Ch 23-4

Group Discussions

What aspect of Napoleon's character or personality do you think was most responsible for the collapse of his Empire? Explain.

Making Decisions: Napoleon invade Russia in June of 1812. Why was this military decision so unwise?

Analyzing causes recognizing effects: What events led to Napoleon's downfall? Think about Britain, Spain, Russia.

Standards:

I-C.3 Explain and analyze revolutions (e.g., democratic, scientific, technological, social) as they evolved throughout the enlightenment and their enduring effects on political, economic and cultural institutions.

Objective:

Explain the collapse of Napoleon's empire.

Explain Napoleon's tactical and political mistakes.

Summarize Napoleon's defeat, comeback, and final downfall.

WICOR: Writing, Inquiry, Collaboration, Organization and Reading

EQ: What aspect of Napoleon's character or personality do you think was most responsible for the collapse of his empire? Explain.

Napoleon's costly mistakes

The Continental System

The Peninsular War

The invasion of Russia

Napoleon's downfall

Napoleon suffers defeat

The Hundred Days

Vocabulary

Blockade

Forced closing of ports

Continental System

Napoleon's policy of preventing trade and communication between Great Britain and other European nations

Guerrilla

Spanish peasant fighter

Peninsular War

War that Napoleon fought in Spain

Scorched-Earth Policy

Policy of burning fields and slaughtering livestock so that enemy troops would find nothing to eat

Waterloo

Battle in Belgium that was Napoleon's final defeat

Hundred Days

Napoleon's last bid for power, which ended at Waterloo

Critical Thinking

1a What would Napoleon have needed to make his continental system work?

1b How did nationalism affect Napoleon's empire?

2a What evidence suggests that Napoleon was not a military genius?

2b Why would the French want Napoleon to return?