The battle of Borodino was one of the greatest encounters in European history, and one of the largest and most sanguinary in the Napoleonic Wars. Following the breakdown of relations between Russia and France, Napoleon assembled a vast Grande Armee drawn from the many states within the French sphere of influence. They crossed the river Neimen and entered Russian territory in June 1812 with the aim of inflicting a sharp defeat on the Tsar's forces and bringing the Russians back into line. In a bloody battle of head-on attacks and desperate counter-attacks in the village of Borodino on 7 September 1812, both sides lost about a third of their men, with the Russians forced to withdraw and abandon Moscow to the French. However, the Grande Armee was harassed by Russian troops all the way back and was destroyed by the retreat. The greatest army Napoleon had ever commanded was reduced to a shadow of frozen, starving fugitives. This title will cover the events of Napoleon's disastrous Russian campaign of 1812 in its entirety, with the set-piece battle of Borodino proving the focal point of the book.

'A Napoleonic triumph of a book, irresistibly galloping with the momentum of a cavalry charge' Simon Sebag Montefiore 'Simply dynamite' Bernard Cornwell From Andrew Roberts, author of the bestsellers The Storm of War and Churchill: Walking with Destiny, this is the definitive modern biography of Napoleon. Napoleon Bonaparte lived one of the most extraordinary of all human lives. In the space of just twenty years, from October 1795 when as a young artillery captain he cleared the streets of Paris of insurrectionists, to his final defeat at the (horribly mismanaged) battle of Waterloo in June 1815, Napoleon transformed France and Europe. After seizing power in a coup d'etat he ended the corruption and incompetence into which the Revolution had descended. In a series of dazzling battles he reinvented the art of warfare; in peace, he completely remade the laws of France, modernised her systems of education and administration, and presided over a flourishing of the beautiful 'Empire style' in the arts. The impossibility of defeating his most persistent enemy, Great Britain, led him to make draining and ultimately fatal expeditions into Spain and Russia, where half a million Frenchmen died and his Empire began to unravel. More than any other modern biographer, Andrew Roberts conveys Napoleon's tremendous energy, both physical and intellectual, and the attractiveness of his personality, even to his enemies. He has walked 53 of Napoleon's 60 battlefields, and has absorbed the gigantic new French edition of Napoleon's letters, which allows a complete re-evaluation of this exceptional man. He overturns many received opinions, including the myth of a great romance with Josephine: she took a lover immediately after their marriage, and, as Roberts shows, he had three times as many mistresses as he acknowledged. Of the climactic Battle of Leipzig in 1813, as the fighting closed around them, a French sergeant-major wrote, 'No-one who has not experienced it can have any idea of the enthusiasm that burst forth among the half-starved, exhausted soldiers when the Emperor was there in person. If all were demoralised and he appeared, his presence was like an electric shock. All shouted "Vive l'Empereur!" and everyone charged blindly into the fire.' The reader of this biography will understand why this was so.

Individually and collectively, the essays in this cross-disciplinary collection explore the impact of the revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars on European visual culture, from the outbreak of the pan-European conflict with France in 1792 to the aftermath of the Battle of Waterloo in 1815. Through consideration of a range of media, from academic painting to prints, drawings and printed ephemera, this book offers fresh understanding of the rich variety of ways in which warfare was mediated in visual cultures in Britain and continental Europe. The fourteen essays in the collection are grouped thematically into three sections, each focusing on a specific type of visual communication. Thus, Part One engages with historically specific ways of transmitting messages about war and conflict, including maps, prints, silhouette imagery and war games produced in France and Germany; Part Two considers popular and elite imagining of war between 1793 and 1815, encompassing readings of paintings by Turner, Girodet and Goya, Portuguese anti-French drawings and British satirical book illustrations; while Part Three concentrates on visual cultures of commemoration, addressing British theatrical reenactments and museum collections, and British and Dutch paintings of the Battle of Waterloo. As such, the volume uncovers fascinating new visual material and throws fresh light on some of the more canonical visual representations of conflict during the first 'Total War'.

In 1854 Britain and France were at war to save 'poor little Turkey', the crumbling Ottoman Empire, from the menace of Russian expansionism. On 25 October they were nine days into what would become an eleven-month siege, with little to show for it. Suddenly, from behind them came the unmistakeable sound of cannon. The Russians had arrived. Vastly outnumbered, the British gained an unlikely upper hand with the charge of the Heavy Brigade and the efforts of the Thin Red Line. But then, within two hours of achieving near victory, the British squandered it in dramatic style with the charge of the Light Brigade. Using eyewitness accounts, letters and diaries, acclaimed military historian Robert Kershaw presents a new, intimate look at the Battle of Balaclava, from the perspective of the men who 'saw little and knew even less'. Come down from the Heights and see the real story of one of the most ill-fated military expeditions in British history.

This is an illustrated analysis of the world war between Napoleon and the 6th coalition in 1813, covering operations in Central Europe, Spain and North America. Brigadier Riley examines the differences between successful alliances and coalitions, comparing the long-term international relationships in alliances and the short-term union of coalitions. He points out how, given political and military situations today, it is essential to study coalition war as an historical phenomenon: what conditions bring coalitions together, and what tends to pull them apart; wat are the peculiar difficulties which distinguish them from the wars of nations or established alliances? This examination is made through the momentous year of 1813. With a detailed look at these aspects of coalition warfighting, Riley details the inner relationships of coalitions and their strategic advances by refering to Napoleon's and Wellington's campaigns.

Between 1760 and 1815, British troops campaigned from Manila to Montreal, Cape Town to Copenhagen, Washington to Waterloo. The naval dimension of Britain's expansion has been superbly covered by a number of excellent studies, but there has not been a single volume that does the same for the army and, in particular, looks at how and why it became a world-operating force, one capable of beating the Marathas as well as the French. This book will both offer a new perspective, one that concentrates on the global role of the army and its central part in imperial expansion and preservation, and as such will be a major book for military history and world history. There will be a focus on what the army brought to power equations and how this made it a world-level force. The multi-purpose character of the army emerges as the key point, one seen in particular in the career of Wellington: while referred to disparagingly by Napoleon as a 'sepoy general,' Wellington's ability to operate successfully in India and Europe was not only impressive but also reflected synergies in experience and acquired skill that characterised the British army. No other army matched this. The closest capability was that of Russia able, in 1806-14, to defeat both the Turks and Napoleon, but without having the trans-oceanic capability and experience enjoyed by the British army. The experience was a matter in part of debate, including over doctrine, as in the tension between the 'Americans' and 'Germans,' a reference to fields of British campaigning concentration during the Seven Years War. This synergy proved best developed in the operations in Iberia in 1809-14, with logistical and combat skills utilised in India employed in a European context in which they were of particular value. The books aims to further to address the question of how this army was achieved despite the strong anti-army ideology/practice derived from the hostile response to Oliver Cromwell and to James II. Thus, perception and politics are both part of the story, as well as the exigencies and practicalities of conflict, including force structure, command issues, and institutional developments. At the same time, there was no inevitability about British success over this period, and it is necessary to consider developments in the context of other states and, in particular, the reasons why British forces did well and that Britain was not dependent alone on naval effectiveness.

This analysis of the world war between Napoleon and the 6th coalition in 1813 covers operations in Europe, Spain and North America. It examines the differences between alliances and coalitions, comparing the long-term international relationships in alliances and the short-term union of coalitions.

The Battle of Borodino resonates with the patriotic soul of Mother Russia. The epic confrontation in September 1812 was the single bloodiest day of the Napoleonic Wars, leaving France's Grande Armee limping to the gates of Moscow and on to catastrophe in snow and ice. Generations later, in October 1941, an equally bitter battle was fought at Borodino. This time Hitler's SS and Panzers came up against elite Siberian troops defending Stalin's Moscow. Remarkably, both conflicts took place in the same woods and gullies that follow the sinuous line of the Koloch River. Borodino Field relates the gruelling experience of the French army in Russia, juxtaposed with the personal accounts, diaries and letters of SS and Panzer soldiers during the Second World War. Acclaimed historian Robert Kershaw draws on previously untapped archives to narrate the odyssey of soldiers who marched along identical tracks and roads on the 1,000-kilometre route to Moscow, and reveals the astonishing parallels and contrasts between two battles fought on Russian terrain over 100 years apart.

For James Thomas Brudenell, 7th Earl of Cardigan, leading the Light Brigade at Balaclava was but one incident in a life of sensation and notoriety. Donald Thomas's biography, originally published in 1977, and based on new material when originally published, shows this most controversial Victorian against a panorama of regimental intrigue and aristocratic luxury. Dismissed from the army for 'revolting' conduct, Cardigan bought the command of the 11th Hussars (the 'Cherry Bums') for GBP40,000 a few years later. Regimental rivalries led to the 'Black Bottle' scandal of 1840 and to a duel in which he shot a brother officer. Charged with attempted murder, Cardigan was the only Victorian peer to be tried by the House of Lords. Nonetheless, his seductions of other men's wives rivalled his regimental misdemeanours in press reports. He was jeered int he streets, hissed at the theatre and burnt in effigy. It took the glory and the folly of Balaclava to turn 'this plague-spot of the British army' into 'the most popular soldier in England'. Greeted everywhere by cheering crowds, their new hero fought duels and libel actions against those who denied his bravery before the Russian guns. For all his misbehaviour, Cardigan remains warm-blooded, generous, impulsive and courageous, as well as obstinate, proud and sometimes ridiculous. Hated by numerous men, and adored by many women, his elopement with the beautiful Adeline Horsey de Horsey was a triumph of his old age.

The Peninsular war was not only one of the great periods in British military history, it was also a war in which guerillas exerted a major influence, and as such, has continued relevance today. Salamanca established Wellington as one of the great military commanders of any age and it is one of the battles which produced significant results. As well as the battle the campaign contains two of the most memorable sieges ever under-taken by British arms, those of Ciudad Rodrigo and Badajoz. This book, originally published in 1972, uses eye-witness accounts with the result that the reader can hear the principal characters explain their actions and see the battlefield through the eyes of the men who were there.

The Peninsular War is one of the defining campaigns of the British Army and sealed its reputation for supreme professionalism, heroic obstinacy and sheer perseverance. It made the reputation of Arthur Wellesley, the Duke of Wellington, and acts as the backdrop to the adventures of Bernard Cornwell's fictional hero Richard Sharpe. The British Army, under Sir John Moore and Wellington, ranged across the plains and mountains of Portugal and Spain and into France, taking part in 15 field actions and four bloody sieges, including Salamanca, Vitoria and Badajoz, but this is only part of the picture. The contribution of the Spanish and Portuguese forces is frequently overlooked, but there were a further 25 field actions and 15 sieges in the Iberian peninsula as part of the savage duel between the French occupiers and native inhabitants. In this newly revised edition of The Peninsular War Atlas, Colonel Nick Lipscombe expands upon his comprehensive, non-partisan examination of the conflict with 164 original maps, accompanied by an authoritative text narrating the war. His 34 years of service in the British Army, including postings in both Spain and Portugal, give him a unique perspective on the conflict. With contributions from Professor Charles Esdaile and the present Duke of Wellington as well as the cooperation of the Spanish and Portuguese authorities, this book is the essential topographical guide to the conflict. The Peninsular War Atlas has been published in collaboration with Peninsular War 200, the organisation established 'to commemorate in a spirit of respect to all and malice to none the 40,000 British (including Irish and foreign-auxiliary) service personnel who lost their lives in the Peninsular War of 1808-14'.

Admiral Lord Nelson's diamond Chelengk is one of the most famous and iconic jewels in British history. Presented to Nelson by the Sultan Selim III of Turkey after the Battle of the Nile in 1798, the jewel had thirteen diamond rays to represent the French ships captured or destroyed at the action. A central diamond star on the jewel was powered by clockwork to rotate in wear. Nelson wore the Chelengk on his hat like a turban jewel, sparking a fashion craze for similar jewels in England. The jewel became his trademark to be endlessly copied in portraits and busts to this day. After Trafalgar, the Chelengk was inherited by Nelson's family and worn at the Court of Queen Victoria. Sold at auction in 1895 it eventually found its way to the newly opened National Maritime Museum in Greenwich where it was a star exhibit. In 1951 the jewel was stolen in a daring raid by an infamous cat-burglar and lost forever. For the first time, Martyn Downer tells the extraordinary true story of the Chelengk: from its gift to Nelson by the Sultan of Turkey to its tragic post-war theft, charting the jewel's journey through history and forging sparkling new and intimate portraits of Nelson, of his friends and rivals, and of the woman he loved.

To give political legitimacy to his Empire, in just fifteen years Emperor Napoleon I created an enduring image of Napoleonic France as the contemporary equivalent of Imperial Rome. He did this by the deft use of iconography and what today would be called 'branding', which he applied to every aspect of his family, the government, the military, the monuments to his achievements, his palaces and their furnishings. The tangible remains of this grand, imperial 'theatre' has excited royal and other collectors ever since. The Imperial Impresario take a wholly new look at Napoleon and the First Empire by interpreting the era in theatrical terms: the players, the sets, the props, the costumes, the tours and the script, much of which has survived. The fully illustrated book includes a wide range of Napoleonica in royal, national, regimental and private collections, as well as lost treasures such as the Emperor's campaign carriage, captured in the immediate aftermath of Waterloo and destroyed in a fire at Madame Tussaud's in 1925. For readers coming to the subject for the first time, The Imperial Impresario is a fascinating and informative introduction to the Napoleonic era; for those already steeped in the period, it is an invaluable companion to existing books about Napoleon and his Empire.

Thomas Hardys The Dynasts and Leo Tolstoys War and Peace are both works which defy attempts to assign them to a particular genre but might seem to have little else in common apart from being set in the same period of history. This study argues that there are important similarities between these two works and examines the close correspondence between Hardys and Tolstoys thinking on themes relating to war, ideas of the heroic and the concept of free will. Although coming from very different backgrounds, both writers were influenced by their experiences of war, Tolstoy directly, by involvement in the wars in the Caucasus and the Crimea, and Hardy indirectly, by the events of the Anglo-Boer Wars. Their reaction to these experiences found expression in their descriptions of the wars fought against Napoleon at the beginning of the century. Hegel saw Napoleon as the great world-historical man of his time, and this work considers the ways in which Hardy and Tolstoy undermine this view, portraying Napoleons physical and mental decline and questioning the role he played in determining the outcomes of military actions. Both writers were deeply interested in the question of free will and determinism and their writings reveal their attempts to understand the nature of the force which lies behind mens actions. Their differing views on the nature of consciousness are considered in the light of modern research on the development of the conscious brain.

First published in 1995 to great critical acclaim, The Wars of Napoleon provides students with a comprehensive survey of the Napoleonic Wars around the central theme of the scale of French military power and its impact on other European states, from Portugal to Russia and from Scandinavia to Sicily. The book introduces the reader to the rise of Napoleon and the wider diplomatic and political context before analysing such subjects as how France came to dominate Europe; the impact of French conquest and the spread of French ideas; the response of European powers; the experience of the conflicts of 1799-1815 on such areas of the world as the West Indies, India and South America; the reasons why Napoleon's triumph proved ephemeral; and the long-term impact of the period. This second edition has been revised throughout to include a completely re-written section on collaboration and resistance, a new chapter on the impact of the Napoleonic Wars in the wider world and material on the various ways in which women became involved in, or were affected by, the conflict. Thoroughly updated and offering students a view of the subject that challenges many preconceived ideas, The Wars of Napoleon remains an essential resource for all students of the French Revolutionary Wars as well as students of European and military history during this period.

Women played a major part in the French revolution of 1789, but have received very little recognition for their contributions. The many claims and protests put forth by women at that time were suppressed, women's clubs were banned, and Olympe de Gouges, a leading contemporary advocate for women's rights, was silenced. De Gouges, author of the "fundamental Declarations des droits de la femme et de la citoyenne" ("Declaration of the Rights of Woman and of the Female Citizen"), has been left out of dictionaries and history books. But in 1993, French women demanded that she be interred in the Pantheon. Sophie Mousset's is the first biography of this astonishing woman. De Gouges dared to write and publish her "Declarations" in 1791, and was sent to the guillotine for having had the courage to mount the rostrum on behalf of women. Despite her contributions, she remains an obscure figure, even in France. Unlike many who have captured posterity's attention, de Gouges had great sympathy but no indulgence for her sex. Instead of considering her female colleagues as eternal victims, she understood that they were to some extent responsible for their misfortunes, and that if they united and devoted themselves to changing their image, they could become great. De Gouges called for the advent of a new woman, one who would relinquish cupidity and the "nocturnal administering" of men. She demanded education for girls, the prevention of arranged marriages and forced vows, the right to divorce, and the legitimization of children born out of wedlock. She advocated the feminization of professional titles, wrote a social contract between man and woman that foreshadowed other legislation, and reflected upon the problem of prostitution and the violence inflicted upon women. She also actively opposed slavery. Olympe de Gouges rightly deserves the title of pioneer, prophet, and heroine. This long-overdue biography pays her due homage. It will be of interest to students of the French Revolution, women's studies, and biography.

Studies of British Romanticism have traditionally tended to envisage it as an intensely local, indeed insular, phenomenon. Yet, just as the seemingly isolated British Isles became more and more central in international geo-political and economic contexts between the 1780s and the 1830s, so too literature and culture were characterized by an increasingly close and relevant dialogue with foreign and especially Continental European traditions, both past and contemporary. Diego Saglia casts new light on the significantly transformative impact of this dialogue on Britain during the years that saw a return to unimpeded cross-border cultural traffic after the end of the Napoleonic emergency. Focusing on modes of translation and appropriation in a variety of literary and cultural forms, this book reconsiders the notion of the supposed intrinsic insularity of Britain through the lens of new key questions about the national, international and transnational features of Romantic-period literature and culture.

How did Bismarck, Germany's greatest nineteenth century leader, extend and maintain his power? This new Profile examines his strengths as statesman and all the facets of his political career. His many direct achievements included the unification of Germany and the expansion of Prussia. In short, he was the architect of Germany's change from cultural region to political nation. In the end he combined egotism and brilliance exceptionally, yet it was still not enough to save him from dismissal by William II.

In 1808 Napoleon dominated Europe, but the peace was not to survive for long. Todd Fisher continues his detailed account of the Napoleonic Wars with Austria's attack against Napoleon in 1809. Despite being defeated at Aspern-Essling, Napoleon rallied his forces and emerged triumphant at Wagram. With glorious victory behind him Napoleon now turned his attention to Russia and invaded in 1812. Yet the army was not the Grand Armee of old, and even the capture of Moscow availed him nothing - the foe remained elusive, the decisive battle remained unfought. This book tells the full story of the now legendary retreat from Moscow, as the fighting force that had vanquished Europe perished in the snows of the Russian winter.

Waterloo is one of the defining campaigns of European history. The name conjures up images of the terrible scale and grandeur of the Napoleonic Wars and the incredible combined effort that finally ended Napoleon's aspirations of power in Europe. Drawn from unpublished first-hand accounts, and using detailed illustrations, this comprehensive volume is the ideal resource for studying the intense fighting at the battles of Waterloo and Wavre, the final, decisive engagements of the Waterloo campaign. Those two battles are at the heart of this study, which explores the action at Mont St Jean where Wellington managed to hold the French at bay until the arrival of the Prussians under Blucher saw the Allies secure a hard-fought victory at the dramatic climax of the 'Hundred days'.

The Battle of Austerlitz is almost universally regarded as the most impressive of Napoleon s many victories. The magnitude of the French achievement against a larger army was unprecedented, the great victory being met by sheer amazement and delirium in Paris, where just days earlier the nation had been teetering on the brink of financial collapse. In this insightful study, the author analyses the planning of the opposing forces and details the course of the battle hour by hour, describing the fierce see-saw battle around Sokolnitz, the epic struggle for the Pratzen Heights, the dramatic engagement between the legendary Lannes and Bagration in the north, and the widely misunderstood clash of Napoleon s Imperial Guard and Alexander s Imperial Leib-Guard. The author has produced a detailed and balanced assessment of the battle that for the first time places familiar French accounts in their proper perspective and exposes many myths regarding the battle that have been perpetuated and even embellished in recent books.With 1805: Austerlitz, the reader is left with a thorough appreciation of Napoleon and his Grande Arm e of 1805, an army that decisively defeated not a hapless relic of the ancien regime but rather a formidable professional army that had fought the French armies on equal terms five years earlier.

Jon Mee explores the popular democratic movement that emerged in the London of the 1790s in response to the French Revolution. Central to the movement's achievement was the creation of an idea of 'the people' brought into being through print and publicity. Radical clubs rose and fell in the face of the hostile attentions of government. They were sustained by a faith in the press as a form of 'print magic', but confidence in the liberating potential of the printing press was interwoven with hard-headed deliberations over how best to animate and represent the people. Ideas of disinterested rational debate were thrown into the mix with coruscating satire, rousing songs, and republican toasts. Print personality became a vital interface between readers and print exploited by the cast of radicals returned to history in vivid detail by Print, Publicity, and Popular Radicalism in the 1790s. This title is also available as Open Access.

In a world of conflicting nationalist claims, mass displacements and asylum-seeking, a great many people are looking for 'home' or struggling to establish the 'nation'. These were also important preoccupations between the English and the French revolutions: a period when Britain was first at war within itself, then achieved a confident if precarious equilibrium, and finally seemed to have come once more to the edge of overthrow. In the century and a half between revolution experienced and revolution observed, the impulse to identify or implicitly appropriate home and nation was elemental to British literature. This wide-ranging study by international scholars provides an innovative and thorough account of writings that vigorously contested notions and images of the nation and of private domestic space within it, tracing the larger patterns of debate, while at the same time exploring how particular writers situated themselves within it and gave it shape.

After Napoleon's victories over Austria and Prussia, he rearranged the map of Germany. In 1807, he created the Kingdom of Westphalia as a model state within the Confederation of the Rhine. The Kingdom, with its French-based internal organization, was supposed to serve as a model for the desired structures of the other member states of the Confederation of the Rhine. Napoleon's brother, Jerome Bonaparte, was installed as Westphalia's king. The Kingdom was essentially assembled from the conquered lands of the Electoral Principality of Hesse, the Principality of Brunswick-Wolfenbuttel and the Prussian territories east of the Elbe River. In 1810, the territories of the former Electoral Principality of Hanover were added. Because Napoleon considered the Confederation of the Rhine to be primarily a military alliance, the Westphalian Army was of special importance. Its army was also organized completely on the French model. The authors describe the army's structure and its employment, including its operations in Spain, Germany, and Russia. Yet the focus of the book is on providing a comprehensive depiction of the colorful uniforms of the individual units, as well as their military actions. Along with that, it addresses in detail the branches that are usually overlooked, like administration, medical service, national guard, gendarmerie, etc. The book draws on all the available sources in order to put together this very comprehensive overview. It is, without doubt, the definitive work on the Westphalian army. It is extensively illustrated with Peter Bunde's uniform graphics, contemporary images, maps, and photos of museum pieces (uniforms, equipment, etc.). It also contains order of battle, generals' biographies and other information drawn from myriad sources.