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Originally Posted by smrk
How should we think about Napoleon? Where does he rank on the Gandhi-Hitler continuum? Was there anything qualitatively (perhaps morally) different about his imperial conquests than what other nations did/would have done in his position? First anti-christ or just a badass?
Napoleon is definitely far right of Gandhi and far left of Hitler. That’s a hell of a continuum though. Lol.
Most historians tend to see Napoleon in one of two ways: a great consolidator of the Revolution at a time when the Revolution seemed to be about to unravel, OR the over thrower of the Revolution and the guy who returned France to absolutist politics (or worse). I tend to see Napoleon as somewhere between.
He was definitely a product of the Revolution. What most people don’t realize is that Napoleon is actually the most famous Frenchman who wasn’t French. He was actually Corsican (Italian speaking). He actually grew up hating the French and dreamed of leading a nationalist revolt against the French. His father forced him to go to France as a child to be educated and learn French (against Napoleon’s will).
During the Revolution, Napoleon finally became committed to the French b/c he saw the Revolution as an opportunity for advancement. He did so well that he became famous for his victories. By 1799, the French government was almost entirely emasculated and rendered impotent by a form of government known as the Directory, which had replaced the Terror five years earlier. It was basically government by committee and some politicians asked Napoleon to help them overthrow the government. They expected him to be a figurehead and easily controlled (b/c he was young and politically inexperienced). It of course did not work out that way.
As far as the empire, keep in mind that Napoleon did not start the wars. France had been at war with most of Europe since 1792 (7 years before Napoleon came to power). So I think it’s unfair to hold Napoleon responsible entirely for that. Having said that, he did have a special flair for it and did make numerous decisions which escalated the wars (like invading Spain, which became known as the Spanish Ulcer, and invading Russia, after giving up on invading England). So, yeah, Napoleon escalated the wars, but he wasn’t entirely responsible for them—not even close. In fact, the French were extracting tribute, forcing conscripts from Europe, and stealing art well before Napoleon came to power. Much of the art in the Louvre was stolen from Europe, especially Italy, well before Napoleon came to power.