Why Did Napoleon Establish His Government

Freedom of the prNapoleon instituted his own government and set himself as First Consul then First Consul for Life thereby declaring himself as the only ruler of France; a few years later Napoleon crowned himself emperor. His new government ran schools called lycees, maintained tax collections, enforced laws, and used censorship to control the public’s views of his rule as well as prevent dissidents from criticizing his new administration.

One of the earliest steps Napoleon took to create a centralized state under himself was the elimination of the Directory government. In its place, Napoleon setup a new government: the consulate and made himself First Consul. He then put forth a new constitution to the voters but most citizens refused to vote on this charter which contained no statement of rights (it gave no autonomous control to the three houses of the legislature and it did away with elections for deputies). Whatever few votes were submitted, the new government falsified the results to make it seem as though the new constitution had greater support than it really did. With Napoleon as First Consul he had executive power to select men of his choice to sit on the Council of State (members were responsible for drafting all laws). He also put his officials in charge to monitor the daily activities of all …show more content…
Napoleon’s government regulated all public entertainment as well. They suppressed any artwork found distasteful, and had to approve all operas and plays. His police force, led by Joseph Fouche, made certain that the law was carried out through fear and intimidation. Joseph and his underlings kept a close eye on those who opposed Napoleon’s rule. They imprisoned without just cause and placed others under house arrest randomly. Out of fear of dreadful retaliation, people no longer held political debates; they understood that any criticism leveled against Napoleon could lead to