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Dispatch 31 (Patreon)

Published:
2025-01-27 15:08:05
Imported:
2026-06
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Content

Here is the thirty-first patrons-only Dispatch. Topics include: esprit de corps, comparisons between Napoleon and 20th century revolutionaries, and alcohol in Napoleonic armies.

Don't forget to leave any questions for the next dispatch below. And once again: thank you for your support!

Also: thank you for your patience, and for all the well wishes (I was not expecting that!)

Files

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Comments

Ryan Winter

Hope your back is feeling better! ❤️ I have a question for next time. During the siege of Mantua, why did the Austrian generals keep dividing their armies into 2 forces even though Napoleon exploited that weakness repeatedly? It seems like maybe spreading out forces would have helped them with speed and keeping supplied, but was there another strategy they could have used to keep their forces closer together? And why was there always one larger and one smaller force, instead of of two equally sized Austrian armies (e.g. Wurmser with 24k in a main army and Quosdanovich with a smaller army of 18k)?

Nathaniel Estabrooks

Thank you for continually putting forth such high quality content! Throughout history there have been many moments where a combatant force has attempted to find and implement a superweapon that can unexpectedly and decisively turn the tide of battle. With the notable exception of the atomic bomb, these seem to frequently play out as borderline comedic, or if not humorous, just a downright waste of resources. Although maybe I'm retroactively failing to give credit to notable inventions like the airplane. But generally, I am thinking of Germany's "wonder weapons" or things like early submarine prototypes in the American Civil War. So my question is this, are there any notable "panacea" weapons from the Napoleonic wars that didn't end up amounting to anything? Were there any funny ideas that never saw the light of day? On a serious side, were hot air balloons employed at all to any effect?

Nick

As Napoleon's campaigns progressed, replacement troops filling vacancies in regiments was more and more common. What would the training pipeline in the French army look like for a new junior officer, who joined the military and went on to replace an officer vacancy after a major battle like Wagram?

Kirk R Johnson

The battle of Aspern-Essling marks just over 1000 days from the dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire. Places like Bavaria seem to have found their place in the new world order, but how are some of the smaller principalities doing? Any interesting standouts?

Andrew Wagner

Stalin is definitely the most apt comparison to Napoleon among figures in the socialist movement. Marxists regard the Soviet Union under Stalin (and similar regimes) as a form of proletarian bonapartism.

Szyfr

I have a question about how the nobility of the French Napoleonic system worked in practice and on a daily basis. How did Napoleon try to justify the creation of hereditary noble titles to the former revolutionaries and French people? (at least it seems the Legion of Honour had to be earned through merit). How did the new Napoleonic nobility like Talleyrand and Fouche interact with the Ancien Regime nobles that were allowed to returned in 1800? Were Ancien Regime nobles allowed to maintain their titles and general societal status even with the loss of most of their lands under Napoleon, and also did people think of the new Napoleonic nobility as a cynical attempt to recreate the Ancien Regime? I'm also really curious if any Napoleonic nobility had any influence or importance after his downfall up to the modern day.

Yann Rucin

What kind of accommodation was Napoleon usually looking for while on campaign? Would he try to find the most comfortable looking place in a city ( local palace) or village (richest peasant or local nobility) or did he mostly stay in a well furnished tent?

Steve Verdoliva

Part of the river problem was that most ran on a North/South axis. Most of the Napoleonic Campaigns are Onan East/West axis. This is why the rivers are important in the Seven Years War (Northern area Prussia vs Southern area Ausria) That's my opinion.

STG

I've been really curious about developments in Italy during all of this. Italy seems to have held a special place in Napoleon's imperial and dynastic imagination: he formed the Kingdom of Italy, made his son in law his vicory there, named his son (when he was finally born) King of Rome. But it seems to disappear from the main narrative after the 3rd coalition. Will we ever return to it, or does it just mirror France for the rest of the Napoleonic era? Also, as a related question, I find Eugène de Beauharnais and his relationship with Napoleon fascinating. Are there any good sources you can recommend on that?

Latour DeFrance

I’m traveling to Madrid, Cordoba, Seville, and Granada in April… any Napoleonic era sightseeing I should force my wife into exploring with me?

Gus Goldman

I’m doing a research project on coins, how did Napoleon use coinage to legitimize his power? Did he use any specific imagery depicting battles or history? Or were coins obsolete by paper money by this time?

John Barrett

Ataturk would be a fantastic comparison to Napoleon. A true revolutionary and excellent general. He defeated English and other allied armies. His political acts were equally revolutionary.

Christoher Argo

Another great dispatch. As for regimental affiliation, the practice still holds today. In the U.S. Army, in combat arms units, one wears his or her Regimental Crest from the very first assignment on the upper right torso of dress uniforms for the rest of their career! It is honorary and produces much conversation. Hope you feel better.

Ale

Great dispatch! Regarding rivers, it's hard to overstate the difference steamboats made to maritime maneuverability in and outside of war. The triangle trade on the Atlantic was for example largely conditioned by Atlantic currents, and a river is essentially just one big current. Under regular conditions, river transport only go one way, unless you are going via canoe, tramp boat or some other kind of small vessel. From a military standpoint, a road that only goes one way is not the most strategic, unless you are planning to smash through ranks without an escape route. This is without addressing the role of winds and currents that might smash your troop transport at any time. But, once you have a ship that can go in a straight line AND reverse? Rivers are suddenly an immense asset.

Cameron Boutin

Another great Dispatch. A topic that you increasingly discuss is the multi-national composition of Napoleon’s armies beginning in 1806-1807. You mention that these were often considered second-line troops compared to the French soldiers of the Grand Army, but what were the general effectiveness, loyalty, and reliability of these men? I am sure it ranged from unit to unit but were there steadfast and hardened foreign troops (in addition to the Polish legions) fighting for Napoleon year after year or were they more often unwilling conscripts just doing what they were required?

Russell Davis

Did Napoleon dabble in hunting at all during some of the quieter moments of his reign? Aristocratic hunting culture would continue to be strong in England for at least another century past this era, but after the revolution, had hunting remained a popular pastime for the newly powerful and influential in France?

Sergio Salgado

Hello. I am sorry if somebody has already asked about this. How aware was Napoleon of the big changes in Latin America after the Abdications of Bayonne? Many countries including where I come from, Chile, will become independent nations around 1810. Was he aware of this? Was he concerned about the territory losses?

Ben Dreith

I’ve recently been reading Hobsbawn’s Age of Revolution, which details the nascent capitalism and export-focused economy that allowed for Britain’s economic ascendancy. Given that early industrialization and capitalist economy was so thoroughly British at this time, and Napoleon reviled the British, did this colour his opinion of capitalism as he understood it? Did he ever meditate at length about this aspect of British superiority or was it viewed less as a feature of Britishness and more of a tool that could be used by France?

Wes

On the topic of comparisons of modern revolutionaries to Napoleon you cover in the resent dispatch, have you ever come across the outlandish suggestion that Napoleon was the Ist Anti-Christ?…Hitler being the 2nd and the 3rd and most destructive still to come?

Mark Hatherly

What with all the indemnities, loot, and army pay, there must have been a lot of cash and treasure being transported all over the place. What were the security arrangements? Were there any robberies, or attempts at robbery? Also, the various stages of the Revolutionary & Napoleonic Wars are known to us as "The War of the First Coalition", "The War of the Second Coalition", and so on. What did people call them at the time, if anything?

baroque'n'roll

Thanks for answering my question! Question about the battle of Trafalgar: If the British had more experienced, skilled sailors, but the French and Spanish outnumbered them. You'd think it'd be the French and Spanish who wanted to get in close, break up the battle line and turn it into a brawl, a series of actions between individual ships, where strategy mattered less and numerical advantage mattered more. Perhaps even at the expense of sailing directly at the British fleet to get close, taking broadside fire while unable to respond. Compare eg the narrative of the naval battles of the 1st punic war: the Romans were less skilled sailors than the Carthaginians, so they always tried to board where it would be more of an infantry battle on ships. But instead, it's the opposite: It was Nelson who wanted to get in close and dirty, at the expense of taking broadside fire while sailing in. What's up with that?

Samuel Hume

A great dispatch, and the question about Other Napoleons made me wonder. Is there anyone before Napoleon who he was compared to? I know he admired the generals of Antiquity - Caesar, Hannibal, Alexander etc - but how about military figures closer to his time? Did he, or his contemporaries, compare him to men like Gustavus Adolphus, Maurice of Nassau, or Oliver Cromwell? I can see plenty of similarities between them, especially Cromwell, but that's with the benefit of hindsight. Do we know if he saw a comparison, or even learned lessons from them?

ChederCheese

Every month I look forward to listening to the latest episode in the main narrative. However, in the purely audio narrative I do think I miss some context and can get confused about geography. Have you considered producing a visual companion? Say a series of books, each volume a year of the show broken down by episode with pictures and maps. I'm sure it would be a lot of work, and require collaboration with publishers or another creator but I for one would buy it!

Andy Arrington

Thought you might be interested to know, on the topic of Temperance: a common format for temperance pledges in the 19th century was that there were two ways to sign up. In the beginning the movement was mostly about hard liquor consumption and less hardcore on beer, wine, and cider, so one could either swear of distilled spirits only, or if you weren't going to drink alcohol at all you'd put a "T" on the rolls. Thus, t-totaller for someone engaging in total abstinence. Not that relevant to Napoleon but hey

Roel van Koeverden

Really a gem of a dispatch! Thanks, man! I have a question about different languages in the army. Napoleonic armies were composed of many different nationalities. How did they communicate? Were there translators assigned for this? Was there a lingua franca that many people spoke back then. I've a vague memory of you covering this topic in a earlier Dispatch. If so, please ignore this question

Springfield Fatts

Me, covered in vomit and barely able to stand: I didn't "ruin the reenactment," I just made it historically accurate!

Terry Dunk

I have a question about battlefields and looting. What type of systems were in place to deal with the dead after a battle, and what became of all of their personal effects? As you mentioned, most soldiers carried a good deal of valuables on their person during a campaign. Are there any accounts of the looting of the dead either by peasants or soldiers, and how was this sort of thing looked on at the time?

Sean Scanlon
>>163331096

I have a vague memory of that too. I think he said that French was spoken by pretty much all nobles, and a majority of officers from all armies.

Roel van Koeverden
>>163331096

Yes, indeed. For example, the last words like most of the words of William of Orange (Dutch Father of the fatherland) were in french

Grétar Halldórsson

I am curious about industrial progress and if Napoleon, was keeping a close eye. Was he actively pushing for and supporting innovation? Thinking outside the box to gain France the first mover advantage, as he commonly did on the battlefield. How was the industrial revolution, science and innivation affecting the narrative at this point in the story? What was Napoleon's take on all this?

S.E. Nyarady

Recently you discussed the multinational character of the forces fighting under the banner of France later in the war; what about more peripheral groups within the French world itself? For instance were there regiments of Cajuns/Louisianans, Quebecois, Caribbeans, or even Occitan, Walloon, Basque, or Corsican groups dedicated to the Republican cause? Or did these groups participate in some other economic or political way that is perhaps overlooked? Thanks, great work as always

Cuil Rathain

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