During the Consulate, Paris was
just beginning to lay claim to a position as the pleasure city of
Europe. Its population almost doubled during the Era of Napoleon.
[Sidenote: Colonial Enterprises and their Failure]
The First Consul also entertained the hope of appearing as the restorer
of the French colonial empire. In 1800 he prevailed upon the Spanish
government to re-cede to France the extensive territory--called
Louisiana--lying west of the Mississippi River. Soon afterwards he
dispatched his brother-in-law, General Leclerc, with an army of 25,000
men, to make good the French claims to the large island of Haiti. But
the colonial ventures of Napoleon ended in failure. In Haiti, Leclerc's
efforts to reestablish negro slavery encountered the stubborn
resistance of the blacks, organized and led by one of their number,
Toussaint L'Ouverture, a remarkable military genius. After a determined
and often ferocious struggle Leclerc proposed a compromise, and
Toussaint, induced by the most solemn guarantees on the part of the
French, laid down his arms.
Pages:
1115
1116
1117
1118
1119
1120
1121
1122
1123
1124
1125
1126
1127
1128
1129
1130
1131
1132
1133
1134
1135
1136
1137
1138
1139