Channel4.com Text Only
[ News
| Homes
| Life
| Entertainment
| History
| Science
| Community
| Shop ]
| Sport
| Culture
| Cars
| Money
| Broadband
| Learning
| Health
| Dating
| Games ]
[ Text Only: Homepage ]
[ Graphical: Channel4 Homepage ]
TIMELINE
1769 - Napoleon I, Bonaparte born in Ajaccio in Corsica
1776 - French support American Independence which leads to US Declaration of Independence
1785 - Enters the French army concentrating on artillery
1789 - Revolution overturns alienated reign of Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette. Declaration of The Rights of Man adopted
1792 - French Republic proclaimed
1793 - Louis XVI executed. Terror begins
1796 - Bonaparte commands one of the armies in a pincer movement against the Austrians, victories in Italy and further triumphs in Austria follow
1796 - Bonaparte marries Josephine Beauharnais
1798 - Nelson traps and destroys French fleet at the Nile
1799 - Egyptian campaign fails, he returns to overthrow Directory
1802 - Referendum declares Bonaparte consul for life
1804 - Crowned Emperor of France. Civil code, later called Code Napoleon, introduced
1805 - Victory at Austerlitz
1805 - Nelson, in his ship called Victory, defeats Franco-Spanish fleet under Villeneuve in Battle of Trafalgar off the south-west coast of Spain, leaving Britain in command of the seas
1806 - Napoleon victory at Jena
1808 - The Iberian Peninsular War begins to drain his resources
1810 - Bonaparte divorces Josephine after she fails to provide an heir. He marries Austrian Archduchess Marie Louise, Austrian Emperor Francis I's daughter
1811 - Son born and comes to be known as King of Rome, although he was raised in Vienna as the Duke of Reichstadt
1811 - French Empire at its height with territories stretching from Lubeck on the Baltic to Gaeta south of Rome
1812 - Retreat from Moscow leads to weary soldiers and defeat at Leipzig
1814 - Abdication with grant by Allies to rule Elba as Emperor
1815 - March. Escape from Elba and the Hundred Days rule begins with Napoleon again emperor
1815 - June. British under Wellington defeat Napoleon's armies at Waterloo after linking with Prussian forces. Napoleon sent to St Helena. Louis XVIII's reign begins a period of turmoil
1821 - Bonaparte dies and Napoleon II treated by Bonapartists as his heir, even though this never has any practical effect
1824 - Charles X takes over and attempts to reverse advances of revolution
1830 - Louis-Philippe takes power
1836 and 1840 - Napoleon III, Charles Louis Napoleon Bonaparte who was Napoleon I's nephew, leads abortive Bonaparte putsch against restored July monarchy of Louis-Philippe
1848 - Louis-Philippe overthrown in February revolution which laid ground for Second Republic. Napoleon III elected in presidential elections
1851 - Napoleon III leads coup d'état during legislative deadlock
1852 - 1870 - Napoleon III proclaimed Emperor of the French and a number of costly wars follow before declaration of the Third Republic
^top
Home
War and Peace
Battle Tactics
Rebel to Emperor
Pictures of Power
Napoleon in Private
Brits v Europe
Stories
Timeline
Find Out More...
Site Credits
Graphic version
Includes layout and images.
^top