Empire, First

   The government of France from May 18, 1804, to April 4, 1814, and from March 20 to June 22, 1815, which followed the Consulate. On May 18, 1804, the Senate gave First Consul Napoléon Bonaparte, the title of emperor. He was crowned napoléon i, emperor of the French, in the presence of Pope Pius VII on December 2, 1804. The Empire continued the work of the Consulate government, especially in implementing the new Civil Code (Code Napoléon), the Concordat, and educational reforms. To maintain the integrity of his continental blockade of the British, Napoléon practiced a policy of annexation. Territorially, the empire reached its height between 1810 and 1812, comprising at that point France, Belgium, Holland, the Hanseatic cities, Bremen, Hamburg, the left bank of the Rhine, northern Italy, Rome, and the Illyrian Provinces. The king of Spain and the king of Naples were the emperor's vassals, General Charles Bernadotte reigned in Sweden under the name charles XIV, and Denmark was a powerful ally. Napoléon was the mediator of the Helvetic Confederation and protector of the Confederation of the Rhine. The French Civil Code and institutions were introduced in these countries, preparing the way for a transformation of Europe. The Napoleonic wars, however, cost the lives of a million soldiers, but the economic balance of the period was positive for France, with the blockade favoring the development of certain industries.