2) Was Napoleon a democratic ruler ? Why?
Answers
Answer:
No
Explanation:
No, Napoleon overthrew the regular government to take power. He did once or twice hold plebiscites to validate his power, but these were not free elections. When emperor, he ruled as a dictator and forced his disastrous economic system on Europe, had dissenting publishers shot and otherwise acted tyrannically.
Answer:
Not really. There were institutions besides the Emperor, but there was not a system of ‘checks and balances’ in place, since these institutions existed mostly to execute Napoleon’s will.
And it was so even before the Empire: as First Consul, in the dying days of the Republic, Napoleon had an absolute veto power over the other two Consuls, power he bestowed upon himself, of course.
Later, as Emperor, he never asked for universal (male) suffrage, or called for elections to ratify his power through popular sovereignty. And he practiced a heavy censorship of the press: nobody could publish a newspaper without a license, and both newspaper and books had to be censored before being published.
However, Napoleon’s rule was not one of random terror or civil strife, as it was during the Directory. Also, in both the military and the public service, he installed a system where salary and promotion depended more on merit than seniority or birth. And he brought uniformity and equality before the law, unlike the arbitrary legal system of the Ancient Régime.
In short, Napoleon was an enlightened despot.