Causes of Napoleon's Fall, An Analysis:

Content:-

1. continental system
2. Peninsular War
3. Moscow campaign
4. Napoleon's responsibility for stubborn policies

As wonderful as the story of Napoleon Bonaparte's rise is, the history of his fall also evokes some wonder. He started life as a minor bowler. And ended his political career as Emperor of France. But there was no king in his body. Without monarchical tradition, the monarchist of the French nation was able to become emperor only through indomitable morale, energy and a sound assessment of the situation. Between 1799 and 1807, England defeated the major powers of Europe and became the undisputed hero of almost all of Europe. But the downfall began soon after. From the lofty pinnacle of glory he fell little by little into the abyss of failure.

Generally speaking, boundless ambition and overconfidence were largely responsible for his downfall. His continued success in his rise in life, rising from simple gunner to one of the generals of France and finally to first consul to the emperor's prince.

His confidence was so overshadowed that he forgot the 'Midway caution' in the words of Marshall Foch, "Napoleon forgot that man cannot be God and that the individual is above the nation and the whole human race." There are moral rules. He also forgot that war is not the ultimate goal, the power of peace is greater than war.” (Arrogance came from overconfidence. Because of arrogance, Napoleon could no longer trust anyone. Truthful or forthright. He could not tolerate advisers. Chaptal, one of his advisers, lamented, “He (Napoleon) did not want advisers, servants. "("He wanted valets, not councillors."), Metternich, the Austrian ambassador to France, commented on Napoleon's arrogance, "At one point, restraint was merely an unnecessary obstacle to Napoleon." That is, at a time in his life, Napoleon forgot normal behavior and sense of reality. He brought about his downfall.

Ambitiously, he was drawn to the ideals of Julius Caesar or Alexander's world conquest (the French empire no longer satisfied him. He wanted to be the emperor of Europe. He dreamed of re-establishing the Holy Roman Empire and assuming the title of 'Emperor of Rome'. But he did not want to realize that , the specter of the Holy Roman Empire after the success of events like the American War of Independence or the French Revolution was not only unrealistic but ridiculous. So he could not celebrate himself after 1802. He could have held a seat of honor in Europe with the Treaty of Amiens in mind, but he did so. Couldn't, plunged into the European war, which ultimately made his downfall inevitable.

unlimited

Ambition and impracticality precipitated Napoleon's downfall, but these apparent causes alone cannot explain the failure of so great an empire or genius. There were several fundamental reasons for his downfall. Inherent weaknesses or limitations in empire and governance made Napoleon's downfall inevitable. (He was not one kingdom after another by military might. Napoleon himself said, "My rule at home and abroad included the empire by removing the basis of authority. The people feared this empire, loyalty was 'fear' ("Abroad and at home / reign only through the fear Inspire. "). But it is only through intimidation that a limited number of people can be kept in subjection for a time. To keep a large number of people in subjection for a long time requires obedience. But that was not the case with Napoleon. As Napoleon himself said, "Permanent success is achieved by animal power. No" ("Brute force has never attained anything durable. "). Indeed

David Pramson states that "The Napoleonic Empire was doomed because of its inherent and self-defeating contradictions." The Napoleonic Empire was the spread of revolution in Europe. He ascended the seat of liberator, ending medieval inequality and exploitation of the newly conquered countries. He established a republic in the conquered territories and established a system of governance. But Napoleon soon replaced the Republic .

Introduced monarchical rule in the states He again endeavored to bind them with the chains of despotism. This contradiction incited the masses against his empire. Within a few days it became clear to the people of Europe that the goal of all Napoleon's actions was to serve the interests of France. At the time of issuing the Continental, he himself said, "My policy is France before all. One-sidedness could not be tolerated forever by nations like Italy or Germany. Bur

The foundations of the empire were weakened. An example of the contradictions of Napoleon's empire is the conflict between nationalism and autocracy. Napoleon helped to awaken the national consciousness by bringing together various isolated and conflicting ethnic groups into one regime, one meaningful society. The liberality of the revolution infused optimism among the B nations. But Napoleon's "symbol of revolution" aimed at establishing new autocracies in the newly conquered states. Peter Gale complains that Napoleon never cared about the wishes and desires of his subordinates. He was not at all interested in knowing what people wanted. His aim was to increase the glory of his family Naturally the nationalistic populace rose against his family dictatorship which hastened the decline of the empire. Hot

Another reason for Napoleon's failure was the administrative defects of the empire. Governance was highly centralized and individualistic. As a result of hypercentrism, the entire system collapses as the central power collapses. Lack of infrastructure for problem solving at the local level made it easy for regionalism to spread against the centre, while this purely imperial regime did not build a worthy legacy. As a result, if Napoleon's personal mistakes or laxity hit the foundation of the empire, along with Napoleon's physical and mental depression, the speed of the empire also slowed down.

The French army, indoctrinated in revolutionary ideals, fought with a sense of loyalty to country and nation. With the help of this force, Napoleon was unstoppable. But as Sattar grew, his army included people of various nationalities. As a result, the character of the army is weakened. Among these multinational forces was professionalism, not national loyalty. Dispositions loosened the skills of the army and led to failure.

Thus inherent flaws and weaknesses kept Napoleon's empire in a state of instability from the very beginning. After 1807, blinded by his power, he undertook a series of violent and suicidal programs. In 'Autobiography' he himself admits that several wrong decisions like the Great Siege, Spanish War etc. led to his downfall. The continental blockade originated in a blind resistance to the invincible England. In the words: 'Nation of traders, manufactures and shopkeepers', he planned a continental blockade to financially ruin England. But this ambitious and unrealistic plan failed; From here Parbhu was involved in several battles like the Spanish War, the Moscow campaign and the occupation of the kingdom of Spain.

In 1804, Napoleon moderated the outbreak of Catholic religious sentiment by signing the 'Reconciliation Pact' with the Pope. This is indicative of his foresight. But in 1808 he declared himself an 'enemy of religion' by abandoning the papacy and enslaving the pope. His anti-Catholicism led to a religious revival. This event loosened the foundations of his empire, albeit slightly.

The occupation of Spain was a blatant example of Napoleon's arrogance and imperialism. He was labeled a 'traitor' by occupying an ally for no reason. It was here that he first encountered the collective will of a nation. Napoleon thought it possible to defeat the peace of mind by force of arms. But it was not possible. All his plans failed in the face of strong resistance from the Spanish entity. Engaging in a long and exhausting war in Spain, he depleted the treasury, army, manpower, etc. of France. Again his failure in Spain quickly infected the other nations under the empire, and raised a powerful opposition to his despotism.

Another example of Napoleon's imprudence and recklessness is the Moscow campaign. Because he could have fought with all his might on the western front if Russia had been an ally. But by attacking Russia in the pretense of power, he was simultaneously involved in the war on the eastern and western fronts. Not only that, his history of defeat in this case was also shameful. He was defeated by Russian maneuvers and destroyed a large army and vast sums of money in a no-nonsense war. His 'Grand Army' was completely shattered. The grief of this defeat made him almost a past figure at home and abroad. This failure of the invincible Grand Army paved the way for the Liberation War.

The distinctive and characteristic tactics of Napoleon's army in the early wars of Austria Prussia and England were stifled, the latter could not. Because of the constant war with the French forces, the forces of other countries also learned Napoleon's tactics or discovered strategies to counter him. The constant opposition of England, the weakness of French forces in naval warfare, the combined opposition and war of the great European powers, and many other factors, combined with the inherent defects and weaknesses of Napoleon's empire, made his downfall inevitable.