Can Napoleon's rise to power merely be attributed to his control of the government?'

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Isobel Smith

‘Can Napoleon’s rise to power merely be attributed to his control of the army?’

In many ways, the answer to this question is yes. It is certain that Napoleon relied upon the army during much of his rise to power to give him support on many occasions including his military campaigns. This is especially true during the Coup of Brumaire itself. However, we cannot merely explain Napoleon’s great success with his control of the army. There are many other factors which can be attributed including; his position in 1795, his success in Italy and the Egyptian campaign, Napoleon’s ability and reputation, the weaknesses of the Directory and the Coup of Brumaire itself.

Yet, Napoleon’s control of the army must not be underestimated. Without it, it is certain that he would not have succeeded. Towards, the end of Napoleon’s rise to power and The Coup of Brumaire his control of the army was crucial. When, during Napoleon’s stormy meeting with the Five Hundred, he was almost executed immediately having been declared an outlaw and was left with a smear of blood on his cheek (most likely caused by his own hands) the army were there to be roused by Lucien (Napoleon himself was in to much of a panic) and march into the meeting with fixed bayonets and clearing it quickly. This silenced the cries of ‘Outlaw the Dictator!’ from trouble makers within the crowd who escaped from the meeting and did not come back. Thus, Napoleon’s life was spared and allowed him to go on to rule over France.

         

Nevertheless, how did Napoleon come to gain this control and loyalty from the army? It would seem that it came mostly from Napoleon’s previous successes, particularly in Italy. Here a young, seemingly insignificant general won dramatically against his enemies and created the Legend surrounding him. It was during these early campaigns that Napoleon acquired the loyalty of many of his soldiers. But how did Napoleon come to gain this role of general which allowed him to win control of the army? For this we have to look at his position in 1975.

From very early on Napoleon had an upper hand over many, which would eventually lead to him taking control. Napoleon was born in Corsica in 1769 and was second born son to a family that claimed Italian noble blood. It is widely believed that it was due to his father Carlo’s efforts to make it clear that his family was loyal to the French and of noble rank that Napoleon was able to be educated in France. The circumstances of Napoleon’s upbringing is a factor which contributed to his rise to power showing it was not only his control of the army which helped him to do so.

In France Napoleon attended the military academy in Brienne, then the Ecole Militaire, in Paris where he became an artillery officer in 1785. This was not considered a particularly powerful or glamorous position and combined with Napoleon’s Corsican accent and comparatively lowly origins it would have seemed very unlikely at this time that Napoleon would ever gain control of the army or indeed the whole country. However, after returning to France from Corsica in 1789 escaping a family feud Napoleon found France in the throes of Revolution. It must be said that the Revolution itself must have largely attributed to Napoleon’s rise to power. It was this time of change that meant anyone could be a leader if they seized the opportunity and that is exactly what Napoleon did. This is one of the first clear factors which show that Napoleon’s rise to power cannot merely be attributed to his control of the army.

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It was during the Revolution that Napoleon transformed himself into a Jacobin revolutionary and showed the courage and ability commanding artillery at the siege of Toulon in December 1973 that found himself promoted to general and beginning to gain some control in the army. This chance to show off his leadership skills also helped him on his rise to power and although it did involve control of some of the army it shows that his control over them was not the only factor. Now he was a general he could get closer and closer to those most powerful and ...

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