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WAS NAPOLEON BONAPARTE THE PRESERVER OF THE FRENCH REVOLUTION'S KEY ACHIEVEMENTS OR A CONQUEROR WHO REPUDIATED THE PRINCIPLES FOR WHICH THE REVOLUTIONARIES HAD STOOD FOR?
Napoleon Bonaparte was forced to choose between following the principles of the 1789 revolution, or to part from these principles and revert to a political system similar to that of the old Bourbon monarchy. The task that he faced was considerable and Napoleon was very successful in following the revolution's principles for the first part of his career while also ascending to immense power himself. As Napoleon's power in France and then Europe increased, Napoleon began to depart from revolutionary ideals and created institutions similar to those the revolutionaries had attempted to destroy. As an opportunist, Napoleon changed his ideals from 'revolutionary to reformist to reactionary depending upon what suited him at the time.'
The revolution of 1789 changed the course of French and much of European history, the old feudal system was abolished and the structure of French society was radically altered according to the principles of 'liberty, equality and fraternity' . Privilege was disbanded as the foundation of society, the nobility was no longer exempt from taxation and the country people practically destroyed feudalism. Previously excluded people were involved in politics for the first time, the electorate was expanded and the legal code was reformed. Many grievances held by workers and members of the bourgeoisie were answered and there was hope amongst r evolutionaries that lasting change could be made to the social structure of not only France, but Europe as well.
In the decade from 1789-1799 a number of attempts were made to establish a constitution that would install the ideals of the revolutionaries. Constitutional monarchy from 1789-1791 failed because of disputes between Louis XVI and the revolutionaries over the Church, which came under assault because of its previous exemption from taxation, and counter-revolutionaries who posed a threat to the revolution. The precarious relationship between the revolutionaries and the King began to unravel and the royal family decided to leave France, however they were caught and Louis XVI returned to Paris. The monarchy was abolished and the Jacobin reign began. Sweeping justice reforms began to occur and this lead to 'The Terror' of 1793-4. The Jacobin reign could not last because of its extremes so the Directory became the government of France in 1794.
The Directory lasted four years, the longest of any post-revolution governments, but by 1799 it was seen as a temporary solution and out of date. The economy faced many problems, inflation was very high and the government was unable to pay the salaries of its employees, experiments with paper currency were a disaster and there was a threat of invasion from Russia and Austria who had been appalled by the execution of a fellow monarch. The Directory was unable to install the principles of the revolution or ensure France's security, it was seen as time for a new style of government. The Directory was undermined from within and a 'possible coup was already three-quarters complete in the mind of Roederer'. Napoleon, in the minds of many disillusioned French citizens, had been called upon 'to save France from the crisis into which it had been thrown by the pitiful government of the Directory.'
The Brumaire coup took place in 1799 and executive powers were given to Napoleon, Sieyes and Roger-Ducos. Even though the coup was a destructive and momentous event, it did not make personal power, which Napoleon achieved four years later, inevitable. After the coup, Napoleon stated the principles that he felt were important were 'the duties of citizenship, the sanctity of property and inviolable freedoms.' This differed from the revolution's 'liberty, equality, fraternity' slightly, placing more emphasis on the rights of property. By also excluding reference to the Rights of Man and of the Citizen, Napoleon began to break away from the principles of the revolution almost immediately after he came to power. However it could also be argued that the Directory's interpretation of the revolution had become outdated, and that a new set of institutions were being created to protect the legacy of the French revolution.
Napoleon faced many of the problems that had been faced by the Directory, there was still a threat to power from the Jacobins and the royalists and in response institutions were designed to make a return to 'the Terror' or a monarchy impossible. Napoleon sought to create a centralised republic to avoid the problems that had undermined the credibility of the previous post-revolution governments, this actually resulted in more power being placed in Napoleon's hands. However this centralisation meant that power was coming from above and not from below, in some respects this resembled a return to royalist centralisation and a break from the principles of the revolution.
Some of the principles of the revolution seemed to be discarded by Napoleon as he tried to solve the problems of France and implement a constitution. There was very little democratic consultation, the parliament system was merely a façade and all political decisions went through a system distinctly similar to that of the monarchy. In 1802 Napoleon took decisive action towards settling on a constitution; the Treaty of Amiens was signed that secured France's borders, the Concordat settlement with the Church was implemented, as was Consulship for life. The Concordat and life Consulship both went against revolutionary principles, the former by returning the Church to a position of authority that it had previously occupied and Consulship through moving even further away from the ideals of constitutional government. 'The settlement can be seen as the end of Napoleon's affiliation with the ideals of the revolution, it also led to Napoleon's rise to power.'
Napoleon was divided between traditional and revolutionary principles, as he had to make compromises between the two in order to maintain effective government over France. Napoleon implemented the Civil Code that consolidated the gains of the revolution while also maintaining their principles. The principle of property rights formed the basis of national unification. Law reform that had been put forward by the revolution in the form of 15 000 decrees was rationalised by the Civil Code as it had been a confused mess. Napoleon consolidated the gains of the revolution in terms of freeing property from feudal burdens and introducing divorce. These steps can be seen as great fulfilment of the key principles of the revolution, but in effect they are just examples where his personal ambitions coincided with the ambitions of the bourgeoisie and the revolution itself.
By replacing the republic with a hereditary empire as Napoleon did in 1804, he made a very visible and important move away from what had previously been 'a revolutionary legacy' . However by gaining the support of the people at every step of his rise to power through referendums, Napoleon could be seen as a civilian dictator as opposed to a military dictator. By now it was clear that Napoleon had less regard for the principles of the French revolution and was more concerned with holding on to the immense power that he had acquired. By creating an imperial nobility in 1808 Napoleon repudiated one of the founding principles of the revolution, equality. Even though membership of the new aristocracy rewarded service and not birthrights, it was possible for the new nobility to make their title hereditary. The taxation system also led to inequality, although 'it had been the Directory who had set up the system of levying indirect taxes. Napoleon had only expanded this'. Law codes strongly resembled those of the monarchy while censorship and propaganda were utilised extensively by Napoleon, repudiating the key principle of liberty.
Even though he implemented various policies that contrasted with the ideologies of the revolution, it must not be forgotten what Napoleon achieved for the revolution. He was able to make the revolution financially and politically possible, France became the strongest power in Europe having an Empire that stretched all the way to Russia at one stage. Napoleon carried his ideals of social equality with him and 'attacked privilege, seigneuralism and the power of the Church all over Europe in the wake of his all-conquering regiments, he dealt a damaging blow to the institutions of Old Europe.' Considering the problems that had hounded previous attempts at establishing a constitution during the 1790s, Napoleon created a France that was militarily powerful as well as being both politically and economically stable. These achievements had proved beyond Constitutional Monarchy, the Jacobins and the Directory.
It is a very debatable question about whether Napoleon continued the gains of the revolution or implemented a style of government that was more akin to the monarchy that had been destroyed in the revolution. Even though Napoleon introduced many of the policies that were key to the revolution, he also introduced those that would have horrified revolutionaries. In many ways Napoleon went beyond both of these systems to create what could be described as 'the modern state that was without trace of divine sanction evident in the monarchist regime'. Napoleon was able to continue the gains of the French Revolution that would coincide with his personal ambitions, while also repudiating the principles that did not fit into his personal ambitions. He utilised what he saw as the best of both systems and placed them into a society that was unique, and he became immensely successful. His success is illustrated by members of the peasantry voting for someone they thought was him (actually his nephew), in an election for presidency thirty-three years after his defeat at Waterloo in 1815.
BIBLIOGRAPHY:
Broers, Michael. Europe Under Napoleon 1799-1815, London, 1981.
Ellis, Geoffrey. The Napoleonic Empire, London, 1991.
Lyons, Martyn. Napoleon Bonaparte and the Legacy of the French Revolution, Basingstoke,
1994.
Stiles, Andrina. Napoleon, France and Europe, London, 1993.
Thompson, John, Napoleon Bonaparte, Oxford, 1988.
Tulard, Jean. Napoleon: The Myth of the Saviour, London, 1985.