Temporary Archive: Suzanne Brockmann's Message Board

under Napolean. They lost rights to property and the right of self governance and became essentially the property of their male relatives. So I would have to disagree that life was better for most citizens when half of them became the property of the other half under Napolean. But it is true that like many famous leaders Napolean had a profound affect on the future of France both good and bad. It is interesting to note that under tyrants and dictators, there is a certain amount of civic order and service which many people find comforting, but the trade off is often the right to self determination and the cessation of disagreeing with the government (often a dangerous thing in those circumstances!). I think this is how you could begin to compare Napolean with Stalin or Hitler. And don't forget that in France until a few years ago under those old laws you were still guilty until you proved yourself innocent.