Napoleon Against Great Odds: The Emperor and the Defenders of France, 1814

(Hardback)

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This revisionist history offers a fresh analysis of Napoleon and the French army as they defended their empire against the massive Coalition invasion of 1814. French defeat in 1814 is too often shrugged off as the result of obvious and understandable factors. Napoleon Against Great Odds: The Emperor and the Defenders of France, 1814 challenges the widely accepted notion that war-weariness and internal political opposition to Napoleon were the decisive and direct causes of French defeat. At least as important, it argues, were material shortages, diplomatic missteps, and even faulty strategic planning on Napoleon's part. The book not only traces the narrative of Napoleon's 1814 Campaign in France, but explores the formation of the French army tasked with defending France against the Coalition invasion. Diplomatic, political, and social factors are taken into account and the issue of war-weariness is analyzed carefully and critically. Each branch and arm of the French forces is examined, as are military mobilization under difficult circumstances and partisan and guerilla warfare. Designed to encourage fresh debate about the 1814 campaign, the book offers thought-provoking reading for scholars and general readers alike.

Reviews

Military historian/US armed forces veteran Ashby (Eastern Illinois U., Charleston) focuses on Napoleon's campaign of 1814 against a coalition force, rather than on the more widely-studied Napoleonic War defeats in the 1812 Russian campaign and the battle of Waterloo (1815). From an analysis of the diverse backgrounds and performance of the soldiers, partisans, and civilians who defended the Empire, he questions conventional interpretations that attribute the French loss wholly to a dramatic decline in recruits due to war- weariness and reduced support for the regime. He also places blame on Napoleon's poor strategic planning, diplomatic blunders, and material shortages. The book includes maps and illustrations. * Reference & Research Book News *

Author Bio

Ralph Ashby is a visiting assistant professor at Eastern Illinois University.