Napoleonic Nationalism
Charles de Gaulle once said, “Patriotism is when love of your own people comes first; nationalism, when hate for people other than your own comes first.” This identifies the very cause of Napoleon’s uprising and his downfall. Napoleon won the hearts of the French people by exhibiting their motto: “Liberty, equality, and fraternity.” Napoleon stood for the reform the French people needed the most, political and social justice, wars and alliances, and the stretching of boundaries. All these bestowed substance to the notion of nationalism, which brought Napoleon to domination in 1799 and hauled him back down to his expiration on the island of St. Helena.Napoleon was a sanguine man. One could almost say self-centered, a high thinker of himself. This was obviously brought on by being the son of a minor noble surviving in Italy. He had the presence that commanded the attention of all. He could almost be compared to the boisterous student in class that everyone longs to be friends with. Napoleon combined this with his superior education at a French military academy, to create his winning personality. This was evident in his quote, “I am no ordinary man.” He knew there was something extraordinary about him that would even
Once in the hot seat, Napoleon had to be careful of every move and decision. The French people already revolted. They could do it again. The new nationalist feelings wouldn’t accept the revival of the Old Regime, so Napoleon carried on the revolutionary reforms. Equality and justice were musts. Special privileges were absolutely out of the question. He devised the Napoleonic Code. It consisted of a unified legal system, equality and freedom. The French now had policies of their own. A distinguishing factor from other nations, that was unique to themselves. This brought nationalism to a higher level. Napoleon brought the country’s inflation lower and French people could now have some extra money to send their children to educational institutions known as lycées. The lycées also established by Napoleon, inspired strong feelings of patriotism and nationalism - the love for their home of France and French culture and traditions. He also knew the French were Roman Catholics so he eliminated the Civil Constitution of the Clergy and replaced it with the Concordat of 1801. In a smart move he left the church lands to the owners who purchased them under the Civil Constitution of the Clergy. The land users then gave more respect for their leader and nationalism grew. Napoleon’s success was marked by his uncanny ability to organize an army and escort them to victory. In the early years, Napoleon performed relatively small feats of authority. In 1703, he ousted the British from Toulon. In 1705, he broke up a Paris
Some topics in this essay:
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Approximate Word count = 1026
Approximate Pages = 4 (250 words per page double spaced)
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