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| 1800, Feb. 17 |
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| Administration centralized. Law of 28 Pluviôse placed the administration of local government in the hands of centrally appointed prefectures and subprefectures. It was followed by a new system, which placed tax collection in the hands of government officials in each district. | 1 |
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| 1801, July 15 |
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| Concordat of 1801 (announced on Easter Sunday, 1802) between the pope and Napoleon reconciled the Consulate and the Catholic Church. Napoleon sought this reconciliation because of the continuing strife in the west of France, where local peasants remained committed to the Catholic Church. The reconciliation was incomplete because many priests in outlying regions (especially in Belgium) formed the Petite Église, which opposed the Concordat, and the Organic Articles that followed it. Christians had been allowed to worship on Sundays since Dec. 30, 1799. Napoleon now reestablished the Catholic Church in France under close government supervision. The consul appointed the bishops, who were confirmed by the pope. The bishops chose their own clergy, whom the government paid. The pope continued to control the Papal States, with the exceptions of Ferrara, Bologna, and Romagna. | 2 |
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| 1802, April 8 |
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| Organic Articles for Protestants. Napoleon commissioned Portalis to provide legislation for Protestants similar to the Concordat of 1801. The resulting Organic Articles divided the Calvinist community into congregations of 6,000 souls governed by a pastor and elders chosen from the large taxpayers. Lutheran churches were supervised by directories of which the majority were selected by the consul. The civil government had the right to veto clerical appointments and changes in church doctrine. In 1804, Protestant pastors were salaried by the state. This legislation was favored by Protestants and led to a Calvinist revival in Napoleonic France. | 3 |
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| May 1 |
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| Napoleon replaced the secondary schools of the Directory with lycées, whose purpose was to educate future officials and to emphasize technical and practical skills. The government set aside scholarships for children of government servants and officers. The rewards for service to the state were also reinforced by the Legion of Honor, created on May 19. Because Napoleon believed that women should be wives and mothers, women were not admitted to state secondary schools or the universities. | 4 |
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| Aug. 2 |
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| Napoleon became consul for life, with the right of appointing his successor. A new constitution, approved by plebiscite (3.5 million popular votes), enlarged the powers of the Senate, which was ruled by the consul, and reduced the importance of the other legislative bodies. | 5 |
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