“Napoleon’s Empire Collapses”

23-4

The European Response

• Napoleon’s Grand Empire collapsed almost as rapidly as it had been formed

• Two major reasons for the collapse of Napoleon’s Grand Empire are: the survival of Great Britain & the force of nationalism

Britain's Survival

• Britain’s survival was due primarily to its naval power

• The British navy’s decisive defeat of a combined French-Spanish fleet at Trafalgar in 1805 destroyed any thought of an invasion of Britain

Britain's Survival

• The aim of the Continental System was to stop British goods from reaching the European continent to be sold there

• It failed, Allied States resented being told not to trade with Britain, others began to cheat, others resisted

Nationalism

• Nationalism is the unique cultural identity of a people based on common language, religion & national symbols

• Indirectly help spread nationalism to other European countries

Napoleon’s Costly Mistakes

• The Continental System

• Napoleon strikes Britain through blockade-forced closing of ports

• Continental System-economic plan to strengthen Europe, weaken Britain

• Smugglers and uncooperative allies make France’s blockade fail

• Britain responds with blockade of its own, led by stronger navy

The Continental System

The Peninsular War (Iberian)

• Napoleon sends troops across Spain to Portugal, causing protest

• Napoleon tricked the Spanish king and prince to come to France, where he imprisoned them

• He proclaimed his brother, Joseph, to be the new king of Spain

• This makes things worse

The Peninsular War (Iberian)

• Spanish fight as guerillas-small groups that attacked then disappear

• British aid Spanish guerillas

• He stationed over 100,000 Fr troops in Madrid.

• On May 2, 1808 [Dos de Mayo] the Spanish rose up in rebellion

• Fr troops fired on the crowd in Madrid the next day [Tres de Mayo]

“Third of May, 1808” by Goya (1810)

The Invasion of Russia

• 1807 - Czar of Russia had agreed not to trade with Britain, but due to poor economic conditions he continued the trade in timber

• Russians refused to remain in the Continental System leaving Napoleon with little choice but to invade Russia

Scorched Earth Policy

• June, 1812 - Napoleon’s army marches into Russia with 420,000 men

• The Russians refused to give battle and simply retreated

• As they retreated they burned their own villages and countryside to prevent Napoleon’s army from finding food

Moscow

• September 1812- Russians retreat from Moscow after Battle of Borodino

• Napoleon finds Moscow abandoned and burning

• The day after Napoleon took Moscow it went up in flames

• Napoleon waits 8 weeks for the Czar to surrender. He refuses.

• Napoleon abandoned Moscow late in October 1812 and began the “Great Retreat”

Moscow

Conditions on the Journey Home

• Men and horses both starved because there was no food and no time to gather any • Horses died in the

thousands from overwork and starvation – no time to graze

• Men were seen quenching their thirst with horse urine, because water was unobtainable or polluted

Conditions on the Journey Home

• Temperatures plummeted to 40 degrees below zero.

• Napoleon lost 25,000 troops just crossing the Berezina River

• Russians burned the only two bridges to cross the river trapping thousands on the wrong side of the river to be captured by the Cossacks who drove them naked back into Russia

Heavy Losses

• Less than 40,000 out of the 600,000 made it back alive

• Napoleon himself abandoned his army and rode back to France to organize another army

• Men were easy to get, but horses lost in the battle would cost Napoleon a victory in the next battle

Napoleon Abdicates

• Britain, Prussia, Sweden, Russia, Austria join forces against France

• Napoleon raises another army, but meets quick defeat by allied powers

• Allied forces occupied Paris on March 31, 1814

• Napoléon abdicated on April 6 in favor of his son, but the Allies insisted on unconditional surrender.

• Napoléon abdicated again on April 11

• Treaty of Fontainebleau exiles Napoléon to Elba with an annual income of 2,000,000 francs

Napoleon in Exile on Elba

Monarchy Restored

• After Napoleon’s defeat the Bourbon monarchy had been restored. Louis XVII had died in prison from tuberculosis.

• The newly enthroned monarch Louis XVIII fled to Belgium as Napoleon made his way towards Paris.

The Hundred Days

• Louis XVIII, new king, is soon overthrown and Napoleon returns from exile

• Waterloo-British, Prussian forces defeat Napoleon’s army

• This defeat ends The Hundred Days-Napoleon’s last attempt at power

• Napoleon exiled to island of St. Helena, in South Atlantic

• Dies six years later

On the Way to St. Helena

Napoleon’s Residence on St. Helena

Napoleon’s Tomb

Hitler Visits Napoleon’s Tomb

June 28, 1940