L'EMPEREUR NÉ DU CHAOS: THE FRANCE THAT GAVE RISE TO NAPOLEON I

Kellen R. TiborHIS 102-01: World Civilizations II

18 February 2016

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Table of ContentsIntroduction......................................................................................................................................2

From Liberty Back to Authoritarianism..........................................................................................3

The Influence of Expeditions Abroad..............................................................................................5

Out of Egypt, Strength.....................................................................................................................6

Conclusion.......................................................................................................................................8

Bibliography..................................................................................................................................10

Images............................................................................................................................................11

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Introduction

To call French history in the years following 1789 “revolutionary” is to commit what is

perhaps the greatest understatement in world history. The overthrow of the French monarchy and

the proclamation of the Enlightenment ideals of la liberté, l'égalité, et la fraternité accompanied

by the utter chaos that ensued until (and after) 1799 was so significant that the French Revolution

is considered the beginning of the modern era. But the First and Second French Republics would

not be known for its adherence to the Enlightenment principles from which they were inspired.

Rather, the story of the Revolutionary Republics was one of disorder and utter chaos, with a

hymn of Le Marseillaise accompanied by the national symbol of the guillotine. The French

citizen was beset by coup after coup and terror after terror, with stability and order being nothing

but dreams. By 1799, after a decade of terror and instability, a charismatic young general named

Napoleon Bonaparte took control of France in the events following the Coup of 18 Brumaire.

The dramatic event is shown in François Bouchot’s painting of the coup (Figure 1).1 It would not

be long until Napoleon Bonaparte became the first Emperor of France. How could a revolution

with a purpose of overthrowing tyranny end in the welcoming of an autocratic leader? This paper

will argue that the French political context surrounding the coup of 18 Brumaire was one that

offered Napoleon Bonaparte an open window to seize power because of the instability wrought

by the Thermidorian Reaction and subsequent events, French military abroad which strained the

economy which strengthened the threat of a restoration of the monarchy, and the successes of

Napoleon himself in Egypt which created for him an aura of stability in contrast to a tumultuous

state of life in Paris.

1 Wikipedia, “Bouchot - Le general Bonaparte au Conseil des Cinq-Cents,” Accessed 10 February 2016, https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/44/Bouchot_-_Le_general_Bonaparte_au_Conseil_des_Cinq-Cents.jpg.

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From Liberty Back to Authoritarianism

The root cause of Napoleon’s ability to seize power was the political and social instability

that characterized Revolutionary France, beginning specifically in the Thermidorian Reaction of

July 1794. Maximilien Robespierre, president of the Committee of Public Safety, enacted the

Reign of Terror with the intention of crushing opposition to the Republic from non-radicals.

Despite all its evils, the Committee of Public Safety did serve one good purpose in that it

preserved stability of government; it was not enough to fight the enemies from the outside as

many of the enemies to the Republic were found internally. To preserve the Republic,

Robespierre sought to swiftly remove these dissenters from the state.2 But the radical approach

undertaken by Robespierre set off a chain reaction of vengeance and the precedent that all

political gains could only be effected through violence. The Thermidorian Reaction which ended

Robespierre’s Reign of Terror sealed what would become a cycle of instability. The Committee,

which by July of 1794 was the only entity backing the authority of the National Convention, was

reorganized into sixteen subcommittees. Three main committees emerged, splitting the major

power held by the former Committee. Essentially, there was nothing left to keep the government

unified, an unintentional consequence of those who wished to prevent the Terror from happening

again.3 But more significantly, it signaled the beginning of the end of the “Revolution System”

itself as all the stifled masses of the oppressed and disenfranchised dissenters rose up against the

Radicals with demands for a new constitution.4 Henceforth the trend of the Revolution would be

back toward authoritarianism. The Jacobin Club was forcibly disbanded on 11 November 1794

and its other radical counterpart, the Electoral Club, was disbanded not long after. As the radicals

2 Milestone Documents, "Maximilien Robespierre: “On the Moral and Political Principles of Domestic Policy”," Accessed February 10, 2016, https://www.milestonedocuments.com/documents/view/maximilien-robespierre-on-the-moral-and-political-principles-of-domestic-po/text.3 Albert Soboul, The French Revolution 1788-1799: From the Storming of the Bastille to Napoleon (New York: Random House, 1974), 418-419.4 Thomas Carlyle, The French Revolution: A History, (New York: Modern Library, 1967), 699.

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were hunted down by moderates and royalists, the fervor of anti-terrorism simmered until it

boiled over in the White Terror of 1795 as the radicals were massacred across France.5 No one

was safe; as stability was trying to be created, both commoner and politician were hunted down.

By the end of the White Terror, 230 of the 749 seats of the Convention were affected by this

purge.6 The implications of this for the stability and longevity of the state need not even be

mentioned.

By the time of the White Terror there were two basic struggles that has emerged:

populism vs. bourgeoisie and republicanism vs. royalism. The White Terror began at a time

when none could stop it, but by the time it was crushed there existed a sizable enough portion of

bourgeoisie leftists that the Terror was able to be put down. A new Constitution was created in

August of 1755 that limited the power of both the aristocracy and the populists in favor of the

bourgeoisie. The Directory and the two legislative councils of the Five Hundred and of the

Ancients were established in an effort to bring stability back to the nation. Not surprisingly, the

exclusion of two major factions of the French population caused the bourgeoisie candidates to do

poorly in elections, so any unfavorable elections were changed by the use of force. Unable to

appeal to the majority will, the Directory was forced to revert to authoritarian methods to

maintain power. Executions were again commonplace and economic depression in the midst of

wars abroad and more organized royalist resurgence made stability all but impossible from 1795

to 1799.7 By the time 18 Brumaire came about, the foundations were in place for any person able

to rally the people around him to take absolute control; there was again a precedence of

authoritarianism and a longing for stability after ten years of “liberty.”

5 Soboul, 426-428.6 Mette Harder, "A Second Terror: The Purges of French Revolutionary Legislators after Thermidor," French Historical Studies 38, no. 1 (February 2015): 33-60. Academic Search Premier, EBSCOhost (accessed February 10, 2016).7 Soboul., 477.

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The Influence of Expeditions Abroad

One might argue that it may have been possible for the constitution created after the

Thermidorian Reaction to have laid the foundation for a stable government. But the Republic’s

devotion to wars abroad all but destroyed that possibility.8 Committing to wars abroad worsened

the economic crisis at home. France was involved in one war or another virtually without any

break from 1788 to 1801 (Figure 2).9 The average Parisian was suffering as the government tried

to provide for its soldiers abroad. In the winter of 1795, the daily bread ration for a citizen was

75 grams. Already discontent was brewing against the Directory, and the dead Jacobin Club was

regaining support.10 A critical moment came when Gracchus Babeuf began his quasi-communist

movement, the “Conspiracy of Equals.” In March of 1796, he began a propaganda campaign that

would have eventually led to the overthrow of the Directory and the establishment of a system

based on his quasi-communist ideology. The Directory’s response, which involved executing

Babeuf, caused the government to move to the right as it countered a radically leftist movement;

in doing so, the prospects of the Royalists increased. In the summer of 1796, anti-Jacobin laws

were passed and restrictions on the clergy were lessened. But it soon became clear that those on

the right were actually pressing for a restoration of the monarchy. All the while economic

disaster ensued as army supplies were maintained while the French citizen dealt with inflation,

then deflation, improper tax administration, and the use of national lands as payment for debts.

Corruption was rampant and the populace lost trust in the Directory to govern. As the directory

continued to fail to make any sort of decent financial decisions, royalists found themselves in a

good position as elections neared.11

8 Ibid.9 Alpha History, “1788 - European wars,” Accessed 10 February 2016, http://alphahistory.com/frenchrevolution/wp-content/gallery/maps_1/1788-European-wars.jpg.10 Soboul, 490.11 Ibid., 494-496.

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As it seemed more and more likely that there may yet be a restoration of the monarchy,

the Councils placed Paris under military occupation in September 1797 in the Coup of 18

Fructidor. Royalism was made a capital offense and elections were reneged across the board. The

Right was destroyed, but no stability was gained.12 Instead, Neo-Jacobinism filled the void as

laws were enacted which empowered the Directory essentially to nullify any election. Faith in

the government was again lost, and new attempts at tax reform did nothing to change the national

deficit. Despite its massive campaigns abroad (or perhaps because of them), exports were at half

of the level of 1789 by 1797.13 At this time, peace had been made on the European mainland, but

war still remained with Britain. But only two years later war had resumed with France’s

European rivals, the people suffering all the while. As France was beaten back by the Second

Coalition, there was a hero of the Republic making a name for himself in Egypt.

Out of Egypt, Strength

As the French Army was retreating from attacks everywhere around the Republic in June

1799, the Directory was in a state of chaos. It seemed that the Republic itself was falling apart,

so the Councils removed three of the five Directors from power and replaced them with men of

their own choosing in the Coup of 30 Prairial. Out of this came a faction of Neo-Jacobins and a

royalist resurgence. Just as the Second Coalition landed near the frontier of the Republic, the

army fought off the invaders and put down an insurrection of royalists. At this critical moment

where the Coalition might have marched to Paris and supported the restoration of the monarchy,

the Republic had been defended. But more conflict was brewing as civil war brought a serious

prospect of royalists destroying the Republic from within, not even needing the assistance of the

12 Ibid., 507-508, 513.13 Ibid., 521.

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Second Coalition. It was decided that a new constitution was needed, which would be drafted on

18 Brumaire.14

General Napoleon Bonaparte had been spending the previous months fighting abroad in

Egypt. Having already proven himself in many battles on the European mainland, he was seen by

many Frenchmen as the man who brought peace in the wars against the First Coalition; he was

not only a hero but was viewed as someone who could actually unify France. After France

received word of his victory at Aboukir, French armies finally started gaining victories against

the Second Coalition. Nevertheless, the Directory was held responsible for all the economic and

military issues that beset France for the preceding four years. Indeed, the Directory was blamed

for the loss of the territory Napoleon gained in Italy from the war against the First Coalition. In

stark contrast to the dismal perception of the Directory, he was known as “the liberator of Italy,

and the pacificator of the Continent.”15 Helping this were his own reports of his expeditions and

embellished reports given by his brothers of his deeds to the French people. France heard time

and time again of conquests in Malta, the Pyramids, and Alexandria. His fame had grown so high

that his army was referred to as his army, not the Army of the Orient.16 When Napoleon returned

to France from Egypt, he did so before he heard of the victories securing the Republic from the

Coalition, with an understanding that the Directory needed him to break its factionalism and trust

in its own people.17 When he returned to a slightly more stable situation, he saw the inevitability

of the collapse of the government and saw an opportunity to take charge.

So it was that when Napoleon marched into the Directory on 18 Brumaire, he needed not

fear a popular revolt. Indeed, the people were ready to welcome it. The Directory was blamed for

14 Ibid., 542-543.15 Milestone Documents, "Germaine de Staël: Considerations on the Principal Events of the French Revolution," Accessed February 10, 2016, https://www.milestonedocuments.com/documents/view/germaine-de-staeumll-considerations-on-the-principal-events-of-the-french-r/text.16 Philip Dwyer, Napoleon: The Path to Power (New Haven: Yale University Press, 2008), 458.17 Steven Englund, Napoleon: A Political Life (New York: Scribner, 2004), 152-153.

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their ills and they had grown weary of seeing the Revolution collapse on itself. The Declaration

of Rights of Man and Citizen which propelled their cause a decade earlier had been trampled

again and again. Looking at the list, one might a list of the things the Republic had failed to

protect.18 When he decided to take power himself, he only needed to worry about the support

from one of the factions of the government. But with another coup planned and both sides vying

for his allegiance, he had little difficulty taking control despite the factionalism of the Directory.

The coup had become so commonplace that even a blunder-filled attempt at persuading the

Directory to follow him did not stop his rise to power.19 After the dust had settled from the events

of 18 Brumaire and Napoleon was named a consul, the name Napoleon I was not too far in the

future – and in the end his autocratic climb was done in the name of republican ideals.

Conclusion

The Napoleonic Wars would claim thousands of lives across Europe and spawn a string

of revolutions, restorations, and imperial renewals in France until the end of the 19th century. The

rise of Napoleon represents not only an irony of the French Revolution but a testament to the

failings of attempts to establish a free society through coercion. One can only speculate how if

events may have transpired differently that France might still be under its first constitution and

Napoleon would never have been able to wreak havoc against Europe. Although these are

interesting questions to ponder, it is more important to consider how the lessons of the failure of

the First French Republic can be applied today as America struggles to define itself and cope

with social change. The future is bright, but the case of France can teach America the subtle

danger of becoming that which it rejected in its foundation. America must not create a situation

where a charismatic individual can seize power through sustained instability, a beleaguered

18 Milestone Documents, "Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen," Accessed February 10, 2016, https://www.milestonedocuments.com/documents/view/declaration-of-the-rights-of-man-and-of-the-citizen/text.19 Englund, 164.

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economy, and a fleeting hope of glory. Only time will tell if the American Republic can

overcome the challenges of the future.

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Bibliography

1. Alpha History. “1788 - European wars.” Accessed 10 February 2016. http://alphahistory.com/frenchrevolution/wp-content/gallery/maps_1/1788-European-wars.jpg. MAP.

2. Carlyle, Thomas. The French Revolution: A History. New York: Modern Library, 1967. BOOK 1.

3. Dwyer, Philip. Napoleon: The Path to Power. New Haven: Yale University Press, 2008. BOOK 2.

4. Englund, Steven. Napoleon: A Political Life. New York: Scribner, 2004. BOOK 3.

5. Harder, Mette. "A Second Terror: The Purges of French Revolutionary Legislators after Thermidor." French Historical Studies 38, no. 1 (February 2015): 33-60. Academic Search Premier, EBSCOhost (accessed February 10, 2016). JOURNAL.

6. Milestone Documents. "Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen." Accessed February 10, 2016. https://www.milestonedocuments.com/documents/view/declaration-of-the-rights-of-man-and-of-the-citizen/text. PRIMARY 1.

7. Milestone Documents. "Germaine de Staël: Considerations on the Principal Events of the French Revolution." Accessed February 10, 2016. https://www.milestonedocuments.com/documents/view/germaine-de-staeumll-considerations-on-the-principal-events-of-the-french-r/text. PRIMARY 2.

8. Milestone Documents. "Maximilien Robespierre: “On the Moral and Political Principles of Domestic Policy”." Accessed February 10, 2016. https://www.milestonedocuments.com/documents/view/maximilien-robespierre-on-the-moral-and-political-principles-of-domestic-po/text. PRIMARY 3.

9. Soboul, Albert. The French Revolution 1788-1799: From the Storming of the Bastille to Napoleon. New York: Random House, 1974. BOOK 4.

10. Wikipedia. “Bouchot - Le general Bonaparte au Conseil des Cinq-Cents.” Accessed 10 February 2016. https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/44/Bouchot_-_Le_general_Bonaparte_au_Conseil_des_Cinq-Cents.jpg. IMAGE.

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Images

Figure 1

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Figure 2