Napoleonic Code

The Napoleonic Code, or the Code Napoleon, is a set of civil laws that French emperor Napoleon Bonaparte enacted in 1804. When it took effect, the Napoleonic Code condensed and modernized French law. It solidified the idea of personal freedom, guaranteed the equality of all male citizens, and established a system of laws that was equally applicable to all people, regardless of their place in society. Although it was not without flaws, the Napoleonic Code brought the people of France together after the bitterly divisive French Revolution and fostered national unity. The Code's influence was not limited to its effect on France, however. As the first modern set of laws of its kind, the Napoleonic Code changed the way many people viewed the fundamental principles of law and influenced the development of other legal systems around the world. Even more than two hundred years after its passage, the Napoleonic Code continues to influence the way people live in the modern world.

Background

In the late eighteenth century, France experienced a dramatic political shift known as the French Revolution. As the French monarchy was ousted from power, the country suffered through years of violent conflict and chaos. The first signs of a return to order came with Napoleon Bonaparte's rise to power in 1799. A military hero who successfully forced British troops out of southern France, Napoleon was widely popular among the French people and uniquely suited to bring the deeply fractured country back together.

Soon after seizing control of the government, Napoleon called for the drafting of a new constitution. This eventually led to the creation of the Constitution of 1799, an important document that gave adult males the right to vote and established a new government called the Consulate. Anxious for stability, the French people strongly supported the new constitution and voted in favor of its passage. Now serving as "First Consul," Napoleon worked to rebuild France. In addition to establishing the country's first public education system, he undertook various public works projects aimed at beautifying Paris and brought an end to a long, violent conflict between France and the Catholic Church. Napoleon's rise continued in the early nineteenth century as he scored important military victories, secured peace treaties, and improved France's international standing. By 1802, Napoleon was so popular that the French people voted to make him their permanent leader, naming him "First Consul for Life."

Despite all of Napoleon's accomplishments and his widespread popularity, France still had serious problems to overcome. Among the most pressing was the country's bloated and complex legal system. During the French Revolution, the interim government passed about fourteen thousand new laws while attempting to achieve stability. The result was an enormously complicated legal system in dire need of reform. Napoleon recognized the problems with France's legal system and sought to address them when he took power. To that end, he created a special commission tasked with the difficult job of revising French law and designing a new legal system. After meeting more than eighty times, the commission unveiled its crowning achievement: the Napoleonic Code.

Overview

The Napoleonic Code was, in many ways, a major breakthrough in the development of modern legal systems. Rather than dealing with crime and punishment, the Napoleonic code was a civil code concerned primarily with personal freedoms, property rights, and the family unit—matters that had a profound effect on people's everyday lives. Because of the unique way it approached these matters, the Napoleonic Code was quite different from any legal system that came before it in France or anywhere else.

What made the Napoleonic Code different from other legal systems at the time were the core principles upon which it was founded. The Code was based on the idea that all people should be equal in the eyes of the law and that no one should have special privileges simply because of his or her place in the social order. It recognized the importance of religious freedom and the idea that a clear separation of church and state should exist. Another important principle on which the Code was founded was the idea that people should be free to work in any occupation of their choosing. Finally, the Code stressed the belief that strong family values are central to the success of any society.

The Napoleonic Code had a number of key features. In addition to emphasizing legal equality, ensuring religious freedom, and giving people the right to work in the professional field of their choice, the Code protected the rights of private property owners. Specifically, the Code identified and distinguished among different types of property and established that citizens had the right to do with their property as they pleased. The Code touched on contract law, defining the requirements of a contract and outlining how they work. Uniquely, the Code provided for the possibility of a unilateral contract in which one party could agree to receive no direct benefits. In most other legal systems, both parties to a contract are required to give something.

While the Napoleonic Code was a success, it did have some flaws. The most serious of these by contemporary standards were those related to its stances on family life. Although it was meant to strengthen the family model, the Code included some harsh regulations that were not fair to everyone involved. First and foremost, the Code firmly established fathers and husbands as the head of the household and gave them the most rights and freedoms. Under the Code, women did not have the right to vote and were expected to be strictly obedient to their husbands. The Code made it much easier for husbands to divorce their wives than it was for wives to divorce their husbands. Children also had few rights under the Code and could even be legally imprisoned by their fathers for as long as six months.

Once it went into force, the Napoleonic Code had a transformative effect. In France, it helped to unify a population that had been torn apart by revolution just a few years before. Elsewhere, it influenced the development and evolution of legal systems in many other countries.

Bibliography

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Constitutional Rights Foundation. "The Code Napoleon." Bill of Rights in Action, vol. 15, no. 2, 1999.

Engber, Daniel. "Louisiana's Napoleon Complex." Slate, 12 Sep. 2005, www.slate.com/articles/news‗and‗politics/explainer/2005/09/louisianas‗napoleon‗complex.html. Accessed 4 Nov. 2016.

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Shannon, Vince. "A Primer on the Napoleonic Code." USBLAWG, 10 Apr. 2013, www.usblawg.com/general-law/a-primer-on-the-napoleonic-code/. Accessed 4 Nov. 2016.