Napoleon is considered by many to be the most brilliant military figure in history. While he led France, it is an accident of history that Napoleon became a Frenchman. Napoleon was born on Corsica, an island that had been controlled first by the Italian city-state of Genoa and later by France. Napoleon's father was a leader in the Corsican resistance first to Genoa, then to France. Three months before Napoleon's birth, the Corsican resistance lost and the island became a part of France. Most resistance leaders fled to England, but Napoleon's father remained in Corsica and became a French citizen. 

     Napoleon was educated in France and entered the military. He taunted by the other soldiers because of his size --he was short -- and because of his Corsican accent. Nonetheless, Napoleon completed his military training very quickly and instant became an important military leader. 

     Napoleon supported the French Revolution but was briefly jailed during the Reign of Terror. France had been at war with Austria because many of the European nations feared the French Revolution would spread to their nations. Napoleon defeated Austria in 1797 and made northern Italy a French possession. 

A Hero
 

     Napoleon became a hero in France as his army swept through Europe. In 1799, he became the "First Consul" of France. The French government had been in disarray since the beginning of the Revolution, but under Napoleon, order and regularity were returned to all parts of the government. Napoleon restored relations with the Roman Catholic Church, balanced the French budget and developed a fair tax structure. 

     Napoleon was considered a huge success as a leader of France and as a military leader. In 1802, the French named Napoleon "Consul for Life," and in 1804, Napoleon crowned himself Emperor of France. 

     Napoleon conquered most of continental Europe, but could not win England. The superior British navy had defeated France in almost every battle. France retained the greatest army in Europe, but England had the greatest Navy. As Napoleon conquered European other nations, he put his relatives in control. Napoleon name himself king of Italy while his brothers became kings in Spain, Holland and Westphalia (now part of Germany). 

Russia, Elba, Waterloo and St. Helena
 

     Napoleon launched an invasion of Russia in 1812. Russia did not have a strong army, so they retreated. When Napoleon reached the Russian capital of Moscow, the city was empty. What seemed like a victory wasn't because Napoleon's army was not prepared for the cold Russian winter. Freezing, hungry and more than a thousand miles from home, the allied nations of Europe defeated Napoleon in 1813. King Louis XVIII was named King of France. There was no Louis XVII because he had been beheaded with his parents. 

     Napoleon had been exiled to Elba, an island in the Mediterranean, where was given sovereign power. In 1815, Napoleon returned to France. The people greeted him as a returning hero. Louis XVIII fled and Napoleon marched his army into Paris. The European nations again joined together to defeat Napoleon. The end of his "Hundred Day Return" ended in June 1815 in the Battle of Waterloo. This time, Napoleon was exiled to the tiny island of St. Helena, far off the coast of Africa where he lived for another six years before dying of cancer.