Chapter 21

Boney Times with the Brits

In This Chapter

Dealing with Great Britain in peace and war

Waging a war of caricatures

W e can view the Napoleonic period through many prisms. We can see it through the prism of the French Revolution, with its idealistic goals of liberty and equality (see Chapter 3). We can look at it in terms of the broad march toward democracy, which was speeded up by upheavals in the United States and France and pushed along by Napoleon’s armies. In a similar vein, perhaps we could look at Napoleon’s rule in terms of the inevitable replacement of the old order with the new — of a fragmented Europe constantly at war replaced by a modern Europe, united and at peace.

No matter how you view the Napoleonic period, one nagging factor that muddies the portrait of Napoleon’s achievements is the conflict between Great Britain and France, between the Brits and Boney (as they liked to derisively call Napoleon — based, I suppose, on a play on his last name and the fact that in his early years he was quite skinny). Why?

Ultimately, the British government prevented Napoleon from ruling France in peace.

The British insisted on maintaining what they considered the appropriate balance of power, which was a major factor in keeping Europe at war for so many years.

The British demonized Napoleon, harbored those who would seek his destruction, organized coalitions against him, and financed the resulting wars.

Clearly, Napoleon’s ambition played a role in the conflict with England as well. We can only imagine what may have occurred if England and France could have made peace. Few nations influenced France more than Great Britain, and their constant conflict influenced relations — both good and bad — between virtually all other nations of Europe.

In this chapter, I talk about relations between the Brits and Boney in general, and the Peace of Amiens in particular. I also touch on the one area that Napoleon thought was his ace in the hole: the economic embargo against Britain known as the Continental System. Finally, I discuss how Napoleon was demonized by his enemies, especially Great Britain.

Making One Great Effort at Peace

For much of the time that Napoleon was alive, relations between Great Britain and France were strained, to say the least. The two nations had a long history of antagonism, their common ancestry notwithstanding. (William the Conqueror, who famously invaded England in 1066 and gained power by winning the Battle of Hastings, was, after all, French. And someone once told me that the English language contains 10,000 French words!)

England had developed what we would say was a fairly enlightened form of government for the time. It had democratic aspects to its government (Parliament, for example, and the concept of habeas corpus ) unknown elsewhere in Europe. The United States based much of its experiment in democracy on its British heritage.

The French Revolution added France to the short list of relatively enlightened European nations, and Napoleon continued and solidified many of the progressive ideas of the Revolution. Thus, it would make perfect sense if Great Britain and France had become the best of buddies. Great sense, perhaps, but it didn’t quite work out that way.

Seizing a brief window of opportunity

Have you ever taken the lead in something, only to look around and find that you’re all alone? Well, that’s what happened to the British in 1801. After Napoleon defeated the Austrians and signed the Peace of Luneville (see Chapter 9), all of England’s allies were at peace with Napoleon. The British people were not about to keep carrying on the fight alone, at least not then, so they put pressure on their government to seek peace. Pressure indeed. They forced Prime Minister William Pitt to leave the government (though admittedly more because Pitt supported Catholic emancipation in Ireland, an idea opposed by the king). They replaced Pitt with a government led by Henry Addington, who was willing to accommodate Napoleon.

Great Britain’s policy had always been to seek a “balance of power” on the European continent. That means that Great Britain didn’t want any one country to become too powerful. British money and military might, especially her navy, could take sides in Continental conflicts to assure that this balance was maintained.

Becoming weary of war

By 1801, Britain had some reason to fear Napoleonic France, but not enough to try to go it alone. France had expanded her borders and reached at least an uneasy peace with her neighbors, but perhaps that was as far as her reach would go. The British people were prepared to wait and see, and their government went along, however reluctantly. The British were tired of war, and without allies, British naval power alone would not be sufficient to defeat France.

The French, too, were anxious for peace. Napoleon had lost one of his major allies, Tsar Paul I of Russia, to assassination in March 1801. Then, in early April, the British fleet destroyed the Danish fleet at Copenhagen in a raid led by Admiral Horatio Nelson (see Chapter 11). With Russia no longer a dependable ally and with the Danish fleet gone, Napoleon had to abandon his longstanding idea of invading England.

Thus, neither power felt capable of dealing a death-blow to the other. Both would, in time, turn to economic warfare (which I discuss later in this chapter), but for the moment, peace seemed a possibility.

Napoleon had taken power in France with promises of military victory, peace, and prosperity. He had come through on the military victory part and was well on his way toward bringing prosperity to France. Peace, both domestic and international, now took center stage. All of Europe stood cheering on the sidelines: Everyone was sick of war.

Signing the Treaty of Amiens

Napoleon put out the first feelers for a possible peace treaty. After first one side and then the other seemed to reject the possibility of peace, both finally gave in to reality. In 1801, the two sides met in negotiations in the town of Amiens. France was represented by Napoleon’s brother, Joseph. By October 1, the two sides reached a preliminary agreement, and the so-called Treaty of Amiens was ratified on March 25, 1802.

The Treaty of Amiens was a real coup for Napoleon and the French. The British were to leave Egypt and the island of Malta (which they had recently taken by force in order to put pressure on France), while the French were to give up pretty much nothing. Indeed, Great Britain recognized French control of the Netherlands; the west bank of the Rhine; and several territories in Italy, including Piedmont and Nice. Napoleon was required to give back the Papal States to the Pope and the Taranto peninsula to Naples, and he had to agree to Swiss neutrality.

What all sides gained, of course, was peace.

Celebrating “The Amazing Mr. Bonaparte”

All of Europe was abuzz over “The Amazing Mr. Bonaparte,” who seemingly single-handedly had defeated powerful enemies, brought peace to the Continent, and created prosperity to France. As a result, Napoleon became an instant cause celébre. People from all over Europe, and especially from England, decided to include Paris in their vacation plans. They were anxious to gain a glimpse of the famous Bonaparte. (I can relate: Napoleon often causes me to include Paris in my travel plans as well!)

In Great Britain, and across all of Europe, fascination with Napoleon was reflected by the production and sale of prints, snuffboxes, miniatures, and bronzes of his image. Even British nobility were known to have such items (see Figures 21-1 and 21-2).

Figure 21-1: Detail from an engraving of Napoleone Buonaparte done by Henry Richter, which is typical of images created during the Peace of Amiens.

Figure 21-2: Detail from an engraving by Hilaire Le Dru, Bonaparte, published in London in 1801. A rather heroic image, even for the time, to be displayed in England!

Reforming French institutions

Napoleon’s star rose for good reason. Even before Amiens, Napoleon had been a whirlwind of action. Everything from cutting wasteful spending to weeding out corrupt judges had been on his agenda. A master of detail, he had been seemingly everywhere, doing everything:

Safety on the highways? Hire more police.

Not enough room for art treasures? Enlarge the Louvre.

People out of work? Create jobs rebuilding Paris, improving transportation, improving water quality.

You name it, he did it. He was even contemplating the building of the Suez Canal, which he hoped to construct with Russian cooperation. There was also talk of a tunnel under the English Channel. Neither of these projects would be accomplished until the 20th century, but never let it be said that Napoleon didn’t think big!

Napoleon had already started the process of reforming the economy, the law, and education (see Chapter 19). He had recently signed the Concordat of 1801 with the Pope (see Chapter 23), bringing to an end the single largest remaining source of domestic discord. Thus, Napoleon had fulfilled his promise to bring peace and prosperity on all fronts.

Achieving the height of popularity

The people of France rewarded him well for his efforts. First, he was named First Consul for ten years. But not long into that period of service, a national plebiscite (public vote) overwhelmingly supported the idea of him becoming First Consul for Life. That designation was awarded to him on August 2, 1802. Later that same week, the powers of his office were greatly expanded. At that point, he was very close to being the absolute ruler of France. When Napoleon turned 33 on August 15, he certainly had reason to celebrate! His popularity was at its peak, and all of France celebrated with him (see Figure 21-3).

Figure 21-3: A snuffbox with a wax image of Napoleon as First Consul, signed by the noted goldsmith, medalist, and wax-modeler Joseph Anton Couriguer.

For a time, the Peace of Amiens seemed ideal. Trade increased, people and businesses prospered, travel was finally safe again, and no longer did nations sacrifice their youth and fortune to war. One critical demand of the French in peace negotiations had been a guarantee of open, or neutral, seas. Previously, the British had felt they had the right to board any ship or stop any shipment they wished. With the neutrality of the seas finally obtained, ships from all nations could bring trade goods to any other nation. Much like a modern-day free trade agreement, this arrangement led to a massive increase in trade. Businesses expanded, with many jobs filled by recently-released soldiers and sailors, no longer needed in a time of peace. Napoleon’s public works program moved forward in leaps and bounds, all to the benefit of the French.

Failing Peace

If all this seems too good to be true, that’s because it was. Both sides probably saw their agreement at Amiens less as a treaty than an armistice. Almost as soon as the ink was dry, the agreement began to go sour.

Refusing to abandon Malta

Great Britain was not pleased to have to leave Egypt, especially when she learned that the French forces there had been defeated by British soldiers and had themselves agreed to leave in August! Napoleon knew this in advance and pulled a fast one on the Brits. As a result, the Brits were even less happy to leave Malta, for fear their influence in the Mediterranean would be pretty much nonexistent (which was, of course, Napoleon’s idea all along).

Even though the British had negotiated and ratified a treaty calling for them to leave Malta, they deliberately violated the treaty by refusing to leave. For a while they came up with various rather weak excuses, but in the end they simply said they were staying on the island. Needless to say, Napoleon — and much of Europe — was not pleased.

Making a last-ditch effort to negotiate

Napoleon did everything he could to avoid war while at the same time recognizing reality and expanding his army. He suggested having Russia control Malta, and the tsar offered to mediate the situation. No deal, said the British. Okay, in that case, how about Britain keeping Malta and France retaking the Taranto peninsula (the “heel” in the boot of Italy, which France had given to the Kingdom of Naples as part of the treaty)? Nope, that wouldn’t do either, said the Brits, even though it would restore conditions in the area to their pre-treaty situation and thus protect British Mediterranean interests.

War was inevitable. Though the British government was divided and the debate spirited, the end result was never in real doubt. Before war was declared, Britain began to seize all French ships, an action in violation of international law. And on May 18, 1803, Great Britain declared war on France who, naturally enough, returned the favor a few days later. The War of the Third Coalition was about to begin (see Chapter 9).

The war would take a long time to get into full swing. Napoleon quickly seized the Taranto peninsula and took Hanover (a British holding on the Continent), as well as securing his positions elsewhere in Italy. More notably, he arrested all male British subjects in France between 18 and 60, declaring them prisoners of war. Many of them were British gentlemen on vacation — a vacation that was now to be extended for several years. (Of course, as gentlemen they were allowed to live on parole, and most lived fairly comfortably.)

Napoleon once again prepared for a possible invasion of England. But neither side was in a position to begin any real hostilities: France had an inadequate navy, and England had no allies.

Attempting Economic Embargo: The Continental System

In addition to traditional combat, England and France each engaged in economic warfare in an attempt to weaken the other. In 1806, Napoleon issued the Berlin Decrees, which instituted an economic blockade called the Continental System. This blockade was at least partially a response to Great Britain’s embargo on all military shipments to France, a prohibition that opened the door to economic retaliation.

The idea of the Continental System was to cut off all commerce between Great Britain and Continental Europe. It was, in essence, Napoleon’s attempt to use his land power to defeat England’s sea power. To a point, it actually worked, as it did deprive Great Britain of some of its Continental trade.

But for the most part, the Continental System was a failure. The black market thrived: Even Josephine bought forbidden British goods! And Napoleon’s brother, Louis, as King of Holland, was hard-pressed to deprive his merchant class of its critical trade with Great Britain. As Napoleon’s brother, his official policy was to prohibit trade, but he somehow managed to ignore the sizable amount of smuggling that was going on throughout his kingdom. This behavior enraged Napoleon, who forced his own brother to abdicate the throne of Holland. Another relative, Napoleon’s brother-in-law Joachim Murat, the King of Naples, was less than effective at enforcing the embargo as well.

Worse yet, the Continental System’s need to control all of Europe’s coastline led to Napoleon’s invasion of Spain and Portugal (see Chapter 12). That invasion ultimately led to the British taking over the Iberian Peninsula and then marching into France herself. The action in Spain and Portugal was probably Napoleon’s single biggest mistake.

Trying to force Russia to observe the Continental System was a real close second. Russian Tsar Alexander’s desire to withdraw from the Continental System was one of the major reasons for the 1812 war between France and Russia, a war that was a disaster for Napoleon (see Chapter 13).

In short, Napoleon learned the hard way that

It’s just about impossible to seal off an entire continent.

When it comes to trade, where there’s a will, there’s a way.

It’s difficult to say exactly what the main cause of Napoleon’s ultimate fall from power was. But for my money, the Continental System ranks high on the list. It was one of those “it seemed like a good idea at the time” deals, and it turned out to be a really lousy idea.

Demonizing Napoleon

In modern politics, opposing sides at least pretend to avoid personal attacks on their opponents (though, of course, they can’t prevent their supporters from saying any number of nasty things). In the poisonous mood of the relations between France and England, no pretense of civility was made, especially by the British. British caricature artists and others did everything they could to make Napoleon, whom they liked to call Boney, into a monster. He was often referred to as the “Corsican Ogre,” “the Usurper,” or worse. His name was said to represent the sign of the devil. He was shown in hell, keeping company with rats, or even being roasted over a fire.

The personal attacks on Napoleon actually began as early as his 1796 campaign as a general in Italy, and they continued throughout his career. These attacks came mostly from England but also from other countries opposed to Napoleon, especially Germany.

The attacks infuriated Napoleon, who quite rightly took them very personally. He complained bitterly to the British government, especially during the Peace of Amiens. That government did take some limited action against some libelous writings of French nobles in exile, but it did little if anything to restrain writings of British poets or caricatures by British artists. Some of the more famous British caricature artists were James Gillray and Isaac and George Cruikshank. Collectors have recorded the existence of about 2,000 graphic attacks on Boney.

Napoleon tried to retaliate by encouraging French caricatures of the British, but these efforts generally fell a bit flat. Instead, the concentration was on developing positive imagery of Napoleon (see Chapter 24).

The constant barrage of negative, often very nasty, images of Napoleon produced in Britain had a significant influence on relations between the two countries. On the one hand, it was very difficult for Napoleon to take expressed British interest in peace very seriously when they were not calling a halt to these hateful images. (Remember, these images suggested, among other things, that Napoleon was a devil and Josephine was a whore. No wonder Napoleon was unhappy.) On the other hand, these images tended to whip up support among the British people for another war against France. After all, people may not have wanted to make war on Napoleon, the enlightened leader who was bringing reforms to his people. But against the Ogre of Corsica, the Great Thief of Europe? Bring it on!

Examples of early caricatures

Caricatures often jabbed at British politics, as well as at Napoleon. In 1803, for example, Gillray produced an image that shows Napoleon sailing across the English Channel while the British government awakes as if from a trance (see Figure 21-4). This cartoon was a jab at the peace elements of the government and was intended as a call to arms.

Figure 21-4: In this caricature by Gillray, Napoleon’s invasion of England brings a complacent government out of its trance.

Another caricature from 1803 by W. Holland shows Napoleon in a British castle and in big trouble (see Figure 21-5).

Figure 21-5: Maybe it was caricatures like this that gave rise to Napoleon’s image of being short!

Examples of later caricatures

If caricature artists were active when Napoleon was at the height of his success, they had a field day when his fortunes began to decline. You can see one example of this in Figure 13-4 in Chapter 13; the British caricature shows Napoleon being defeated in Russia in 1812 by “General Winter.” A year later, when Napoleon was defeated at the Battle of Leipzig (see Chapter 14), both British and German caricature artists went straight to work. Figure 21-6 is a German snuffbox that shows Napoleon as a nutcracker breaking his teeth on the “tough nut” of Leipzig. This image is one of the most famous to come out of the period.

Figure 21-6: This snuffbox from 1813 shows Napoleon standing on his coffin, his broken teeth strewn around him, the result of his defeat at Leipzig.

There is an expression that a picture is worth a thousand words. Whether or not a picture is worth a thousand soldiers is quite another question, but there is no question that Napoleon’s enemies used pictures as one of their weapons in their ongoing effort to destroy him. Did it make a difference? Perhaps not, but we can certainly be pleased to have the graphic remains of the effort.