EMPIRE OF THE FRENCH: A Chronology of the Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars 1792-1815

In this fast-moving and readable study of France’s brief military domination of Europe between the revolution and Waterloo, Brian Taylor argues that it was the revolutionary tactics of conscription and promotion on merit that brought success.

For a brief period between the outbreak of the revolution in 1789 and the final downfall of Napoleon at Waterloo in 1815, France defied the world - and won. In his compelling history of the French revolutionary and Napoleonic wars, Brian Taylor argues that what began in desperation - as France defended its borders against a hostile world in arms - evolved into a military system that defeated - and was eventually copied by - France’s enemies. The levee en masse ordered by the revolutionary government called all fit males to the colours and was the origin of modern conscription. In addition, the radical changes unleashed by the revolution broke the hold of the old aristocracy on the officer corps, and opened the way for promotion on merit : thus favouring the rise of talented men like Napoleon and his Marshals. Napoleon’s conquest of all Europe only faltered in Spain and Russia when France’s enemies began emulating the French and developing new tactics - including guerilla warfare - of their own. This is an absorbing and thought provoking history.

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Details


Product Code:	10827
Author:	Brian Taylor
Format:	384pp, maps, diagrams, hb. Published Price £25
Shipping Time:	This item is usually dispatched Next Day
Retail Price:	~~£25.00~~
Our Price:	£5.95 save 76%