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Pros And Cons Of Napoleon

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When it comes to Napoleon there are two views you can have. He was a hero, a champion of the revolutionary ideals who almost united Europe under one flag. He was a demon, a villain who betrayed the revolution that he came into power through, and he dealt more damage to it than all of the ancien regime combined. Some major figures in European history have had the former opinion, Charles De Gaulle, while others have had the latter opinion, Ludwig van Beethoven. Personally, when I think about what happened before, during, and after the revolution, as well as the basic causes and the core of the revolution, I have to agree with the later opinion despite my deep and heartfelt admiration for both Napoleon and his accomplishments. When it comes down to it, I believe that while Napoleon truly did embrace and admire the enlightenment ideals, he was both too quick to force the revolution on others and too proud to let anyone else but himself champion it. In order to better understand the question it is important to know what exactly Napoleon betrayed. The revolution as it relates to France first started showing progress in America with the United States’ Declaration of Independence from English rule. The government that was founded from the American revolution was created based on enlightenment ideals such as civil liberties, a theory put forward by John Locke that government was put into place not by God for reasons only he could fathom but rather by the people in order to protect
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