The Napoleonic Codes brought much needed stability to the people of France, who has suffered through nearly two decades of civil war. However in exchange for national security, the people of France sacrificed personal liberty, which was king of the reason for the French Revolution in the first place.
In theory, the Napoleonic codes upheld the basic beliefs of the French Revolution: that all citizens (except women) were equal in the eyes of the law. It protected French peasants, many of whom had received lands seized from the Catholic Church and the nobility and declared that half of property of a deceased peasant should be divided into equal shares among his children. This helped keep France a country of small peasant farms rather than tracts of large landowners.
Women Lose Rights Under Napoleon’s Code
While all men were created equal under Napoleon’s new laws, women were most assuredly not. During the Directory women had experienced much more liberation than ever before. The were invited to take petitions and have their voice heard, even if they were not given the right to vote, yet. Under the Napoleonic Code, women were now nothing more than chattel to their fathers or husband. Thy were no longer allowed to testify in a courtroom or sell property without a husbands approval.
Children were also overlooked in the Napoleonic Code. Fathers could co-sign their sons to jail for however long the father cared to pay food and lodging.
Napoleon’s Code Restricts Basic Rights
Women and children were not the only ones losing rights under Napoleon. Freedom of speech was severely curtailed, directly going against the Declaration of Rights of Man. By 1811 there were only four papers left in Paris, all of them state run propaganda machines. All of this marked the beginning of a police state that would allow Napoleon to declare himself Emperor of France.
Napoleon’s Codes Are Still Used Today
Despite their short term negativity, the Napoleonic Codes helped straiten out the French Government and laid the foundation for a strong unified government. Napoleon domestic reform still used in France today. They are also the basis of law in Japan, parts of Latin America, Greece, Romania and even Louisiana.
Sources:
Lang, Sean. European History For Dummies. West Sussex: John Wiley & Sons, LTD. 2006.
May, Arthur J. A History of Civilization: Second Edition. Charles Scribner’s Sons. 1964.
Mckay, Hill, Buckler. A History of World Societies: Volume II Since 1500. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company. 1992.
