~i his eyes this meant the need for a strong executive. From 1799 until his death on theSEAR(:H L", ,_,'..,_'.'_., ,'....." , . j G- , ..~h Atlantic island of St. Helena, Napoleon spoke of himself as the man who had

, , completed the Revolution(BY this he meant that the basic goals of the Revolution ,enumerated above had been obtained and that now it was time to consolidate and

institutionalize those gains. France, after ten years of revolution, had still lacked the Iproper foundation upon which to institution~the revolutionary achievements untilNapoleon provided it with his adminisftEltfve framework.

In his eyes this meant the need fora strong executive. From 1799 until his death on the

. South Atlantic island of St. He!ena",,~po!~spoke of himself as the man ",!ho had~ompleted the Revolution(BY this he meant that the. basic goals of the Revolution

enumerated above had been obtained and that now it was time to consolidate and

i institutionalize those ga'ins. France, after ten years of revolution, had still lacked the I:. I proper foundation upon which to institutionalize the revolutionary achievements until, . Napoleon provided it with his administrative framework.

"Bonaparte came, as he said, 'to close the Romance of the Revorution'," H.A.L. Fisher

wrote, "to heal the wounds, to correct the extravagances, to secure the conquests. It was

his boast that he did not belong to the race of the 'ideologues', that he saw facts through

plain glass, and that he came to substitute an age of work for an age of talk ... he 'would

create a methodical government based upon popular consent, and conceived in th~

interests not of any particular faction bLit of France as a whole." As Napoleon himself

explained ,to the Council of State in 1802: "I governJ;1ot,A§a g~neral but because the

nation believes that I have the civilian qualities necessary to govern. If I did not have thisopinion, the government could not stand."

Napoleon is generally credited with having consolidated the gains of the Revolution ("With

the exception of fathering the Civil Code, Napoleon perhaps gloried more in his

reputation as consolidator of the Revolution than in any other one title," Robert 6.VHoltman observed). In this sense he can be credited with having 'saved' the Revolution by

ending it. Had the Bourbons come back to power in 1799 instead of Napoleon, they would

at that time had less trouble "turning back the clock" to the ancient regime than they had

in 1814. As Fran~ois Furethas put it, "Revolutionary France was indeed under the spell ofthe new sovereign, who was its son and had saved it from the danger of a

restoration ... France had finally found the republican rnonarchy toward which it had beengroping since 1789." The Code Napoleon, one ofthe Emperor's rnost enduring

achievements, embodied man)( of the principles of the Revolution and made them

permanent.

To Prince Eugene, his viceroy in Italy, Napoleon wrote, '''1 am seeking nothing less than a /social revolution." Feaudalism was suppressed and careers were open to all those"with

ability regardless of birth ("Wherever I found talent and courage I rewarded it." Napoleon,

1816) Napoleon became the ersonification of the revolutionary alms of the bourgeoisie:

He reformed and modernized French institutions (historian Jacues Godechot has said t atwith Napoleon the medieval era ended and modern history began). He brought much

longed for order and stability to France and forged a sense of unity. He attempted. to unite

under his wing both the revolutionaries and the emigres -nobles, clergy and others who~hoseor were forced to iive In exile under the Revolutloll ("I became the arch of the

alliance between the old and the new, the natural mediator between the old and the new

orders ... I belonged to, them both." Napoleon, 1816). The sales of the lands taken from the

nobles who had emiqrated or been declared enemies of the state, from the Church, or

from the Crown (the "biens nationaux") -an important benefit for the middle classes andthe peasants.of the Revolution- were recognized not oniy in Napoleon's coronation oath,

, but also In the signing of the Concordat with the Pope.

Robert B. Holtman observed, "This task of consolidation made Napoleon a conservative in

,~eidesirous, of keeping the gains of.the Revolutio_n_,_b_u_t_a_re_v_o_J_u_ti_o_n_a_ry_tn__a_c_ie_nregime areas abroad." It has been said that many of Napoleon's reforms were just

continuations of reforms begun under the Revolution (just as it has been said that many

of the reforms of the Revolution were continuations ot'those begun during the ancien

regime), It is important to keep in mind .tbat Napoleon also b~,dughtthes~ reforms to the

'cQuntries with the Empire, where, they were truly revolutionary. Owen'Connelly has saidthat·"NaPDleon .._was.a,conscious promoter DfRevolution all over Europe. In fact, I-firmly'

.!liiJ.ieve that this was the reason'for his demise. He was, to the legitimate powers of

Europe a crowned Jac;obin ... [These powers} were able to mobilize against him in the end

the' very· people who stood to gain the'most from the governments which Napoleon

installed." The principles which Napoleon inherited from the Revolution and consolidated in

France" he exported to the countries which fell under the french imperium. If Napoleon's

(i'i'I'!.

/

'''Bonaparte came, as he said, 'to close the Romance of the Revolution'," H.A.L.,Fisher

wrote, "to heal the wounds, to correct the extravagances, to secure the conquests. It was'

his boast that he did not belong to the race of the 'ideologues', that he saw facts throu'gh

plain glass, and that he came to substitute an age of work for an age of taik ... he would

create a methodical government based upon popular consent, and conceived In the

interests not of any particular faction but of France as a whole." As Napoleon himself

explained to the Council of State in 1802: "I govern not as a general but because the

nation believes that I have the civilian qualities necessary to govern. If I did not have this

opinion, the government could not stand."

Napoleon is generally credited with having consolidated the gains of the Revolution ("With

the exception of fathering the Civil Code, Napoleon perhaps gloried more in his

reputation as consolidator of the Revolution than in any other one title," Robert B. VHoltman observed). In this sense he can be credited with having 'saved' the Revolution by

ending it. Had the Bourbons come back to power in 1799 instead of Napoleon, they would

at that time had less trouble "turning back the clock" to the ancient regime than they hadin 1814. As Fran~ois Furet has put it, "Revolutionary France was indeed under the spell of

the new sovereign, who was its son and ha'd saved it from the danger of a"restoration ... France had finally found the republican monarchy toward, which it had been

groping since 1789." The Code Napoleon, one of the Emperor's most enduring

achievements, embodied many of the principles of the Revolution and made them

permanent.

To Prince Eugene, his viceroy in Italy, Napoleon wrote, "I am seeking nothing less than a

social revolution.'\F.eaudalism was suppressed,andcareers,were open to all those with

ability regardless of birth ("Wherever I found talent and courage I rewarded it." Napoleon,

1816) Napoleon became the personification of the revolutionary aims of the bourgeoisie.

He reformed and modernized French institutions (historian Jacues Godechot has said thatwith Napoleon the medieval era ended and modern history began). He brought much

longed for order and stability to France and forged a sense of unity. He attempted. to unite

under his wing both the revolutionaries and the emigres -nobles, clergy and 'others who

~hose or were forced to iJve in exile under the RevolutiOll, ("I became the arch of thealliance between the old and the new, the natural mediator between the old and the new

orders ... I belonged to. them both." Napoleon, 1816). The sales of the lands taken from the

nobles who had emigrated or been declared enemies of the state, from the Church, or

from the Crown (the ~biens nationaux") -an important benefit for the middle classes andthe peasants of the Revolution- were recognized not only in Napoleon's coronation oath,

'., but'also in the signing of the Concordat with the:Pope.

, - Robert B. HtJitman' observed; ~This task of consolidation 'made Napoleon'a conservative in '

France, desirous of keeping the gains of the Revolution; but a revolutiona~

~e areas abroad." It has been said that many of Napoleon's reforms were just

continuations of reforms begun under the Revolution (just as it has been said that many

of the reforms of the Revolution were continuations of those begun during the ancien

: regime); It is important to keep in mind that Napoleon also b~oughtthe~ reforms to 'thecountries with the 'Empire, where they were truly revolutionary. Owen Connelly has said

that "Napoleon ... was a conscious promoter of Revolution all over Europe. In fact, I firmly

believe that this was the reason for his demise. He was, to the legitimate powers of

!"6"Pe a crowned Jasobin ... [These powers} were ~ble to mobilize against him in the end

the very people who stood to gain the most from the governments which Napoleon

installed." The principles which Napoleon inherited from the Revolution and consolidated in

France, he exported to the countries which fell under the French imperium. If Napoleon's

FAQs: Napoleon and the French RevolutionBy Tom Holmberg

Originally published in 1998 on the Napoleon Bonaparte Internet Guide web site.

"We have finished the romance of the Revolution, we must now begin its

history, only seeking for what is real and practicable in the application of itsprinciples, and not what is speculative and hypothetical."

Jpoleon clearly felt, like the Jacobins, that an energetic centralized state was essential to

,nsolidate the advances achieved by the Revolution and, at the same time, he wished to

ing about the stability many French longed for after the upheavals of the past decade.

After Brumalre (9-10 Nov. 1799) -the coup d'etat which first set Napoleon on the path to

,becoming the supreme executive of a French empire- Napoleon declared, "The Revolution

is made fast on the principles on which it began; the Revolution is finished." Since this

famous utterance came so soon after he gained power, It is clear that Napoleon was

saying something significant about what the role of his new-born regime would be to

those which had preceded it. Like the man himself, this quote and the one at the head of

this page are both highly complex and ambiguous. He is declaring that the new regime

was both a break from the immediate past and part of a continuity with that past. What

was Napoleon's relationship to the Revolution? To what extent was he its heir or itsbetrayer? Did he save the Revolution or liquidate it?

To±Jegln it is'necessary to determine what one means by "the Revolution". There was not

one Revolution, but really a series of them which occurred as the French struggled to

create a new political and social system. By the "Revoiution" do we mean that of Barnave,

Dr of Mirabeau, or Lafayette, or Brissot, or Danton, or RObespierre, or Hebert, or Tallien,

Df Babeuf, or Barras? All of these were men of the Revolution, yet they all held differing:onceptions of what that "Revolution" was. I will be considering many of those

'undamental prin.ciples Yihich guided most of these revolutionaries. In general, theseJrlnclples ji:1cIUd~"'equaf'lreatmerii:underthe,iaw, one degree or another,of centralizadon

)f the government, elimination of J<:udal rights, religious tolerance and careers open to:alent not birth.

,;eorges Lefebvre wrote that the Emperor was" ... a pupil ofthe philosophes, he detested

eudalism, civil inequality, an'cLr,eliglouS intolerance. Seeing in enlightened despotism a'econciliation of -authority with political and sOdalreform, hebecame its last and most

lustrious representative. In this sense he was the manofthe -Revolution. U R. R.Palmer

-as observed that Napoleon considered the Jacobin government of Robespierre and the

ommittee of Public Safety the only serious government of the Revolutionary period.uring the "Reign of Terror" Napoleon was strongly identified with the Jacobins. His

la/ogue published in 1793, l.e Souper De Beau'cair~, championed the Jacobins over the

- ~deralistGjrondins. What Napoleon admired were the Jacobins' strong centralized

Jvernment, their commitment to deal decisively with the problems facing the fledgling

~public, and their attempt to forge a strong stable France while winning the war against) enemies.

reforms in France were n~ longer r:J,volutionary, outside of France these saine reformSVi!!re profoundly revolutionary (Goethe described Napoleon as "the Revolution crowned.") .

It had been the goal of many of the Revolution's leaders to "revolutionize" the rest of

Europe. Napoleon accomplished this.'

v4~

.I'~

The principle of equality was recognized in the destruction of feudal rights and privileges

in the Empire and in the submission of all members of society to a common scheme of

justice, the Napoleon!'c Code. The L~gion of Honor was also intended to foster equality,

as well as reward talent. " ... The establishment of the Legion of Honor, which was the

reward for military, civil, and judicial service, united side tJy side the soldier, the scholar"

the artist, the prelate, and the magistrate; it was the symbol of the reunion of,all the,

, estates, of all the parties." (1e Memorial De Sainte-HEmme, 1821) The Emperor, as the

supreme executive, was deemed the representative ~f the general will. This powerfui

executive was a feature also of the relationship between the Convention and the'

Committee of Public Safety, as well as the Legislature and the Directory. The Revolution,

like Napoleon, bore a strong authoritarian streak.

"It was Napoleon's function in history to fuse the old France with the new," H,A.L. Fisher

observed. Napoleon declared that he wanted "to cement peace at home by anything that

could bring the French together and provide tranquility within families.[Like Mlnibeau,

Napoleon didn't see an incompatibility between the Revolution and monarchy. Napoleon

did what the Bourbon King could not -reconcile the elements of the monarchy with

elements of the Revolution- which was the failed goal of Mlrabeau in 179~Napoleon waslargely successful in attracting men from all parties -from ex- Jacobins to cj-devant

nobles- to his government. Signing the Concordat (15 July 1801) allowed Napoleon to

reconcile the religious differences which had torn France apart during the Revolution. (At

t~e same time, the Concordat insured religious freedom. It recognized Catholicism as the

religion of the majority of the French, but did not make it an "established" religion as the

Church of England was in Britain. Protestants and Jews were allowed to practice their

religion and retain their civic rights.) A general amnesty signed by Napoleon (26 April

1802) allowed all but about one thousand of the most notorious emigres to return to

France. These two actions helped to bring relative tranquility to those areas of France

which had long been at war with the Revolution. Albert Sobould has writte'n that

"stabilizing society on, the fundamental base of the Revolution, [Napoleon] integrated the

returned emigres into a new social hierarchy; and, while reinforcing the principle' of

authority, he merged these emigres into a new order which at first had been constructedagainst them."

/¥-' What of liberty? Of the three key principles of the Revolution -liberty, equality, andrraternity- it was liberty which suffered most under Napoleon. Historian Albert Vandal-has

observed that "Bonaparte can be reproached for not having established liberty; he cannotbe accused of having destroyed it, for the excellent reason that on his return from Egypt

he did not Find it a~ywhere In France: The French 'desiring to safeguard what they had

acquired during the Revolution, be It rights or property, wanted these guaranteed. Manyfelt that guarantee could come only with the restoration and preservation of order. They

were willing to sacrifice their liberties for that guarantee, for that order. "In the absence of

-political liberty, he would assure Frenchmen of their individual rights_-In the Napoleonic

,-, -"'Code; he would sanctify equality; their'dearest.possession., He-would keep most of the

revolutionary institutions while at times amalgamating them with those of the Old Regime,

'which were restored but'adapted. His work would prove so solid that it made any total

restoration ofthe past impossible," wrote Albert Mathiez.

Napoleon was most of all a pragmatist, willing to adapt "what worked"" whether it wasborrowed from the RevQlution or from the ancien regime; He dealt with the problems

facing France in practical terms, not in the abstract ("To pursue a different course today

would be to philosophize, not to govern." Napo,ieon, 1800) The solutions Napoleon ,came

up with leave iittle doubt that he, was the heir and preserver of the Revolution. Fran~oisFuret has written that " ... he was chosed by the Revolution, from which he received his

'strange power not only to embody the new nation (a power that others before him, r:;ost .,__._'-1.. ",._'-~~" ~n'" "nha~ni"m'. h~rl nn~''''sed) but also to fulfill its destiny." Napoleon

had undo~t a revolution had 'been necessary. When it had achieved its purposehe felt that it was necessary to end the Revolution af1d begin the work of governing. He

exported to those countries under French hegefllony many of the achievements of the

, Revolution. He embodied. these achievements in the Code Napoleon:-Without the

Revolution Napoleon, despite his talents, would have been no more than an obscure,provincial lJ'Iilitary officer. He unified a country torn apart by ten years of political and

religious, strife ("All titles were forgotten; there were no longer aristocrats or Jacoblns, .. "

J,.eMemorial De Sainte-Helene, 1821). While liberty languished, he promoted equali'ty and

opened all careers to those with talent. "Risen to the throne," Chateaubriand wrote, "heseated the people there beside him. A proletarian king, he humiliated kings and nobles inhis antech'amber. He leveled ranks not by lowering but by raising them." He Insured

religious tolerance. He ~onsolidated and preserved the gains of the Revolution. AlexiS de

Tocqueville wrote that Napoleon "fell, but what was really substantial in his work lasted;

his government died, but his administration continued to live ...•• The Bourbon Prince de

Conde summed up Napoleon as "One-third philosophe, one-third Jacobin, and one-thirdaristocrat. •.

Suggested Readings:

NapOleon: WitS He The Heir Of The Revolutio.!J1 David Lloyd Dowd. (Hinsdale, IL: Dryden

Pr,. 1957)

NaDQ]eon: For An~. Pieter Geyl. (New Haven, CT: Yale University, 1963)

The NaD_oleonic RevolutiQIl. Robert B. Hoitman. (Baton Rouge: Louisla'na State Utilv.,

1981) I ' , '.fi9.Roleon Bonaparte And The LeQac'L.9f The ,French Revolutio.n. Martyn Lyons (N.Y.: St.

Martin's,11994)

\

Placed or NapoleonSeries.org February 2002.

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