Napoleon rise to power Flashcards
When was the coup of Brumaire
9/10 November 1799
Why was the coup successsful
- roles of Sieyes and Napoleon
- state of public opinion towards the end of 1799
- disillusionment with the directory
- support of property owning class
- political apathy
- role of the army
- contribution of Lucien
Disillusionment with the directory
directory tolerated rather than accepted
confronted by wide range of opposition from both royalists ad extreme republicans to Catholics and property owners- failed to quash opponents
The support of the property owning classes
The property was mainly acquired by two groups of people:
-existing property owners including large landowners and wealthy urban bourgeoise, who bought up the biens nationaux
-rural peasants and small farmers
many of them feared that Jacobin revival or Bourbon restoration would result in a government seizure of their recent acquisitions- believed either of these might happen under the weak directory
Political Apathy
political apathy had settled down heavily over France during the directory after the great upheavals of the early years of the revolution
even became difficult to persuade candidates to come forward for election as local officials
when coup came there was little political reaction- appeared at first to be another of the directory’s temporary manoeuvres
The role of the army
by 1799 the use of the army in civilian politics had become an accepted fact
put the Paris garrison of 8000 or so under Napoleon’s command
Napoleon v popular amongst the soldiers- treated the Army of Italy well and enjoyed many victories
Coup could not have been carried out without the intimidating presence of the army at Saint-Cloud nor without its help in dispersing the opposition members of the 500
Contribution of Lucien and support among the Ancients and the 500
no real opposition raised to moving councils to Saint-Cloud thereby allowing the coup to take place in relative seclusion
without Lucien’s decisive action his brother’s bid for power would have ended prematurely almost certainly in death, shot as an outlaw
When did the new constitution come into force
25 December 1799
Features of the new constitution
- electoral system provided for universal suffrage BUT suffrage too indirect to fulfil the idea of popular sovereignty
- about 6 million Frenchmen named as voters on the commune registers in 1799
- senate chose members of the tribunate and the legislature from list of notables
- senate nominated by the first consul
- council nominated all major central and local government officials and initiated all legislation
How did the voting system work
6 million men chose 10% of their number to form a communal list (as far as direct vote went)
these 600,000 chose 10% of their number to form a departmental list- they in turn selected 6,000 to form a national list (notables)
How were the legislative bodies divided
two legislative bodies:
- Tribunate of 100 members aged 25 or more who could discuss legislation but not vote on it
- Legislature of 300 members aged 30 or more who could vote on legislation by secret ballot but not discuss it
What powers did the first consul have
- controlled government appointments made and unmade ministers whom he closely supervised and to whom he allowed no freedom of action
- he initiated all legislation through the council of state or the senate
- he declared war and made peace
What was the nature of the Plebiscite of 1800
electors given month to vote in their communes for or against the constitution BUT ballot was not secret as voters just wrote yes or no against their names on an open list
What was the result of the 1800 Plebiscite
3 million in favour and 1562 against
What was the nature of the plebscite in 1802
voting for against Napoleon’s consulship for life
