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Primary sourceDocument1804

Civil Code of the French

1804

The 1804 civil code pushed through by Napoleon, establishing legal equality and property rights across France while restricting the rights of women and children.

Napoleon commissioned and personally drove through this code, making it one of his most important acts as ruler.

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Open book on a black background showing the title page of the Code Civil des Francais, Tome Premier, with printed text on the facing left page. The book is bound in brown leather.
Code civil des Français, original edition, Paris, 1804. Historical Museum of the Palatinate.

About this source

What it is

This is the Code civil des Français, printed in Paris in 1804. It was drafted by a commission of jurists, but Napoleon Bonaparte chaired many of its working sessions and pushed hard for its approval.

Why it matters

The code replaced a patchwork of local feudal customs with one clear set of laws for the whole country. It guaranteed equality before the law and secured property rights, making it one of Napoleon's most lasting achievements. Historians consider it a model copied far beyond France. At the same time, it reduced the legal rights of women and children, showing the limits of the era's idea of equality.

Look closer

  • Why might a ruler want his name attached to a law code rather than letting the jurists who wrote it take the credit?
  • What does it tell us that equality was granted to men but not equally to women and children?
  • How could a single legal code strengthen central power as well as protect ordinary citizens?

This document is part of the curated material that grounds the AI version of Napoleon Bonaparte on Humy.ai — when students ask about related events, the AI can quote it and cite it.

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