On August 15, 1769, Letizia Ramolino. wife of Carlo Buonaparte, left the Mass of the Feast of the Assumption when the labor pains began. The fourth child was born on a couch in their home in Ajaccio, Corsica. More books have been written about that child than any other historical figure- more than Jesus of Nazareth- more than Mohammed. A recent survey lists over 300,000 volumes. Considered one of the worlds greatest military leaders, changing not only the map of Europe, but also influencing the rise of nations, science, art, literature and the infusion of the ideas of Revolution. He was baptized ... Napoleon. Napoleon changed not only the European borders, but also the very nature of European politics. In fact, he played a so dominant role in Europe that his lifetime is named as the “Napoleonic Era”. He can be also described as a great modernizer considering his legal, political and economic reforms. The title of Father of Modern Europe can easily be ascribed to him. War Monger, Despot, and Tyrant, are epithets labeled on Napoleon by myopic Anglo-centric minds and those ignorant of history. How can one accused as the bringer of war without declaring a single war against the dynastic crowns of Europe. The ugly truth that history is written by the winners has skewed the history of the world. The simple facts are that the wars, supported by British, were the results of the protection of the aristocratic privileged. Nothing caused more trepidation to the crown heads of Europe that the idea of the principles of the French and American Revolutions. Class barriers were shattered; a man could rise as far as his capabilities would take him-regardless of birth. British scholars obscure and deny the fact that war was more profitable than peace. The seizure of French ships- even though there is a peace treaty. Parliament and the Crown infused large sums of money in order to insure the propagation of conflict. With this, we get the myth of the war-hungry Corsican Ogre. For two centuries, a steady campaign has been active to demean any achievement of Napoleon. The “1789 Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen”, ended the unfair treatment of people according to their religion or origin and Napoleon contributed a lot to the widening of this understanding in Europe. In addition to the equality of citizens, Napoleon introduced modernist state norms such as the rule of law and a state bureaucracy based on meritocracy. Napoleonic reforms eradicated the feudal structure of France and established a modern country ruled by an “enlightened despot”. This equality of citizens understanding favored Jewish and Catholic communities in France and Napoleon continued to pass laws supporting the position of religious minorities in the French Empire. In 1807, he made Judaism together with Roman Catholicism and Lutheran and Calvinist Protestantism, official religions of France. Another important contribution of Napoleon to the European civilization was his code of law known as “Napoleonic Code of Law”. Today, still many of the legal structures around the world are based on this code- including New Orleans. Napoleonic code of law ensured modern French ideals to become widespread as a legal system around Europe. We can even claim that the restoration of monarchs and the “Concert of Europe” did not live quite long because of Napoleon and his sublime revolutionary image. Napoleon together with French Revolution also caused the spread of nationalism around the world. Napoleons empire, accompanied by his legal and other reforms, helped provide the basis for what is today the European Union. He worked hard to create a unified Italy, Poland, and Germany. Napoleon was also responsible for sweeping away many of the old regimes and promoting the ideals of equality and European solidarity. Sure, the old regimes still had some life in them when Napoleon left the scene, but things were never really the same. Thus, we can say that Napoleon redrew the European map not only with Napoleonic wars, but also with spreading French Revolution’s ideas and nationalism sentiments throughout the Europe which would later cause serious clashes, struggles within the empires. Napoleon Bonaparte’s greatest legacy for France and Europe was the high popularity and the dissemination of modern French ideals that appeared by the French Revolution in addition to a modern state institution with a rational, meritocratic bureaucracy and modern laws protecting the rights of citizens by the rule of law. Napoleon promoted the growth of modern state and created a model for other European countries to follow. Had French forces not attempted to liberate Egypt, the Rosetta Stone would not have been discovered and archaeologists would not have been able to utilize it for the purpose of decoding Egyptian hieroglyphics. Due to Napoleons love of the sciences, this discovery opened to us a rich new field of study, Egyptology, which permitted human beings to solve a plethora of mysteries about the ancient world. Napoleon himself contributed to the worlds supply of knowledge through his own writings. During his life he wrote and published numerous essays, literary critiques, stories, dialogues, pamphlets, and, most notably, his Memoirs, which gave posterity valuable insight into the life of this genius and the lessons that it had to teach humankind. Tens of thousands of books had also been published about Napoleon, his political influence, and his military tactics. Outstanding commanders, such as Ulysses S. Grant, Winfield Scott, and Robert E. Lee earned their expertise from studying Napoleonic warfare. The Emperor of the French altered the social and military paradigms of his day and established an entirely new order that the Revolution could not have accomplished without him. Had the Bourbons come back to power in 1799 instead of Napoleon, they would at that time have had less trouble turning back the clock to the ancient regime than they had in 1814. Even more importantly, Napoleon initiated the era of Imperialist Revival through his conquests and desire to help less fortunate peoples. The Victorian age was now possible as a result of his deeds, since other nations had a precedent on which they would rely to spread their influence and Western culture to disadvantaged tribes all across the world. And without the Victorian age, there would not have been an Industrial Revolution to assist Europe’s overseas ambitions. Thus, it is evident that Napoleon contributed immensely to the political, ideological, scientific, and technological progress of humankind. He left us with numerous ideas that caused us to re-examine our values and become more tolerant and courteous toward fellow human beings. It is the success which makes great men, Napoleon stated, rejecting the old hierarchy of birth and status. High politic is only common sense applied to great things, he explained, justifying the theses of Paine and Voltaire concerning a universal sense of right present among all peoples and necessary for progress. Imagination governs the world, he wisely declared, noting how peoples inner capacities affect their performance to a greater degree than does their environment. The heart of a statesman must be in his head, he emphasized the importance of rational thought over impulse and emotion. Public morals are natural complement of all laws; they are by themselves an entire code, he supported the ideals of courtesy, respect and tolerance. To end this exploration, here is a quote that justifies itself: Even when I am gone, I shall remain in peoples minds the star of their rights, my name will be the war cry of their efforts, the motto of their hopes. The Catholic Church had dominated French society, but the French Revolution tossed it out on its ear. Napoleon reached an agreement with the Pope allowing the Church a major role in French society while providing religious freedom for all others. He also abolished slavery and freed the serfs, and today he is seen as a progressive force in European history. Anti-Semitism was deeply rooted in every nation on the Continent and Great Britain. In various parts of Europe, they had been forced to wear arm bands, kept from certain professions, made to live in ghettos, and prevented from attending their synagogues. Napoleon put an end to all of those restrictions, made Jews full citizens of France, and even wrote a proclamation that established the idea of a Jewish homeland in Israel. To create a middle-class cadre of leaders, Napoleon reorganized Frances education system. He restarted the primary schools, created a new elite secondary system of schools (called lycées), and established many other schools for the general populace. He promoted education for girls and greatly improved teacher training. Literacy levels in France soared under Napoleons reforms. Finally one should examine to what lengths adversaries will turn to in order to defame the memory of a great man. For 220 years actions that are more appropriate in a schoolyard rather than the annals of history have been perpetuated. We have cited that Napoleon is remembered for being a conqueror of no small ability. He’s sometimes cited as the chief example of supposed short man syndrome, whereby short people act more aggressively than their larger counterparts to make up for their lack of height. Napoleon was sometimes described as being 5 foot 2 inches tall, which would make him short for his era. However, this is wrong, and that Napoleon was actually 5 foot 5-7 inches tall, no shorter than the average Frenchman. Why is there such a discrepancy? This may have been due to a difference in measurements. The French inch was actually longer than the British inch, leading to any height appearing shorter to the English speaking world. In 1802 a doctor called Corvisart said Napoleon was 5 foot 2 inches by the French measurement, which equates to about 5 foot 6 in British. Matters are confused by the autopsy, which was carried out by Napoleon’s doctor, Frenchman Francesco Antommarchi, and gave 5 foot 2 as his height. But was the autopsy, which was signed off by a number of British doctors and in a British owned area, in British or French measures? When other sources are factored in, including another measurement after the autopsy in British measurements, people generally conclude with the height of 5 foot 7 inches British, or 5 foot 2 in French If this is a myth, it may have been perpetuated by Napoleon’s army, because the emperor was often surrounded by much larger bodyguards and soldiers, giving the impression of him being smaller. This was especially true of the Imperial Guard units which had height requirements, leading to them all being taller than him. We can learn many things from Napoleon, but we may come away with this quote: History is the version of past events that people have decided to agree upon. Napoleon Bonaparte
Posted on: Fri, 15 Aug 2014 07:53:52 +0000
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