Napoleon's Waterloo Campaign: An alternate history - Book Review

It has been a while since my last post, I got distracted with other things. I haven't done much painting or gaming, but I did read an extraordinary book - Steven Marthinsen's "Napoleon's Waterloo Campaign : an alternate history".



One of the frustrating bits of reading about the 1815 Campaign is the sheer number of mistakes and blunders made by the different sides. It is easy with an armchair General's view of the world (with the luxury of hindsight) to say "Oh I would have done something different".

Marthisen's work is a careful narrative spread over two volumes and 773 pages with the premis of what would have happened if just one thing changed - what if Marshal Grouchy had let General Gerard and his IV Corps march to the sound of the guns on the 18th?

He startes the book with the scene between Grouchy, Gerard and Vandamme arguing on what to do. Without resolving this he goes back to cover the events leading up to the 16th June 1815 from multiple perspectives. Written with a deep understanding not only of the vents, but how soldiers think and feel during some very trying times. His descriptions of the struggle to maintain morale and reform broken troops, gives a fresh insights on the challenges of leadership in the time.

As Marthinsen moves through the events up to the 18th, he carefully slips in Grouchy's decision and take the reader on a new journey of the subtle difference and ultimately huge effect, this decision made.

The first book ends with a different outcome of Waterloo (which is renames Mount St Jean), still very close up until the last moment. The second focuses on the Battle of Ohain on the 19th between the French and Prussian armies. I don't really want to give too much away for the enjoyment of the reader, but I found it engaging.

I particularly enjoyed the description of the Jacquinot's lancer regiments cat and mouse game with a battery from the Prussian IV Corps. The careful sense of timing and understanding of on battle tactics was illustrated beautifully. IT would be something hard to replicate on the gaming table.

Each chapter is started with an eyewitness' account of the event of the chapter. I am sure the beginning ones are based on true accounts, but the latter works of fiction have seamlessly blended in.

His descriptions of the thought processes of the leadership and they struggle with less than perfect battle field intelligence are well described.

Marthinsen knows his details, not only of the events, but captures the feel of that climactic week. At the end he offers an opening to what might have been post 1815. As a bonus he gives a good OOB with strengths of both the battles of Mont St Jean and Ohain.

I would highly recommend this read to anyone interested in the era or who would like to game some historical fiction. The battle of Ohain is definately on my bucket list.

The book comes from Amazon by clicking the link on the above thumbnail.

Napoleon's Imperial Guard - Book Review

As preparation for an upcoming project, I thought I better brush up on the history of this most famous of Army Corps. J.T. Headley's "Napoleon's Imperial Guard - From Marengo to Waterloo" is an interesting 261 pages covering the Guard's impressive history. It follows, in sequential order, the Guard's exploits both on and off the battlefield from 1799 until after 1815. THe

Much is made of the mutual devotion between Napoleon and the Imperial Guard. This is told through numerous examples of interactions between the two, which are well described, as well as the incredible feats of valour on the battlefield. These feats were usually under overwhelming odds and mostly turned the tide of the battle. You can't help but admire the courage of these soldiers.

The retreat from Moscow describes the horrendous suffering of he troops as well as the exemplary behaviour while the Emperor was in their midst. Things got messy when Napoleon abandoned the army with Murat in charge.

The stories of the Pupils in the 1813/14 campaign highlights the effect of many years of war and conscription on the population of France.

Of particular interest was the chapter of the Guard after Waterloo, describing how some of the survivors made it to America and attempted to set up a colony. It was something I had little awareness of and would make an interesting fantasy campaign.

Headley makes an interesting point at the end of the book about Napoleon not starting wars, but reacting to the actions of the other nations around wanting to extinguish the Revolution and it's ideas. He paints the Imperial Guard as being part of a expansion of ideas of freedom and liberty against the established monarchies of Europe.

There is no attempt at describing the uniforms or detailed orders of battle. Occasionally at the end of each chapter the total number of the Guard is stated. Some details on the uniforms or organisation would be a welcome addition.

The book has a number of black and white plates of battles the Guard fought in. The order doesn't always match the chapter. Being in black and white, much of the emotion of the battle seems lost, as it is hard to tell particular uniforms. There were no maps in the book.

One disappointing aspect was the number of typographical errors I noticed (almost as many as on this blog). It seems the book was written and edited with some haste. Headley wrote this from material he had from another book project, so it seems a bit of an after thought.

Overall I found it an interesting read with some insights into the Guard. It was quick to read, but once read, I doubt that I'll go back to it.

Certainly good inspiration to finish painting my own Imperial Guard in 10mm, my upcoming summer project.

"Waterloo - the Downfall of the First Napoleon" Book Review

Battle of Quatre Bras

George Hooper's "Waterloo - the Downfall of the First Napoleon" was originally published in 1862. I was fortunate to get a good copy of the 1890 revised new edition at a second hand bookshop last week.  Weighing in at 345 impressive pages, compete with five fold out maps and appendices, this comprehensive description of the last battles of the Emperor is a joy to read. Drawing on earlier texts from Captain Sibourne and Colonel Charras as well as other accounts, Hooper seeks to correct earlier errors and provide a comprehensive, readable account of the campaign of 1815.

The book is divided in two parts. The first deals with the return of Napoleon, the set up of the campaign and examines in detail the events of the 14th - 18th June. Careful consideration is given to the plans and thinking of both sides of the battles as well as reflections and retrospectives at certain points.

The second part of the book deals with the Allied invasion of France and the capture and exile of Napoleon.

Finally, the appendices deal with the various OOB of the armies involved as well as a nice little piece on "Could Grouchy have saved Napoleon?".

Overall, it seems to present a reasonably balanced view of all the parties involved and contributions made by various nations. It highlights errors made by leaders from all sides as well as what was done well. I found it easy to read and informative. There are a number of small maps of smaller parts of the action, but no other illustrations.

Amazon has some reprints of the book at a modest price. The image on the right links to the page where you can order a copy.

Google has digitised some versions for limited preview and there seems to be some modern reprints. The scans didn't do the maps well. I think I will scan the maps in when I get a chance and put them up on the blog. They are not as detailed as others, but provide a good illustration of the texts.

If you can find a copy, get it. Its a handy little tome for anyone interested in the era.

"The Battle - A New History of Waterloo" Book Review

Allessandro Barbero's "The Battle - A New History of Waterloo" describes Waterloo though the eyes of the soldiers that fought it. Drawing on many first hand accounts, Barbero carefully describes the incidents though 70 short chapters. The original book was written in Italian in 2003 and translated by John Cullen in 2005. The translation works very well, the style is easy to read and follows a logical flow through the battle. The use of the soldiers own voices if particularly effective in improving an understanding of the events.

The book has four parts. Part one - "We'll See Tomorrow" sets the scene in its 11 chapters- detailing the events leading up to the 18th June 1815, the armies involved and last minute preparations. Part two - "It will be as Easy as Having Breakfast" has 19 chapters looking at the initial deployments, orders, tactics, the opening attacks and counter attacks. Part three - "A stand up Fight Between Two Pugilists" in 20 chapeters goes through the long grind of the afternoon as both sides wear each other down. The arrival of the Prussians is treated with some good insights on the decisions made. The increasing desperation of the French attacks and the fragile nature of the Allied defences are well portrayed. This part ends with the attack and retreat of the Imperial Guard. The final part - "Victory! Victory!" has 8 chapters covering the final Allied advance, pursuit of the French, looting of the dead and wounded and aftermath of the battle. The conclusion is fairly brief allowing the reader to consider the devastation and loss of such a desperate battle.

The book moves at an interesting pace, picking up small details and vignettes of action, highlighting little know details. There was lots I  learnt through reading this book - how close the battle actually was, some of the limitations of the weaponry of the day, how close the soldiers got to each other in the firefights, the tightness of the battle, confusion of the smoke, importance of the skirmishers, casualties in the officer ranks, harshness of the conditions, difficulty of command and the horror of the aftermath.

Overall I was very impressed with the book, well worth the time to read.

There were a number of plates of pictures I had not seen before and some clear maps.

To find this at Amazon click on the book's picture - its around $7 USD - good value for that price. I have also listed it at the bottom of this page with some other of my favourite Waterloo books from Amazon.

On that day, the perspective of the human race was altered. Waterloo is the hinge of the Nineteenth Century - Victor Hugo