PRESENTATION OUTLINE
1769-BORN ON THE MEDITERRANEAN ISLAND OF CORSICA.
1785-at the age of 16, he finished school and became a lieutenant in the artillery where he later joined the army of the new government.
1795- Royalist rebels marched on the national convention, so Napoleon had to defend the delegates. He greeted them with a cannonade and they fled. He was then called hero of the hour and was hailed throughout Paris as the savior of the French Republic.
1796- the Directory appointed Napoleon to lead a French army against the forces of Austria and the Kingdom of Sardinia. After winning a series of battles, his luck ran out as Horatio Nelson defeated his naval forces.
November 1799- Napoleon's troops surrounded the national legislature and drove out most of its members.
1800- plebiscite gave all real power to Napoleon as first consul.
1801-When clergy and peasants wanted to restore church position in France, Napoleon signed a concordat, or agreement, with Pope Pius VII.
1802-Napoleon set up lycees or government -run public schools.
1803- Napoleon offers to sell all of the Louisiana Territory to the United States, President Jefferson agreed for 15 million dollars.
1804-One of Napoleon's greatest work was the Napoleonic Code. It gave the country a uniform set of laws and eliminated many injustices.
1804- Napoleon decided to make himself emperor.
December 2, 1804- dressed in a splendid robe of purple velvet and walked down the aisle of Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris. And he took the Pope's crown off his head.
1805- Battle of Austerlitz- Napoleon tried to expand his influence more. The commanders of the enemy armies could never predict his next move and often took heavy losses.
1805-Battle of Trafalgar- Horatio Nelson split the larger French fleet and captured many ships. This had two major results: ensuring the supremacy of the British navy for the next 100 years. aAnd second it forced Napoleon to give up his plans of invading Britain. This was the only major battle that Napoleon lost.
1806- Napoleon set up a blockade- a forcible closing of ports -to prevent all trade and communication between Great Britain and other European nations. He called this policy the Continental System.
1808-Napoleon invaded Spain which was a mistake. As guerillas fought back they were winning. This was all part of the Peninsular War.
1812- He held all areas inn France except Britain, Portugal, Sweden, and the Ottoman Empire. Not too long before his empire collapses as its getting weaker due to Napoleon's actions.
When American ships were among those stopped by British navy. The U.S. congress declared war on Britain in 1812.
June 1812- Napoleon and army invaded Russia. But Russians were smart and used the scorched-earth policy against France. This turned into the Battle of Borodino.
1814- When his 400,000 plus army was nearly entirely destroyed, Napoleon was defeated by Russia. He was forced to surrender and give up the throne.
1815- Napoleon was deated at last in his last bid of power known as the Hundred Days by the British and Prussian forces.
1821-Napoleon dies of stomach ailment or possible cancer.
