What were the causes of the Failure of the Continental System of Napoleon?

Owing to the boycott of the British goods, the Russians had to face great difficulties and the Czar restarted his trade with Great Britain in 1810.

The Czar also concluded a treaty with Sweden. England also made a commercial compromise with both of them. Prussia also cooperated with both these countries.

Therefore Prussia, Russia and Sweden jointly started to oppose the continental system. Portugal and Spain also declared war against Napoleon. His own brother Louis Bonaparte was deadly against this system. Therefore, it did not last long and came apart.

Causes of the Failure of the Continental System

1. It was an impossible scheme. Every country was not expected to bear the innumerable stresses by following this scheme.

2. It was impossible for France to control the vast sea without a powerful fleet.

3. England was short of corn but Napoleon continued to supply corn at high rates. He presumed that England had little wealth which will be reduced all the more by making purchases of coil at high rates which would result in an economic crisisEngland.

Had he stopped the supply of corn completely, people might have begun to starve and would have forced authorities of England for a treaty but the miscalculation Napoleon was a contributing factor to the failure of this scheme.

4. Most of the European countries including France depended British goods and they could not possibly live without these goods. But after the supply of these articles was stopped, people had to face great difficulties and they began to oppose this scheme vehemently.

In 1807 Napoleon himself purchased fifty thousand overcoats from Great Britain through Holland at the time of the battle of Eyleau. Rose has remarked:

“The European trade was greatly ruined due to the continental system. In 1810 only one or two sugar mills out of 428 could seen working in Hamburg.”

5. The smuggling of goods became widespread in the entire Europe and Napoleon could not check this black marketing due to his weak navy.

6. Napoleon had to wage wars against many countries for implementation of this scheme. The names of Russia, Spain Holland need special mention. This scheme was the root cause of the struggle between Napoleon and the Pope of Rome. Consequently all these countries turned into his deadly foes.

7. Portugal and Spain also did not join this scheme and extended their cooperation to England.

8. Napoleon lost the sympathy of people. They began to hate for his selfish and tyrannical rule. Napoleon failed to cope with the rising tide of public opinion. It was a fault on the part Napoleon to have introduced the continental system. Hazen writes: “The continental system was a great blunder on the part of Napoleon.”

Madelin also remarks:

“The continental system of Napoleon was the principal trag­edy the drama of his fall.”

9. Napoleon had overconfidence in his intelligence and abilities. He wanted obedience from all quarters without any ‘ifs’ and ‘buts’. His overweening pride and bloated ego were the chief reasons for the failure of this scheme and his own downfall. Edwards writes:

“It was a fantastic scheme which transgressed the limits practical statesmanship. It was based on the fundamental error that Napoleon’s subjects would sacrifice their personal comforts to enable him to crush his hated and invincible enemy, Great Britain, which was economically indispensable to Europe.”

The entire Europe was disturbed by this scheme of Napoleon and various countries began to conspire against France. There was a pervading atmosphere of chaos and confusion against Napoleon.

Not only the people of Europe raised their voice against Napoleon, he also lost the sympathy of the middle-class people of France, who had made him. Markham writes:

“Napoleon had not only roused the people of Europe against the Empire by his continental system, he had also lost the confidence of the French middle-class, which had put him into power.”

Thompson, a prominent historian, has also written:

“If, then, England lived on her export trade, Napoleon’s attempt to destroy it was remarkably unsuccessful. It might be said that this was because during the years in which the continental ports were increasingly shut against her ships, she was able to develop new markets overseas.”

In fact, this scheme of Napoleon totally failed and proved suicidal for him, and ultimately Napoleon felt that he himself had been trapped in the net which he laid for England.