We chart the sequence of events that followed the French Revolution and saw the emergence of one of history’s most feared – and revered – leaders
WORDS: DANNY BIRD
APR 1792
▼ Three years into the French Revolution, France’s Legislative Assembly declares war on Austria and Prussia, fearing they will launch an invasion in a bid to restore the absolute monarchy of Louis XVI. A loose coalition of European powers is eventually formed in opposition to France, marking the start of the French Revolutionary Wars.
21 SEP 1792
The French Republic is proclaimed by France’s new government, the National Convention. The deposed Louis XVI and his consort, Marie Antoinette, are executed by guillotine the following year.
1796–97
▼ Napoleon Bonaparte, then a relatively unknown commander, rises to prominence during France’s successful Italian campaign.
1798
A second coalition of European powers sets out to defeat France, a year after the first fails to achieve its objectives.
Meanwhile, Napoleon leads an expedition to Egypt in a bid to establish a new French empire and obstruct Britain’s access to India.
9–10 NOV 1799
◀ Napoleon overthrows France’s new government, the Directory, in a coup later dubbed the Coup de 18 Brumaire. He replaces it with a body known as the Consulate and declares himself first consul of the French Republic.
14 JUN 1800
▼ Napoleon consolidates his political position by winning a victory over the Austrians at the battle of Marengo in northern Italy.
27 MAR 1802
▲ The Treaty of Amiens brings the French Revolutionary Wars to an end.
18 MAY 1803
Napoleon’s refusal to strike a trade deal with Britain leads to the latter’s withdrawal from the Treaty of Amiens. King George III declares war on France, laying the foundations for a third coalition of anti-French powers to form. The Napoleonic Wars begin.
MAY 1804
▲ Following the exposure of a failed assassination plot, Napoleon decides to further consolidate his rule by declaring himself ‘Emperor of the French’. In December, he is crowned in a lavish ceremony at Notre-Dame Cathedral.
SEP 1812
▼ The Russian and French armies clash at Borodino on 7 September, resulting in some 77,000 casualties. Seven days later Napoleon enters Moscow, only for the city to be set ablaze by the Russians. A breakdown in supplies later forces him to retreat amid deadly, wintry conditions.
24 JUN 1812
After amassing an enormous multinational army of more than 600,000 men, Napoleon crosses the Niemen River and invades Russia in retaliation for St Petersburg’s reneging on the Continental System.
APR 1809
▲
