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Hero or Villain?: Napoleon Bonaparte 200 Years on

Laika

Well-Known Member
Premium Member
Napoleon's life is complex and controversial, with the French Empire carefully sculpting it's propaganda to promote the myth of Bonaparte's military genius and adventures. Born in Corsica in 1769, he made his name in a series of military campaigns in Italy and Egypt before returning to France. Despite originally taking power to continue to French Republic as First Consul, Napoleon declared himself Emperor in 1804 (with this betrayal leading Beethoven to rip up the dedication to Bonaparte for his Third "Eroica" Symphony).

The French Empire left a legal legacy through the "Code Napoleon" and spread the ideas of the french revolution throughout Europe, with Napoleon conquests and victories spanning from the coast of Spain and Portugal, to Poland and on the Russian border. The current monarchy of Sweden, the House of Bernadotte, is descended from a Marshall of the French Empire. Though France is now firmly a Republic, Napoleon continues to have living descendants who could make a claim to his throne even today (as happened with Napoleon's Nephew, Napoleon III in the Second French Empire).

Recent history has shaped our opinion of him with comparisons drawn between Napoleon and the revolutionary and military dictators of the twentieth century. Such was the impact of the French Revolution that when it was Russia's turns to have a revolution in 1917, Trotsky criticised Stalin's "betrayal" of the revolution by accusing him of "Bonapartism". Though comparisons between Hitler and Napoleon have been tempting (especially for English historians), it often misses nuances in how Napoleon championed early liberal ideas and overlooks the fact that the First French Empire saw a major liberalisation in the treatment of Europe's Jews. Neither of these could be said of Hitler, who himself was an admirer and visited Napoleon's Tomb after the Nazi's conquered France.

Nevertheless, the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars killed between 5 million to 7 million people, with around 400,000 dying on the French side from the disastrous invasion of Russia in 1812. As progressive social movements have gained ground in recent decades, more attention has been paid to Napoleon's reactionary role in re-establishing slavery in the French colonies, efforts to suppress the slave rebellion in Haiti, including controversy over whether Napoleon pioneered the use of gas chambers, and the impact of the Code Napoleon on Women's rights.

Whilst I missed the Bicentenary of Napoleon's Death (he died on the 5th May 1821), here is a thread for you to share your thoughts on whether Napoleon's era and his empire was ultimately a positive or negative influence on French and European history. Enjoy! :)


 

exchemist

Veteran Member
Napoleon's life is complex and controversial, with the French Empire carefully sculpting it's propaganda to promote the myth of Bonaparte's military genius and adventures. Born in Corsica in 1769, he made his name in a series of military campaigns in Italy and Egypt before returning to France. Despite originally taking power to continue to French Republic as First Consul, Napoleon declared himself Emperor in 1804 (with this betrayal leading Beethoven to rip up the dedication to Bonaparte for his Third "Eroica" Symphony).

The French Empire left a legal legacy through the "Code Napoleon" and spread the ideas of the french revolution throughout Europe, with Napoleon conquests and victories spanning from the coast of Spain and Portugal, to Poland and on the Russian border. The current monarchy of Sweden, the House of Bernadotte, is descended from a Marshall of the French Empire. Though France is now firmly a Republic, Napoleon continues to have living descendants who could make a claim to his throne even today (as happened with Napoleon's Nephew, Napoleon III in the Second French Empire).

Recent history has shaped our opinion of him with comparisons drawn between Napoleon and the revolutionary and military dictators of the twentieth century. Such was the impact of the French Revolution that when it was Russia's turns to have a revolution in 1917, Trotsky criticised Stalin's "betrayal" of the revolution by accusing him of "Bonapartism". Though comparisons between Hitler and Napoleon have been tempting (especially for English historians), it often misses nuances in how Napoleon championed early liberal ideas and overlooks the fact that the First French Empire saw a major liberalisation in the treatment of Europe's Jews. Neither of these could be said of Hitler, who himself was an admirer and visited Napoleon's Tomb after the Nazi's conquered France.

Nevertheless, the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars killed between 5 million to 7 million people, with around 400,000 dying on the French side from the disastrous invasion of Russia in 1812. As progressive social movements have gained ground in recent decades, more attention has been paid to Napoleon's reactionary role in re-establishing slavery in the French colonies, efforts to suppress the slave rebellion in Haiti, including controversy over whether Napoleon pioneered the use of gas chambers, and the impact of the Code Napoleon on Women's rights.

Whilst I missed the Bicentenary of Napoleon's Death (he died on the 5th May 1821), here is a thread for you to share your thoughts on whether Napoleon's era and his empire was ultimately a positive or negative influence on French and European history. Enjoy! :)


Les deux, mon colonel.
 

epronovost

Well-Known Member
He reinstated slavery. You can't get much lower as far as I am concerned.

Only in the colonies where it was never abolished by the French Revolution in the first place.

As for Napoleon, I believe he was like any politician of his time, a mix of good and bad.
 

ChristineM

"Be strong", I whispered to my coffee.
Premium Member
He is still a semi hero in france though his disasters and crazy ideas are taught along with the good stuff.

This year his bicentenary was not celebrated publicly although the Institut de France has listed him as someone of note this year and emphases the need for debate and accurate history alongside his listing.

Personally hubby and i have had to have legal approval for our wills (written up in England) to be accepted as overriding french family law laid down by Napoleon.

Hubby and i wish to leave our property etc to the surviving spouse and then on their death to be shared equally between the kids on the survivors death. Under french law (Napoleons law) everything is shared equally between all children meaning the surviving spouse could be out on the street.

Another oddity of Napoleonic origin that often catches visitors to france causing many road collisions is priorité à droite (priority to the right). At some junctions and roundabouts (without markings) traffic joining the road from the right has priority. On other roads (with markings) no such rule applies. It can be very confusing.

Final note on a humorous bent. There are many roads named Rue Napoleon in france. Our village named it's roads in the 1960s. Yes we have a Rue Napoleon. It leads to the cemetery and poubelles (trash skips). The owner of the one property on that chemin (lane) was named Leon, short for Napoleon. He was a true little Hitler, get off my lawn, don't dawdle on the lane, complain to the council about anything type if guy. When the road was named rue Napoleon he was ecstatic that the council had named that lane in his honour... In truth the council had decided that particular lane would be rue Napoleon because that guy lived there. But not in his honour but because he was such a "mal de cul" (pain in the ***)... Ok, french humour but i thought it was funny
 

RestlessSoul

Well-Known Member
Don’t know much about Napoleon except that he crowned himself Emperor, which must have been difficult to reconcile with the spirit of the revolution.

If the French and Russian revolutions did nothing else for the benefit of mankind, they at least served notice on the rich and powerful to beware the downtrodden masses. Probably didn’t justify all the bloodletting though.
 

Estro Felino

Believer in free will
Premium Member
Now we have Napoleon IV ruling...
Just kidding :p


Well...it was an epoch of great changes. In 1806, the Holy Roman Empire was undone by Napoleon himself.
Despite the wars, despite the conquests, Europe gained positive values.:)
 

rocala

Well-Known Member
An extract from Remembering that Napoleon reinstated slavery in France | DW | 04.05.2021

"The decision to reestablish slavery isn't just a stain on Napoleon's legacy, it's a crime," Louis-Georges Tin, campaigner and honorary president of the Representative Council of Black Associations (CRAN), told DW.

Napoleon's decision in 1802 to reinstate slavery not only betrayed the ideals of the French Revolution, it also condemned an estimated 300,000 people into a life of bondage for several more years, before France definitively abolished slavery in 1848.
 

Debater Slayer

Vipassana
Staff member
Premium Member
Whilst I missed the Bicentenary of Napoleon's Death (he died on the 5th May 1821), here is a thread for you to share your thoughts on whether Napoleon's era and his empire was ultimately a positive or negative influence on French and European history.

An equally important subject, in my opinion, is Napoleon's influence on countries outside Europe, which was largely negative, abusive, and colonialist, at least in the case of my country (Egypt).

That France's government still glorifies him despite his crimes and colonialist adventurism seems to me an indication that France has a lot of work to do when it comes to improving its handling of its colonialist history and properly acknowledging it.
 

Laika

Well-Known Member
Premium Member
An equally important subject, in my opinion, is Napoleon's influence on countries outside Europe, which was largely negative, abusive, and colonialist, at least in the case of my country (Egypt).

That France's government still glorifies him despite his crimes and colonialist adventurism seems to me an indication that France has a lot of work to do when it comes to improving its handling of its colonialist history and properly acknowledging it.

I could be wrong but as far as I'm aware, Napoleon's direct influence outside Europe was limited to suppressing the rebellion in Haiti, invading Egypt and the Middle East and the Louisiana Purchase. Invading Spain and Portugal meant Central and South America weren't under colonial rule for a period of a few years and that eventually led to them to fight for Independence.

The majority of the land area of the French Empire outside of Europe came later on in the 19th Century, especially North West Africa (the Conquest of Algeria began in 1830). The Napoleon the Third was responsible for invading IndoChina (which is today Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia) between 1858 and 1862, so that didn't involve the original Bonaparte who was defeated at Waterloo in 1815.

I would be interested to hear an Egyptian perspective though, as mostly what I know it for was "discovering" the Rosetta Stone that was later used to translate Ancient Egyptian hieroglyphics. (It was arguably stolen from Egypt by the French, then stolen again by the British as is the case with many of the other objects in the British Museum).
 

Kooky

Freedom from Sanity
Napoleon's occupation of the Germanophone Rhineland and the other German princely states is arguably directly responsible for German nationalism in its 19th and early 20th century form. Make of that what you will.
 
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