How does Napoleon restore order to France?

After the overthrow of the Jacobins, the Directory took charge in France. At that time, the country was in a state of political, social, and economic turmoil. On the domestic front, both inflation and mass unemployment were rife, creating a perfect storm of poverty and chronic shortages. In relation to foreign affairs, France was still at war with several hostile powers determined to restore the ancien régime.
The five men who made up the Directory proved themselves incapable of rising to the challenge and showing the necessary leadership to get France through this turbulent period. It's not surprising, then, that many came to believe that only a single strong leader could possibly get France out of its present difficulties. At that time, a young general by the name of Napoleon Bonaparte seemed to fit the bill. He was certainly highly ambitious; his credentials as a political leader had been burnished by a string of impressive military victories.
Napoleon was only too willing to take his chance, and exploited the volatile political situation to launch a successful coup on November 9th, 1799 (18th Brumaire under the French Republican Calendar). Immediately, he set about restoring order to France, establishing himself as First Consul for a period of ten years. He also put into effect a new constitution, which gave him considerable power. Napoleon's position was further consolidated by an overwhelming endorsement of his constitutional changes by the French people (though the popular vote was actually rigged in his favor). Although Napoleon technically shared power with two other consuls, in actual fact France was now effectively a dictatorship.
Despite this, Napoleon's grip on power was still rather tenuous. He had risen to power largely on the back of his military successes; having achieved such power, he had to continue racking them up, consolidating his grip on the popular imagination. Napoleon's most conspicuous method of restoring order to France was, thus, to achieve glory on the battlefield. So long as Napoleon's undoubted military genius continued to bear fruit and bring glory and power to France, his position would remain secure.
Yet this left Napoleon's rule vulnerable to sudden reversals of fortune, and so it proved. Just as his daring military exploits had led to his assumption of power, so too would they be responsible for his eventual demise. No matter how powerful Napoleon appeared to be throughout his lengthy reign, the foundations of his dictatorship were relatively weak and prone to sudden collapse in the face of concerted opposition.