Not Napoleon the Dessert

Had enough of Napoleon? Well too bad! In 1848, the world witnessed the emergence of a new Napoleon...

.....not this kind of Napoleon....

.....but this kind of Napoleon....

What a cootie patootie, or what the French would say, "Ce garçon est très mignon!"

Anyway, Louis Napoleon Bonaparte won a landslide election in 1848, earning 3 times as many votes as the four other candidates combined. Why was Louis Napoleon so popular?..you may be asking yourself. For the record, he was quite MIA from French politics before 1848. His popularity was uplifted due to 3 central factors....

1. His name. Of course the French people still remembered the first Napoleon, who lost all of his power in 1815 at the Battle of Waterloo. For the most part, Napoleon I was still favorable in the eyes of the French. He saved and reorganized his country from the grips of Revolution and turmoil during the end of the eighteenth century. Although he did go a little cray and tried to take over the world and such, he was still an auspicious ruler. Louis Napoleon had task of following in his uncle's footsteps.

2. Socialism. Basically, people feared the new and radical socialist ideas that were emerging at the time. More specifically, the middle class and peasant property owners feared the growing power and the growing tensions of the urban workers, who were notorious socialists. A strong leader, in their eyes, would protect them from these threats. But really, who isn't afraid of socialism? Obviously Katie Coyne.

3. His program. Throughout his reign, Louis Napoleon affirmed that he had a "positive" program and effective plans for the rule of his country. Above all, he believed in a strong economic policy. This is the way Maura sees it....

Economic Success ------>  Happy People  ------> Happy Country 

Economic progress, in turn, would reduce social and political tensions. A powerful authoritarian ruler, like Louis Napoleon, would represent all of the interest groups in society, rich to poor. Through direct democracy, Napoleon would be linked to each individual citizen and would stimulate the economy. Napoleon's plan was quite popular among his people, especially his restoration of male suffrage. This restoration allowed him to legalize his corrupt actions, like dismissing the Assembly. His illegal actions were accepted because over 90% of the population elected him to lead the nation.

Basically, I do believe that Louis Napoleon wanted to please his people. He once said, and I quote, "Public opinion always wins the last victory." I think that he just wanted to be loved, like us all....