Which countries constituted la Grande France and which were in the ''rest'' of the Napoleonic Empire

Question

Did the Empire consist of simply France and the annexed territories? or did it include the dependent states, like Italy and Naples? And if the annexed territories are the 'Empire' then is it right to say that La Grande France is simply France more or less as we know it today?

Thanks for any help.

Answer 1

Loads of stuff and useful links here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Napoleonic_Empire

Answer 2

Another hard one, as the composition of France changed greatly over the 20 years the Republic and the Empire existed. It's fair to say that Northern Italy and the Rhineland were for a time "parts" of France, and that Batavia and Spain were "annexed territories". Doesn't matter much, though, as with the end of the Empire France shrank back into its ancient boundaries, as you say.