Napoleon (Part 1) - Birth of an Emperor (1768 - 1804)

Aug 9, 2023

Napoleon (Part 1) - Birth of an Emperor (1768 - 1804)

This video is part one of a three-part series on the history of Napoleon. Here, we cover the period from his birth until his nomination as the first Emperor of the french.
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Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/geohistory
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English translation \u0026 voiceover: Rahul Venkit https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCD1X…
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Original French version:    • Napoléon - La naissance d’un Empereur…
Russian version:    • [1/3] Наполеон - рождение Императора …
Arabic version:    • نابليون (الجزء الأول) - ولادة الإمبرا…
Spanish version:    • Historia de Napoleón (Parte 1) - El n…
Portuguese version (Brazil):
Japanese version:    • ナポレオンの人生第1章
German version:    • Napoleon - Geburt und Aufstieg eines …
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Music: Klondike - Audio Hertz (YouTube Library)
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Software used for editing: Adobe After Effects
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Chapter
00:00 Birth
00:46 French Revolution
01:41 European reactions
02:41 Siege of Toulon
04:00 Italian Campaign
04:58 War against Austria
06:01 Rise
06:58 French campaign in Egypt and Syria
08:01 Coup of 18 Brumaire
09:03 Reforms
09:52 The Emperor

Content

5.42 -> The story begins in 1768 in Corsica.

8.88 -> For centuries, the island was a Genoese possession.

12.4 -> But separatist revolts force Genoa to ask help from the French army.

16.869 -> In the end, the sovereignty of the island is ceded to France.

20.78 -> The following year, Napoleon Bonaparte is born into a noble family from Ajaccio.

26.6 -> He grows up with his seven brothers and sisters and when he turns 9,

30.58 -> is sent to the military school in Brienne, Champagne.

34.22 -> Napoleon, a good student, is admitted to the military academy in Paris

38.371 -> where he specializes in artillery.

41 -> The following year, at age 16, he is appointed second lieutenant of the artillery in Valence.

51.44 -> In France, the economic situation is catastrophic.

55.24 -> The Seven Years War and the American Revolutionary War have emptied the coffers of the country.

60.66 -> Louis XVI, struggling with the country’s financial difficulties,

64.46 -> summons to Versailles representatives of the clergy, the nobility and the Third Estate, that is the people,

70.8 -> to find a solution to the crisis.

73.34 -> After disagreements, Third Estate officials seize power by founding the National Assembly,

78.98 -> while in Paris, insurgents take over the royal fortress of Bastille.

83.42 -> The revolutionaries vote for ending feudal privileges

86.6 -> and adopt the Declaration of the Rights of the Man and of the Citizen.

90.5 -> King Louis XVI is then forcibly taken to Paris,

93.86 -> from where he later tries to flee with his family to a royalist stronghold.

98.64 -> But they are spotted and stopped on the way.

105.78 -> Initially, European monarchies remain mute about the French revolution,

110.04 -> seeing the weakening of their French competitor as a good thing.

113.78 -> But the arrest of Louis XVI make them fear that revolutionary ideas might spread

118.6 -> across the continent and threaten their thrones.

122.04 -> Prussia and Austria then combine forces to try and restore the French monarchy.

127.32 -> War breaks out, with the French armies in poor condition.

130.9 -> Facing the Allied army advance on Paris,

133.92 -> the revolutionaries panic and execute all opponents of the revolution.

138.34 -> But eventually an unexpected victory of the French army

141.88 -> pushes the coalition back beyond the country's borders.

145.4 -> The revolutionaries regain confidence and proclaim the Republic.

149.5 -> Louis XVI is then tried and guillotined, further angering European monarchies.

154.94 -> The coalition strengthens, while on the French side, conscriptions swell up the ranks of the army.

165.16 -> Within the country, clashes between royalist and counter-revolutionary forces cause civil wars.

171.28 -> Napoleon and his family, who support the revolution, are driven away by Corsican separatists.

177.22 -> In Toulon, royalists seize the city and receive the military support of Britain and Spain,

182.48 -> that enter the harbor of Toulon with their armies.

185.74 -> After the French army fails to retake the city,

188.6 -> Napoleon is summoned to replace the artillery commander who was injured.

193.06 -> Assessing the situation, he suggests a new plan.

196.42 -> Instead of attacking from the North, he proposes seizing the forts south of the harbor

201.16 -> to install his artillery and attack the allied fleet.

204.74 -> His plan proves successful, and the city is taken back in two days.

209.44 -> Napoleon’s decisive intervention earns him a promotion.

213.7 -> But in Paris, a new coup overthrows the government, and Napoleon loses his title.

218.92 -> A year later, a royalist revolt breaks out in Paris and he is put in-charge of quelling the rebellion,

225 -> giving him an opportunity to prove his loyalty for the new government.

229.44 -> He orders his men to fire on the crowd, killing 200 people and ending the insurgency.

235.26 -> As a reward, Napoleon is given command of the French army of Italy.

244.4 -> Before leaving Paris, Napoleon marries Josephine, with whom he had fallen madly in love.

249.94 -> She is the widow of a guillotined viscount and a mother of two.

254.26 -> Napoleon joins his army, which he finds in a poor state.

258.14 -> His men are poorly fed, badly equipped and no longer paid.

262.5 -> Napoleon would assume the role of their charismatic leader

265.54 -> and motivates his troops by promising them the riches of northern Italy.

270.08 -> At this time, two armies are stationed there, a Piedmontese army and an Austrian one.

276.76 -> Napoleon is outnumbered and knows that if both armies unite, he would have no chance.

282.28 -> His plan is to speedily advance his troops,

285.38 -> place them in between both armies, and fight them separately.

289.08 -> On April 10, he launches his attack.

292.24 -> The plan works and after a few battles, he defeats the Kingdom of Sardinia.

301.9 -> Reeling from the attack, the Austrian army retreats to Milan

305.56 -> and stations some troops along the Po river to prevent Napoleon from crossing.

310.82 -> Napoleon sends over a small part of his army as a diversion

314.64 -> while the bulk of his troops cross the river farther east.

318.46 -> This move threatens to break the Austrian line of communication,

322.22 -> thus isolating its army, which then withdraws from Milan without fighting and flees eastward.

328.6 -> For a year, Napoleon maintains an advantage thanks to his troops’ speedy movements,

333.12 -> and because Austrian forces divides itself into smaller armies.

337.24 -> Eventually, Napoleon’s army threatens Vienna, forcing the Emperor of Austria to seek an armistice.

343.88 -> Napoleon negotiates and himself signs the peace treaty.

347.5 -> He obtains the annexation of the Austrian Netherlands

350.78 -> and pushes the boundaries of the country to the Rhine.

353.86 -> Austria receives the Republic of Venice and recognizes the new Italian republics created by Napoleon.

365.06 -> Upon his return to Paris, Napoleon is welcomed as a hero.

368.88 -> The government now asks him to invade Britain, the last enemy of France.

373.98 -> But England has control over the seas and Napoleon is aware of the risk that this entails.

379.66 -> He instead suggests attacking Britain where they least expect it.

383.92 -> By seizing Egypt, he thinks he can threaten the important colony of India.

388.86 -> The government accepts the proposal, as for them this young general,

392.74 -> who is a bit too ambitious and influential, is less dangerous while he is on a mission.

398.66 -> Napoleon leaves from Toulon with hundreds of ships carrying a 40,000-man army.

404.56 -> Along the way, he captures Malta, while British Admiral Nelson,

408.36 -> not knowing Napoleon’s final destination, tries looking for him.

413 -> Nelson reaches Alexandria before Napoleon and continues searching for him northward.

422.32 -> Napoleon lands near Alexandria in the Ottoman province of Egypt.

426.7 -> He captures the city and then goes on further south.

430.26 -> At the gates of Cairo, he defeats the Mamluk army and seizes the city.

434.9 -> But in the north, British ships eventually find the French fleet and completely destroy it.

440.64 -> Napoleon and his army find themselves stuck in Egypt.

444.54 -> This information spreads in Europe and leads to the creation of a second anti-French coalition

450.18 -> joined by the Ottoman Empire.

452.82 -> Napoleon then goes back to the east, seizing towns along the way, and begins the siege of Acre.

458.88 -> But the Ottoman resistance, supported by the British, prevents the city from being captured.

464.5 -> Napoleon then hears that the British are preparing for the landing of an Ottoman army in Alexandria.

470.72 -> He leaves to fight them and wins the battle with the last soldiers he had available.

475.86 -> Hearing about the complicated situation in France, he travels alone, leaving behind his army.

486.46 -> When he reaches France, the situation is tense.

489.9 -> Austrian and Russian armies retake Northern Italy, while Paris suffers from political instability.

496.3 -> Napoleon, supported by the people and the army,

499.64 -> involves himself in a coup and is named as First Consul for the following 10 years.

505.38 -> He is now head of the country and can reform it at will.

509.32 -> He consolidates power and prepares a new army to reconquer the North of Italy.

514.74 -> To Austria’s surprise, he crosses the Great St Bernard Pass,

518.54 -> usually deemed impassable, and wins a battle against the Austrians.

523.28 -> A second victory further north eventually defeats the empire.

527.7 -> Within months, a peace treaty was signed by all European powers,

531.48 -> including the UK, their arch enemy.

534.48 -> In France, Napoleon put an end to 10 years of revolutions and instability

539.38 -> and is rewarded with the title of lifelong Consul.

547.28 -> Napoleon takes advantage of peacetime to reform the country.

551.08 -> He reforms the administration, economy, and education.

555.06 -> He begins writing the Civil Code and completely restructures the country's army.

560.08 -> Beyond France, he continues with his expansionist and interventionist policy by redrawing boundaries at will,

566.64 -> which angers other powers, especially the United Kingdom for whom France is too big a risk.

572.64 -> Aware of the situation, Napoleon sells Louisiana to the United States to finance future wars

578.7 -> and to prevent the territory from falling into the hands of the British.

582.84 -> War resumes, but the UK cannot afford to attack France on its territory

587.24 -> and instead decides to focus on diplomatic efforts to rally other powers.

596.78 -> Napoleon, who narrowly escaped an attack, knows his live is in danger.

601.56 -> He tries to sustain the new French model by creating an empire,

605.64 -> hoping that the revolutionary values remain strong, even if he were to die.

610.7 -> On December 2nd, 1804, Napoleon becomes the emperor,

614.5 -> and crowns himself and his wife Josephine in Notre Dame de Paris.

619.3 -> He implements a more authoritarian regime.

622.28 -> From a military standpoint, he makes Spain go to war against the United Kingdom

626.6 -> because he needs its military fleet.

629.16 -> Having now brought together enough armies along the Channel,

632.54 -> Napoleon is ready to invade the United Kingdom.

Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2eY4gmndO3g