The Campaigns of Napoleon by David G. Chandler

The Campaigns of Napoleon Reviews

• 
  Mark

  Though nearly a half-century has passed since its initial publication, David Chandler's study of Napoleon Bonaparte's military campaigns remains unsurpassed -- and after reading it, it is easy to see why. Over the course of a thousand pages, Chandler charts Napoleon's military career, from his early years at the École Militaire to his final defeat in the Hundred Days campaign. Aided by a generous selection of maps, he details the maneuvers of every campaign and the course of every major battle, each of which he concludes with a convincing analysis of the factors involved in the result. While the campaigns themselves dominate the text, Chandler also analyses the armies involved, describing their organization, their weaponry, and their reputation on the battlefield. The combination provides readers with an encyclopedic account of Napoleon's wars, yet Chandler's writing reflects the flair and dash that came to be associated with his subject's battlefield exploits. The result is a work that, despite its age, remains the standard by which histories of Napoleonic warfare are judged.
• 
  Jud Barry

  Reading this book was part of a long-term project to read all the books I own but have never read. I've owned this book since it was newly-published (1966). When I got it I was 13 and determined to become a Napoleonic marshal. No one has ever accused me of being practical or realistic.
  
  I'm sure I started it at some point but got bogged down like the French army between Quatre Bras and Waterloo, with page after page of place-names inadequately supported by cartography churning up a muddy prose. This time I persevered. So now I've added this finished book to my stock of knowledge, but it was more exercise than fun.
  
  The blame is not altogether Chandler's. Military campaigns are after all a bit like death-dealing vacations, and I don't think anybody'd like me to recount the stops along the way that time I drove from Tennessee to Idaho by way of South Dakota. It's pretty dry stuff (although it did rain in the Badlands).
  
  A bigger map budget would've helped--for more and for contemporary maps. As atmospheric as those period maps are, their small-scale, dark reproduction in this edition do not allow them to function as a reader's aide, especially when the place names vary from those used by Chandler due either to language or to lack of coordination between author and whichever editor was responsible for this kind of consistency. For some reason the biggest battles (Borodino and Leipzig) get the antiquarian map treatment, which was very frustrating.
  
  Enough complaining, though. Chandler's Part III (of seventeen) providing an overview of Napoleon's "art of war," along with information about the armaments and military organization of the period, is excellent and establishes the interpretive framework needed to appreciate and evaluate the actions of Napoleon, his marshals (not including me), and those who opposed him.
  
  Napoleon comes across in this book as a man with an amazing head for organizational detail, an enormous capacity for tireless effort, and singleminded devotion to his own ability--and his alone. He was unable to develop either a successful staff apparatus or to instruct his marshals (again, not including me) in his strategic thinking. This worked for him as long as the theater of war was of a size that he himself could manage, but eventually his ambitions exceeded his abilities.
  
  One can't help but wonder about these ambitions--and the ambitions of nation-states--as an element of strategy. Thousands of men died in these wars, and more thousands of people were ruined by passing armies living off the land and destroying property. And in the end, Napoleon's expansionist dreams came to exactly nothing. If he had stopped with his post-revolutionary reform of the French nation, most people would consider him to have been enlightened, even if undemocratic. As it happened, the imperialistic side of his program was an utter failure. That seems to be the rule for imperialistic programs in general. This would-be member of Napoleon's marshalate advises against them as being strategic non-starters, unless you just want to break stuff.
• 
  Jesús De la Jara

  Este libro es un compendio de más de 1200 páginas de las campañas militares de Napoleón a lo largo de su vida como estratega militar. Es cierto que hay muchos detalles que no están presentes, incluso a mi parecer algunos muy importantes pero es sin duda uno de los mejores y más completos libros sobre las batallas que libró como general, cónsul y más tarde emperador.
  Todas las campañas están explicadas en orden cronológico estricto y al detalle sobre las causas políticas, movimientos previos, preparación y el desarrollo de las mismas batallas, para lo cual Chandler hace uso de cartas personales, memorias, muchos documentos testimoniales de la época tanto de cabos, oficiales, mariscales o del propio Napoleón, lo que hace que la lectura sea muy amena, entretenida y realista. Obviamente la selección que hace de los testimonios es muy rigurosa, por lo que para mí este libro ha sido a pesar de su temática muy entretenido y ágil.
  Después por supuesto de cada acción bélica repasa los movimientos estratégicos y hace una crítica de ambos bandos (franceses vs aliados) tanto de las órdenes que se dieron como muchos otros factores, lo que lo hace muy analítico y te permite saber qué errores o aciertos a criterio del autor tomaron los grandes personajes.
  Leyendo el libro parece como si pudieras conocer la vida de Napoleón pues fue una vida dedicada al ejército en todos sus matices.
• 
  Rindis

  Chandler's massive tome on every campaign Napoleon conducted makes a great one-stop shop for a basic military history of any action you may want to look up. This is aided by lucid accounts all the way through, good maps (which are present in the Kindle version too—if a trifle small on my screen), and thoughtful brief analysis of each one.
  
  All of this means it's still the primary reference for the period nearly sixty years after it was first published; a feat very few other books can claim. It is highly likely no other book will ever combine the relatively introductory nature and comprehensiveness of this one and do it better. This does come at a price—the individual campaigns are covered at something approaching the level of an Osprey Campaign book, and this weighs in at ~1100 pages, with a smaller proportion than normal given over to appendixes, references, bibliography, etc.
  
  There are some limits. As this is the Campaigns of Napoleon, as opposed to 'the Napoleonic period', there's extremely little discussion of the Peninsular War, naval actions, or any campaign not directly involving the star of the show (I would like to see something on the French Revolutionary campaigns in Germany, that Napoleon's campaigns in Italy were supposed to be a sideshow to). And it's still 1100+ pages, so not losing focus in this volume is for the best.
  
  And it's not just the campaigns either. He goes into Napoleon's background and early training at École Militaire, and spends a nice little bit of time on where his ideas on warfare came and were developed from; that is certainly a nicely informative chapter.
  
  I'll note the Kindle version has certainly been gone over, and there's a minimum of errors, though a lot slipped through in the confusion of if a number should be a Roman numeral 'I' or an Arabic '1' (there is one rendering of "IIth"), and Blücher gets rendered as "Blöcher" twice. Outside of that, the text is in very good shape.
• 
  Olethros

  -Ese mamporrero, ese microcirujano, ese obseso del tiempo como la dimensión más importante en su oficio-.
  
  Género. Historia.
  
  Lo que nos cuenta. Análisis general, desde el punto de vista militar y en orden estrictamente cronológico, de la concepción de la guerra y su puesta en práctica más operativa que tenía el protagonista de la obra, desde Brienne a Waterloo.
  
  ¿Quiere saber más del libro, sin spoilers? Visite:
  
  
  http://librosdeolethros.blogspot.com/...
• 
  Dergrossest

  If you are only going to buy 1 book about Napoleonic Warfare, get this. It costs a small fortune, but it's a beautiful book complete with detailed maps and accountings of all of Napoleon's many battles. It may be more than you are looking for, but this is as complete as a single volume history can get. Recommended.
• 
  Jonathan

  Magisterial. Authoritative. Exhaustive. Yep, all the adjectives are true. If you want to really learn about Napoleon's way of war, and war in general in this era, one always comes back to David Chandler's Campaigns (Chandler died aged 70 in 2004). The narrative covers Bonaparte's military education onward and there are helpful chapters on how Napoleon maneuvered large units to achieve his strategic goals (what we would now call "operations" or "grand tactics") and on his battlefield tactics, as well as those of his enemies. Not least of the many treats this tome (over 1000 pages) has to offer is that it is lavishly and lovingly illustrated with well-drawn multi-colored maps and charts. Best of all, perhaps is Chandler's tirelessly excellent prose to keep the campaigns and battles rolling. It's unlikely ever to be surpassed as source for the wars, battles and campaigns of the Great Corsican. On a personal note, back when I was an impecunious student, this book was very high on my want-to-own list but beyond my means. A friend gifted me the book for my birthday and I have treasured it ever since.
• 
  Panu-Petteri Väänänen

  Let's keep this brief (unlike the book itself). This has to be the best book about the subject. My only complaint was the use of period maps on some of the battles, which made them somewhat harder to follow, allthough they were beautiful to look at. The book certainly is not dry old school war history, being filled with period accounts of the events and still being clear on it's descriptions of the tactical and strategic events of the campaigns. I learned a lot about Napoleonic tactics, grand strategies and the composition of the armies, the way cavalry, infantry and artillery was used together and the weapons of the age. A must read, for sure, and a perfect companion for the excellent Napoleon: A Life by Andrew Roberts.
• 
  Walt O'Hara

  One of those epochal works that becomes a game changer in its field. I know of few history writers specializing in Napoleon that don't reference this book at some point.
• 
  José Nebreda

  Una maravilla, a pesar de sus lógicas limitaciones.
• 
  Mario Zecca

  I am generally a pacifist, idealistically, but somehow, perhaps through the so-called male "war gene," I find military history, when it is insightfully well written, fascinating. Chandler, whose painstaking research sometimes overwhelms, makes references to names and events I admit I don't bother to look up. But the meat of the text is straight forward. I find good history books shed light on my understanding of the world we live in.
  
  This is no sugar-coated ode to Napoleon and his era, all the dirt of corruption, primal human drives and in Napoleons case, megalomania are elucidated with clear examples. But the glory of victory, the genius and scope of the brilliant corsican are equally demonstrated. Chandler goes into detail about the political and economic currents driving the actions of the principle characters and nations.
  
  This is not a book for the faint-hearted and I would not recommend it for those whose interest do not lie in the direction generalized above, but I love this book and find it highly enjoyable reading.
  
  Because of personal health issues, I have changed my reading habits and stopped my morning ritual and the several books associated with it. I will finish this fine tome and give it the attention it deserves another time. I made it up to the Russian Campaign. Viva La Napoleon, Vive la Emperor!
  
  There was about twenty years between my first and second foray into Chandler's "The Campaigns of Napoleon." If my curiosity of the Napoleonic wars is piqued again, I will return to finish off the tome. For the time being my interests draw me in other directions.
• 
  Ian Colby

  Good god. It's like reading an 1100 page transcript of a game of Risk. I did not read this with great élan....(more detailed review when I have time.)
• 
  Justin Echols

  The definitive single volume account of the Napoleonic wars. An absolutely magnificent work. Napoloen... je vous aime.... call me...
• 
  Binston Birchill

  If you lack knowledge of The Napoleanic Wars and don't mind spending a good chunk of money to rectify that problem then this is the book to get. Chandler does an amazing job of describing both Napoleon and his campaigns. The focus is obviously on the French but the opposing side is described and analysed in each campaign to give a better picture of what Napoleon did or didn't accomplish and how. In depth looks at strategy and to a lesser extent tactics make this book a must read for anyone interested in the subject. There were occasionally a few wasted pages that summarized what was already said in the previous chapter(s) but instances of that were minimal.
• 
  Sebastian Palmer

  Well, this one really is an essential classic. And I'm lucky enough to own the very handsome Folio Editions trilogy, in hardback, in a nice slipcase. Lovely!
  
  Vol I
  
  In the first volume one of this superb trilogy, Chandler sets the scene, telling us about Napoleon's rise, from the petit noblesse of Corsica, thought the turbulent waters of the French Revolution, to military fame in Italy. We see Bonaparte adventuring in the near 'Orient' of Egypt and Syria, before returning and assuming power in the coup of Brumaire. 
  
  Chandler's narrative conveys his enthusiasm for his exciting and colourful subject admirably, balancing a clear passion with lucid objectivity and judicious critical insights. A good deal of space is given over to an analysis of Napoleon's early ideas, and how they evolved; where they came from, and how he put them into practice and developed them. 
  
  And this all happens surprisingly early, both before, during and following on from his Italian campaigns, showing, as Chandler notes, a precociousness and audacity that would see Napoleon's star rapidly ascend. This first part of the story/trilogy is tremendously exciting, charting the improbable but seemingly inexorable rise of the young Napoleon. It has the colour and grandeur of Greco-Roman myth, which Napoleon would've liked and appreciated.
  
  Vol II
  
  In broad brushstroke terms this second volume starts with Ulm/Asterlitz, and ends at Borodino, thus running from late 1805 to late 1812. Here Chandler covers the 1805 campaign against Austria and Russia, culminating in Austerlitz, the 1806 war with Prussia (Jena-Auerstadt), on into the 1807 campaign in Poland against Russia (Eylau and Friedland). 
  
  He then takes a Peninsular diversion, focussing mostly, in keeping with his title, on Napoleon's part in this theatre; from his 'ill considered decision to intervene in Spanish affairs', deputising to oft-incompetent subordinates, to his brief but effective personal intervention in the war itself, before returning to more central-European affairs, with the campaign against Austria in 1809.
  
  One thing that struck me in all this was, well... no, two things really, were: firstly how minor the Spanish business seems in the larger picture, even though it would ultimately prove, as the suppurating 'Spanish Ulcer', a decisive contributory factor in Napoleon's downfall (a fact not so easily appreciated from the British perspective, with our tendency to obsess over our part in these wars).  And secondly, that for all the talk of continual or 'total' war [1], there are large periods of relative peace within the bulk of the territories under the Imperial jurisdiction. 
  
  For example, between the end of volume one, and the start of volume two, or roughly 1802-1805 [2]. And, excepting the ongoing rumblings of the Peninsular, between 1809 and 1812 [3], when the narrative jumps from Wagram and the treaty Pressburg to the invasion of Russia. The latter debacle ends part two, and marks a foreboding and decisive end to the period of Napoleon's almost unassailable ascendency, and, in consequence, makes for a narrative that continues to be both gripping and dramatic.
  
  Vol III
  
  Napoleon's regrouping and rebuilding of the French and Allied armies, and his waging of the defensive campaigns of 1813, clearly excite Chandler. And he communicates his enthusiasm for this period both ably and contagiously. And then of course there's the audacious return from exile and the Hundred Days. 
  
  This is factual history with excitement levels to eclipse all but the very best fiction. Indeed, history like this is better than practically all fiction, in my opinion. If someone made up a story like this, who would believe it? Napoleon returns from Elba with barely 1,000 men. And within days he's back in Paris - this whole story is the subject of the excellent 1815, The Return of Napoleon, by Paul Britten Austin - a whirlwind of activity, as he seeks peace whilst preparing for war. Encroyable!
  
  As you'd expect, Chandler's coverage of this whole exiting episode, set within the equally exciting larger epoch, strikes a perfect balance between the big picture and the smaller interesting details. Who needs or wants to read fiction, with history as exciting as this? And in how many stories -  especially 'real life' stories - is the final act a rather disappointing damp squib? Not so here. Commensurate with Napoleons own rather grandiose estimate of himself, this is a story that remains hugely exciting right to the end. And what a tragic yet epic ending it is!
  
  Conclusion
  
  Although Chandler is hardly a rank radical of the Jacobin variety, being in sober fact - as a professional military academic - far more likely to be on the conservative side of the spectrum, nevertheless, like Andrew Roberts in his turn (a more blatantly politically Conservative historian), one clearly senses the admiration, perhaps even the affection, Chandler has for his subject. And yet, again like Roberts, his excitement and awe don't cloud his judgement. We still get a balanced and critical view that gives both credit and finds fault where they are due.
  
  All told, as I previously said in a post on my military history blog, about a few of my favourite trilogies - of which this is most certainly one - this an epic account in every way. Being both hugely informative and great fun to read. For my money, this has to be amongst the very best and most essential writing on Napoleon's military career, a career which defined the story of Europe in the days that bear his name.
• 
  Francis X DuFour

  Over a year in the reading! A magnificent account of Napoleon's military actions. Not bogged down by too much detail, the author provides vivid dissections of each of the campaigns and battles, as well as information on the political situation and analysis of Napoleon's decisions in each battle. A book by which all other military histories will be measured, this a true classic.
• 
  John Davie

  Makes brilliant light reading on the kindle app. Ebooks were invented for books of this size. Chandler does a brilliant job of outlining the fundamental maxims of Napoloenic warfare. And he isn't afraid to hold Napoleon to his own standards at Wagram, Borodino and Waterloo.
• 
  Krisley Freitas

  “The Campaigns of Napoleon” é uma obra monumental do historiador britânico David G. Chandler publicada inicialmente em 1966. O livro é uma biografia militar, percorrendo todas as batalhas em que Napoleão esteve diretamente envolvido. Em alguns momentos o autor também aborda a parte política (como quando explica as razões da guerra contra a Rússia em 1812) e pessoal do biografado, mas a narrativa é focada na parte militar, deixando os anos de 1811/12 de fora por exemplo, por não terem havido campanhas ativas nesse período.
  
  Inicialmente há um apanhado geral das táticas e estratégias empregadas por Napoleão, suas “regras de guerra”, uma análise do poderio do exército francês, os diversos tipos de munições, mosquetes, canhões e outros armamentos utilizados, assim como o sistema de comunicação militar.
  
  O autor descreve campanha a campanha, batalha a batalha, narrando a movimentação das tropas, quantidades de homens, cavalos, artilharia, etc em cada ação, além de uma introdução a todos os principais nomes que terão participações significativas em cada campanha.
  
  O livro é bem grande, mais de 1200 páginas, mas tem um texto bem fluido apesar da densidade de informação. Como foi publicado na década de 60, há algumas palavras e expressões que não são normalmente usadas atualmente na língua inglesa, mas nada que atrapalhe a leitura. Já as várias palavras e citações em francês que não são traduzidas acabam incomodando um pouco.
  
  Há diversas imagens (principalmente de pinturas) e mapas ao longo do texto, complementando a leitura. Os mapas são tecnicamente bem construídos, mas não aparecem em número suficiente, em algumas batalhas há descrições de terreno, rios etc, mas faltaram alguns mapas para uma melhor compreensão da situação.
  
  Outra coisa que me incomodou foi o fato do autor ser o chamado “general de poltrona” (ou alguma expressão parecida), apontando em múltiplas ocasiões que se a pessoa X tivesse marchado a tal hora, para tal lugar com tantos canhões e executado tal manobra com a cavalaria a batalha teria sido vencida. Além de ser pura especulação, o autor abusa do “hindsight” para achar soluções e criticar as decisões tomadas na época.
  
  Livro interessantíssimo, o fato de analisar todas as batalhas e campanhas em sequência cronológica dá uma noção de causa e efeito muito mais profunda que ao ler livros e autores diferentes, possibilitando uma melhor compreensão do período napoleônico como um todo. Recomendo para quem realmente se interessa pelo assunto.
  
• 
  Seamus

  After a slow start , and patchy on and off due attention payed to this monstrous Napoleonic tome I can now say with great èlan that the mammoth has been tamed .
  
  It would be remiss of me to admit that this book can be monotonous , cumbersome and lacks a lyrical tone that usually accompanies this high romantic period.
  
  However much this military grade tome will test your patience it is a magnificent piece of scholarly work . All 1095 pages sparkle with detail . I found however that the work took a more somber tone after the events of 1809, Chandeler works to hard to force the narrative that Napoleon was slowly deteriorating and being clouded by ego . The book is at its best when focusing on Napoleons meteoric rise .
  
  Maps were very clear and readable , but more would of been nice ( antiquarian print outs don’t cut it ) .
  
  In conclusion I feel that my knowledge of the Napoleonic wars has vastly improved after my conscious was left to marinate with this book for 2 months . The prose and sheer length of the volume will probably refrain me from ever rereading this book in its entirety again however .
  
  
• 
  George Cheng

  The quintessential work on the military career of Napoleon written by one of the authoritative figures of Napoleonic period. Half a century since the first publication, this mighty tome is still the go-to book for the Napoleonic wars.
  
  Brimmed with details, this book covers the entirety of Napoleons career, from his humble beginnings in Corsica until the fateful battle of Waterloo. Providing a much more neutral and nuanced perspective on his performance as a general both in his brilliance and flaws.
  
  One thing to be aware of is this book is primarily focused on his personal military endeavours. While the political sensibilities were touched upon succinctly. They were not explored in great detail. Also the Peninsula campaigns while secondary to the grand theatre was only written in detail of Napoleons intervention and not the bitter struggles which ensued until the defence of France.
• 
  James Varney

  A *very* deep dive. The general introduction is outstanding, and after that you can kind of skip around, or dip into the places that fascinate you most. Chandler, a Sandhurst prof, is focused almost exclusively on the military affairs - the book doesn't have a lot of great descriptive passages about what was happening around Napoleon's massive campaigns and battles, the way, say, Erickson's history of the Eastern Front in WWII does. And if you are most interested in Napoleon's Russia campaign, the books by various French figures involved in that, or "Moscow 1812" are better. But for the *complete* history of Napoleon's tactics, this is *the* book.
  
  Highly recommended strictly for military history and Napoleon, in other words.
• 
  José Miguel

  Todo un clásico de la historia militar del pequeño Corso. Un estudio pormenorizado y riguroso de todas las batallas y campañas en las que Napoleón participo (no esperéis encontrar nada que el no dirigiera, como la campaña en la península Ibérica). Un gran nivel de análisis de las tropas, las ordenes, los generales y los distintos incidentes de todas las batallas. Más un pequeño esbozo de apoyo de la situación geopolítica del momento. Y mas de mil páginas para disfrutar. Un problema de estos libros tan gordos son los mapas a doble página, te pierdes la mitad si no deslomas el libro.
  Las Campañas de Napoleón: Un clásico obligado si te gusta la historia militar.
  Nota:9
• 
  Lorenzo Capacci

  
  
  
  Libro perfetto per chi vuole conoscere nel dettaglio le campagne militari di Napoleone. Nonostante la lunghezza - più di 1400 pagine - il libro non risulta particolarmente pesante (ovviamente si deve amare la storia). La divisione in capitolo che descrivono ogni tassello importante dell'Impero Francese e una breve, ma completa spiegazione della politica interna dell'"orco" corso permettono sicuramente una comprensione migliore di questo periodo storico.
  5 stelle!
• 
  Pablo

  Great book which offers a glimpse into the mind of the military genius who shocked the world at Austerlitz and Jena. A more in-depth analysis of his campaigns would be extremely difficult to produce, which is also the only flaw I found in this book: at times it is so technical and academic that it is hard to follow.
  
  Nevertheless, through the analysis of all of Napoleon's major battles and campaigns, Chandler explores the driving principles behind Napoleon's war machine, but also how it evolved over time, and how it was finally defeated.