Napoleon was crowned Emperor of the French in 1804.
The coronation took place on 2 December 1804 at Notre-Dame de Paris, after the French Senate had proclaimed Napoleon emperor in May. A constitutional referendum later gave broad public approval to the change from republic to empire. The ceremony was designed to establish the legitimacy of Napoleon’s new dynasty and present his rule as more than a temporary military dictatorship.
Pope Pius VII attended and presided over the religious elements, but Napoleon carefully controlled the symbolism. Rather than being crowned by the pope in the traditional manner, Napoleon took the crown and placed it on his own head. He then crowned Joséphine as empress. The gesture suggested that his authority came from his own achievements and the French nation, not solely from the Church.
The event is often confused with Napoleon’s later coronation as King of Italy. That separate ceremony occurred in Milan in 1805, when he received the Iron Crown of Lombardy. The famous painting by Jacques-Louis David, although depicting the 1804 event, focuses on Napoleon crowning Joséphine rather than showing him placing the crown on himself.