Chapter X: Napoleonic Europe

Themes:

Territorial and political expansion of Napoleonic France based on battlefield and aided by rivalries of the other European states and dynasties;

Spread into Europe of rationalist, reformist principles, an amalgam of Enlightenment and Revolutionary ideas;

Struggle between France and Great Britain;

National movements rejecting French Enlightenement and Empire;

Peace settlement reestablishing the balance of power.

Formation of the French Imperial System

--Dissolution of the First and Second Coalitions, 1792-1802

--First: Austrians and Prussians = more afraid of each other than of FRance, kept main forces in Eastern Europe. France broke it up in 1795. British withdrew their army from the Continent. Prussia made a separate peace. Coalition = completely disband ed with Austria's signing of peace of Campo Formio in 1797.

--Second (1799): Russia saw its Mediterranean ambitions blocked by British fleet. and withdrew their armies from western Europe. Acceptance by Austria of peace in 1801 dissolved Coalition. Britain accepted peace in 1802.

--Bonparte consolidated power within France

--During the peace: Bonaparte tried to win back Haiti, and even French colonial empire in America (Louisiana). Reorganized Italy and Germany. German princes of Left bank disgraced themselves in race for best territories on Right under Campo Formio. Enlarged German states now depended on Bonaparte for their existence.

--Formation of the Third Coalition, 1805

--Britain and France again at war, 1803. Hopes for American empire = low--communications with America menaced by British fleet, losing in Haiti--so Bonaparte sold Lousiana to America. GBr began to consolidate third Coalition. 1804: Napoleon declares himself Emperor. 1805: Austria signs alliance with GBr. Alexander accedes, joins Coalition.

--Alexander still thought recent partitions of Poland a crime. Wanted to restore Poland with himself as constitutional king. Formed a conception of international collective security and indivisibility of peace. Declared thta the issue in Europe = th at between law and force.

--The Third Coalition, 1805-1807: The Peace of Tilsit

--Napoleon = planning massive naval invasion of England. But English annihilated main body of French and Spanish fleet off Cape Trafalgar. Established English supremacy at sea, but only if Napoleon could = prevented from controlling most of Europe; o therwise, he would gin enough ports to build a fleet greater than England's.

--Napoleon wins battle of Austerlitz: broken Russian army withdrew into Poland, and Austria made peace. Napoleon formally and finally dissolves the HRE, puts in its place a Confederation of the Rhine, of which he = head.

--Prussia decides late to join Coalition, and is shortly smashed. Prussian king flees. Napoleon pursues Alexander, but Alexander cannot retreat his own country; if Russia = invaded, there might be a revolt of nobles. Thus, Alexander signified willing ness to negotiate. Third Coalition = dead.

--Treaty of Tilsit: Napoleon suggests that he become Emperor of West, Alexander become Emperor of East. Russia and France unite against GBr. Napoleon makes Prussia part of his Confedertion of Rhine.

--The Continental System and the War with Spain

--Napoleon planned to shut Britain out of all trade with Europe, thereby destroy its economy, maybe even incite some revolutionary agitation. Thus, in 1806, Napoleon issued Berlin Decree, forbidding importation of any British goods to parts of Europe dependent on himself. Controlled the entire coastline from Trieste to St. Petersburg.

--Made brother Joseph king of Spain, ousting Bourbouns. But Spanish thought Napoleonic soldier godless barbarians, and revolted. British sent expeditionary force under Duke of Wellington to help, and resulting Peninsular war lasted five years. Also, anti-French movement swept over Germany.

--The Austrian War of Liberation, 1809

--Austrians proclaim liberation, promptly routed. But still, House of Habsburg survived a fourth defeat. Napoleon took much of Austrian territory in punishment.

--Meanwhile, Alexander = hurt because Napoleon made Poland into his Duchy of Warsaw, instead of giving it to Alexander, as promised. Talleyrand lso told Alexander to wait: Napoleon = overextended, and might fall soon.

--Napoleon at His Peak, 1809-1811

--After defeat, Austrian foreign affairs fell to Metternich. He thought that Russia = the permanent problem for Austria, and that it = wise to renew good relations with France. Gave Marie Louise, the Austrian Emperor's daughter, to Napoleon in marria ge. Now assumed airs of pompous majesty.

The Grand Empire: Spread of Revolution

--The Organization of the Napoleonic Empire

--Napoleon's Grand Empire = divided into 2 parts

1) core = French Empire, including Belgium and Left Bank of Rhine, and later, Holland, NW Germany, and northern and central Italy. All = under direct French rule.

2) Dependent states: Swiss Federation, Spain, Illyrian Provinces, Grand Duchy of Warsaw, Confederation of Rhine, Naples. All = governed by Napoleon's siblings, more or less under his control.

--Others = under their traditional governments, but allied to France. Included Prussia, Austria, and Russia, and also Denmark and Sweden.

--Napoleon and the Spread of Revolution

--In each of conquered territories, same sequence of events = repeated:

1) Military conquest and occupation by French troops

2) Establishment of native satellite government with support of local collaborators. Drafting of a constitution. Process often stopped here.

3) Sweeping internal reform and reorganization, derivative of Fre. Rev. Experienced in Belgium, Confederation of Rhine, and Italy.

--Napoleon thought himself a great reformer and man of Enlightenment. Called his systems liberal. Believed also in "constitutions"; not in sense of representative government, but of rationally designed and mapped out government, not inherited from ju mble of past. Tried to transplant his Civil Code to the dependent states. All reform = anti-feudal. Established legal equality, gave governments greater authority. Abolished legal classes. Nobility lost much of its privileges, offices = opened to talent. Manorial system = liquidated. Peasants became subjects of state, not their lords. Manorial fees abolished. But exception = Poland, where serfdom survived. Everywhere, Church lost its public authority, and tolertion = law, even in Spain. Guilds = generally abolished or made ineffective, old town oligarchies broken up. Internal tariffs removed. Taxes and finances modernized.

--However, no self-government through elected bodies. Overall, there was a good deal of pro-Napoleonic sentiment, except in Spain. Local support = generally from commercial and professional men, who also = generally progressive. Even Prussia = remode led along French lines.

--Dependent states, though, = burdened with providing for armies, so taxes inside France could stay low, and Napoleon's popularity high.

Continental System: Britain and Europe

--British Blockade and Napoleon's Continental System

--Napoleon's aim = to detroy Britain's commerce and industrial machine by excluding it from European markets. There was much resentment of Britain's mercantile success from the wars of the 18c.

--In response to Berlin Decree, British ordered that neutrals might enter Continent only if went through a British port first, where conditions = favorable for them to load British goods. Napoleon decreed that any neutral ship that contacted a Britis h ship or port would = confiscated. Thus, neutrals (America) could trade with neither.

--But Continental System = also intended to develop economy of Europe, with France at center.

--The Failure of the Continental System

--But the System failed, and worse, created much antagonsim to Napoleon.

--Europeans missed British imports of American sugar and tobacco, dealt with British in secret.

--European industry = stimulated. Thus, Napoleon had support of Continental industry.

--But still, British could not = replaced. Goods, if produced, could not = brought easily to market for want of transportation. Sea lanes = closed, and land routes = tedious before railroad. Overseas commerce = dead. Eastern Europe, which needed sea to get manufactures, = deprived of many goods.

--France = also in privileged position, hiding behind tariff barriers against even the rest of Europe.

--As a war measure, Continental System failed against Britain. British trade still increased to Latin America.

The National Movements: Germany

--The Resistance to Napoleon: Nationalism

--Movement of Thought in Napoleonic Germany

--Reforms in Prussia

--Prussia becomes focus for German resistance to Napoleon, since least compromised by collaboration with him.

--Army reform: to produce a sense of zeal and patriotism in the fighters, and allow capable people fill army positions without regard to status.

--State reform: under Baron Stein. Encouraged sense of citizenship. Loosened class lines, allowed some selling of land. Serfs = allowed some more mobility.

The Overthrow of Napoleon: The Congress of Vienna

--1811: Napoleon had Europe. Continental System = failure. British = flourishing. Great undercurrent for nationalism, esp. in Germany. But Napoleon could = defeated only by defeat of his armies, which no one except Alexander could do. Alexander = diss atisfied with French Alliance. He got only Finland, no help in wars with Turkey. France got Poland, and Napoleon married a Habsburg. Russians denounced the Alliance.

--The Russian Capaign and the War of Liberation

--Dec 31, 1810: Alexander formally withdrew from Continental System, began trade with Britain. Napoleon waged immediate war, amassed a HUGE army. In June, 1812, moved his Grand Army into Russia.

--Napoleon's strategy = to force a quick decisive battle. Intended for war to be short, so brought only 3 weeks' supplies. But Russian armies kept retreating. Finlly reached Moscow, but found himself camping in a ruin. Fearing winter, he tried to ret reat, but forced to take same route back. Army = destroyed by winter.

--All anti-Napoleonic forces rallied. Napoleon rushed back, raised new army in France, smashed at Leipzig, 1813. But as allies closed in, they = more distrustful of one another.

--The Restoration of the Bourbouns

--Should allies negotiate singly or as a group with Napoleon? How strong should new France be? Frontiers? What kind of government? Despite these questions, Russia, Prussia, Austria, and GBr signed treaty of Chaumont, 1814: each agreed to form a Quadr uple Alliance against France for 20 years. Soon after, Napoleon abdicated.

--4 powers agreed to restore Bourboun monarchy, since being native, it would depend on none of the 4 powers, and let no one control France.

--Louis XVIII issued a constitutional charter promising legal equality, public offices open to all classes, and parliamentary government with 2 chambers. Carried over the Napoleonic law codes, Napoleonic settlement with Church, redistribution of prop erty from the Revolution, abolition of feudalism and privilege, manorialism, and tithes. In 1814, France = limited to pre-1782 boundaries.

--Settlement before the Vienna Congress

--Russia and GBr placed certain things beyond international consideration. Russia kept Finland and Turkish conquests. Britain kept India, Carribean, South Africa, and other stuff. Britain = only dynamic and growing country left, and only one with sig nificant navy. Thus, Britain = embarked on century of world-leadership.

--Congress of Vienna, 1814-15: Main objective = to restore "liberties of Europe," or freedom of European states from domination by a single power. Used balance of power, disregarded nationalism. France = seen as greatest possible troublemaker, and str ong states = set up along its borders. Dutch = united with Belgians. Almost all of German Left Bank = given to Prussia. Austria got many Italian possessions. Germany = basically left alone.

--Polish-Saxon Question

--Alexander wanted Poland reconstituted with himself as king in personal union with Russia. To do so required that Austria and Prussia give up their parts of Poland. Prussia = willing, if received Saxony.

--Metternich = horrified. If Prussia got Saxony with Russian support, Prussia would become stronger, and Russia too in its influence over Prussia. Thus, Metternich, Castlereagh (GBr), and Talleyrand signed treaty to go to war if nec. against Prussia and Russia.

--Alexander, hearing this, offered compromise. Consented to a reduced Poland. Prussia too had to back down: got 2/5 of Saxony.

--All this = 1st Treaty of Paris.

--The 100 Days and Their Aftermath

--Napoleon escaped, 1815. The vindictive emigres that came back with Louis spread "white terror" throughout France, created discontent. Thus, Napoleon = warmly received by many. But Napoleon = promptly defeated at Waterloo, re-exiled.

--A new Treaty of Paris = made, making minor changes in French frontier, and imposing a large indemnity and an army of occupation. 4 powers reconfirmed Quadruple Alliance, with extra condition that no Bonaparte should rule France. Renewed dread of wa r, revolution, and agression.

--Treaty succeeded in restoring balance of power, but did not satisfy nationalists and democrats.