Outline
I. Introduction
A. Thesis Statement
1. The French Imperial campaign to defeat the Russian Empire failed due to apathetic leadership on part of Napoleon, terrible logistical planning, failure of the main effort in the opening stage of the campaign, and lastly, a disciplined rear-guard defense by Russian forces.
2. Supporting topics will describe the conditions that set the stage for Napoleon’s decision to conduct the Russia campaign, including, but not limited to, the war with Britain; imposition of the Continental System; existing French logistical system; and Napoleon’s laissez-faire leadership style.
II. The Campaign
A. Background
1. Conflict with Britain
2. Imposition of the Continental System
3. Effect on the European economy
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Beginning in 1802, Napoleon fought a series of campaigns across Europe, and by 1812 controlled a swath of terrain that stretched from France as far east as modern-day Poland and Lithuania. As a result, in 1806, the British government imposed a blockade on all French ports, effectively limiting the French to commerce within continental Europe. In response, Napoleon passed the Berlin Decree of 1806, instituting the Continental System which forbid any French allies or conquests from trading with Britain. In practice, no British ships were permitted to land on the Continent, and all ships were required to land in France first to be searched. Like the National Prohibition Act of 1919, Napoleon’s edict created a massive black market in smuggling British Colonial good to Europe, and Napoleon was forced to stage troops across European ports to prevent this illicit trade. Czar Alexander I of Russia, an erstwhile ally of France, tolerated abiding by the Continental System until 1810, when internal dissent within his own domestic power base forced him to relent and allow British merchant ships to dock in Russia. In this fashion, British merchants used Russian ports as a way of circumnavigating the Continental System and accessing the lucrative European market (Smith, 2014).
In 1807, Napoleon attempted to seize Portugal by way of Spain, and started what
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By June of 1812, Napoleon’s Grande Armee had an invasion force of approximately 611,000 men, that consisted of troops from France (200,000); Dutch, Belgian, German, Swiss, Italian (100,000); with the remainder of the troops, (311,000), consisting of Polish, Lithuanian, Neapolitan, Illyrian, Rheinbund German, Swiss, Austrian, Prussian, Spanish and Portuguese (Connelly, 2006). This fighting force was staged at bases near Danzig in the Duchy of Warsaw. For the impending invasion, the French set up storage depots or magazines in the key cities of Danzig, Koenigsberg and Thorn; these supply depots in turn would use a combination of ships and wagons to move supplies to Vilna, Lithuania. However, only troops of the Imperial Guard were permitted to access these supply depots; all other troops in the Grande Armee had to forage for supplies (Smith, 2014). This caused the rest of the army to begin to search the surrounding countryside of the Duchy of Warsaw for food, a place that had already suffered a poor harvest in 1811. Troops were forced to take livestock, grain and other items from the local populace by force. All of this occurred prior to the actual invasion, so Napoleon’s forces were already suffering a distinct supply shortage. Another fact began to emerge, something that would continue to hobble French forces throughout the campaign- due to the chronic
Napoleon Bonaparte, an unparalleled military commander who conquered most of Europe around the early 1800’s, invaded Russia in 1812, who was under the rule of Tsar Alexander at the time, lost three quarters of his Grande Armee which was composed of soldiers from all over Europe totaling 600,000 soldiers. This part of history is the most talked about and studied military campaign even today by scholars and military school alike. Napoleon’s invasion of Russia in 1812 was a extraordinary expedition that shocked the French Empire to its foundation and led to its eventual collapse just a year later. This Historiographic comparative
With the coinciding of a revolution on the brink of eruption and the impacts of the First World War beginning to take hold of Russia, considered analysis of the factors that may have contributed to the fall of the Romanov Dynasty is imperative, as a combination of several factors were evidently lethal. With the final collapse of the 300 year old Romanov Dynasty in 1917, as well as the fall of Nicholas II, a key reality was apparent; the impact that WWI had on autocratic obliteration was undeniable. However, reflection of Russia’s critical decisions prior to the war is essential in the assessment of the cause of the fall of the Romanov Dynasty. No war is fought without the struggle for resources, and with Russia still rapidly lagging behind in the international industrialisation race by the turn of the 20th century, the stage was set for social unrest and uprising against its already uncoordinated and temporarily displaced government. With inconceivable demands for soldiers, cavalry and warfare paraphernalia, Russia stood little chance in the face of the great powers of World War One.
One last mistake that most people could call Napoleon’s greatest, would be his invasion of Russia. When Czar Alexander I stopped complying with Napoleon’s demands with the Continental System, putting heavy taxes on French luxury products, and refusing to let Napoleon marry a sister of his, Napoleon thought that it was time to put Russia back in his place. With this idea in place, Napoleon gathered a huge amount of troops from all around Europe, which first entered Russia on June 24, 1812. A quote from Sutherland states that “It was the most diverse European army since the Crusades”. History experts expect that at least 450,000 Grand Armée soldiers and maybe even 650,000 ended up crossing the Niemen River to fight the Russians on the other side (approx. 200,000).
Crashing cannon balls, firing muskets, Calvary charging with blades of cold steel. These are the images that are presented to people when contemplating, which many people in our society do very often, the Napoleonic wars. The reality is quite the contrary, to some extent this image is true. The reality is the Napoleonic wars were ones of attrition. The goal of army’s were to have enough troops to sustain the ability to fight in the next battle. The British government had this attrition as one of the principal complications with their army and Navy do to their constant involvement in war no matter where public opinion stood.
But in 1812, the seemingly invincible Napoleon made the fateful decision to invade Russia. He advanced deep into that vast country, eventually reaching Moscow in September. He found Moscow had been burned by the Russians and could not support the hungry French Army over the long winter. Thus Napoleon was forced to begin a long retreat, and saw his army decimated to a mere 20,000 men by the severe Russian winter and chaos in the ranks.
Napoleon was an outstanding military commander and enjoyed many successful campaigns. Napoleon maintained the Revolutionary syst...
Neutral countries were not allowed to trade with the French until they procured a license from British authorities; violation of these rules would result in “confiscation of ships and property by the Royal Navy.” In response to this, France made a series of decrees which “nullified” these new restrictions and threatened any country that was willing to comply with the British. “These policies of blockade and counter-blockade by the British and French directly affected American shipping and pushed the war closer and closer to the neutral United States.”
He turned the French against Europe and took over central Europe. He was well known for being a genius and could often sway the tide in his favor in a variety of ways. In 1812, the French invaded Russia, but it led to a change of fate. His army won by moving into the outskirts of Moscow, but it was an empty victory. Cold and worn down, his "Grande Armée" was forced into a painful retreat through the freezing Russian weather.
Napoleon Dynamite is one of the best movies portraying loneliness and nerds. It is the story of Napoleon in high school and his lonely adventures. All the main characters feel separated, misunderstood, and have nobody to relate to. Napoleon has no friends and lives in his own fantasy land. He is avoided by everybody. His brother seems to be mislead, wanting to be a cage fighter but staying home all the time hopelessly trying to find love and attention on the internet. Their grandmother is never there for them, though she lives her own life right beside them. They live next to a huge field, reinforcing their isolation. Practically every home in the film is
A. A. “Europe and the Superior Being: Napoleon.” The History Guide: Lectures on Modern European Intellectual History. 13 May. 2004. The 'Secondary' of the 'Secondary' of the 'Secondary' of the 'Secondary' of the 6 Dec. 2004. Karl, Kenneth.
Misused intelligence and underestimated opponents were at the heart of Napoleon?s downfall. This was clearly shown at Moscow when the Russians outwitted him by using their scorched earth policy and not meeting him in battle as they agreed. With careful planning, the Russian invasion could have gone a lot better and maybe not have led to Napoleon?s downfall.
With all the glory and the splendour that some countries may have experienced, never has history seen how only only one man, Napoleon, brought up his country, France, from its most tormented status, to the very pinnacle of its height in just a few years time. He was a military hero who won splendid land-based battles, which allowed him to dominate most of the European continent. He was a man with ambition, great self-control and calculation, a great strategist, a genius; whatever it was, he was simply the best. But, even though how great this person was, something about how he governed France still floats among people's minds. Did he abuse his power? Did Napoleon defeat the purpose of the ideals of the French Revolution? After all of his success in his military campaigns, did he gratify the people's needs regarding their ideals on the French Revolution? This is one of the many controversies that we have to deal with when studying Napoleon and the French Revolution. In this essay, I will discuss my opinion on whether or not was he a destroyer of the ideals of the French Revolution.
· By the use of theatrical and emotional language in his bulletins and Orders of the Day, Napoleon formed a special bond between himself and the army. He played on the ideas of military glory, of patriotism and of comradeship, while giving at the same time the impression that he had a deep paternal concern for his men. To this they responded with real devotion. ii) The Changing Nature of War · The majority of the eighteenth-century wars were fought with more or less evenly matched, mainly mercenary armies, very similar to each other in training, equipment, composition and strength.
Napoleon had to retrieve from Russia under attacks by Russian peasants and horsemen on those who fell behind. His army also suffered from cold and hunger, since the Russians destroyed all food supplies. The takeover of Moscow by Napoleon proved to be useless, and in the long run, destroyed a large part of his army. Alongside these historical events, Tolstoy describes the different classes of Russian society in terms of their participation in the war and what kind of an impact war had on their lives. In the beginning of the novel, the Russian aristocratic class, which was in the czar’s circle, wanted Russia to participate in the war.
Reasons for Napoleon's Defeat The Campaign of 1812 should have been another crusade for Napoleon, but he now faced 2 new policies that he had never faced before, the severe Russian winter and the notorious scorched-earth policy. On June 23, 1812 Napoleon's Grande Armee, over 500,000 men strong, poured over the Russian border. An equal amount of Russian forces awaited them. The result of the campaign was a surprise.