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After the French Revolution erupted in 1789,
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Europe was thrown into chaos.
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Neighboring countries' monarchs feared they would share the fate of Louis XVI,
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and attacked the New Republic,
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while at home, extremism and mistrust between factions led to bloodshed.
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In the midst of all this conflict,
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a powerful figure emerged to take charge of France.
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But did he save the revolution or destroy it?
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"Order, order, who's the defendant today? I don't see anyone."
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"Your Honor, this is Napoléon Bonaparte,
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the tyrant who invaded nearly all of Europe
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to compensate for his personal stature-based insecurities."
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"Actually, Napoléon was at least average height for his time.
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The idea that he was short comes only from British wartime propaganda.
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And he was no tyrant.
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He was safeguarding the young Republic from being crushed
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by the European monarchies."
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"By overthrowing its government and seizing power himself?"
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"Your Honor, as a young and successful military officer,
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Napoléon fully supported the French Revolution,
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and its ideals of liberty, equality, and fraternity.
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But the revolutionaries were incapable of real leadership.
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Robespierre and the Jacobins who first came to power
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unleashed a reign of terror on the population,
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with their anti-Catholic extremism
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and nonstop executions of everyone who disagreed with them.
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And The Directory that replaced them was an unstable and incompetent oligarchy.
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They needed a strong leader who could govern wisely and justly."
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"So, France went through that whole revolution
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just to end up with another all-powerful ruler?"
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"Not quite.
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Napoléon's new powers were derived from the constitution
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that was approved by a popular vote in the Consulate."
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"Ha! The constitution was practically dictated at gunpoint in a military coup,
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and the public only accepted the tyrant
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because they were tired of constant civil war."
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"Be that as it may,
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Napoléon introduced a new constitution and a legal code
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that kept some of the most important achievements of the revolution intact:
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freedom of religion
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abolition of hereditary privilege,
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and equality before the law for all men."
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"All men, indeed.
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He deprived women of the rights that the revolution had given them
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and even reinstated slavery in the French colonies.
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Haiti is still recovering from the consequences centuries later.
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What kind of equality is that?"
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"The only kind that could be stably maintained at the time,
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and still far ahead of France's neighbors."
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"Speaking of neighbors, what was with all the invasions?"
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"Great question, Your Honor."
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"Which invasions are we talking about?
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It was the neighboring empires who had invaded France
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trying to restore the monarchy,
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and prevent the spread of liberty across Europe,
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twice by the time Napoléon took charge.
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Having defended France as a soldier and a general in those wars,
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he knew that the best defense is a good offense."
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"An offense against the entire continent?
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Peace was secured by 1802,
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and other European powers recognized the new French Regime.
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But Bonaparte couldn't rest unless he had control of the whole continent,
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and all he knew was fighting.
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He tried to enforce a European-wide blockade of Britain,
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invaded any country that didn't comply,
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and launched more wars to hold onto his gains.
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And what was the result?
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Millions dead all over the continent,
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and the whole international order shattered."
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"You forgot the other result:
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the spread of democratic and liberal ideals across Europe.
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It was thanks to Napoléon that the continent was reshaped
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from a chaotic patchwork of fragmented feudal and religious territories
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into efficient, modern, and secular nation states
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where the people held more power and rights than ever before."
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"Should we also thank him for the rise of nationalism
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and the massive increase in army sizes?
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You can see how well that turned out a century later."
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"So what would European history have been like if it weren't for Napoléon?"
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"Unimaginably better/worse."
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Napoléon seemingly unstoppable momentum would die in the Russian winter snows,
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along with most of his army.
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But even after being deposed and exiled,
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he refused to give up,
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escaping from his prison and launching a bold attempt at restoring his empire
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before being defeated for the second and final time.
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Bonaparte was a ruler full of contradictions,
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defending a popular revolution by imposing absolute dictatorship,
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and spreading liberal ideals through imperial wars,
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and though he never achieved his dream of conquering Europe,
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he undoubtedly left his mark on it, for better or for worse.