Napoleon
at Bay 1814 |
| CONTENT: Napoleon's campaign against the might of the converging Allied forces in 1814 proved how much could be achieved in circumstances so desperate that no other general of the time would have even attempted to make head against them. It has been seen by some as the greatest effort of this military genius, and undoubtedly illustrated his formidable ability to inspire armies and avoid crushing defeats at the hands of opponents who far outnumbered him. After the disastrous Russian campaign of 1812, Napoleon had bee able to field a new army in 1813 but lost it at Leipzig in October of that year. The most strenuous efforts to recruit enough men to fight one more campaign resulted in an inexperienced, poorly trained band of conscripts. Yet Napoleon inspired them to victory at Brienne, Montmirail, Craonne and Laon. Even so, Napoleon could not prevent the Allied push to Paris and Petre analyses the reasons why success after success in battle still did not secure the campaign or overturn the fortunes of France KEY POINTS: • Concise guide to the fall of Napoleon • Traces the campaign from the Allied and French perspectives • Demonstrates the key elements of Napoleonic strategy in action AUTHOR NOTES: F. Loraine Petre was one of the foremost historians of Napoleon's campaigns and the Napoleonic Wars. He was the author of a number of acclaimed studies including Napoleon and the Archduke Charles, Napoleo's Conquest of Prussia and Napoleon's Last Campaign in Germany, 1813. |
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