There were only fourteen months of peace while Napoleon was in power. Otherwise, the French army was continuously in the field, and under Bonaparte’s superb generalship, scored incredible victories at Austerlitz (1805) against the Austrians, at lena (1806) against the Prussians, and at Friedland (1807) against the Russians. In the Iberian Peninsula, the British were driven back to the sea at Corunna (1808) and the Austrians had been once again defeated at Wagram in 1809. Europe lay at Napoleon’s feet, and he backed up his military supremacy with ruthless diplomacy. Territories had been conquered, annexed or put under French protection – and Bonaparte family members were installed on thrones all over Europe.

French institutions and laws were set up in an attempt to produce societies in these lands that would be based on merit and wealth rather than aristocratic privilege.

In Europe, Napoleon’s fiercest enemies had been the hereditary monarchies of Austria and Prussia, helped by that of Russia. These powers were fighting to maintain the old forms of government that the Revolution and also the Empire had swept away. But the Emperor’s most deadly antagonist was the economically successful and constitutionally progressive United Kingdom.

An ambition thwarted

Britain was utilizing her wealth to finance the armies of Napoleon’s opponents. But so that you can maintain her vital trade going, her own navy had to keep open routes into the Baltic, Atlantic, Mediterranean and Pacific. Above all, the English Channel could not fall into French hands.

In 1804 Napoleon hoped to lure the British navy out of the way, to ensure that his army could invade Britain. But the plan failed – even though Nelson did pursue Admiral Villeneuve to the West Indies, when the French doubled back to the Channel, an English fleet intercepted them and forced them to hole up in Cadiz.

When Napoleon ordered his fleet to fight, the navies of both the French and their Spanish allies were destroyed at the Battle of Trafalgar (1805). Britain was safe from further naval attack for many years. Military methods failing, Napoleon then tried economic warfare.

His Continental System – a total ban on British imports into any parts of Europe – was imposed so that you can cripple British trade, but once again, British naval energy kept trade routes into the Baltic and the Mediterranean open, and also the French themselves suffered the worst repercussions of the trade ban.