As a regime type, at least in its first two French incarnations, Bonapartism is synonymous with the seizure of power in a coup d'état (there is no Bonapartism without a Brumaire) and with the formation of an hereditary empire, monarchy in a new key. In this chapter, I focus on the second of these defining characteristics. I am particularly interested in the roles of certain individuals and small groups of Bonaparte's collaborators in advancing or resisting the transition from Consulate to Empire. An hereditary empire, which had many enthusiasts in the ranks of Bonaparte's servitors, was actually a rather awkward notion, given Napoleon's utter disdain for any likely heir. The chapter traces the process by which the hereditary empire came into being; the “manufacture of consent” through public opinion (with particular attention to the military); and the allotted roles and unanticipated resistance in key institutions of the regime (the Council of State, the Tribunate, and the Senate). Throughout I will underscore the effort to legitimize the Empire by its ostensible linkage to the basic gains of the Revolution.