Why did Napoleon betray Spain (Short Animated Documentary)
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Date: 2025-01-27
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Comments and reviews: 20
krisstarring
It would have been crazy had Napoleon not betrayed France as most of the Spanish American Wars of Independence never would have happened, at least not in the early 19th century. In much of Hispanic America, the catalyst for most revolutions was the colonial rulers not recognizing Napoleon's brother as the King of Spain. Many of that time saw an opportunity to start their own separate kingdoms and empires.
I'm not saying Spain would never had ended up losing its American colonies, it just would have taken longer. This was during the Enlightenment, and republican ideals were spreading across the Americas like wildfire, especially after the U. S. Revolutionary War. Also, the casta itself already would have been a powder keg waiting to explode; the creoles and mestizos still would have had their beef with the peninsulares. It's just Napoleon's invasion of France was the spark that lit the fire.
I think the main difference would be that the Latin American revolutions may have gone smoother than the way they went in our timeline. Countries like Mexico, Colombia, Uruguay, and Argentina wouldn't have had the instability that has rocked them for two centuries with left wing and right wing sides literally fighting for control of the government. There would be more of a united liberal republican front fighting against a conversative, colonial and royalist elite. What happened in many of the Latin American revolutions is that you had a conservative faction fighting the Napoleonic government of Spain alongside the more liberal revolutionaries, revolutionaries who the conservatives would eventually fight AGAINST once independence came. Compare that to the United States where most of the conservative loyalists all fled to Canada or The Bahamas that remained part of the British Empire after the American Revolution. There was no royalist elite to contend with.
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It would have been crazy had Napoleon not betrayed France as most of the Spanish American Wars of Independence never would have happened, at least not in the early 19th century. In much of Hispanic America, the catalyst for most revolutions was the colonial rulers not recognizing Napoleon's brother as the King of Spain. Many of that time saw an opportunity to start their own separate kingdoms and empires.
I'm not saying Spain would never had ended up losing its American colonies, it just would have taken longer. This was during the Enlightenment, and republican ideals were spreading across the Americas like wildfire, especially after the U. S. Revolutionary War. Also, the casta itself already would have been a powder keg waiting to explode; the creoles and mestizos still would have had their beef with the peninsulares. It's just Napoleon's invasion of France was the spark that lit the fire.
I think the main difference would be that the Latin American revolutions may have gone smoother than the way they went in our timeline. Countries like Mexico, Colombia, Uruguay, and Argentina wouldn't have had the instability that has rocked them for two centuries with left wing and right wing sides literally fighting for control of the government. There would be more of a united liberal republican front fighting against a conversative, colonial and royalist elite. What happened in many of the Latin American revolutions is that you had a conservative faction fighting the Napoleonic government of Spain alongside the more liberal revolutionaries, revolutionaries who the conservatives would eventually fight AGAINST once independence came. Compare that to the United States where most of the conservative loyalists all fled to Canada or The Bahamas that remained part of the British Empire after the American Revolution. There was no royalist elite to contend with.
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history_matters
If anyone's still confused about why Naploen betrayed Spain, here's the detailed answer:
Napoleon’s main reason for invading Spain (and, more broadly, the whole Iberian Peninsula) was to enforce the Continental Systema blockade intended to weaken Britain economically by closing European ports to British trade. Portugal was Britain's oldest ally and blatantly defied the Continental System, hence the invasion. Spain had long been an ally of France and was supposed to comply, but it had been more loosely enforcing the blockade. Napoleon saw Spain’s laxness as a challenge to his broader strategy against Britain.
The real trigger for the invasion (or betrayal) came in 1808, when King Charles IV of Spain and his son, Ferdinand VII, were caught up in a dynastic dispute. Napoleon was concerned that Spain might drift away from him, especially as kingdom had a weak monarchy. So Napoleon saw an opportunity to take advantage of this political instability. In March 1808, Charles IV abdicated in favor of his son, but Ferdinand was not recognized by the French. Napoleon, ever the opportunist, offered to mediate the crisis, which led to both the king and his son being forced to abdicate in favor of Napoleon’s brother, Joseph Bonaparte.
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If anyone's still confused about why Naploen betrayed Spain, here's the detailed answer:
Napoleon’s main reason for invading Spain (and, more broadly, the whole Iberian Peninsula) was to enforce the Continental Systema blockade intended to weaken Britain economically by closing European ports to British trade. Portugal was Britain's oldest ally and blatantly defied the Continental System, hence the invasion. Spain had long been an ally of France and was supposed to comply, but it had been more loosely enforcing the blockade. Napoleon saw Spain’s laxness as a challenge to his broader strategy against Britain.
The real trigger for the invasion (or betrayal) came in 1808, when King Charles IV of Spain and his son, Ferdinand VII, were caught up in a dynastic dispute. Napoleon was concerned that Spain might drift away from him, especially as kingdom had a weak monarchy. So Napoleon saw an opportunity to take advantage of this political instability. In March 1808, Charles IV abdicated in favor of his son, but Ferdinand was not recognized by the French. Napoleon, ever the opportunist, offered to mediate the crisis, which led to both the king and his son being forced to abdicate in favor of Napoleon’s brother, Joseph Bonaparte.
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history_matters
The real question you should ask yourselves is why did Napoleon betray, you know, FRANCE! Why did Napoleon usurp total power and establish a military dictatorship under the guise of Emperor Why did Napoleon abuse that total power, abuse the powerful French military and abuse the French youth into mass conscription on the road to total defeat for France Maybe Napoleon was nothing more than a deranged delusional goon who seized total power from a lost and confused nation, would not be the last time in Europe. And we know why the French won't come to terms with that ugly truth about Napoleon, the same reason they have to pretend that they triumphed when they failed miserably ending under military occupation with Napoleon, the French simply do not have the courage to face an ugly truth, much less accept it. French cowardice has been well documented at this point.
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The real question you should ask yourselves is why did Napoleon betray, you know, FRANCE! Why did Napoleon usurp total power and establish a military dictatorship under the guise of Emperor Why did Napoleon abuse that total power, abuse the powerful French military and abuse the French youth into mass conscription on the road to total defeat for France Maybe Napoleon was nothing more than a deranged delusional goon who seized total power from a lost and confused nation, would not be the last time in Europe. And we know why the French won't come to terms with that ugly truth about Napoleon, the same reason they have to pretend that they triumphed when they failed miserably ending under military occupation with Napoleon, the French simply do not have the courage to face an ugly truth, much less accept it. French cowardice has been well documented at this point.
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Titus921
Napoleon is the main reason why Spain lost its colonies in America but he could not have done it without the help of the incompetent Ferdinand and his dad Charles which Charles basically let his minister Godoy ran the entire empire and also his wife the queen. Napoleon just saw an opportunity maybe because he hated the Bourbons or just because he though Spain was a dying empire either way he put his own brother in the throne which he has done so in other kingdoms for his family but badly enough he put his drunken brother on the throne of Spain which the Spaniards called him pepe botella which means Joseph the bottle because of his excessive drinking. So Napoleon though so bad about the Spanish that he gave his looser brother the kingdom that was most loyal to him but he just not saw them as his equal a terrible mistake.
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Napoleon is the main reason why Spain lost its colonies in America but he could not have done it without the help of the incompetent Ferdinand and his dad Charles which Charles basically let his minister Godoy ran the entire empire and also his wife the queen. Napoleon just saw an opportunity maybe because he hated the Bourbons or just because he though Spain was a dying empire either way he put his own brother in the throne which he has done so in other kingdoms for his family but badly enough he put his drunken brother on the throne of Spain which the Spaniards called him pepe botella which means Joseph the bottle because of his excessive drinking. So Napoleon though so bad about the Spanish that he gave his looser brother the kingdom that was most loyal to him but he just not saw them as his equal a terrible mistake.
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history_matters
Pretty disappointing video. You didn't answer the question posed in the title. You just talked about the origins of the Franco-Spanish alliance and what happened when Napoleon betrayed it but you didn't explain why he betrayed it. You just said really briefly he wanted to capture Spain for himself - Ok WHY did he want to capture Spain for himself For it's resources For it's strategic position Because he liked the landscape Did he plan on conquering the entire world After conquering Europe he was next going to invade the Americas and then Africa and Asia If it was for strategic reasons, HOW did he determine that it was more cost effective to spend men and resources occupying Spain, instead of keeping them on board as an ally You didn't answer any of these questions. Fail.
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Pretty disappointing video. You didn't answer the question posed in the title. You just talked about the origins of the Franco-Spanish alliance and what happened when Napoleon betrayed it but you didn't explain why he betrayed it. You just said really briefly he wanted to capture Spain for himself - Ok WHY did he want to capture Spain for himself For it's resources For it's strategic position Because he liked the landscape Did he plan on conquering the entire world After conquering Europe he was next going to invade the Americas and then Africa and Asia If it was for strategic reasons, HOW did he determine that it was more cost effective to spend men and resources occupying Spain, instead of keeping them on board as an ally You didn't answer any of these questions. Fail.
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killer3000ad
Another after effect of Napoleon invading Spain and temporarily putting his brother on the throne was that it hastened the loss of Spain's American colonies. The Mexicans refused to accept Spanish rule after the restoration of King Ferdinand and Spain fought and lost a costly 11 year war trying to regain Mexico.
Mexico in turn was weakened by the fighting and some places like Texas were so depopulated that they decided to encourage immigration from the US to fix it.
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Another after effect of Napoleon invading Spain and temporarily putting his brother on the throne was that it hastened the loss of Spain's American colonies. The Mexicans refused to accept Spanish rule after the restoration of King Ferdinand and Spain fought and lost a costly 11 year war trying to regain Mexico.
Mexico in turn was weakened by the fighting and some places like Texas were so depopulated that they decided to encourage immigration from the US to fix it.
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ReinoldFZ
In what is Hispanic America it meant that at last the nations could get their independence from Spain, so at least I am happy for Napoleon and I think we should have statues of him here everywhere. I don't say this with any animosity against Spain, just it was convenient for us. I think Napoleon succeeded, as maybe Spain, with such massive empire, was a threat to France and so, with the destruction of that paper empire he had no rival.
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In what is Hispanic America it meant that at last the nations could get their independence from Spain, so at least I am happy for Napoleon and I think we should have statues of him here everywhere. I don't say this with any animosity against Spain, just it was convenient for us. I think Napoleon succeeded, as maybe Spain, with such massive empire, was a threat to France and so, with the destruction of that paper empire he had no rival.
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ddc2957
Hey Spain, do you see how I transformed France from broken & destitute into a wealthy, thriving force, politically, economically & militarily Would you like some
No thank you, we’d prefer to fight to the last man to remain broke, ignorant & pious.
Well they got their wish. & Spain’s legacy of being broke & backward endures to this day. To call the Peninsular War a Spanish victory is beyond satire.
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Hey Spain, do you see how I transformed France from broken & destitute into a wealthy, thriving force, politically, economically & militarily Would you like some
No thank you, we’d prefer to fight to the last man to remain broke, ignorant & pious.
Well they got their wish. & Spain’s legacy of being broke & backward endures to this day. To call the Peninsular War a Spanish victory is beyond satire.
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EPlurbisUnum-p6m
The large majority of the French were still Christians, including the army. Though it appeared to the Spanish that the French were atheists, becasue of the persecution of Christianity by the radicals in the revolutionary government. Since the concordat of 1801 Catholicism was recognized as the dominant religion in France again, though most of the population was still Christian during the revolution.
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The large majority of the French were still Christians, including the army. Though it appeared to the Spanish that the French were atheists, becasue of the persecution of Christianity by the radicals in the revolutionary government. Since the concordat of 1801 Catholicism was recognized as the dominant religion in France again, though most of the population was still Christian during the revolution.
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010Jordi
For being a smart guy napoleon made some weird decisions. like here in the Netherlands he first created the Batavian Republic then made it the kingdom of Holland with his other brother as king then didn't like that his brother liked the Dutch people and wanted to be a good king so he made him abdicate and incorporated us into France
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For being a smart guy napoleon made some weird decisions. like here in the Netherlands he first created the Batavian Republic then made it the kingdom of Holland with his other brother as king then didn't like that his brother liked the Dutch people and wanted to be a good king so he made him abdicate and incorporated us into France
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ironoir4107
As a Spaniard studying this topic, it's very accurate. Just a minor mistake: the Northwest part of Portgual wasn't promised to Spain, but the Duque of Parma, which had previously given up his Duchy to Napoleon. Moreover, the Southern part was not for the Kingdom of Spain, but for Prime Minister, Manuel Godoy himself.
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As a Spaniard studying this topic, it's very accurate. Just a minor mistake: the Northwest part of Portgual wasn't promised to Spain, but the Duque of Parma, which had previously given up his Duchy to Napoleon. Moreover, the Southern part was not for the Kingdom of Spain, but for Prime Minister, Manuel Godoy himself.
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history_matters
This video has an AI generated voice over, which translates it from english into my native language. This is the first time I have come across this. I haven't found any settings to enable/disable it. If this is a setting done by the uploader, please for the love of god disable it. It is horrible.
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This video has an AI generated voice over, which translates it from english into my native language. This is the first time I have come across this. I haven't found any settings to enable/disable it. If this is a setting done by the uploader, please for the love of god disable it. It is horrible.
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CARL_093
Consequences of the betrayal:
The Spanish people strongly resisted French rule, leading to a long and bloody guerilla war known as the Peninsular War, which significantly drained French resources and is considered one of the major factors contributing to Napoleon's downfall.
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Consequences of the betrayal:
The Spanish people strongly resisted French rule, leading to a long and bloody guerilla war known as the Peninsular War, which significantly drained French resources and is considered one of the major factors contributing to Napoleon's downfall.
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TheJamonLance
And from that moment, spain and france would have beef forever. France is probably the most hated country by spaniards, part envy, part napoleon, part recent beef and french protectionism.
And now france is somehow invaded by africa, so. I bet they dont like it either.
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And from that moment, spain and france would have beef forever. France is probably the most hated country by spaniards, part envy, part napoleon, part recent beef and french protectionism.
And now france is somehow invaded by africa, so. I bet they dont like it either.
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JerryJohnson-s7d
Every other country truth be told provided Napoleon high class literally uh mistresses yea that's the word misteess the only countries that got the imperial shaft so to speak were the ones that did not name one Spanish mistress case solved case closed
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Every other country truth be told provided Napoleon high class literally uh mistresses yea that's the word misteess the only countries that got the imperial shaft so to speak were the ones that did not name one Spanish mistress case solved case closed
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history_matters
I wouldve done the same. Incompetent spanish Bourbons didnt really deserve it but i applaud the spaniards for their determination.
I cant blame napoleon for not knowing the spanish would succed so much that the term guerilla would be popularized
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I wouldve done the same. Incompetent spanish Bourbons didnt really deserve it but i applaud the spaniards for their determination.
I cant blame napoleon for not knowing the spanish would succed so much that the term guerilla would be popularized
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history_matters
I know that with this case of betrayal every enemy of napoleon, mostly britain and its allies would say, by pointing the finger, see see This guy betrayed its own old ally! It can’t be trusted
Basically all of Europe enters war against france
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I know that with this case of betrayal every enemy of napoleon, mostly britain and its allies would say, by pointing the finger, see see This guy betrayed its own old ally! It can’t be trusted
Basically all of Europe enters war against france
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peterg76yt
Spain have very much been in decline but occupation by a foreign power really helped the independence movements in the Americas. It's one thing to be second-class citizens of a great empire, another to be second-class citizens of a vassel of France.
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Spain have very much been in decline but occupation by a foreign power really helped the independence movements in the Americas. It's one thing to be second-class citizens of a great empire, another to be second-class citizens of a vassel of France.
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joshuazelinsky5213
Part of a much more general story. Napoleon was one of the most brilliant generals to live and won battles consistently that others would have lost. But he was so bad at geopolitics and large-scale strategy that he ultimately lost anyways.
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Part of a much more general story. Napoleon was one of the most brilliant generals to live and won battles consistently that others would have lost. But he was so bad at geopolitics and large-scale strategy that he ultimately lost anyways.
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osasunaitor
Fun fact: the term guerrilla (meaning _little war_ in Spanish) was coined during Napoleon's invasion of Spain to describe how the local population organised themselves in civilian armed groups to harass and fend off the invading French troops.
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Fun fact: the term guerrilla (meaning _little war_ in Spanish) was coined during Napoleon's invasion of Spain to describe how the local population organised themselves in civilian armed groups to harass and fend off the invading French troops.
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