Hi there, I'm Mr. Roberts, and thanks for joining me for today's history lesson where my job will be to guide you through our history resources.

I'll be making sure that by the end of today's lesson, you'll be able to securely meet our lesson objective.

In this lesson, we'll be examining "The Key Features of Napoleon's Reign." First as Consul of France and later as its emperor.

We will be looking at both the wars he was fighting outside of French territory as well as the legal reforms he made within French society.

With this in mind, by the end of today's lesson, you'll be able to securely describe Napoleon's impact on France and the wider world after 1799.

There are four key words that we need to keep in mind for our lesson today, and those four words are consulate, emperor, feudal, and coalition.

A Consulate is a government normally ruled by more than one Consul in a power-sharing arrangement.

An emperor is a ruler with absolute power, with control over an empire, which is usually a group of countries taken by conquest.

Feudal describes the old French social hierarchy where the king owned all land and distributed it to those below him, who did the same for those below them, in exchange for work, money, or service.

And a coalition is an alliance between countries against a common enemy.

Our lesson today is separated into three parts, and we're going to begin by looking at Napoleon's actions across the Atlantic in Saint-Domingue, known as Haiti, and America.

Our lesson today is separated into three parts, and we're going to begin by looking at Napoleon's actions across the Atlantic in Saint-Domingue, now known as Haiti, and in America.

In 1799, Napoleon seized control from the Directory in Paris and created a new form of government loosely based on the Roman Republic.

A group of politicians known as a Consulate would now supposedly govern under the command of three Consuls with Napoleon holding the most power as first Consul.

This was initially presented as a power-sharing arrangement.

However, Napoleon rapidly asserted his dominance and began to concentrate power into his own hands.

Napoleon had successfully created a military dictatorship where he had absolute power, a position very similar to the one King Louis XVI had held prior to the French Revolution over a decade earlier.

Now that we've set the scene for our learning today, we need to make sure it's been retained before we move on to the next part of our lesson.

On the screen, you can see a British cartoon from the time what we would call a contemporary cartoon, depicting the Napoleon on the left brandishing a sword, seizing power from the directory, the group on the right, in 1799.

Study the cartoon and answer the following true or false question based on your interpretation of the image.

True or false, this cartoon depicts the directory as fearful of Napoleon.

Pause the video while you come up with the answer and when you are ready to continue, return to this video and press play.

Welcome back and well done if you said the correct answer was true.

Now, let's justify how we came about with that answer, choose one of the following, A, there are cowardly expressions on the faces of the directory members and they are not fighting back.

Or B, it is not easy for a historian to work out the expressions on the faces of the directory members.

Once again, pause the video and return to it when you are happy with your answer.

Welcome back, and well done if you selected A as having the correct justification.

We can tell that this cartoon depicts the directory as fearful of Napoleon because there are cowardly expressions on their faces and they're not fighting back.

Napoleon quickly set his sights on reestablishing control over the French colony of Saint-Domingue in the Caribbean, modern day Haiti, but inspired by the French revolutionary ideas of freedom, equality, and togetherness, the free and enslaved peoples of the island had revolted against French rule in 1791.

Under the leadership of Toussaint Louverture, they had so far succeeded in freeing Saint-Domingue from French control.

A combination of Louverture's leadership, the spread of disease throughout French troops, and Napoleon's increasing attention on European conflicts meant he would ultimately fail to recapture the colony.

This failure put a dent in Napoleon's hopes of reestablishing a French empire in the Americas, and eventually he sold France's claim on much of its land in North America to the new United States of America.

Under the 1803 Louisiana Purchase Agreement, the United States paid $15 million for nearly 1 million square miles of land, including the great Mississippi River Basin and the crucial trade port of New Orleans.

Napoleon's sale of this land effectively doubled the size of the United States and would allow them further westward expansion, helping the USA to become a geographical and economic superpower.

It also signalled Napoleon's growing preference from this point onwards for securing his own position within Europe instead of attempting to grow the French Empire across the Atlantic.

Now let's check that we've secured some key information that we've just talked about.

Napoleon's agreement to the Louisiana purchase of 1803 signalled the beginning of the end of his interest in the Americas.

Which important port did it give America ownership over, a, New Jersey, b, New Orleans, or c, New York? Pause the video and select the correct answer.

When you are ready, press play to reveal the answer.

Welcome back, and well done if you said the correct answer was b.

New Orleans was the crucial port that America now had ownership of, thanks to the Louisiana Purchase of 1803.

Now, put the events below in chronological order, starting with labelling the earliest as number one.

Pause the video and press play when you are ready for the feedback.

Welcome back, and well done if you correctly identified the first event as Napoleon seizing power from the Directory, the second event as Napoleon attempting to reestablish French control over Saint-Domingue, and the third event being Napoleon selling nearly a million square miles of land in America to the USA known as the Louisiana Purchase.

Next, I'd like you to write a paragraph about these three events, giving as much detail as you can based on what we've been hearing about them in the lesson so far.

Pause the video while you complete this task and restart it when you are ready for a model answer.

Hello again, and well done for your efforts there.

There are lots of things you might have written but well done if your answer included any of the following.

In 1799, Napoleon seized power from the struggling Directory in France by using his soldiers to take over key institutions in Paris.

He attempted to reassert French control over Saint-Domingue between 1801 and 1803 but was ultimately unsuccessful due to a strong Haitian resistance and his own focus being more on Europe.

In 1803, Napoleon sold French territory in America to the United States, the Louisiana Purchase, securing funds for his military ambitions at home and ending his interest in the Americas.

Now, it's time to move on to the next part of our lesson today where we will be delving into Napoleon's subsequent legal reforms in France.

Despite setbacks, Napoleon still enjoyed popularity in France and had effectively concentrated all power into his own hands.

As a result, he declared himself emperor of the French.

Napoleon crowned himself at Notre-Dame Cathedral in Paris in 1804 with the Pope in attendance to bless the event which gave Napoleon the religious legitimacy he needed.

His coronation symbolised his transformation from revolutionary general to imperial monarch with powers similar to, if not even greater, than the French kings who had come before the revolution in 1789.

Now, I'd like you to use what you've just learned to complete the sentences below using two separate words.

Pause the video while you have a good think as to which words might complete the sentences, and then press play for the answers.

Hello again, and well done if your sentences looked like this.

Napoleon was still popular in France and had concentrated all power into his own hands.

And Napoleon declared himself Emperor and crowned himself at Notre-Dame Cathedral in Paris in 1804.

Napoleon promptly introduced the Code Napoleon, which replaced France's old feudal customs of the Ancien Regime with a modern legal framework.

For example, neither nobility nor clergy were any longer exempt from taxation.

In addition, ordinary French people now had the right to buy and sell property without the government or nobility interfering.

Women were also granted greater property and inheritance rights, although, these were still limited in comparison to those given to men.

Most importantly though, the Code Napoleon applied to all French citizens regardless of wealth or status of birth.

Now, every French citizen had the right to a fair trial, freedom of religion, and the right to property thanks to Emperor Napoleon.

There are now four option on the screen using what you now know about the Code Napoleon, which three new rights did it give every French citizen, a, the right to a fair trial, b, the right to buy goods from abroad, c, the right to practise religion freely, and d, the right to own property.

Pause the video while you consider these options and press play when you're ready for me to reveal the answers.

Welcome back, and well done if you said a, c, and d.

It is true to say that when the Code Napoleon was introduced, it did away with France's old feudal laws and gave every French person the right to a fair trial, the right to practise religion freely, and the right to own property.

Now, for a slightly more demanding task, but still a very straightforward one.

Sam says that "The Code Napoleon attempted to make life better for ordinary French citizens." Explain whether you agree with Sam's opinion based on what you've just learned.

Pause the video while you write your answer and then press play when you are ready for some feedback.

Hello again, and well done if your answer looked anything like this.

I agree with Sam's opinion to a great extent because the Code Napoleon updated France's laws, which were created in mediaeval times by the kings of France to help them maximise their own power.

Now, thanks to the Code Napoleon, every French person had the right to own property, the right to fair trial if accused of a crime, and the right to practise their religion freely without worrying that they will be persecuted for this.

This was an improvement because under France's feudal laws of the Ancien Regime, ordinary French people, the so-called Third Estate, had none of these rights.

And now it's time for us to move on to the final parts of our lesson today where we'll be exploring Napoleon's military success and the subsequent spread of French revolutionary ideas.

As Napoleon went from strength to strength at home, other European powers became increasingly fearful of his success and decided to ban together in a coalition or alliance.

This was the third time that European powers would ban together to stand up to Napoleon, and as such, it was named the Third Coalition.

It was formed in 1805 between Britain, Russia, and Austria.

Their aim was to contain Napoleon's power to France and maintain a balance of power across Europe.

The third coalition was initially successful.

For example, in the famous Battle of Trafalgar, where English Naval Admiral Nelson inflicted defeat upon the French Navy.

However, this was followed by a series of French victories over the Third Coalition, including the decisive Battle of Austerlitz in December, 1805 when Napoleon defeated both the Austrian and Russians leaving Britain to stand alone against Napoleon's ambition of ruling all of Europe.

Another quick learning check now.

True or false, the Third Coalition was an alliance against Napoleon.

Pause the video while you consider your answer and press play for the correct one to be revealed.

Welcome back, and well done if you said it was true.

Now, let's go a step further.

Was the Third Coalition an alliance of France, Britain, and Austria against Napoleon, or was the Third Coalition an alliance of Britain, Austria, and Russia against Napoleon? Pause the video and press play when you've come to a decision.

Welcome back, and congratulations if you said that the third coalition against Napoleon was b, an alliance of Britain, Austria, and Russia.

Towards the end of the 1790s, Napoleon had secured the lands of northern Italy for France to which he could now add parts of modern day Croatia and Slovenia thanks to the terms of the Austrian surrender in 1805.

His defeat of Prussia the following year in 1806 also now led to France controlling many German speaking territories.

Napoleon looked unstoppable by 1806 and he saw himself as a champion of the principles of the French Revolution, liberty, equality, and fraternity, exporting these to conquered territories through propaganda, public ceremonies, and political reform.

But this was a contradiction.

Napoleon was claiming to embody revolutionary values while simultaneously wielding the power of an absolute monarch, the very thing the original revolution aims to eliminate in France.

A final learning check now before our final written task.

Which three key principles of the French Revolution was Napoleon trying to spread to conquered territories, a, liberty, b, equality, c, conformity, or d, fraternity.

Pause the video while you select your three answers and then press play to check them.

Hello again, and well done if you said the correct answers were a, b, and d.

There are now three different opinions on the screen.

All three are historically valid, meaning that historians nowadays would be able to agree with all three to some extent, but what I would like to know is which of the three opinions you agree most with and why.

Opinion a states "Napoleon was mainly concerned with making himself dictator of France and making France the strongest country in Europe." Opinion b states, "Napoleon was mainly concerned with spreading French revolutionary ideas." And opinion c states, "Napoleon was mainly concerned with making life better for ordinary people." Remember that all three are historically valid opinions, but I'm interested in which interpretation of Napoleon's motives you agree with the most.

So pause the video and write a paragraph explaining which opinion you agree with the most and why, and then press play where I will be able to give you a model paragraph in support of each opinion.

Welcome back, and well done for the thought you put into that task.

I asked you which opinion you agree with the most and why based on your learning today.

You might have agreed with opinion a, in which case, well done if your answer sounded anything like this.

I agree most with option A, that Napoleon was mainly concerned with making himself dictator of France and making France the strongest country in Europe.

His military victories were mainly due to him wanting to expand his own empire, especially after he had made himself emperor of France and given himself absolute power.

His victory over the Third Coalition shows his desire to be the strongest and most powerful person in Europe.

You might though have agreed most with option b, in which case, well done if you included any of the following.

I agree with option b the most because I believe that Napoleon was mainly concerned with spreading French revolutionary ideas of freedom, equality, and togetherness.

He wanted to export these ideas to other countries so that he could ally with them instead of fight against them.

He worked with countries that had undergone revolutions, such as the USA, doing a deal with them and selling French land in America under the Louisiana Purchase in 1803.

Or you might have agreed most with the third opinion, in which case, well done if your answer sounds anything like this.

I agree most with option C, that Napoleon was mainly concerned with making life better for ordinary French people.

This is because one of the first things he did as France's leader was introduce the Code Napoleon, which improved women's rights and gave every French citizen more rights than they had had under the old feudal laws of the Ancien Regime.

These rights were the right to a fair trial, the right to practise religion freely, and the right to own property.

Really well done for all your efforts on that task, and hopefully, it gave you an insight into all the different things Napoleon was trying to achieve during his reign.

And with that, we've arrived at the end of today's lesson.

All that's left for us to do is to summarise what we've learned today.

We began by learning how Napoleon seized power in 1799, but failed to recapture Saint-Domingue.

We then saw how he completed the sale of the Louisiana Purchase in 1803, ending his ambition to grow the French Empire in the Americas.

We then explored how Napoleon made himself emperor of the French in 1804, took on absolute power, and introduced the Code Napoleon replacing France's feudal system with more modern laws.

We learned that Britain, France, and Russia formed the Third Coalition against France in 1805.

And finally, we learned that Napoleon went on to conquer much of Europe and exported French laws and ideals to those territories.

Thank you so much for all your effort in today's lesson.

It's been a pleasure to guide you through our resources.

And I look forward to seeing you again in future lessons where we'll be going into more depth on Britain's response to post-revolutionary France, specifically, about Britain's role in the Napoleonic Wars.