Are you looking for read ebook online? Search for your book and save it on your Kindle device, PC, phones or tablets. Download Napoleon’s Cursed War PDF full book. Access full book title Napoleon’s Cursed War by Ronald Fraser. Download full books in PDF and EPUB format.
Author: Ronald Fraser Publisher: Verso Books ISBN: 183976788X Category : History Languages : en Pages : 657
Book Description
A magisterial history of “Napoleon’s Vietnam”, by the highly acclaimed historian of Spain In this definitive account of the Peninsular War (1808–14), Napoleon’s six-year war against Spain, Ronald Fraser examines what led to the emperor’s devastating defeat against the popular opposition—the guerrillas—and their British and Portuguese allies. As well as relating the histories of the great political and military figures of the war, Fraser brings to life the anonymous masses—the artisans, peasants and women who fought, suffered and died—and restores their role in this barbaric war to its rightful place while overturning the view that this was a straightforward military campaign. This vivid, meticulously researched book offers a distinct and profound vision of “Napoleon’s Vietnam” and shows the reality of the disasters of war: the suffering, discontents and social upheaval that accompanied the fighting. With a new Introduction by Tariq Ali.
Author: Ronald Fraser Publisher: Verso Books ISBN: 183976788X Category : History Languages : en Pages : 657
Book Description
A magisterial history of “Napoleon’s Vietnam”, by the highly acclaimed historian of Spain In this definitive account of the Peninsular War (1808–14), Napoleon’s six-year war against Spain, Ronald Fraser examines what led to the emperor’s devastating defeat against the popular opposition—the guerrillas—and their British and Portuguese allies. As well as relating the histories of the great political and military figures of the war, Fraser brings to life the anonymous masses—the artisans, peasants and women who fought, suffered and died—and restores their role in this barbaric war to its rightful place while overturning the view that this was a straightforward military campaign. This vivid, meticulously researched book offers a distinct and profound vision of “Napoleon’s Vietnam” and shows the reality of the disasters of war: the suffering, discontents and social upheaval that accompanied the fighting. With a new Introduction by Tariq Ali.
Author: Paul L Dawson Publisher: Frontline Books ISBN: 152675410X Category : History Languages : en Pages : 463
Book Description
A renowned historian captures the French experience of the Peninsular War through soldiers’ unpublished memoirs and eyewitness accounts. While much has been written about the British campaigns of the Peninsular War, surprisingly little has been published in English on their opponents, the French. Now, using previously unseen material from the French army archives in Paris, Paul Dawson tells the story of the early years of the Peninsular War as never before. Eyewitness accounts of the Siege of Zaragoza and the Spanish defeats at Medellin and Ocaña are interspersed with details of campaign life and of struggling through the Galician mountains in pursuit of the British army. Dawson captures the perspectives of ordinary French soldiers and their beliefs about the war they were fighting for their Emperor. Napoleon’s Peninsular War is a vital and unprecedented addition to our understanding of the war in Iberia.
Author: Charles J. Esdaile Publisher: University of Oklahoma Press ISBN: 0806187999 Category : History Languages : en Pages : 522
Book Description
Napoleon’s forces invaded Spain in 1808, but two years went by before they overran the southern region of Andalucía. Situated at the farthest frontier of Napoleon’s “outer empire,” Andalucía remained under French control only briefly—for two-and-a-half years—and never experienced the normal functions of French rule. In this groundbreaking examination of the Peninsular War, Charles J. Esdaile moves beyond traditional military history to examine the French occupation of Andalucía and the origins and results of the region’s complex and chaotic response. Disillusioned by the Spanish provisional government and largely unprotected, Andalucía scarcely fired a shot in its defense when Joseph Bonaparte’s army invaded the region in 1810. The subsequent French occupation, however, broke down in the face of multiple difficulties, the most important of which were geography and the continued presence in the region of substantial forces of regular troops. Drawing on British, French, and Spanish sources that are all but unknown, Esdaile describes the social, cultural, geographical, political, and military conditions that combined to make Andalucía particularly resistant to French rule. Esdaile’s study is a significant contribution to the new field sometimes known as occupation studies, which focuses on the ways a victorious army attempts to reconcile a conquered populace to the new political order. Combining military history with political and social history, Outpost of Empire delineates what we now call the cultural terrain of war. This is history that moves from battles between armies to battles for hearts and minds.
Author: Stuart Reid Publisher: Pen and Sword ISBN: 1526737647 Category : History Languages : en Pages : 374
Book Description
An historic account of the Peninsula War written by the man leading forces against the French, Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington. Though pressed many times to write about his battles and campaigns, the Duke of Wellington always replied that people should refer to his published dispatches. Yet Wellington did, in effect, write a history of the Peninsular War in the form of four lengthy memoranda, summarizing the conduct of the war in 1809, 1810, and 1811 respectively. These lengthy accounts demonstrate Wellington’s unmatched appreciation of the nature of the war in Spain and Portugal, and relate to the operations of the French and Spanish forces as well as the Anglo-Portuguese army under his command. Unlike personal diaries or journals written by individual soldiers, with their inevitably limited knowledge, Wellington was in an unparalleled position to provide a comprehensive overview of the war. Equally, the memoranda were written as the war unfolded, not tainted with the knowledge of hindsight, providing a unique contemporaneous commentary. Brought together by renowned historian Stuart Reid with reports and key dispatches from the other years of the campaign, the result is the story of the Peninsular War told through the writings of the man who knew and understood the conflict in Iberia better than any other. These memoranda and dispatches have never been published before in a single connected narrative. Therefore, Wellington’s History of the Peninsular War 1808-1814 offers a uniquely accessible perspective on the conflict in the own words of Britain’s greatest general.
Author: John Grehan Publisher: Casemate Publishers ISBN: 1473852757 Category : History Languages : en Pages : 229
Book Description
“This is a well-researched, well-written, closely argued and fascinating contribution to the historiography of the Peninsular War.”—The Spectator In 1809 French armies controlled almost every province of Spain and only Wellington’s small force in Portugal stood between Napoleon and the conquest of Iberia. The French invaded Portugal in the summer of 1810, but found their way blocked by the most extensive field fortifications the world had ever seen—the Lines of Torres Vedras. Unable to penetrate the Lines, the French were driven back into Spain having suffered the heaviest defeat yet experienced by Napoleon’s armies. The retreat from Portugal marked the turning point in the Peninsular War and, from the security of the Lines, Wellington was able to mount the offensive campaigns that swept France’s Imperial armies back across the Pyrenees. The Lines of Torres Vedras is an authoritative account of the planning, construction and occupation of the Lines and of the battles, sieges and horrors of the French invasion. It is also an important study of Wellington’s strategy during the crucial years of the war against Napoleon. “Essential reading for every Peninsula enthusiast, this is recommended highly.”—Military Illustrated
Author: John Grehan Publisher: Skyhorse ISBN: 9781628737240 Category : History Languages : en Pages : 232
Book Description
By the winter of 1810–11, the armies of Napoleon had overrun most of Spain, and Joseph Bonaparte sat on the throne in Madrid. But the Spanish government had found refuge in the fortress-port of Cadiz, and the Spaniards refused to admit that they had been conquered. With a British army under Sir Thomas Graham helping to defend Cadiz, the Spanish cause seemed certain to prevail. But then the Spaniards wanted to throw Graham’s force into a reckless battle against the French. If the battle was won, the siege of Cadiz would be lifted; if the battle was lost, Cadiz would be rendered defenseless and the Spanish government left at the mercy of the invaders. The opposing forces met on the heights of Barrosa in one of the most savage encounters of the Peninsular War. At stake were the very survival of the Spanish nation and the future course of the war against Napoleon. The Battle of Barrosa is the first book to examine this crucial campaign in detail and to reveal its true historical importance. Skyhorse Publishing, as well as our Arcade imprint, are proud to publish a broad range of books for readers interested in history--books about World War II, the Third Reich, Hitler and his henchmen, the JFK assassination, conspiracies, the American Civil War, the American Revolution, gladiators, Vikings, ancient Rome, medieval times, the old West, and much more. While not every title we publish becomes a New York Times bestseller or a national bestseller, we are committed to books on subjects that are sometimes overlooked and to authors whose work might not otherwise find a home.
Author: René Chartrand Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing ISBN: 1472803167 Category : History Languages : en Pages : 170
Book Description
Constant Spanish guerrilla activity so drained the resources and diverted the attention of the French military that Wellington was able to advance against and overcome a numerically superior enemy. So many French soldiers were being used to counter the guerrillas and the threat that they posed that less than a third of the French army could be tasked with confronting Wellington. This book brings to life, for the first time, the formation, tactics and experiences of the Spanish guerrilla forces that fought Napoleon's army. Using much previously unpublished material, it offers a vivid description of the guerrilla and his lifestyle.
Author: Ronald Fraser
Author: Ronald Fraser
Author: Charles Oman
Author: Paul L Dawson
Author: J. Tranié
Author: Charles J. Esdaile
Author: Stuart Reid
Author: John Grehan
Author: Philip J. Haythornthwaite
Author: John Grehan
Author: René Chartrand