Description
Book SynopsisIn Napoleon and the Operational Art of War, the leading scholars of Napoleonic military history provide the most authoritative analysis of Napoleon’s battlefield success and ultimate failure. Napoleon’s development and mastery of the operational art of warfare is revealed as each chapter analyzes one Napoleonic war or major campaign of a war. To achieve this, the essays conform to the common themes of Napoleon’s planning, his command and control, his execution of plans, and the response of his adversaries. Napoleon's sea power and the British response to the French challenge at sea is also investigated. Overall, this volume reflects the finest scholarship and cutting-edge research to be found in Napoleonic Military History. Contributors include Jonathan Abel, Robert M. Citino, Huw Davies, Mark T. Gerges; John H. Gill; Jordan Hayworth, Kenneth G. Johnson, Michael V. Leggiere, Kevin D. McCranie, Alexander Mikaberidze, Frederick C. Schneid, John Severn, Dennis Showalter, Geoffrey Wawro, and John F. Weinzierl.
Table of ContentsContents Foreword vii Geoffrey Wawro List of Maps xi List of Contributors xii xiv Introduction 1 Michael V. Leggiere 1 The Prophet Guibert 8 Jonathan Abel 2 The French Way of War 40 Jordan R. Hayworth 3 The Campaign against Piedmont-Sardinia, April 1796 88 Frederick C. Schneid 4 The Second Italian Campaign 118 John F. Weinzierl 5 1805: Ulm and Austerlitz 145 Mark T. Gerges 6 The Jena Campaign: Apogee and Perihelion 173 Dennis Showalter 7 An Ulcer Inflamed: Napoleon’s Campaign in Spain, 1808 199 Huw J. Davies 8 1809: The Most Brilliant and Skillful Maneuvers 235 John H. Gill 9 The Limits of the Operational Art: Russia 1812 265 Alexander Mikaberidze 10 Prometheus Chained, 1813–1815 317 Michael V. Leggiere 11 Napoleon’s War at Sea 387 Kenneth G. Johnson 12 Britain’s Royal Navy and the Defeat of Napoleon 476 Kevin D. McCranie Afterword 500 Robert M. Citino Conclusion 519 John Severn Index 527
