Napoléon Bonaparte: A Heartless Ruler Or A Great Influence

Napoléon Bonaparte: A Heartless Ruler or a Great Influence
Napoléon Bonaparte is seen by most as a butcher or a heartless dictator, but seldom do they remember the positive changes that Napoléon himself brought towards the world. Napoléon was an emperor who conquered lands and ultimately lost them in the end, hence the downfall of Napoléon. Napoléon is remembered as one of the greatest military conquerors in history (Napoleon I, 2004), but people have forgotten the side of him that has influenced and changed Europe. Napoléon has contributed and influenced, directly or indirectly, many of Europe’s culture in science, government, and even the arts. Without Napoléon, our world history would have been completely different than what it is today.

His Enlightenment ideas entailed of human rights, equality and citizenship. He constructed a new constitution and civil code reflecting the achievements of the Revolution: “popular sovereignty, trial by jury, equality before the law, a citizen army, freedom of religion, abolition of feudal privileges, and freedom of the press. He introduced financial reforms and further centralized the administration of France” (Keithly).
Due to the equality of citizens under Napoléon’s laws, he has also abolished many of the of laws that restricted the Jews to the ghettos and their restrictions on worshipping, praying, rights to property, and careers. Napoléon built the Grand Sanhedrin where he invited delegates of the Jews to attend to talk about their rights and laws.
"My primary desire was to liberate the Jews and make them full citizens. I wanted to confer upon them all the legal rights of equality, liberty and fraternity as was enjoyed by the Catholics and Protestants. It is my wish that the Jews be treated like brothers as if we were all part of Judaism. As an added benefit, I thought that this would bring to France many riches because the Jews are numerous and they would come in large numbers to our country where they would enjoy more privileges than in any other nation.” –Napoléon Bonaparte

Under the French rule, the small states of what would soon have been Germany wanted to be free from Napoléon’s influence and rule. After the fall of Napoléon, these states were united and called Germany based on the balance of power.
The Napoleonic Code As the Enlightenment ideas spread across Europe, Napoléon established the civil code (which was discussed earlier) which became known as the Napoleonic Code. It was used in Italy, the Netherlands, Belgium, Spain, Portugal and their former colonies. This civil code abolished many old feudal laws for equality. As Napoléon conquered more land, the more he established his civil code, which spread his code out. This civil code became the basis of the future laws that came to pass.
Napoléon and The Legion of Honour
Napoléon also helped establish the Legion of Honour, which was used to reward citizens who had the highest military and civil merits. This institution is still alive today and has rewarded more than 94,800 people in 2014.
Napoléon and the Metric