The Campaigns of Napoleon

Napoleonic war was nothing if not complex—an ever-shifting kaleidoscope of moves and intentions, which by themselves went a long way towards baffling and dazing his conventionally-minded opponents into that state of disconcerting moral disequilibrium which so often resulted in their catastrophic defeat. The Campaigns of Napoleon is an exhaustive analysis and critique of Napoleon's art of war as he himself developed and perfected it in the major military campaigns of his career. Napoleon disavowed any suggestion that he worked from formula (“Je n'ai jamais eu un plan d'opérations”), but military historian David Chandler demonstrates this was at best only a half-truth. To be sure, every operation Napoleon conducted contained unique improvisatory features. But there were from the first to the last certain basic principles of strategic maneuver and battlefield planning that he almost invariably put into practice. To clarify these underlying methods, as well as the style of Napoleon's fabulous intellect, Mr. Chandler examines in detail each campaign mounted and personally conducted by Napoleon, analyzing the strategies employed, revealing wherever possible the probable sources of his subject's military ideas. The book opens with a brief account of Bonaparte's early years, his military education and formative experiences, and his meteoric rise to the rank of general in the army of the Directory. Introducing the elements of Napoleonic “grand tactics” as they developed in his Italian, Egyptian, and Syrian campaigns, Mr. Chandler shows how these principles were clearly conceived as early as the Battle of Castiglione, when Napoleon was only twenty-six. Several campaigns later, he was Emperor of France, busily constructing the Grande Armée. This great war machine is described in considerable detail: the composition of the armies and the élite Guard; the staff system and the methods of command; the kind of artillery and firearms used; and the daily life of the Grande Armée and the all-seeing and all-commanding virtuoso who presided over every aspect of its operation in the field. As the great machine sweeps into action in the campaigns along the Rhine and the Danube, in East Prussia and Poland, and in Portugal and Spain, David Chandler follows closely every move that vindicates—or challenges—the legend of Napoleon's military genius. As the major battles take their gory courses—Austerlitz, Jena, Fried-land—we see Napoleon's star reaching its zenith. Then, in the Wagram Campaign of 1809 against the Austrians—his last real success—the great man commits more errors of judgment than in all his previous wars and battles put together. As the campaigns rage on, his declining powers seem to justify his own statement: “One has but a short time for war.” Then the horrors of the Russian campaign forever shatter the image of Napoleonic invincibility. It is thereafter a short, though heroic and sanguinary, road to Waterloo and St. Helena. Napoleon appears most strikingly in these pages as the brilliant applier of the ideas of others rather than as an original military thinker, his genius proving itself more practical than theoretical. Paradoxically, this was both his chief strength and his main weakness as a general. After bringing the French army a decade of victory, his methods became increasingly stereotyped and, even worse, were widely copied by his foes, who operated against him with increasing effectiveness toward the end of his career. Yet even though his enemies attempted to imitate his techniques, as have others in the last century and a half, no one ever equaled his success. As these meticulous campaign analyses testify, his multifaceted genius was unique. Even as the end approached, as David Chandler points out, his eclipse was “the failure of a giant surrounded by pygmies.” “The flight of the eagle was over; the ‘ogre’ was safely caged at last, and an exhausted Europe settled down once more to attempt a return to former ways of life and government. But the shade of Napoleon lingered on irresistibly for many years after his death in 1821. It lingers yet.”

History

Chandler, David G.

Europe

Scribner

A classic military history, one of the standard accounts of Napoleon's return from Elba, his 100 days of power and the battle that ended it.

Waterloo, the Hundred Days

Historical Study & Educational Resources

Macmillan Pub. Co.

Describes more than fifty of the most significant battles of the war, provides concise accounts of each battle and its impact on the war, and includes information on location, objective, leaders, casualties and outcome

Battles and Battlescenes of World War Two

Military

Analyzes hundreds of battles and campaigns between the Thirty Years War and the Russo-Turkish conflict of 1878, discussing in detail the strategies of such military leaders as General Grant and Field Marshall Helmuth von Moltke

Atlas of Military Strategy

The Free Press

The Wordsworth Military Library covers the breadth of military history, including studies of individual leaders and accounts of major campaigns and great conflicts.

Dictionary of the Napoleonic Wars

Reference

PRENTICE/HALL

In 216 B. C. Hannibal brought about the destruction of the Roman army at Cannae using the classical maneuver of the double envelopment. In 1941 the German commander von Runstedt brought off a similar maneuver against the Russians at Kiev and won an equally crushing victory. Drawing fascinating parallels between the military maneuvers of the ancient world and successful tactics in modern wars, David Chandler sets out to demonstrate the constant factors that have underlain the strategies and tactics of the great commanders, from Alexander the Great to Marshal Zhukov. Each chapter includes information on: -- The seven classical maneuvers and the eighth gambit, guerilla warfare-- Advances in weaponry, fortification, communications, army organization and administration-- Strengths and weaknesses of commanders of the period-- Analytical descriptions of two major battles from each period

The Art of Warfare on Land

Penguin USA (P)

Forewarned of Prussia's intention to declare war on France, Napoleon decided to strike first with a bold advance from Wurzburg into Saxony. On October 14, the double battle was fought: Napoleon with 96,000 men and 120 guns engaged and heavily defeated Prince Hohenlohe and General Ruchel. The decisive engagement was fought further north where Marshal Davout with 27,000 men and 40 guns routed the main Prussian army under Frederick William IV and the Duke of Brunswick. This title examines these two battles, Jena and Auerstadt in detail, showing clearly the swiftness with which Napoleon dealt Prussia's military machine a severe blow.
Forewarned of Prussia's intention to declare war on France, Napoleon decided to strike first with a bold advance from Wurzburg into Saxony on 8 October 1806. He crossed the difficult Thuringian Forest in three columns and brushed aside small Prussian forces near two exits from the passes, advancing north expecting a battle on the Elbe near Leipzig. On 11 October intelligence revealed the Prussians to be further west around Erfurt and Napoleon's 180,000 strong army turned towards the Saale. On 14 October the double battle was fought: Napoleon with 96,000 men and 120 guns engaged and heavily defeated Prince Hohenlohe and General Ruchel with 53,000 men and 120 guns. The decisive engagement was fought further north where Marshal Davout with 27,000 men and 40 guns routed the main Prussian army under Frederick William IV and the Duke of Brunswick who commanded 63,500 men and 230 guns. This title examines these two battles, Jena and Auerstadt in detail, showing clearly the swiftness with which Napoleon dealt Prussia's military machine a severe blow. The author, David Chandler is head of the Department of War Studies at Sandhurst and is widely acclaimed for his work on Napoleon's battles. This book is yet another fine example of his comprehensive and extremely readable work.

Jena 1806: Napoleon Destroys Pussia (Praeger Illustrated Military History)

Praeger Pub Text

David Chandler has long been regarded as the greatest interpreter in modern times of the Napoleonic Era.  His studies of the campaigns and tactics of Napoleon Bonaparte have set the standard for all subsequent writers. In Napoleon, Chandler places the emperor's 60 battles in the context of his entire life, beginning with his boyhood in Corsica.  All of Napoleon's campaigns and endeavors are covered, with an eye to their influence on the later history of Europe, and with particular attention to Napoleon's characteristic use of commanders from humble backgrounds.

Napoleon (The great commanders)

Biographies & Memoirs

Littlehampton Book Services Ltd.

Here, in one volume, is the essence of Napoleon's knowledge and wisdom, the fruit of his practical experience and his study of the great empire-builders from Alexander to Frederick the Great. David G. Chandler has updated the best among previous editions of Napoleon's maxims: the work produced in 1901 by William E. Cairnes, who selected the most insightful and authentic of the maxims and annotated each of them. In the process Cairnes considered the great captains who had influenced Napoleon's thinking as well as the impact of his teachings on the conduct of war since his death. In addition to his penetrating introduction, Chandler has contributed further commentaries that examine Napoleon's work from the 20th-century perspective of the two world wars, Vietnam, the Falklands, and other conflicts, and analyzes the ways in which commanders have observed or failed to observe Napoleon's teachings. Now every military student and enthusiast can benefit from the brilliance of Napoleonic insight and wisdom.

The Military Maxims Of Napoleon

Napoleon I

Da Capo Press

"Sedgemoor, 1685" re-examines the battle that spelled doom for James Scott, Duke of Monmouth's attempt to usurp the throne of James II. Celebrated historian David Chandler ("Napoleon's Campaigns") includes extracts from "contemporary and historical writers".

Sedgemoor, 1685: An Account and an Anthology

PALGRAVE~MACMILLAN

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