war of 1812, the strategy of the Russian army, led by Field Marshal M. I. Kutuzov, the partisan movement contributed to the death of more than 400,000 “Great Army” [4 p. 90]. After the defeat of Napoleon in Russia, the Russian army crossed the Neman, then the Vistula. This caused a new upsurge in the national liberation struggle in Europe, in a number of states people's militia began to be created.

In 1813, the 6th anti-French coalition was formed, which included Russia, England, Prussia, Sweden, Austria, and a number of other states. In October 1813, a "battle of nations" took place near Leipzig - Napoleon fought a coalition consisting of Russians, Austrians, Prussians and Swedes [1 p. 702]. In his own army, in addition to the French, there were Poles, Saxons, Dutch, Italians, Belgians, Germans of the Confederation of the Rhine. (Annex 4)

As a result of the “battle of the peoples”, the territory of Germany was liberated from the French. Napoleon retreated from Leipzig to the borders of France, to the line that separated it from the German states before the start of the Napoleonic conquests, to the line of the Rhine. [9 p. 300]. For the first time, Napoleon had to understand that the great empire was collapsing, that the motley conglomerate of countries and peoples, which he had tried for so many years to solder with fire and sword into a single empire, had disintegrated. On the way to the Rhine, even at Hanau (October 30), he had to make his way with weapons in his hands through the Bavarian-Austrian detachments, and when the emperor entered Mainz on November 2, 1813, he had only about 40 thousand combat-ready soldiers with him. The rest of the crowds of unarmed, exhausted, sick people, who were also still in the army, who entered Mainz, could safely be ignored. In mid-November, Napoleon was in Paris. The campaign of 1813 ended and the campaign of 1814 began.

Thus, from 1812, the decline of Napoleon's military power began, prepared by the failures of French weapons in Portugal and Spain (see the war in the Iberian Peninsula, etc.). The Patriotic War, followed by the direct war for the liberation of Germany and Europe, was "the beginning of the end."

2.6 The capture of Paris and the end of the campaign (March 1814)

The general situation by the end of February 1814 was difficult for Napoleon, but not hopeless. He set himself the task of making peace with the allies on the condition that the borders of France be preserved by the beginning of the era of the Napoleonic wars, that is, along the Rhine and the Alps.

On March 24, the Allies agreed on a plan for further action in the campaign, deciding after disputes to resume the attack on Paris. A 10,000-strong cavalry corps was sent against Napoleon under the command of the Russian general Winzingerode in order to mislead Napoleon about the intentions of the allies. The Wintzingerode Corps was defeated by Napoleon on March 26, but this did not affect the course of further events. On March 30, Russian and Prussian corps attacked and, after fierce fighting, captured the suburbs of Paris. Wanting to save the city of many thousands from bombardment and street fighting, the commander of the right flank of the French defense, Marshal Marmont, sent a truce to the Russian emperor by 5 o'clock in the afternoon. Alexander I gave the following answer: “He will order to stop the battle if Paris is surrendered: otherwise, by the evening they will not recognize the place where the capital was.” [9 p.331] The battle for Paris in the campaign of 1814 was one of the most bloody for the allies, who lost more than 8 thousand soldiers in one day of fighting (of which more than 6 thousand were Russian). On March 31, at 2 o'clock in the morning, the surrender of Paris was signed. By 7 o'clock in the morning, according to the agreement, the French regular army was to leave Paris. At noon on March 31, the Russian and Prussian guards, led by Emperor Alexander I, triumphantly entered the capital of France. In early April, the French Senate issued a decree deposing Napoleon. Napoleon learned about the surrender of Paris on the same day at the entrance to the capital. He went to his palace at Fontainebleau, where he awaited the approach of his stray army. Napoleon pulled together all the available troops (up to 60 thousand) to continue the war. However, under pressure from his own marshals, who took into account the mood of the population and soberly assessed the balance of power, on April 4, Napoleon wrote a conditional abdication in favor of his son Napoleon II under the regency of his wife Marie-Louise. While negotiations were underway, part of the French army went over to the side of the allies, which gave Tsar Alexander I a reason to tighten the conditions for abdication. On April 6, Napoleon wrote an act of abdication for himself and his heirs from the throne of France. On the same day, the Senate proclaimed Louis XVIII king. On April 20, Napoleon himself went into honorable exile on the island of Elba in the Mediterranean. “The grandiose heroic epic of world history is over - he said goodbye to his guard,” as English newspapers subsequently wrote about this day [9 p. 345].

Thus ended the era of the Napoleonic Wars. On April 6, Napoleon I signed his abdication and was expelled from France.

3. RESULTS AND SIGNIFICANCE OF THE NAPOLEONIC WARS

It is hardly possible to give an unambiguous assessment of the significance of the Consulate and the Empire of Napoleon Bonaparte for European history. On the one hand, the Napoleonic wars brought enormous human losses to France and other European states. They were waged for the sake of conquering foreign territories and robbing other peoples. Taxing the defeated countries with huge indemnities, Napoleon weakened and ruined their economy. When he autocratically redrawn the map of Europe or when he tried to impose a new economic order on it in the form of a continental blockade, he thereby intervened in the natural course of historical development, violating the boundaries and traditions that had been formed for centuries. On the other hand, historical development always takes place as a result of the struggle between the old and the new, and from this point of view, the Napoleonic empire personified the new bourgeois order in the face of the old feudal Europe. As in 1792-94. French revolutionaries tried to carry their ideas around Europe with bayonets, and Napoleon also tried to introduce bourgeois orders in the conquered countries with bayonets. Establishing French dominance in Italy and the German states, he simultaneously abolished the feudal rights of the nobility and the guild system there, carried out the secularization of church lands, extended their Civil Code to them. In other words, he destroyed the feudal system and acted in this respect, according to Stendhal, as "the son of the revolution." Thus, the Napoleonic era was one of the stages in European history and one of the manifestations of the transition from the old order to the new times.

The victories won by France over the armies of the feudal-absolutist states were explained, first of all, by the fact that bourgeois France, representing a more progressive social system, had an advanced military system created by the Great French Revolution. An outstanding commander, Napoleon I perfected the strategy and tactics developed during the revolutionary wars. The army also included troops of states subordinate to Napoleon I and foreign corps, exhibited by the allied countries. The Napoleonic army, especially before the defeat of its best forces in Russia in 1812, was characterized by high combat training and discipline. Napoleon I was surrounded by a galaxy of talented marshals and young generals (L. Davout, I. Murat, A. Massena, M. Ney, L. Berthier, J. Bernadotte, N. Soult, etc.), many of whom were soldiers or from the lower strata of society. However, the increasing transformation of the French army during the Napoleonic wars into an instrument for the implementation of the aggressive plans of Napoleon I, huge losses (according to approximate estimates, in 1800 - 1815, 3153 thousand people were called up for military service in France, of which only in 1804 - 1814 died 1750 thousand people) led to a significant decrease in its combat qualities.

As a result of continuous wars and conquests, a huge Napoleonic empire was formed, supplemented by a system of states directly or indirectly subject to France. Napoleon I subjected the conquered countries to robbery. The supply of the army in the campaign was carried out mainly with the help of requisitions or direct robbery (according to the principle "war must feed the war"). Great damage to countries that were dependent on the Napoleonic empire was caused by customs tariffs that were beneficial to France. The Napoleonic wars were a constant and important source of income for the Napoleonic government, the French bourgeoisie, and the top military leaders.

The wars of the French Revolution began as national wars. After the defeat of Napoleon, feudal reaction was established in many European countries. However, the main result of the fierce wars was not a temporary victory for the reaction, but the liberation of the countries of Europe from the domination of Napoleonic France, which ultimately contributed to the independent development of capitalism in a number of European states.

Thus, we can say that Napoleon's wars were not just a pan-European, but a global one. They are forever in history.

CONCLUSION

The era in which Napoleon Bonaparte lived contributed to his rapid rise, his brilliant career. Napoleon was certainly a talented man. Having set himself a goal in his distant youth - to achieve power, he walked consistently and patiently towards it, using all his potential. The Great French Revolution, the republican wars allowed a number of talented, but not noble commanders to rise, among whom was Bonaparte.

The rapid rise of Napoleon is due to the "concentration" in one person of genius, ambition, a correct understanding of the situation around him. In one of his interviews, the now famous Edvard Radzinsky said: "Napoleon is a man who lived, relating himself only to History." And indeed, he is right - the attention of the whole world to the life and death of Napoleon has been riveted for two centuries. For example, if you type "Napoleon Bonaparte" in any Internet search engine, you will get over 10 million links. These links will be different: from historical and literary portals and forums of historians involved in the study of the era of the Napoleonic Wars, to sites that are completely ordinary and not related to history in any way, intended for crossword puzzle lovers. Is this not a confirmation that the first emperor of France has become a kind of mega-figure in the history of mankind? Napoleon Bonaparte and his role in the development of European civilization will be the subject of close attention for many more generations of historians, and readers around the world will turn to his image in literature for many years to come, trying to understand what is the grandeur of this personality.

In general, the wars of Napoleon until 1812. were successful, in his hands was almost the whole of Europe. But the general situation by the end of February 1814 was difficult for Napoleon. As a result, “the most grandiose heroic epic of world history ended - he said goodbye to his guard,” as English newspapers later wrote about this day.

However, I would like to end with the words of E.V. Tarle on the significance of Napoleon in world history: “In the memory of mankind, an image has forever remained that in the psychology of some echoes the images of Attila, Tamerlane and Genghis Khan, in the soul of others - with the shadows of Alexander the Great and Caesar, but which, as historical research grows, more and more more is revealed in its unique originality and striking individual complexity.

LIST OF USED SOURCES AND LITERATURE

1. Sources

1. From the treaty on the creation of the Confederation of the Rhine under the protectorate of France // Reader on a new history, ed. A.A. Guber, A.V. Efimov. - M .: Education, 1963. T.1 1640-1815. - with. 768.

2. From the Tilsit Peace Treaty between France and Prussia // Reader on New History, ed. A.A. Guber, A.V. Efimov.

- M .: Education, 1963. T.1 1640-1815. - with. 768.

3. Napoleon. Selected works. – M.: Oborongiz, 1956. – p.788.

4. Expansion of the power of the first consul. From the senatus - consultation from 6 Thermidor of the X year // Reader on modern history 1640-1870. Comp. Sirotkin V.G. - M.: Enlightenment, 1990. - p. 286.

5. Tilsit peace treaty between France and Prussia // Reader on modern history 1640-1870. Comp. Sirotkin V.G. Enlightenment - M.: Enlightenment, 1990. - p. 286.

6. Tilsit Offensive and Defensive Allied Treaty between France and Russia // Reader on New History 1640-1870. Comp. Sirotkin V.G. - M.: Enlightenment, 1990. - p. 286.

7. Tolstoy L.N. on the role of partisans in the Patriotic War // Reader on the new history of 1640-1870. Comp. Sirotkin V.G. - M.: Enlightenment, 1990. - p. 286.

2. Literature

8. Zhilin P.A. The death of the Napoleonic army in Russia. – M.: Nauka, 1989. – p.451.

9. Manfred A.Z. Napoleon Bonaparte. - Sukhumi: Alashara, 1980. - p. 712.

10. New history of Europe and America: Proc. for universities / Krivoguz I.M. – M.: Bustard, 2003. – 912 p.

11. New history, 1640-1870. Proc. for students ist.fak. ped. in-tov / Narochnitsky A.L. - M .: Education, 1986. - 704 p.

12. Tarle E.V. Napoleon. M.: Nauka, 1991. - p. 461.

13. Tarle E.V. Essays on the history of the colonial policy of Western European states (the end of the 15th - the beginning of the 19th centuries) M .: Nauka, 1965. - p. 428.

APPS

Appendix 1

Napoleon in his youth

Annex 2

Emperor Napoleon

Source -Straubing/napoleonovskie voyny/ru.

Annex 3

napoleon war army commander

Napoleonic Empire, 1811. France shown in dark blue.

Source - Wikipedia/napoleon/en.

Napoleon Bonaparte - the conqueror of all Europe

On August 15, 1769, in the city of Ajaccio on the island of Corsica, which belonged to the French kingdom, a man was born whose name has gone down in history forever: if someone is called Napoleon or they talk about Napoleonic plans, then they mean both grandiose plans and personalities of great scope, endowed with outstanding talents.

The boy received a rare name for that time - Napoleone. He also had a difficult surname - Buonaparte. As an adult, he "redrawn" his first and last name in a French way and began to be called Napoleon Bonaparte.

The life of Bonaparte belongs to a number of those strange cases when the posthumous historical fate of the hero not only crossed out, but even made people forget the real deeds in which this hero distinguished himself in real history ...

So what was the real role of Napoleon for France and Europe, and what were the results of the era that is commonly called Napoleonic?

Napoleon did not differ in noble origin, as he was only the second son of a petty nobleman. Therefore, he could not count on any great career. But the Great French Revolution intervened, breaking down all class barriers, and in the new conditions Bonaparte was easily able to show his natural abilities. Of course, he was not without luck: at first he successfully chose the specialty of an artilleryman, then several times he successfully chose the right time and the right place (for example, under the rebellious Toulon in 1793, then at the head of the troops that suppressed the royalist revolt in Paris in 1795, and at the head of the Italian army in the campaign of 1797).

The circumstances of post-revolutionary development inexorably pushed France towards dictatorship. There were many applicants for the role of dictator, but due to circumstances and, again, personal luck, the candidacy of Bonaparte in 1799 had no alternative. His reputation was not damaged even by a failed expedition to Egypt - leaving the French army on the banks of the Nile, Bonaparte returned home not as a deserter, but as the savior of the Fatherland! And immediately seized power without meeting any resistance. He achieved the position of First Consul and immediately secured his dictatorial status by amending the Constitution, formally approving them by popular vote.

France expected that Bonaparte would quickly put things in order, and he, in principle, fulfilled this task: he created a centralized system of bureaucratic administration, and turned the legislative authorities into purely decorative ones. And, of course, he put into effect his first brainchild - the famous Napoleonic Code, which legally formalized the foundations of the bourgeois way of life.

In the course of subsequent revolutionary wars, Napoleon annexed to France the rich and strategically significant territories of present-day Belgium and the left bank of the Rhine, whose inhabitants, who had long been under the strong influence of French culture, treated the conquerors who abolished the feudal system completely loyally. In the future, one could also count on the complete assimilation of the population of the conquered lands (as in Alsace, originally German, but by the end of the 17th century completely “Frenchized”).

The territorial expansion has significantly increased the resource potential of France, and in the future it could become the most powerful and wealthy state in Europe. But first, it was necessary to consolidate the gains and diplomatically formalize the new borders of the state.

In 1800, Bonaparte won another victory at Marengo, which opened the way for France to an honorable peace with Austria, concluded in February 1801. In March 1802, a peace treaty with England was signed in Amiens. The dictator who seized power by force proved that he could use this power more effectively for the benefit of the French than rulers elected by the people. Having become a real idol of the nation, Napoleon Bonaparte proclaimed himself Emperor of France, but did not refuse new wars and conquests. Thus, peace with England collapsed a year after its signing, another war with continental monarchies began in 1805.

In fact, all the Napoleonic campaigns of 1805-1811 were completely useless for France and its people. Napoleon captured and forced European countries into obedience, creating a huge patchwork empire, comparable in scale to the possessions of Charlemagne. As conceived by the creator, this empire was to dominate the whole world. But it collapsed after the campaign against Russia.

Created from the blood and mud of the wars of conquest, Napoleonic Europe resembled the barbarian empires of the early Middle Ages: around France were the remnants of conquered, humiliated and plundered states, united only by the power of French arms. And everything was controlled by the puppets of the French dictator - either his appointees, hated by his subjects, or representatives of the old dynasties, who secretly hated the conqueror.

The most obvious example of Napoleonic arbitrariness was his policy in Spain. At first, the Spaniards sympathized with France, and King Carlos was a reliable ally of Napoleon, at Trafalgar, the French and Spaniards fought together against the British. However, the complacent emperor did not need allies - he only needed vassals. Napoleon decided to transfer the Spanish throne to his brother Joseph (by the way, not marked by any talents and merits). Carlos, along with his heir Ferdinand, was meanly lured by the emperor to French territory and taken into custody.

But the proud Spaniards did not submit to the dominion imposed on them. Napoleon occupied Spain, captured Madrid, but was never able to completely break the resistance of the Spanish people, which was supported by the English troops that landed on the Iberian Peninsula.

In 1799, the Italian victories of the Russian commander Alexander Suvorov discredited some popular generals of the French Republic and caused panic in the ruling circles of Paris, which, by the way, helped Bonaparte to seize power. Having become the first consul of France, he seized on the idea of ​​​​an alliance with Emperor Paul, with the help of which he was going to organize a campaign in India subject to the British.

After that, for many years Napoleon considered Russia as a hostile state, thinking and acting accordingly, even in 1807-1811, when he was in a formal alliance with Emperor Alexander I. Planning a campaign in Russia in 1812, Napoleon gathered a united army from all the countries of Europe subject to him - and she, according to all the canons of European military art, was to achieve a complete victory! However, the European strategy of Napoleon gave way to the wise strategy of the Russian field marshal Kutuzov, which, moreover, was backed up by a people's war in the specific conditions of Russia with its dense forests, rare cities and a population that did not want to submit to the conquerors.

But at first fate was favorable to the French. Anxiety seized the tops of the Russian nobility after the occupation of Moscow by Napoleon, and Alexander was even informed that not only among the peasants there were rumors about freedom, but also among the soldiers they say that the tsar himself secretly asked Napoleon to enter Russia and free the peasants, because he himself was afraid of the landowners. And in St. Petersburg there were rumors that Napoleon was the son of Catherine II and was going to take away his rightful Russian crown from Alexander, after which he would also free the peasants.

In 1812, many peasant unrest against the landowners took place in Russia. Napoleon then suddenly ordered to search the Moscow archive for information about the Russian rebel Emelyan Pugachev, then those around the emperor made sketches of a manifesto to the peasantry, then he switched to questions about the Tatars and Cossacks.

While in Russia, Napoleon could, of course, try to abolish serfdom and win over the people of Russia (without such measures, the recruiting potential of France might not be enough to achieve the goals set by Bonaparte).

Thoughts about using Pugachev's experience show that the French emperor had a realistic idea of ​​the possible consequences of his decisive action as a liberator of the peasants. Therefore, the Russian nobles, if they were afraid of anything, it was not so much a continental blockade as the abolition of serfdom in the event of a French victory.

However, Napoleon did not want to try to implement this plan. For himself, as the emperor of the new bourgeois Europe, he considered the "peasant revolution" unacceptable even at a time when this revolution was for him the only chance of a possible victory. Just as fleetingly he thought, sitting in the Kremlin, about the uprising in Ukraine, about the possible use of the Tatars ... And all these ideas were also rejected by him. Everyone knows what happened next: the collapse of the French army and the shameful flight of its remnants from the burned Moscow and from Russia.

Meanwhile, as the liberation march of the Russian army advanced to the west, the anti-Napoleonic coalition also grew. In the "Battle of the Nations" on October 16-19, 1813, Russian, Austrian, Prussian and Swedish troops opposed the hastily assembled French military forces.

Having suffered a complete defeat in this battle, Napoleon, after the Allies entered Paris, was forced to abdicate and in 1814 go into exile on the small island of Elba in the Mediterranean. But, returning in a convoy of foreign troops, the Bourbons and emigrants began to demand the return of their property and privileges, which caused discontent and fear both in French society and among the military. Taking advantage of this, the disgraced ex-emperor fled from Elba to Paris, who met him as the savior of the nation. The war resumed, but long-suffering France no longer had the strength to wage it. The "hundred days" of Napoleon's re-emperorship ended with the final defeat of the Napoleonic troops in the famous battle with the British near Waterloo on June 18, 1815.

Napoleon himself, having become a prisoner of the British, was sent to Saint Helena in the Atlantic Ocean. There, in the village of Longwood, he spent the last six years of his life.

Napoleon Bonaparte died on May 5, 1821, and was buried near Longwood, in an area with the beautiful name of the Valley of the Geraniums. After 19 years, Louis-Philippe, yielding to the Bonapartists, sent a delegation to Saint Helena to fulfill Napoleon's last will - to be buried in his homeland. The remains of the great dictator found their final resting place in the Les Invalides in Paris.

In his memoirs, written on the island of Saint Helena, Napoleon tried to justify his fateful 1812 campaign in Russia with considerations of the highest good. The former plans of the deposed French emperor portrayed as a project of uniting Europe into a certain community of states, within which the rights of peoples would be respected, and all controversial issues would be resolved at international congresses. Then the wars would stop, and the armies would be reduced to the size of guard units, entertaining well-behaved monarchs with parades. That is, from the point of view of modernity, Napoleon, as it were, anticipated the construction of the current European Union.

The famous French writer Stendhal once admitted that he fell in love with Napoleon again, hating those who came to replace him. Indeed, the colorless despotism of the last Bourbons created rich ground for nostalgic memories of the former greatness of the French Empire. From this nostalgia, Bonapartism was born as a special ideology and corresponding political current.

In a simplified way, the foundations of the Bonapartist worldview can be stated something like this: the French nation is the greatest European nation, therefore France must dominate Europe, and in order to achieve this, the nation must be led by a great leader. Authoritarian methods of governing the state and the priority use of military force to solve external problems - these are the main methods of manifestation of Bonapartism.

A glimpse of the glory of Napoleon I fell on his nephew, Louis Napoleon, a rather tenacious adventurer whose path to power was cleared by the revolution of 1848. So, the drama of the Napoleonic Empire was played again - in the style of tragicomedy, but with hints of farce. Napoleon III acted as the protagonist (as Louis was titled, recognizing as Napoleon II the son of the first emperor who never reigned).

Louis Napoleon was elected president of the Second Republic, and then, as usual, carried out a coup d'etat and in December 1852 ascended the imperial throne. He could, in principle, be considered a good ruler: he pacified the country, promoted the development of industry, encouraged art, rebuilt Paris, giving it a modern look. The French economy prospered, the elite bathed in gold, something fell to the common people. By the way, at the end of his reign, Napoleon III even somewhat weakened the dictatorial regime.

But the mythology of Bonapartism demanded "the splendor of bloodshed." And Napoleon III did not have a penchant for military affairs and on the battlefields looked more pathetic than heroic. However, he often fought: together with England against Russia, together with Piedmont against Austria, together with Austria and Spain against the Mexican Republicans. The French army under his leadership occupied Rome, landed in Lebanon.

The wars created a deceptive appearance of the power of the Second Empire, but did not bring special territorial benefits to France. Trying to at least slightly move the borders to the cherished shores of the Rhine, Napoleon III got into a difficult diplomatic bind, where his opponent was the fanatical Prussian patriot Bismarck, who united Germany with truly Napoleonic means - "iron and blood." The result of their dangerous game was the defeat of the Second Empire in the Franco-Prussian War of 1870-1871. Thus Bonapartism for the second time (and finally) failed in realpolitik. But his political techniques and ideological messages entered the practice of many subsequent contenders for world domination.

Meaning:

It is difficult to give an unambiguous assessment of the significance of the Consulate and the Empire of Napoleon Bonaparte for European history. On the one hand, the Napoleonic wars, which were waged for the sake of conquering foreign territories and robbing other peoples, led in France and other European states to enormous human losses. Taxing the defeated countries with huge indemnities, Napoleon weakened and ruined them. When he autocratically redrawn the map of Europe or tried to impose a new economic order on it in the form of a continental blockade, he interfered in the natural course of historical development, violating age-old boundaries and traditions.

But, on the other hand, history always develops as a result of the struggle between the old and the new. And from this point of view, the Napoleonic Empire personified the new bourgeois order in the face of the old feudal Europe. Just as in the years 1792-1794 the French revolutionaries tried to carry their ideas across Europe with the help of weapons, so Napoleon introduced the bourgeois order in the conquered countries with bayonets. Establishing French dominance in European states, he simultaneously abolished the feudal rights of the nobility and the guild system there, carried out the secularization of church lands, extending the effect of his Civil Code to them. In other words, he was destroying the feudal system and acted in this respect, as Stendhal said, like a "son of the revolution." So, the Napoleonic era in European history was one of its brightest stages of manifestations of the transition from the old order to the new time.

Napoleon went down in history as an outstanding, ambiguous personality, possessing brilliant military leadership, diplomatic, intellectual abilities, amazing performance and a phenomenal memory.

Thanks to victorious wars, he significantly expanded the territory of the empire, made most of the states of Western and Central Europe dependent on France.

In March 1804, the code signed by Napoleon became the fundamental law and the basis of French jurisprudence.

In France, departments and district prefects appeared. That is, the administrative division of the French lands has changed significantly. In cities and even villages since that time, managers appeared - mayors.

The French State Bank was created, which was intended to balance the financial situation in the country and securely store its gold reserves.

Lyceums, the Polytechnic School and the Normal School appeared, that is, the education system was updated. Until now, these educational structures are the most prestigious throughout France.

What they said about him:

“The poet Goethe rightly said about Napoleon: for Napoleon, power was the same as a musical instrument for a great artist. He immediately put this tool into action, as soon as he managed to take possession of it ... "(Eugene Tarle)

“The story of Napoleon is reminiscent of the myth of Sisyphus. He courageously rolled up his stone block - Arcole, Austerlitz, Jena; then each time the stone fell down, and in order to raise it again, more courage, more and more effort was required.(André Maurois).

What did he say:

“People of genius are meteors, destined to burn out in order to illuminate their age.”

"There are two levers that can move people - fear and self-interest."

"Public opinion always has the last word."

“The battle was won not by the one who gave good advice, but by the one who took responsibility for its implementation and ordered it to be carried out.”

“With courage, everything can be done, but not everything can be done.”

“Custom leads us to many foolish things; the biggest of them is to become his slave.”

"One bad commander-in-chief is better than two good ones."

"An army of rams led by a lion will always triumph over an army of lions led by a ram."

From the book The Newest Book of Facts. Volume 3 [Physics, chemistry and technology. History and archeology. Miscellaneous] author

From the book The Newest Book of Facts. Volume 3 [Physics, chemistry and technology. History and archeology. Miscellaneous] author Kondrashov Anatoly Pavlovich

From the book Tender Love of the Main Villains of History author Shlyakhov Andrey Levonovich

Napoleon I Bonaparte, Emperor of France But the poet Goethe correctly said about Napoleon: for Napoleon, power was the same as a musical instrument for a great artist. He immediately put this instrument into action, as soon as he managed to take possession of it ... E.V. Tarle "Napoleon" Waugh

From the book of 100 great geniuses author Balandin Rudolf Konstantinovich

NAPOLEON I BONAPARTE (1769-1821) Already during his lifetime, his name was surrounded by legends. Some considered him the greatest genius, surpassing Alexander the Great and Charlemagne, others called him an unprincipled adventurer, possessed by pride and an exorbitant thirst for glory. He was born in

From the book Antiheroes of History [Villains. Tyrants. Traitors] author Basovskaya Natalia Ivanovna

Napoleon Bonaparte. Emperor of the Revolution To write about Napoleon Bonaparte is audacity. It would not be wrong to say that this is the most famous life in modern European history. Only 52 years old, and the last 6 years - in captivity on the island of St. Helena. That is 46 years

From the book 100 great heroes author Shishov Alexey Vasilievich

NAPOLEON I BONAPARTE (1769-1821) The great French conqueror. Emperor of France. The fate of this truly great historical figure reflected, as in a mirror, all the most important events in Europe at the turn of the 18th and 19th centuries. For France, he was and remains a national hero.

From the book From Cleopatra to Karl Marx [The most exciting stories of defeats and victories of great people] author Basovskaya Natalia Ivanovna

Napoleon Bonaparte. Emperor of the Revolution To write about Napoleon Bonaparte is audacity. It would not be wrong to say that this is the most famous life in modern European history. Only 52 years old, and the last 6 years - in captivity on the island of St. Helena. That is 46 years

From the book The Big Plan of the Apocalypse. Earth at the End of the World author Zuev Yaroslav Viktorovich

Chapter 11. The Age of the Corsican Monster, or Napoleon Bonaparte The world is run by quite different people than those imagined by those whose gaze is not able to penetrate behind the scenes. Benjamin Disraeli Why 4 billion francs had to be spent on reforms in France and

From the book Decisive Wars in History author Liddell Garth Basil Henry

Chapter 7 The French Revolution and Napoleon Bonaparte

From the book History of Humanity. West author Zgurskaya Maria Pavlovna

Napoleon Bonaparte (Born in 1769 - died in 1821) An outstanding commander, Emperor of France, who expanded the territory of the empire with victorious wars. One of the most brilliant commanders of the turn of the 18th-19th centuries, Napoleon Bonaparte rapidly ascended the political Olympus, passing

From the book Famous Generals author Ziolkovskaya Alina Vitalievna

Napoleon I (Napoleon Bonaparte) (born in 1769 - died in 1821) An outstanding military leader, republican general, emperor of France, organizer and participant of the Italian campaigns and Napoleonic wars, conqueror of Europe. “My life is alien to villainy; there was not for all my reign

From the book Russia: people and empire, 1552–1917 author Hosking Geoffrey

Napoleon Bonaparte The reign of Alexander became a figure of fear and rivalry. The constant presence and menace emanating from this man dramatized the duality of personality and the position of Alexander Napoleon's principles of government

From the book Adultery author Ivanova Natalya Vladimirovna

Napoleon Bonaparte Napoleon Bonaparte Napoleon Bonaparte (1769–1821) belonged to the Bonaparte dynasty. Much was written about his life, songs and poems were dedicated to him. Undoubtedly, Napoleon is a remarkable person, besides, he deserved the fame of a great lover. Napoleon could not

From the book Empire of Napoleon III author Smirnov Andrey Yurievich

SECTION II. LOUIS NAPOLEON BONAPARTE ON THE WAY TO POWER In February 1848, the victory of the rebellious Parisians meant a return to the ideas of the French Revolution and the restoration of the Republic. This revolution led to the democratization of the entire political life in the country, which is so good