Coronation of Napoleon

For the painting, see The Coronation of Napoleon.
Coronation of Napoleon and Joséphine
Consecration of the Emperor Napoléon I and Coronation of the Empress Joséphine in the Cathedral of Notre-Dame de Paris on December 2, 1804 by Jacques-Louis David (completed in 1808)
DateDecember 2, 1804
(11 Frimaire XIII)
LocationNotre-Dame de Paris, Paris
Participants

Napoleon I and his wife Joséphine were crowned Emperor and Empress of the French on Sunday, December 2, 1804 (11 Frimaire, Year XIII according to the French Republican calendar, commonly used at the time in France), at Notre-Dame de Paris in Paris. It marked "the instantiation of [the] modern empire" and was a "transparently masterminded piece of modern propaganda".[1] Napoleon wanted to establish the legitimacy of his imperial reign with its new dynasty and nobility. To this end, he designed a new coronation ceremony unlike that for the kings of France, which had emphasised the king's consecration (sacre) and anointment and was conferred by the archbishop of Reims in Reims Cathedral.[2] Napoleon's was a sacred ceremony held in the great cathedral of Notre Dame de Paris in the presence of Pope Pius VII. Napoleon brought together various rites and customs, incorporating ceremonies of Carolingian tradition, the ancien régime, and the French Revolution, all presented in sumptuous luxury.[3]

On May 18, 1804, the Sénat conservateur vested the Republican government of the French First Republic in an emperor, and preparations for the coronation followed. Napoleon's elevation to emperor was overwhelmingly approved by the French people in the French constitutional referendum of 1804. Among Napoleon's motivations for being crowned were to gain prestige in international royalist and Catholic circles and to lay the foundation for a future dynasty.[2]: 243 

In 1805, Napoleon was also separately crowned with the Iron Crown as King of Italy in Milan Cathedral.[4]

  1. ^ Porterfield, Todd Burke; Siegfried, Susan L. (2006). Staging empire: Napoleon, Ingres, and David. Penn State Press. p. 4. ISBN 978-0-271-02858-3. Retrieved December 1, 2011.
  2. ^ a b Englund, Steven (April 30, 2005). Napoleon: A Political Life. Harvard University Press. ISBN 978-0-674-01803-7. Retrieved December 1, 2011.
  3. ^ Dwyer 2015
  4. ^ "Napoleon's consecration and coronation in Milan, 26 May, 1805". Napoleon.org. Retrieved May 26, 2024.