Napoleon Bonapartes Successes And Downfall History Essay

Introduction – Early Life. Napoleon was considered as one of the top military leaders of the world he was a workaholic and a genius which is why he did so well. Not only is he a historical figure but also a legend. He was one of the most prominent generals to rule France. Napoleon was known because he changed and transformed the French empire to Nationalistic country. Napoleon shocked France and all of Europe by his military conquests and planning. Napoleon Bonaparte was born on August 15 1769 in Ajaccio on the Mediterranean island of Corsica. His family was of Corsican and Italian heritage that were very well educated and owned some land. As a child napoleon was very clever, he was good at maths which later on his life was very good for him because he got promoted to be an army officer in the artillery. Napoleon had seven siblings and his whole family was well educated and wealthy. His mother was a strict disciplinarian and his father was a lawyer.

Napoleon in the military

Napoleon was one of the greatest military generals in history. But it started on 1779, at the age of ten Napoleon was allowed to join the French military academy but the first couple of months Napoleon was picked on because of his height and name but loved the military career and chose to ignore them and focus on his studies. This got him a scholarship to a French military academy at age 14. On 1786 when he was sixteen, Napoleon was commissioned as a second lieutenant of artillery. After he was promoted to artillery commander during the Reign of terror. He was garrisoned at Valence. He spent the next six years as a struggling soldier in an isolated outpost. He watched the arrest of King Louis XVI on August 10 1792. But this was only the beginning of Napoleons career and although it was a success soon came a downfall.

Napoleon’s rise to power

In December 1793 Shortly after his performance at the siege of Toulon Napoleon was promoted to Brigadier-General he was also named inspector of the coast based in Nice in the south of France when he was only 25. But things went bad when there were the days of “Terror” in France as Robespierre along with his followers hunted down people who were suspected of being nobles or royalists and executed them. Napoleon was appalled and when Robespierre’s younger brother asked Napoleon to become the commander of the Paris garrison Napoleon refused because of how dangerous it would be at that time. He was sent on a secret mission to Genoa instead. But when he returned to Nice, Robespierre had fallen and the new political masters saw his trip to Genoa as treasonable. In 1785 October 13 Napoleon was asked to take command of the army in Italy which he agreed to also which was a turning point in his career. Since France was having a lot of problems I Italy they needed someone for the country and Napoleon was a good selection. on 1796, Napoleon commanded the French army which was in Italy and he started to campaign against Austria. Later in March Napoleon took absolute power in France soon after again in Europe. He became a hero in 1795. Napoleon defended the government from revolutionary forces. He was then promoted to high military office which was a position with a lot of access to the political spine of France. Then again he ruled the Egyptian campaign which was in May 1798. Then on 1797 Napoleon returned to France as a hero because he drew up a Treaty of Campo-Formio with Austria. Napoleon became popular by 1802 and was given the position of the first consul for life. With the position he had the right to name his replacement. The French naval power was destroyed by the British in 1805 during the Battle of Trafalgar. However Napoleon defeated Austria and Russia in the Battle of Austerlitz. Throughout his life Napoleon Bonaparte succeeded and won many battles because of his strong strategies and excellent campaign work. But he wouldn’t have won any without his battle strategies and tactics.

Napoleon’s battle strategy and tactics

Napoleon and his army were the main people to winning all the wars they did for example the Battles of Abensberg on April 1809 and Lodi on May 1796. The long series of wars took place on a scale never before seen. French power rose quickly, very quickly, conquering most of Europe. Napoleon was one the best army leaders in history his Battle Strategies and tactics were incredible which lead him to win many wars and conquering many places in Europe. One of the most important factors of Napoleon’s personality and its effect on his abilities as a military commander was his genius to inspire others.

Napoleon Bonaparte’s strengths and weaknesses

Napoleon had a lot of strengths and weaknesses. But some of his strengths are that he was a very confidant, supreme, and intelligent man who fought and won a lot of battle some of them being Spain, Paris, northern Italy, and Belgium. More of his strengths are his good grasps for politics as well as great military skills. But his weaknesses were as a military leader was over confidence. In his early days confidence served him well but it ultimately betrayed him. Napoleons weaknesses were, him being unable to conceive anybody as his equal.

Napoleon’s Downfall

Unfortunately after so many victories and success Napoleon success come to a downfall. In 1813 Prussia, Britain, Russia, and Sweden all allied together against France. Napoleon then gathered all his surviving veterans and recruited them to meet the enemy federation. During this battle Napoleon fought well however he suffered and withdrew into eastern France and was defeated at Leipzig in October 1813. Then in April 1814 he was banished to the island of Elba and Paris fell. But then he escaped from Elba in 1815 and sailed to France with 1,050 soldiers where he wanted to make a comeback. Napoleon soon after reinstated himself to power and was forced to return to war. In a week the Battle of waterloo was over and Napoleon was defeated by the Prussians and British. After 100 days in power he stepped down for a second time on June 22. After if just got worse Napoleon wanted to sail to America but he surrendered to the British on July 3. He was then sent to the island of St. Helena in the South Atlantic Ocean because the British people imprisoned him. Napoleon spent his remaining years until he died on May 1821. To conclude everything Napoleon was a smart and powerful man that won many battles and had many victories but in the end he was sent to exile twice and led France down even though he had a second chance to gain power he failed.

Sources:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/historic_figures/bonaparte_napoleon.shtml

http://europeanhistory.about.com/od/bonapartenapoleon/a/bionapoleon_3.htm

http://www.wsu.edu/~dee/REV/NAPOLEAN.HTM

http://www.questia.com/googleScholar.qst;jsessionid=5141310A1E5E77E4017D784086D9A0F0.inst3_3b?docId=5001320599

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http://www.biographybase.com/biography/Bonaparte_Napoleon.html

http://www.napolun.com/mirror/napoleonistyka.atspace.com/Napoleon_tactics.htm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Napoleonic_Wars

http://wiki.answers.com/Q/How_many_battles_did_Napoleon_Bonaparte_win

http://www.lovethetruth.com/books/pawns/04.htm

http://wiki.answers.com/Q/What_was_the_downfall_of_Napoleon

http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20101130092131AAZnrbi

http://www.notablebiographies.com/Mo-Ni/Napoleon-Bonaparte.html

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