A short biography of Napoleon Bonaparte. Interesting facts from the biography of Napoleon Bonaparte

A brief biography of Napoleon Bonaparte for children and adults, presented in this article, will surely interest you. The name of this great commander has long become a household name not only because of his talent and mind, but also because of his incredible ambitions, and also the dizzying career that he managed to make.

The biography of Napoleon Bonaparte is marked by the rapid rise of his military career. Entering the service at the age of 16, he became a general at the age of 24. And the emperor was at the age of 34 Napoleon Bonaparte. Interesting facts from the biography of the French commander are numerous. Among his skills and peculiarities there were also very extraordinary. They say that he read with incredible speed - about 2 thousand words per minute. In addition, the French emperor Napoleon Bonaparte could sleep for 2-3 hours a day for a long time. Interesting facts from the biography of this man, we hope, aroused your interest in his personality.

Events in Corsica, preceded the birth of Napoleon

Napoleon Bonaparte, the French emperor, was born on August 15, 1769. He was born on the island of Corsica, in the city of Ajaccio. The biography of Napoleon Bonaparte probably would have been different if the political situation of that time had been different. His native island for a long time was in the possession of the Genoa Republic, but in 1755 Corsica overthrew the rule of Genoa. After that, for several years she was an independent state ruled by Pasquale Paola, a local landowner. Carlo Buonaparte (his portrait is presented below), the father of Napoleon, served as his secretary.

The Genoa republic in 1768 sold France the right to Corsica. A year later, after the local rebels defeated the French troops, Pasquale Paola moved to England. Napoleon himself was not directly involved in these events and even their witness, since he was born only after 3 months. Nevertheless, Paole's personality played a big role in shaping his character. For a long 20 years, this man became the idol of such a French commander as Napoleon Bonaparte. Biography for children and adults Bonaparte, presented in this article, continues with a story about its origin.

The Origin of Napoleon

Laetitia Ramalino and Carlo Buonaparte, the parents of the future emperor, were small noblemen. The family had 13 children, of whom the second most senior was Napoleon. However, even in his childhood, five of his sisters and brothers died.

The father of the family was one of the ardent supporters of Corsica's independence. He participated in the drafting of the Corsican Constitution. But for the sake of his children to be educated, he began to show loyalty to the French. After a while, Carlo Buonaparte even became a representative of the nobility of Corsica in the French parliament.

Education in Ajaccio

It is known that Napoleon, as well as his sisters and brothers, received primary education in the city school of Ajaccio. After that, the future emperor began to study mathematics and writing from a local abbot. Carlo Buonaparte as a result of interaction with the French managed to get royal grants for Napoleon and Joseph, his elder brother. Joseph had to make a career as a priest, and Napoleon - to become a military man.

Cadet School

The biography of Napoleon Bonaparte continues already in Otien. It was here that the brothers left in 1778 to learn French. Napoleon entered a year later in the cadet school in Brienne. He excellently studied, showed a special talent in mathematics. In addition, Napoleon liked to read books on various topics - philosophy, history, geography. Favorite favorite characters of the future emperor were Julius Caesar and Alexander of Macedon. However, at this time of friends with Napoleon was not much. This played a role as Corsican origin and accent (Napoleon and could not get rid of it), and the propensity for solitude and complex character.

Death of the father

Later, he continued his studies at the Royal Cadet School. Napoleon terminated it ahead of time in 1785. At the same time his father died, and he had to take his place as head of the family. The elder brother was not suitable for this role, since he did not differ in leadership inclinations, like Napoleon.

Military career

Napoleon Bonaparte began his military career in Valence. The biography, the summary of which is the subject of this article, continues exactly in this city, located in the center of the Rhone lowland. Here Napoleon served as a lieutenant. After a while he was transferred to Oxonne. The future emperor at that time read a lot, and also tried his hand at the literary field.

Napoleon Bonaparte's military biography, it can be said, received a large scale in the decade that followed the graduation from the Cadet School. In just 10 years, the future emperor was able to complete the hierarchy of ranks in the French army of that time. In 1788, the future emperor tried to enter the service and the Russian army, but he was denied this.

Napoleon met the French Revolution in Corsica, where he was on vacation. He accepted and supported her. Moreover, Napoleon was noted as an excellent commander during the Thermidorian coup. He was made a brigadier general, and then commander of the Italian army.

Marriage of Josephine

An important event in Napoleon's personal life took place in 1796. It was then that he married the widow of the Count Josephine Beauharnais.

The beginning of the "Napoleonic wars"

Napoleon Bonaparte, whose full biography is represented in an impressive volume of books, was recognized as the best French commander after inflicting a crushing defeat on the enemy in Sardinia and Austria. It was then that he rose to a new level, beginning the "Napoleonic wars." They lasted almost 20 years, and it was thanks to them that such a commander as Napoleon Bonaparte, the biography became known to the whole world. A brief outline of the further path to world glory that he has traversed is the following.

The French Directory was unable to maintain the achievements that the revolution brought. This became evident in 1799. Napoleon, along with his army was at this time in Egypt. After his return, he dispersed the Directory thanks to the support of the people. November 19, 1799 Bonaparte proclaimed the regime of the consulate, and five years later, in 1804, declared himself emperor.

Domestic policy of Napoleon

Napoleon Bonaparte, whose biography has already been marked by numerous achievements, decided in his domestic policy to focus on strengthening his own power, which was to serve as a guarantee of the civil rights of the French population. In 1804, for this purpose, the Code of Napoleon was adopted - the code of civil rights. In addition, tax reform was implemented, and a French bank owned by the state was established. The French education system was created precisely under Napoleon. Catholicism was recognized as the religion of the majority of the population, but freedom of religion was not abolished.

The economic blockade of England

England was the main opponent of France's industry and capital in the European market. This country financed military operations against it on the continent. England attracted to its side major European powers, such as Austria and Russia. Thanks to a number of French military operations carried out against Russia, Austria and Prussia, Napoleon was able to annex lands to his country that previously belonged to Holland, Belgium, Italy and Northern Germany. The defeated countries had no choice but to conclude peace with France. Napoleon declared the economic blockade of England. He banned trade relations with this country. However, this measure also hit the French economy. France could not replace English products on the European market. It was not in a position to foresee Napoleon Bonaparte. A brief biography in the abbreviation should not dwell on this in detail, so we will continue our story.

Decrease in authority, the birth of an heir

The economic crisis and protracted wars led to a decrease in the authority of Napoleon Bonaparte among the French who had previously supported him. In addition, it turned out that France is not threatened, and Bonaparte's ambitions are due only to the care of the state of his dynasty. In order to leave the heir, he divorced from Josephine, because she could not give him a child. In 1810, Napoleon married Marie-Louise, the daughter of the Emperor of Austria. In 1811 the long-awaited heir was born. However, the public did not approve of marriage with a woman from the Austrian royal family.

The war with Russia and the reference to the Elbe

In 1812, decided to start a war with Russia, Napoleon Bonaparte, whose brief biography largely thanks to this interests many of our compatriots. Like other states, Russia at one time supported the blockade of England, but did not aspire to observe it. This step became fatal for Napoleon. Defeated, he abdicated. The former French emperor was sent to the island of Elba, located in the Mediterranean Sea.

The revenge of Napoleon and the final defeat

In France, after the abdication of Bonaparte, the representatives of the Bourbon dynasty returned, as well as their heirs, who sought to regain their position and fortune. This caused discontent among the population. Napoleon on February 25, 1815, fled from the Elbe. He returned triumphantly to France. In one article only a very brief biography of Napoleon Bonaparte can be presented. So let's just say that he resumed the war, but France could not bear this burden any more. Napoleon was finally defeated at Waterloo, after 100 days of revenge. This time he was exiled to the link to St. Helena, which is much further than the former, so it was more difficult to escape from it. Here the former emperor spent the last 6 years of his life. He never saw his wife and son again.

Death of the former emperor

The state of health of Bonaparte began to deteriorate rapidly. He died on May 5, 1821, presumably from cancer. According to another version, Napoleon was poisoned. Very popular is the view that the former emperor was given arsenic. But were they poisoned? The fact is that Napoleon was afraid of this and voluntarily took small doses of arsenic, trying in this way to develop immunity to it. Of course, such a procedure would certainly have ended tragically. Be that as it may, today it is impossible to say with absolute certainty why Napoleon Bonaparte died. A brief biography of him, presented in this article, ends here.

It must be added that he was buried first on St. Helena, but in 1840 his remains were reburied in Paris, in the House of Invalides. The monument on the grave of the former emperor is made from Karelian porphyry, which was presented to the French government by Nicholas I, the Russian emperor.