The Age of Napoleon
By: Eric B., Maria F., Taylor B., and Noah B.
The Concordat of 1801
After the French Revolution, but before Napoleon came to power, the new French government tried to rid France of all forms of Christianity specifically Catholicism. They did this by renaming street names containing the word saint, renaming the Cathedral of Notre Dame to a place of reason and thinking, and also changing the calendar to get rid of holidays and Sundays. Although this plan backfired it still caused much unease with the church and its leaders. Napoleon after coming into power knew he needed to bring back religion, but he also needed to make all citizens, and clergy happy. So he created the Concordat of 1801. This was an agreement between himself and the pope which stated that Catholicism would be the official religion of most of the French people. And in return the pope agreed to not ask for the land to be returned that had been seized during the revolution. This gained Napoleon many supporters, and also caused the church to no longer be an enemy of France. Which would be a lasting leagcy. In addition Napoleon brought about the idea of religous tolerance which was in line with the ideas of the French Revolution.
Legal System
Did the changes or reforms have a legacy beyond Napoleon's rule? His actions greatly affected the history of France, along with the countries he formed coalitions with, including Britain. His empire reached many countries in Europe, changing its history forever. His empire reached far into Europe, but eventually couldn’t hold itself together after Napoleon suffered serious defeat in Russia. His goals of creating a long lasting powerful French empire died out. He was later banished from Russia.
Description of what the topic was like before Napoleon. Before Napolean, people executed the king, because of how unfair he was. He unfairly taxed lower class citizens, and caused the revolution. Then, lower classes fought upper classes, and killed the king. They demanded reforms to take place right then and there. They wanted to change monarchy, unfair taxing, and less rights of lower class people. They hated how unfair France was towards good lower class citizens, and how upper class was riding for free. Once Napoleon started fighting for France, he quickly rose in power.
Description of changes or reforms Napoleon made. Napoleon changed many laws, and erased many freedoms that focussed on the ideas of the actual French Revolution. He banned newspapers and writing that spoke against him, and shut down anything that went against him. He spied on his citizens because he was so obsessed with being loved. He also lowered all women’s rights, and undid any new reforms, completely against any revolution ideas. However, he did let more people become involved in government positions, but secretly was limiting their power. He also formed an alliance with the Pope, getting Christianity back into France
Restructuring of Government
Did his reforms have a legacy beyond his rule? His government was pretty much an absolute monarchy, which was similar to other countries in Europe at the time. He supported the pope, due to his own personal wants. He ended the revolution with the exact opposite of what the people wanted.
Description of what the topic was like before Napoleon. - Noah Began The French government was reformed by the people. They wanted to get rid of monarchy, unfair advantage of being high class, and Christianity. The military was made up of radicals that fought for equality, not a militia. Napoleon changed many of these things back to pre-revolution style, and went against the ideas of the French Revolution.
Changes Napoleon Made Napoleon fired corrupt government officials, created legal equality, and supported laws that would strengthen the government. He also believed that promotions should be deserved on ability, not rank or birth power.
Educational System
Most of the changes or reforms were in line with French Revolutionary ideas. The one that wasn’t was during the revolution the revolutionaries tried to dechristianize France and they shut down religious schools, but during Napoleon’s reign he reopened some of those with his agreement with the pope. The changes that were in line with French Revolution ideas were the teachers were all paid by the government and that everything was taught in French which promoted nationalism.
Did the changes or reforms have a legacy beyond Napoleon's rule?
The changes did have a legacy beyond Napoleon’s rule, the system was used in France after his rule and it is similar to the educational system we use today.
Description of what the topic was like before Napoleon.
Before Napoleon had a shortage of qualified teachers and a shortage of qualified students. There was no continuity in the curriculum and the schools were very competitive, anyone who wanted a government position had to go a good school which were hard to get into. There was also a lack of schools in many areas, lack of professionalism among teachers, lack of discipline and attendance by the students and, in a few areas, the lack of religious education. There were also no religious schools.
Description of changes or reforms Napoleon made.
The reforms Napoleon made were he reestablished religious schools, which were the schools many girls were taught at he supported education for girls. He also divided boy’s education into two sections under age twelve and over age twelve. The first four grades would teach reading, writing, history, and the use of arms. Also, the second class would be divided into those boys who were destined for a civil career, and those destined for a career in the military. Under Napoleon’s system elementary schools were to be the responsibility of the local municipalities.
Financial System
Napoleon’s were in line with revolutionary ideas. His Continental system showed how France was trying to show other countries that it was gaining its independence and by trying to stop all trade with Britain, Napoleon showed his independence. He also reformed France and pushed to make its systems better.
Did the changes or reforms have a legacy beyond Napoleon's rule?
The changes that Napoleon made did have a legacy beyond his rule. Although his Continental system did not work, his banking and tax collecting system still was used after his reign.
Description of what the topic was like before Napoleon.
France was second to Britain in trade exports but still, the people in France were poor. If they had bad harvest people starved. Earlier, Jacques Necker tried to tax the people for France but the rich refused.
Description of changes or reforms Napoleon made.
Napoleon hoped to weaken the British economy by preventing the sale of British goods. He set up efficient method of tax collection and also established a national banking system.