History glossary
the Consulate
the government Napoleon established after 18 Brumaire, with himself as First Consul.
- Category
- Political system
- Region
- France
- Date range
- 1799-1804
What it means
The Consulate was the government that replaced the Directory after Napoleon's coup of 18 Brumaire. It had three consuls in theory, but Napoleon as First Consul held decisive power.
Related terms
Stories using this term
The French Revolution
From royal debt and social inequality to republic, terror, and Napoleon, the French Revolution dismantled the old order and produced the political ideas of citizenship, rights, and nationalism that defined the modern world.
Napoleon and the Napoleonic Wars
Napoleon turned revolutionary opportunity into continental empire, then lost it in total war that still transformed European politics, states, and nationalism.
