Napoleon Bonaparte (1769-1821) was a French military and political leader who became the emperor of France. Also known as Napoleon I, he conquered much of Europe in the early 19th century. Born on the island of Corsica, Napoleon rapidly rose through the ranks of the military during the French Revolution (1789-1799). After seizing political power in France in a 1799 coup d¡Ô?tat, he crowned himself emperor in 1804. .