Napoleon I

Napoleon Bonaparte (1769–1821), later Napoleon I, was a Corsican-born French military commander and statesman who rose to prominence during the French Revolution. After leading successful campaigns in Italy and Egypt, he seized power in 1799 as First Consul and in 1804 crowned himself Emperor of the French. His rule reshaped Europe through war and diplomacy and left lasting legal and administrative reforms, notably the Napoleonic Code. Defeated after the 1812 Russian campaign and subsequent coalitions, he was exiled to Elba, returned for the Hundred Days, and was finally defeated at Waterloo in 1815. He died in exile on Saint Helena.