Military_career_of_Napoleon_Bonaparte

Military career of Napoleon

Military career of Napoleon

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The military career of Napoleon Bonaparte spanned over 20 years. He led French armies in the French Revolutionary Wars and later, as emperor, in the Napoleonic Wars. Despite his rich war-winning record, Napoleon's military career ended in defeat. Napoleon has since been regarded as a military genius and one of the finest commanders in history. His wars and campaigns have been studied at military schools worldwide. He fought more than 80 battles, losing only ten, mostly towards the end when the French army was not as dominant.[1] The French dominion collapsed rapidly after the disastrous invasion of Russia in 1812. Napoleon was defeated in 1814 and exiled to the island of Elba, before returning to France. He was finally defeated in 1815 at the Waterloo. He spent his remaining days in British custody on the remote volcanic tropical island of Saint Helena. In his long military career, Bonaparte celebrated 70 victories and suffered 10 defeats.[2]

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References

  1. For comprehensive coverage, see Chandler (1973).[6] For an overall view of the military history of the era see Trevor N. Dupuy and R. Ernest Dupuy, The Encyclopedia of Military History (2nd ed., 1970) pp. 730–770.
  1. [1]
    Roberts says his losses came at Siege of Acre (1799), Battle of Aspern-Essling (1809), Battle of Leipzig (1813), Battle of La Rothière (1814), Battle of Laon (1814), Battle of Arcis-sur-Aube (1814), and Battle of Waterloo (1815). Andrew Roberts, "Why Napoleon merits the title 'the Great,'" BBC History Magazine (1 November 2014)
  2. [2]
    Andrew Roberts, Napoleon: A Life (2014)
  3. [3]
    Michael V. Leggiere; Phillip R. Cuccia. Napoleon and the Operational Art of War. BRILL, Leiden (2020). p. 166
  4. [4]
    United States Military Academy. Summaries of Selected Military Campaigns. West Point, New York (1953). p. 22
  5. [5]
    Jean Tranié et Juan-Carlos Carmigniani, Napoléon : 1814 – La campagne de France, Pygmalion/Gérard Watelet, 1989, 315 p.
  6. [6]
    David G. Chandler, The Campaigns of Napoleon (1973) excerpt and text search

Further reading

Main article: Napoleonic Wars § Further reading
  • Chandler, David G. The Campaigns of Napoleon (1973) 1172 pp; a detailed guide to all major battles excerpt and text search
  • Crowdy, Terry. Napoleon's Infantry Handbook (2015)
  • Dupuy, Trevor N. and Dupuy, R. Ernest. The Encyclopedia of Military History (2nd edition 1970) pp 730–770
  • Elting, John R. Swords Around a Throne: Napoleon's Grand Armee (1988)
  • Esdaile, Charles. Napoleon's Wars: An International History 1803–1815 (2008), 621pp
  • Gates, David. The Napoleonic Wars 1803–1815 (NY: Random House, 2011)
  • Hazen, Charles Downer. The French Revolution and Napoleon (1917) online free
  • Nafziger, George F. The End of Empire: Napoleon's 1814 Campaign (2014)
  • Parker, Harold T. "Why Did Napoleon Invade Russia? A Study in Motivation and the Interrelations of Personality and Social Structure," Journal of Military History (1990) 54#2 pp 131–46 in JSTOR.
  • Pope, Stephen (1999). The Cassel Dictionary of the Napoleonic Wars. Cassel. ISBN 0-304-35229-2.
  • Riley, Jonathon P. Napoleon as a General (Hambledon Press, 2007)
  • Rothenberg, Gunther E. (1988). "The Origins, Causes, and Extension of the Wars of the French Revolution and Napoleon". Journal of Interdisciplinary History. 18 (4): 771–793. doi:10.2307/204824. JSTOR 204824. JSTOR 204824
  • Rothenberg, E. Gunther. The Art of Warfare in the Age of Napoleon (1977)
  • Schneid, Frederick C. (2011). The French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars. Mainz: Institute of European History.
  • Shoffner, Thomas A. Napoleon's Cavalry: A Key Element to Decisive Victory (2014)
  • Smith, Digby George. The Greenhill Napoleonic Wars Data Book: Actions and Losses in Personnel, Colours, Standards and Artillery (1998)
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