Napoleon Bonaparte was a military general that was appointed the role of constitutional monarch due to his success on the battlefield. He won the wars between France and the forces of Austria and Prussia. Through the appointment of the monarch position, Napoleon brought much success to France during its revolution, such as the introduction of the Napoleonic code, a more centralized system of education, along with an efficient method of tax collection.
The Napoleonic code was introduced by Napoleon in 1804; it created laws to ensure the stability of French people. This code protected civil liberties, granted citizen’s rights, granted freedom of religion and guaranteed equality for all in the eyes of the law.This proves that the Napoleonic code benefited the French people in many ways, as they were granted new rights to practice religion and equality. Napoleon’s code created stability and peace for the French people over the span of many years. Due to this success, the Napoleonic code was used as an example. By 1960 over 70 different states either modeled their own laws after them or adopted them verbatim. Napoleon’s code was used as example due to its proclamation for equality and freedom of religion for the people. Along with the Napoleonic code, Napoleon also introduced a more centralized system of education.
Napoleon desired to improve education in France by centralizing the control over each branch and facilitating the basic necessities for a solid educational foundation. Napoleon wanted control of what was being taught, as he declared, “No school, no educational institution of any kind shall be permitted or established without the authorization of the emperor.” Being a clever leader, Napoleon knew if he controlled what was being taught, no flaws would exist amongst the future generations. As a tenacious advocate, “Education is essential to build and guide the morals and political ideas of the next generation.” Napoleon knew that without the correct education for the future generations, the empire would crumble to a hollow, powerless nation, without a successful political leader. The importance of education was equivalent to an efficient method of tax collection in France.
Napoleon set the standard for fair and proper tax collection in the French society, benefiting the citizens of the third estate which represented most of the population. Prior to Napoleon’s rule, the first two estates would not pay their fair share of taxes, depending on the third estate to contribute more money. When Napoleon came to the throne, he abolished the old system of tax payment and created a new, fair, and stable method in which all the estates paid the proportional amount of tax. The introduction of this system also increased Napoleon’s popularity amongst the commonfolk which benefited his political leader reputation. The tax system was rightfully set as one of Napoleon's priorities due to all of the benefits it accumulated.
To reiterate, Napoleon was seen as a hero of the French revolution due to his many successes. These included the Napoleonic code, a controlled system of education and a stable method of tax collection. His set of law codes established equality and freedom, the controlled education prepared incoming generations for the future, and his method of tax collection proved to create fairness and efficiency for all. Napoleon Bonaparte led the French people out from the dark ages of a revolution through the implementation of his witty ideas and well rounded leadership qualities.
