Napoleon’s Rise to Power, Death of the First Bank, Waterloo

“The hand that gives is above the hand that takes. Money has no motherland; financiers are without patriotism and without decency: their sole object is gain.”
—Napoleon Bonaparte

Back in America, unexpected help was about to arrive. In 1800, Thomas Jefferson narrowly defeated John Adams to become the third President of the United States.

By 1803, Jefferson and Napoleon had struck a deal. The U.S. would give Napoleon $3,000,000 in gold in exchange for a huge chunk of territory west of the Mississippi River – the Louisiana Purchase. With that three million dollars, Napoleon quickly forged an army and set off across Europe, conquering everything in his path.