"What was the best invention or innovation under Napoleon" Topic

During his time in history, there are things attributed to him or his policies

What had the largest impact?

For example An old PBS show once connected Canning as an instrumental invention along the way to man being able to land on the moon. Canning came about as a result of a 12,000 franc prize Napoleon had offered so that he might be able to better feed his troops

Or was it the Code Napoleon – still in use today in a few places as well as having an impact on the legal system.

Or something else?

A – Canning
B- Code Napoleon
C – Other

Driving on the right side of the road.
Margarine.

Well, OK, probably not the best inventions — but hey, he was responsible for those too.

Inventing the phrase "never get involved in a land war in Asia".

That was Nappy, right??

Rosetta Stone?
Metric system?

Postal system.

Hey, Ben Franklin set up the foundations for the US postal system in '75!

Spread of nationalism throughout Europe especially in Germany.

The French invasion of Spain eventually led to revolutions throughout Latin America.

One of the world's greatest art collections was born from Napoleon's Empire. Treasures pillaged from conquered lands and France's own treasure of art was displayed at the Louvre. Art was made more accessible to the common citizen.

The destruction of the Holy Roman Empire cut Austria's influence in Germany and paved the way for other institutions.

Napoleonic Code, the first codified laws in Europe.

Military logistics, organization and mobilization of armies. Some of the same principles can be seen today.

Total war, waged not by small numbers of professionals but by the mobilization of an entire nation's resources and manpower.

Spreading the metric system throughout Continental Europe.

The origins of the Euro and a united Europe.

Post office/system?

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Canning.

Quote from here:
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Here is the quote:
I attended a trivia quiz tonight, where quite a few of the questions focused on Napoleon Bonaparte, particularly his achievements.

Some of them I knew about, but one that caught my ear as a new fact came when the MC made a throwaway comment suggesting the Emperor was responsible for our system of street numbering. It sounded highly unlikely, so I decided to check it out for myself.

And here's what the Napoleonic Society had to say.

It is also to the Emperor that we owe the system of plaques bearing street names and house numbers (even numbers on one side and odd on the other); a system that was copied throughout Europe. It was also Napoleon who decided the shape of the pavement, slightly convex with gutters along the edges of the sidewalks.

So the short answer is, yes, he's responsible. No doubt a concept thought up on one of the nights he wasn't in the mood for Josephine.

The Louisiana Purchase?

Canning? George Canning, Prime Minister of Great Britain, was invented by Napoleon?!!

'Spose he must have had his reasons…

"The origins of the Euro and a united Europe."
Think the Romans did that first.

""The origins of the Euro and a united Europe."
Think the Romans did that first."

Yeah,but it didn't last. Might not this time either,mind you . . .

Cheers,
John

The Third, Fourth, Fifth, Sixth and Seventh Coalitions. Shows what the rest of Europe thought of his policies.

Abducting and judicially murdering your political enemies. Still in use today.

The current European Union was established through the Maastricht Treaty of 1993, following on from the 1951 Treat of Paris and the 1957 Treaty of Rome. Don't think Napoleon can claim credit here either.

Canning. Second place award goes to the corps system, unless he shares credit with Berthier for the staff system. And His Imperial Majesty was never very good about sharing credit.

Code Napoleon for civil government

I guess canning for the food industry

The Corps system and an integrated staff for military

the corps system was not invented by far by Nabulieone, what he did is to tailor it to his needs for his operational art of war.

Museo Capitolino, 1734 in Rome, beat the Louvre as the first public art museum.

Visible street names and numbers is a pretty cool idea!

I once was selling Comcast door to door on a strange street in Scranton.
The left side was even numbered in the 800-820 sequence. The right side was odd numbered in the 1101-1121 sequence.
Blame or credit Napoleon for that?
I blame Irish politicians in Scranton.

It was also Napoleon who decided the shape of the pavement, slightly convex with gutters along the edges of the sidewalks.

Sorry to disappoint, but those innovations go back to the Romans. Roman roads had a convex surface with gutters and raised pedestrian sidewalks on either side.

The corps system most definitely was developed by Napoleon. He fielded it first in the Marengo campaign and directed Moreau to institute it in his field army.

The general staff was being developed before Napoleon. It's beginnings can be seen in Bourcet's developments during the Seven Years' War. Berthier developed the general staff that served Napoleon.

Napoleon's greatest achievements, however, were on the civil side, beginning with the Code Civile.

I'll give Boney credit for the reïntroduction of the long lost road technology.

Heck, the Romans built roads that never suffered from frost heaves, and we still can't do that around here!

Just remember, that if roads last too long, the various Departments of Transportation have nothing to do. Gotta preserve that budget!

Poulet Marengo.

Using a waistcoat as a hand warmer

The mobile command center? I love that carriage.

Canning? George Canning, Prime Minister of Great Britain, was invented by Napoleon?!!

Would it help to refer to it as 'bottling', as I believe the original technique used Champagne bottles…? ;->=

Doug

Establishing l'École spéciale militaire de Saint-Cyr.

The mobile command center? I love that carriage.

Napoleon's Berline wasn't a command center but a carriage specially built for him to travel from Paris to the theater of operations in some comfort.

The actual 'command center' was the general staff on campaign and on the battlefield. Napoleon and Berthier would use a small staff on the battlefield and in movement with the army. It was the equivalent of the modern 'jump' command post used by the US Army and Marine Corps.

What thing attributed to Bonaparte's policies had the largest impact?
Sure it must be the 19th Century British Army that went on to dominate the planet?

The British Army did not dominate in North America in 1812-1815. In point of fact, some of their worst defeats of the period happened on the Niagara Peninsula, Plattsburg, Baltimore, and New Orleans in 1814-1815.

In the 19th century they had a very large problem with the Zulus and the Boers.

And in the Crimea the British Army didn't do too well either.

I never heard that the small British Army dominated the planet…?
in the Americas the last units even left Canada in 1871
in Europa after 1815 (and before)…nowhere…or only interventions with others countries having larger Armies than the little British Army
that is the fable of the English frog that wished to be as big as the French Russian Austrian ox maybe

Brechtel you are right, but the carriage did contain many clever features for map storage, working space, lighting, etc, accompanied by couriers, etc. The set up of the actual command system and physical layout of the tents etc. is well described in Eltings Swords Around a Throne.

But the carriage was certainly unique in its features and gave Naploeon a traveling office to work from.

I'm still holding out for the modern staff system. Yes, there were precursors. There almost always are. But there's a very sharp rise in staff size and specialization, and we're still using Berthier's 1 (Personnel), 2 (Intel), 3 (Operations) and 4 (Logistics) shops with almost exactly Berthier's division of labor. You can spot the response as the continental allies all produce their own staff manuals in period. Presumably more Berthier's idea than Bonaparte's, but his consent and backing are critical.

That's true of several other nominated items. He certainly didn't invent the metric system, and the revolutionaries had been working for years on the revision of the Corpus Juris Civilis, but if Bonaparte had lost critical early battles--or simply abandoned them as bad ideas, the way he did the revolutionary calendar--I doubt they'd have gone further.

As for ConnaughtRanger--not the British Army dominating the planet, but Britain itself, with the Royal Navy and the factories leading.

I'd say his best invention was the British empire of the 19th century. Nobody British expressly set out to create it; it just sort of happened given what Britain had had to do to prevail over Napoleonic France. If you had to pick one person to attribute it to it would have to be the Corsican parvenu.

It's ironic really. He set out to create an empire that would outlive him, and he did. It just wasn't his own.

Definition of parvenu
: one that has recently or suddenly risen to an unaccustomed position of wealth or power and has not yet gained the prestige, dignity, or manner associated with it.

Sorry, but Napoleon does not fit that definition.

'There was an eye to see in this man, and a soul to dare and do. He rose naturally to be King. All men saw that he was such.'-Thomas Carlyle.

The cambered road had nothing to do with Nappy.

link

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The two that still survive the Code Napoleon (though I live and those of you in US (most) have the English Common Law at the heart of your legal systems) and his Government reforms.

His biggest mistake was the Continental System. It was what destroyed him.

the thread seems convert again to a great moment of navel-gazing anglocentric jingoism on TMP when you read it…

Going by the diversion and contents of the posts, it looks like the British were good at fighting thanks to Napoleon. LOL

Just came across this:

'It is no exaggeration to say that Napoleon was inventing a new type of warfare, a new type of battle even. Instead of formalised slogging matches, involving the tactical deployment of infantry, cavalry and artillery, he introduced the elements of speed and surprise. 'Act first, and then wait to see what happens…Consider all options.''
(Napoleon in Egypt by Paul Strathern, page 24).

'In my youth we used to march and countermarch all the summer without gaining or losing a square league, and then we went into winter quarters. And now comes an ignorant and hot-headed young man who flies about from Boulogne to Ulm, and from Ulm to the middle of Moravia, and fights battles in December. The whole system of his tactics is monstrously incorrect.'-an indignant old German officer.

Lilian:

the thread seems convert again to a great moment of navel-gazing anglocentric jingoism on TMP when you read it…

Yeeeeeaaaaaaaaaaawwwwwwwwnnnnnnn! Zzzzzzzzz! "navel-gazing"? Surely you mean 'receding-French-backs-gazing'?

Gazzola:

Going by the diversion and contents of the posts, it looks like the British were good at fighting thanks to Napoleon. LOL.

1202-1815 shows that Nappy was but a tiny part where the English/British prowess was concerned…

Can't be crediting a person by the name of Napoleone Bounaparte for accomplishments he never made.

Another thing we can attribute to the Corsican arriviste is that he made it cool to be short.

Admittedly this only lasted till 1815 but still. Short bloke, short reign.

'Military Illustrated' in its final, unfortunate period of decline.