Ralph Ashby - Napoleon Against Great Odds, The Emperor and the Defenders of France, 1814 (

NAPOLEON AGAINST GREAT ODDS
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NAPOLEON AGAINST GREAT ODDS
The Emperor and the
Defenders of France, 1814
Ralph Ashby
Copyright 2010 by Ralph Ashby
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced,
stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any
means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise,
except for the inclusion of brief quotations in a review, without prior
permission in writing from the publisher.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Ashby, Ralph.
Napoleon against great odds : the emperor and the defenders of France,
1814 / Ralph Ashby.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-0-313-38190-4 (acid-free paper)—ISBN 978-0-313-38191-1 (ebook)
1. Napoleonic Wars, 1800–1815—Campaigns. 2. Wars of Liberation, 1813–1814.
3. Napoleon I, Emperor of the French, 1769–1821—Military leadership. 4. France.
Armee. Grande Armee—History. I. Title.
DC236.75.A84 2010
940.20
7—dc22 2010003457
ISBN: 978-0-313-38190-4
EISBN: 978-0-313-38191-1
14 13 12 11 10 1 2 3 4 5
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Manufactured in the United States of America
Contents
List of Abbreviations vii
List of Illustrations ix
Acknowledgments xi
1 The 1814 Campaign—Introduction and Controversy 1
2 Prelude to Invasion—From Moscow to Paris 11
3 Napoleon Creates a New Army—Again 21
4 Infantry 43
5 Cavalry 57
6 Artillery, Engineers, and Other Troops 63
7 Imperial Guard 71
8 National Guard 79
9 Napoleon’s Campaign of 1814 87
10 Civilians and Partisans 123
11 The Battles of Fere-Champenoise 143
12 The Fall of Paris 153
13 French Casualties in 1814—Desertion, Disease, and Death 169
14 Epilogue and Conclusions 177
Notes 193
Sources and Works Cited 219
Index 225
v
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List of Abbreviations
CN Correspondance de Napoleon Ier
ML Correspondence between Napoleon and Marie-Louise
SH Service Historique de l’Armee de Terre (Military Archives at
Vincennes)
vii
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List of Illustrations
FIGURES
1.1 Tsar Alexander I 6
1.2 Field Marshal Bl€ucher 7
3.1 Napoleon, dictating to his secretaries 33
3.2 Henri Clarke, Minister of War 37
4.1 Infantry advancing under heavy fire 46
4.2 Infantry recruits drilling 49
5.1 French chevau-leger lancers 60
5.2 Russian ‘‘Irregular’’ Cavalry 62
6.1 French deserters arrested 68
7.1 Old Guard Grenadiers 72
7.2 Young Guard Infantry in the attack 76
9.1 Napoleon at the Battle of Brienne 92
9.2 Napoleon at the Battle of Montereau 106
9.3 Prince Schwarzenberg 118
9.4 Napoleon in battle 121
10.1 Scene of the French Campaign of 1814 131
11.1 Marshal Marmont 144
11.2 Pacthod’s troops at Fere-Champenoise 149
12.1 Empress Marie-Louise 156
12.2 Napoleon’s son, ‘‘The King of Rome’’ 157
12.3 Defense of the Clichy Gate 160
ix
MAPS
3.1 The Invasion of France, January 1814 35
9.1 Napoleon’s Campaign of 1814 90
12.1 The Battle of Paris, March 30, 1814 159
TABLES
4.1 New Soldiers Added to the 28th and 54th Line Infantry 52
4.2 Employment of Recruits of the 54th Line (End of 1813) 54
13.1 Casualties among Recruits in the 28th and 54th
Line Infantry 170
13.2 Casualties among French Soldiers by Year (1805–1814) 174
x List of Illustrations
Acknowledgments
A
ny writer will at times feel as if he is working all alone, while the
rest of the world is unaware of his labors and completely disinter-
ested in offering any support or assistance. Such a conceit is the
furthest thing from reality, certainly in the case of this book. In fact, often
enough I had the help of a virtual army of supporters over the years—
Napoleon himself would have been happy to have had such enthusiastic
and voluntary aid in 1814!
First tip of the hat (with a metaphorical bow and flourish) must go to
David P. Jordan. His reputation as a scholar of the French Revolution and
Napoleon precedes him, but no one other than myself can know just how
essential were his insights while acting as my dissertation advisor. Anyone
who has ever worked or studied with him will attest to his unexcelled criti-
cal intelligence and the elegance of his verbal and written expression. I
cannot possibly overstate the extent of his influence on my own develop-
ment as a historian, nor can I ever thank him enough.
Next honors go to faculty members (past and present) of the University
of Illinois at Chicago History Department. William A. Hoisington came to
my aid at key moments, and indeed acted in the role of lynchpin for the
whole project more than once. His help was given with the utmost kindness
and generosity. Every single piece of advice Dr. Hoisington ever gave me
worked out marvelously well—an astonishing feat for anyone!
Richard S. Levy not only served on my dissertation defense committee,
but...