To what extent did the creation of the Empire in 1804 mark a significant change in Napoleon’s rule of France?
The empire was created in 1804 where Napoleon was crowned the hereditary emperor of France by the Pope. His empire consisted of the pays réunis; land ruled by France and the pays conquis, which were satellite states ruled by the French that bordered France and gave them protection and safety from invasion. Despite becoming emperor in 1804, Napoleon already had a lot of power with his role of first consul. He was the head of state and had control over France, Napoleon was able to control government appointments and appoint who he wished into the Senate which would provide him with more power as he was able to bribe the Senate as they were mostly made up of his own nominees whose support he could guarantee. To a lesser extent the creation of the Empire did not mark a significant change in Napoleon’s rule of France, although he was crowned Emperor and given more power his rule of France had been a dictatorship before this.
Napoleon created the Imperial Nobility in 1808 to provide titles and honours to those in the military. As well as receiving title, a large sum of money was also provided to ensure their support for Napoleon. This was a form of bribery to have the richer upper class supporting Napoleon. However the Legion of Honour had been established in 1802 which although was created to favour property owners it also used bribery in the form of money and gifts to gain support. This shows how Napoleon had always used bribery to his advantage, to create more support as well as reduce the amount of opposition. Another factor that shows that Napoleon’s rule had already been a dictatorship before 1804 was the hereditary principle that was established in 1802. The hereditary principle is the system where the next in power must be the closet male relative e.g.