Peyton Lassiter

Flamenbaum
French
1 December 2014
Napoleon III
Napoleon III was born April 20, 1808 in Paris but grew
up in exile. He was the nephew of Napoleon Bonaparte
Napoleon III first tried to distinguish himself as a leader
by writing political and military pieces. He even tried
several coup dtats, and he was exiled. Napoleon III was
elected President in 1850, and he was made Emperor in 1852.
He served as Emperor of the Second Republic until 1870.
Napoleon III was captured in the Franco-Prussian War. He
was dethroned and sent to England. He later died there in
1873.
Napoleon III published a booklet called Des ides
napoloniennes. He tried to mold Bonapartism into a
political ideology. In his booklet, the Naploeonic ideal
was put forth as a social and industrial one, humanitarian
and encouraging trade that would reconcile order and
freedom, the rights of the people and the principles of
authority.
Napoleon III returned to France after the French
Revolution of 1848. Napoleon III decided to run for the

Presidency. He used his ancestral name to win favor in

France because it brought back the ideas of Napoleon I and
French glory. Napoleon III also appealed to every social
group by assuring them improvement in their interest.
Napoleon III won 75% of the vote and became the President
of the Second Republic in 1848. Under Francess new
constitution, the President could not run for a second
term. As a result, Napoleon III seized dictatorial powers.
He disbanded the Assembly and created a new constitution.
In 1852, Napoleon III was officially declared Emperor of
France.
Napoleon III used propaganda to his advantage to keep
popular support in favor of him. He declared that he would
take the initiative to do everything useful for the
prosperity and the greatness of France. He improved the
construction of railroads, which helped industries, and he
encouraged more public works. He even wanted the
reconstruction of a modern Paris, and he promoted French
inventors. To keep popular support, Napoleon III lowered
the price for bread and ensured better living conditions
for workers.
Napoleon II tried to revive French nationalism by
making France a world power and by dissolving the European
System. Napoleon thought public opinion was more important

than the success of armies. With the Crimean War, brought

the opportunity of Napoleon III allying with Great Britain.
France and Great Britain were successful in halting Russian
expansion to the Mediterranean. With France being
victorious in the war, nationalism increased and Frances
influence in Europe also increased. Napoleon saw France
under threat from the growing Prussian Empire. Napoleon
wanted to spread and protect French nationalism so he went
to war with Prussia. In the End, Napoleon III was
ultimately defeated, and he was captured and deported to
England where he later died.
Napoleon III had success in achieving nationalism. He
improved the lives of the French people, and he won the
Crimean War. Unfortunately, Frances economy was crumbling
and this caused unrest from citizens. Also, Napoleons
defeat in the Franco-Prussian War dissolved any hope for
strong, united nationalism in France.

Works Consulted
Goyau, Georges. "Napoleon III." The Catholic Encyclopedia.
Vol. 10. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1911. 8
Dec. 2013
"Napoleon III Biography. A&E Networks Television, Web. 08
Dec. 2013.
"Napoleon III." Encyclopedia of World Biography. "Napoleon
III." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th Ed. 2013, and
"Napoleon III." World Encyclopedia. 2005. "Napoleon
III." Encyclopedia.com. HighBeam Research, 01 Jan.
2004. Web. 8 Dec. 2013.