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Swords Around A Throne
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Binding: Paperback
Dewey Decimal Number: 940.27
EAN: 9780306807572
ISBN: 0306807572
Label: Da Capo Press
Manufacturer: Da Capo Press
Number Of Items: 1
Number Of Pages: 784
Publication Date: March 21, 1997
Publisher: Da Capo Press
Studio: Da Capo Press
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Editorial Review:
This authoritative, comprehensive, and enthralling book describes and analyzes Napoleon's most powerful weapon—the Grande Armée which at its peak numbered over a million soldiers. Elting examines every facet of this incredibly complex human machine: its organization, command system, logistics, weapons, tactics, discipline, recreation, mobile hospitals, camp followers, and more. From the army's formation out of the turmoil of Revolutionary France through its swift conquests of vast territories across Europe to its legendary death at Waterloo, this book uses excerpts from soldiers' letters, eyewitness accounts, and numerous firsthand details to place the reader in the boots of Napoleon's conscripts and generals. In Elting's masterful hands the experience is truly unforgettable.
Customer Reviews
Average Rating: 
Rating:  - Not the typical Napoleon biography
Swords Around a Throne is not your typical Napoleon book. Elting concentrates on topics which MAY rate a sentence or paragraph in other biographies. Elting concentrates on the different divisions of the Grand Armée including uniforms, in-depth looks at his marshals and the navy instead of regurgitating the different battles he fought. Swords Around a Throne is a good change of pace to the other biographies of Napoleon as it provides a different aspect to the Napoleonic Wars and his empire. Well ... Read More
Rating:  - Generalization
The problem with thick books that try to capture large subjects is that they must generalize and leave out a lot of data, and here there is no difference. If you are looking of a general overview of the Grande Armee during more then two decades of the French First Republic and Empire, this book will inform. However it is not meant to provide or be a definitive statement on any of the topics discussed in the chapters. Its a guide, rather then a scholarly work. This is particularly true where armies other ... Read More
Rating:  - Informative and Interesting
This is an excellent book, both informative and interesting. Even while discussing rather dry topics, the author manages to work in humourous anecdotes or observations.
It is important to understand that this book is not a narrative history of Napoleon's campaigns--rather, it is broken down into chapters which describe various aspects of Napoleon's army--the guard, foreign units, allied units, supply organization, cavalry, artillery, and many many others; for each chapter/topic, the author ... Read More
Rating: - Entertaining and informative
Col. Elting's inimitable writing style is sorely missed. Unfortunately, he died a few years ago (which several reviewers will be saddened to learn). He wrote with such lively humor and energy, that he always entertained while he informed. Does the book contain a few flaws? Sure it does, and they have been mentioned in the other reviews. The author's approach, strictly speaking, is not what would be described as "scholarly." Elting is a bit of a francophile, but perhaps acts as counterbalance to the ... Read More
Rating: - If you read one book on Napoleon this must be it!
'One quick blow and the wars over' with these words Napoleon led his army from the banks of the English Channel towards Austria, towards a small town named Austerlitz.
This book is quite simply the best and more detailed thorough account of Napoleon and his grand army. It details such notables as General Ney, who fought Wellington in Spain and was latter suspected of treason by Napoleon. It details the invasion the russia, the 'napoleon at bay' campaigns of 1814 and the final showdown at waterloo. ... Read More
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