The Napoleonic Wars: The Rise And Fall Of An Empire (Essential Histories Specials) [Paperback]

Todd Fisher (Author)

Book Description

Series: Essential Histories Specials | Publication Date: April 27, 2004

The Napoleonic Wars saw fighting on an unprecedented scale in Europe and the Americas. It took the wealth of the British Empire, combined with the might of the continental armies, almost two decades to bring down one of the world’s greatest military leaders and the empire that he had created. Napoleon's ultimate defeat was to determine the history of Europe for almost 100 years. From the frozen wastelands of Russia, through the brutal fighting in the Peninsula to the blood-soaked battlefield of Waterloo, this book tells the story of the dramatic rise and fall of the Napoleonic Empire. This book contains material previously published as Essential Histories volumes 3, 9, 17 and 39.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Foreword by Bernard Cornwell, author of the bestselling ‘Sharpe’ novels. Authors Todd Fisher and Dr Gregory Fremont-Barnes are amongst the world’s leading Napoleonic scholars. Todd Fisher is the Executive Director of the Napoleonic Alliance, a founding member of the International Napoleonic Society, and Chief Executive Officer of Emperor's Press and Napoleon Journal.
Gregory Fremont-Barnes holds degrees in history from the University of California, Berkeley; the University of Chicago, and the University of Oxford. He is the author of ‘The French Revolutionary Wars ‘ (2001), and is currently co-editing the four-volume ‘Encyclopedia of the American Revolutionary War’.

Product Details

• Paperback: 352 pages
• Publisher: Osprey Publishing (April 27, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1841768316
• ISBN-13: 978-1841768311
• Product Dimensions: 6.6 x 0.8 x 9.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,065,198 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

34 of 35 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars An Omnibus History of the Napoleonic Wars, September 11, 2005

By 

Tom Holmberg "tholmberg" (Hoffman Ests., IL USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Napoleonic Wars: The Rise And Fall Of An Empire (Essential Histories Specials) (Paperback)

This omnibus volume in Osprey's relatively new "Essential Histories" combines four previously published entries on the Napoleonic Wars in the series: The Rise of the Emperor, 1805-1807; The Empires Fight Back, 1808-1812; The Peninsular War, 1807-1814; The Fall of the French Empire, 1813-1815. Todd Fisher is the author of the first two parts and Gregory Fremont-Barnes is the author of the final two. The first "book" covers Ulm, Austerlitz, Jena and Auerstädt, Eylau and Friedland. The second "book" includes Eckmühl, Aspern-Essling, Wagram, Borodino, and the retreat from Russia. The third "book" covers the battles of the Peninsular War- Vimiero, Corunna, Talavera, Bussaco, Salamanca and Vittoria. The final "book" looks at the final battles of the Napoleonic Wars- Lützen, Leipzig and the battles in France, ending, of course, with Waterloo.

Each "book" follows a general format. Opening with the background to the war, followed by a description of the comparative situations and characteristics of the armies involved-the French, the Austrian, the Russian, the Prussian, the British, etc. This is followed by a narrative history of each campaign, and finally a description of the situation at the end of the campaign. Short descriptions of peripheral actions (i.e., usually, except for the Peninsular War section, those where Napoleon was not present) in other theaters are also included. In addition, each "book" includes one or two "portraits," short, self-contained biographies of soldiers and civilians.

One of the portraits by Fisher, for example, is of Philippe-René Girault, a soldier-musician who served during both the Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars. Another is of Louise Fusil, a French actress caught up in Napoleon's retreat from Russia. Fremont-Barnes chooses a couple of politicians to profile-Canning and Castlereagh, as well as a common soldier and an artillery officer. Presenting, all in all, a nice cross-section of participants from the minor to the essential. Fremont-Barnes also presents an essay on the effect of the Napoleonic Wars on the arts, and also a conclusion giving the consequences of the wars and detailing Napoleon's legacy.

The nature of the book dictates that it will be written with broad strokes and generalizations characteristic of a survey-type work. Armies are often described with national stereotypes-the French fight with élan, the Austrians conservative, the Russians doggedly stoic, etc. But it is unfair to compare a work like this to monographs detailing a specific battle, campaign, army, etc. Both authors present their narratives in a readable manner. Fisher is generally more sympathetic towards the French, while Fremont-Barnes leans towards the Allies, especially the British, somewhat balancing each other. But some might criticize the emphasis on the French and British as short-shifting the other participants. Fisher tends to emphasize those battles under Napoleon's purview, while in the Peninsula "book" Fremont-Barnes emphasizes those where Wellington was present. Fremont-Barnes makes greater use of contemporary quotations than Fisher does.

As is to be expected from an Osprey book, the work is generously peppered with illustrations and maps- including contemporary prints, paintings, etc. Maps of battles and campaigns aid the reader in following the action, but the volume lacks the highly detailed situation maps one has grown accustomed to with Osprey's battle histories. Oddly, for example, there was no map of the battlefield of Austerlitz included, though there was one for the campaigns up to and following that pivotal battle.

The reader should not expect startling new theories about the Napoleonic Wars. Ospreys are not the proper venue for propounding new, controversial theories or focusing on political, diplomatic or social history. Osprey knows its customers and the focus is squarely on the military. The audience for this book would mainly be the reader with a casual interest in the subject or the novice just starting out studying the era.

I would have liked to have seen a brief essay appended at the beginning giving a quick overview of the general state of the military sciences, branches of service, weapons, tactics, etc. of the day. This would have made the book even more accessible to the novice. Had the book started out as a single volume Osprey might well have included something along these lines. This would have been in my opinion more useful than the rather lop-sided introduction included in this volume.

The book includes a chronology, suggestions for further reading and an index. If you already have the four previously published volumes you don't need this (unless you are a completist). This volume however is a substantial savings at $24.95, compared to $14.95 each for the individual volumes.

Todd Fisher is the Executive Director of the Napoleonic Alliance, and Chief Executive Officer of Emperor's Press which specializes in Napoleonic history. Gregory Fremont-Barnes, who is a professor of history, also wrote the French Revolutionary Wars volume in the Essential Histories series.

I give this 3 1/2 stars.

4.0 out of 5 stars A Good Succint Introduction to the Topic for the Novice, May 7, 2011

By 

Yoda (Hadera, Israel) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Napoleonic Wars: The Rise And Fall Of An Empire (Essential Histories Specials) (Paperback)

This book contains a compilation of four previously published books (each of approximately 94 pages of length) published by Osprey in its "Essential History" series. The four were: The rise of the Emperor (covering 1805-1807), The Empires Fight Back (1808-1813), The Peninsular War (1807-1814) and The Fall of the French Empire (1813-1815).
In general and in aggregate, this collection does a pretty good job at providing a basic overview of the wars progression over each period. Each book, on a stand along basis for the period it covers, provides a good overview of the makeup of the armies involved (from lower level troops through mid and upper officer levels), tactics, weapons and strengths and weaknesses, the geopolitical situation at the beginning of the periods, how the war progressed over time and what the after effects were at the end of the covered periods. In addition, the chapters provide short 2-3 page chapters on some particular little or unknown low level individual involved in the war that gives a very good idea, from a personal viewpoint, what the war was like. The book is also very richly illustrated in contemporaneous paintings, etchings, maps and other illustrations.

With respect to weaknesses, the book has quite a few. The most important, by far, is the due to its limited length and its topic it is unable to provide a very decent overview of the war outside of major campaigns and battles. For example, the war at sea is barely touched upon outside of Trafalgar. In addition, diplomatic, military, economic and political issues are barely touched upon. This book is definitely not as definitive as, say, the great Napoleonic expert Professor Alfred Chandler's "The Campaigns of Napoleon" (an approximately 1,200 page book) or Charles Esdaile's "Napoleon's Wars: An International History" (approximately 700 pages in length). However, for what it is, a short succinct introduction to the Napoleonic Wars intended for the novice, the book does an excellent job.