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Dear Patrons,

Here is your early access to the final part of Napoleon's Marshals! I hope you enjoy. It's been a long journey and we've met some interesting characters along the way, but perhaps none as impressive as these final three.

I can now reveal the Marshal's baton competition winners - there were six correct guesses, and Google Random Number Generator has decreed that the 2 winners of a Marshal's (replica) baton are:

Hunter Hartley

Ivlivs Valerivs

The two winners of a runners-up prize (any 1 item of merch from the store) are:

Michael

LightxHeaveN

Congratulations to you all, I'll be in contact to arrange prize delivery in the next few days. And commiserations to the many who came very close.

Merch for Typos is in effect! One free item from the EHTV store to the first Patron to spot a typo in the new video.

I look forward to your feedback and views on the final episode, and thank you all again for your support. Back with more updates soon..

Toby

Files

Napoleons Marshal's Part 6

Patreon Early Access

Comments

Luca Schneider

I have Been looking foward to this Thank you Toby

Louis Chiodo

Been looking at my phone every hour waitin for this!

Flo

I finished my workout, i'm making my omelette and watch this right away, perfect timing !!!!!

Sean Leavey

11:38 is there a missing space between "St." and "Louis"?

Sean Leavey

13:37 it says "Became Marshal 1804, aged 50" but under "Died" it says "Died of wounds, aged 40".

Bence Fehér

Lannes was 35 when he became marshal

Stephen Wilson

This is great. One issue I did notice is in Marshal Lannes bio, it says Soult was Commander of III Corps, not IV Corps at Austerlitz

James Lui

In 28:53, Desaix was repeated twice

Marcos Moguel

Thanks for the journey, kind of sad because it´s over but it was super epic

Louis Chiodo

A great series! Looking forward to the next!

Rick Reactions

Many congratulations on another masterfully written and produced series. It has been an incredible journey to witness the lives of so many of history’s greatest military leaders. You’ve truly done the stories of Napoleon’s Marshals justice. I am already looking forward to seeing the Vittoria campaign covered in a near future. To borrow Marshal Berthier’s moniker: You are the Indispensable Source of Napoleonic content on Youtube!

Flo

When it's Lannes ==> Tears. Also i find that Napoleon's Marshals look like Genghis Khan hounds of war. It is recorded that few years after the death of Napoleon stories were told in asia about the descendant of Genghis Khan !

Louis Chiodo

Curious though, not limited to the Marshals who were the 3 best commanders of the whole napoleonic wars in your opinion?

Miibez

Managed to guess correctly, but luck was not on my side. Regardless, this series has been and still is a masterpiece. Amazing work doing justice to these amazing men. Who is your favorite marshal, not necessarily the best, but favorite?

Rafael Consentino

At 27:48, I think Davout's wife's name is spelled incorrectly. Isn't it supposed to be "Aimée" instead of "Aiméee"? Anyway, a phenomenal ending to a phenomenal series. Well done!

Lazar Momcilovic

Best video of all in this series! Berthier was definitely underrated, I admit that I made jokes about his "too high position", but yeah, I was apparently wrong... Somewhat. As for Lannes, he was one of my favourites, and I think that his early death possibly - 1. Made him even greater, since he didn't get the new chances to face disaster (like for example Massena and Ney). 2. Robbed him of chance to even further prove his abilities and maybe even make him better/more accomplished than Davout and ultimately Napoleon's best marshal. As for Davout... I won't spend words on him, everything is already said in the video... The man was a legend and while Lannes was also eligible for the 1st position, Davout's ranking is spot on.

CJ Tabunda III

Well, it's official! One of the best military history series I've ever watched, hands down 👐. As same as Marshal Davout to France, Epic History TV is one of the purest glories of all of YouTube history channels. Keep it up! 👍 (P.S. I've noticed a lot of typographical errors that needs to be fix before being posted to YouTube. There is still time to fix it. Again, great job!)

DR

Love the videos so much. I had a food party tonight, toasting to every country Napoleon conquered. Thank you for your great content Toby! Privilege to watch them. Watching all these videos, when we talk about the Russians having a war council and Napoleon could move fast as an advantage. It seems not giving autonomy to Marshals undermined him in the end. I am unsure of their full capability. The internal rows were good for competition but I think were costly in the long run. Hindsight and the safety of the internet is free :D

Gavin Anand Saint Just Brown

Congratulations Toby on this series. Have loved every minute of it. Despite his lack of social skills, Davout was I understand a very good family man, and completely incorruptible. Reminds me of Zhukov. I hope you will follow this up with a series on Napoleon's enemies. Take care!

Lewis C

I haven’t cried in a while. But I don’t mind telling you I shed tears at Marshal Lannes’ death because of how beautifully you presented it. I also had no idea just how random it was. But wow. What an excellent video. Thank you!

Luca Schneider

Exactly the Death of Lannes my favourite Marshal was Heartbreaking to hear about The Music made it even sadder. Toby is so brilliant at making videos, that he makes me completely connected to the characters and Charles Noves Voice only strengthens that.

SuperBroPrime

I'd like to thank Andrew Roberts for writing Napoleon: A Life

Lewis C

Oh man I totally totally agree. They nail it every time. The way they edited the music (Dinlas on Filmstro I think) was especially powerful. And then that letter. THAT LETTER! “The Marshal has died this morning of the wounds he received on the field of honour”. Although the letter itself is rather subdued, the way Nove reads it just immediately evokes an image of Napoleon trying to hold in the tears as he wrote it...

Lewis C

Love his presentations

Wenwei Jiang

I will miss this series more than any TV series I've ever watched. Also, I got the relative order the top 6 all correct, except for Suchet - I placed him at the second place haha; massive congrats to the prize winners and everyone else who got the rankings right!!!

Maggie Scott

Jean-Boy is very happy to be #2, and equally happy that all his challenges to duels and various barroom brawls were included.

Sean Fitzgerald

Desaix is listed twice instead of Leclerc at 28:52

Teixeira da Silva

I'm going to miss this series. Was an amazing journey. 26 brilliant men o fought for the emperor and France. Davout is still my favorite and that man is really a genius.

Lewis C

I think I'd have him higher as well in retrospect.

Giuseppe A Ricci

Mistakes: one of the davout images says "davoust". , lannes age is given as 50 years when he became Marshall. Also, davouts wife is spelled Aimeee with three e's.

Ivan Smrcek

You my friend, deserve all the praise for being able to present this story of Marshals into an actual series of tactics, determination and emotion above all else. There is no other channel which gave me so much pleasure in watching and rewatching as yours did. I still remember how i found you with 'History of Russia' part 1... Keep up the good work man! Now i can finally wipe my tears after all the praise i gave you, just like you have given to many on the list, especially Davout and Lannes. Peace out

Robert Wear

15.05 says marshal lanne became marshal aged 50. but he died at 40

Hisham Yousif

Toby, fantastic work. Marshal Lannes remains my favorite. It seems like his charisma still shines through to this day. I knew how he died from your "Napoleon Defeated" video but it was no less sad to see it in this context. Thanks for your hard work and good writing, please send my best to Charles Nove. I play these videos sometimes for the audio. I'm sad that its over but I look forward to more in its mold, and frankly you should create one for Napoleon himself. All in all, Well done and I am a proud supporter of the channel and will remain one.

Crown Prince Sebastian Johan of Ponte Corvo

Well, what can one say? A masterpiece. The whole series. Perhaps in the future, a much shorter series on the top ten Allied generals? 1-5 would be easy, that second half though would be interesting.

Hisham Yousif

One correction: Marshal Lannes bio page at around 14:54 has him listed as "Became a Marshal at 50" and then died of wounds at 40. Both should read 40.

Andrew Robson

Awesome, great job Toby. The final instalment was everything I was hoping for.

Crown Prince Sebastian Johan of Ponte Corvo

Woof. That is a good question. Aside from Napoleon? Just battlefield commanders? There are many considerations. Including scope of responsibility. Certainly Wellington. Of the Marshals, Davout, Lannes, Suchet are in the running. Amongst the other Allies aside from Wellington, Kutuzov and Blucher all played major tactical roles that had great effect on the strategic outcomes. Archduke Charles and Bernadotte were both fighting battles as generals but also coordinating the grander strategic operations of whole allied army groups.

Zachary Zytnick

Davout never forgave Bernadotte for not supporting him against the Prussians at Aurestedt. Davout was so furious at Bernadotte that he requested that the matter be settled with a duel, but Napoleon intervened to stop that. During the War of the Sixth Coalition, Davout begged Napoleon to be placed opposing Bernadotte. If only that happened...

Resident Elect

Bravo Toby! This has been a brilliant series and I've come away having learned so much about these men. We currently find ourselves In a period where our history isn't respected, but instead it is being redacted, cancelled and deliberately misinterpreted. Thank goodness for channels like EHTV which provide an unbiased account of history, motivated only by the aspiration to educate the viewer.

Prevost

Great work! at 28:52, the two portraits are both labeled 'General Desaix', when one on the right should be 'General Leclerc'

Gaurav Rao

Honestly, just asking will the YouTube video correct for the typos? I know it shows Lannes became a Marshal aged 50 and the portrait of Leclerc was named as Desiax, However, glad to read about Marshal Lannes and as my favorite of the Marshals, just really glad you potrayed the whole side of him including his firey temper. I appreciate it as it's good to have favorites but we should always acknowledge their flaws.

Andres martinez singh

Wow what a beautiful series loved every minute taught me so much about these men who were the bravest of the brave thanks to epic history I’ve become a napoleonic war history buff amazing job guys

A Terrell

Beautifully made series, sad that the Napoleonic series is coming to an end. But I’m sure you’ll give us more series that are just as interesting!

Jay White

Outstanding ending to an excellent series!

A.G

Its finally done! It took a while but it paid off, this is one of the best series I've seen on youtube

Loki_08

Great Video! (althought I feel Berthier was a in a league of his own since the whole Grand Armèe would have never happened without him) can we have a special episode about Prince Eugene? he had such an interesting life and feels like he was already a de facto Marshal who didn't got his baton simply because was already Napoleon's stepson. Him being forced to lead the russian retreat and succeeding was a feat big enough on his own to deserve a video about him.

Gordian III

Amazing work! This has been so well done : )

Andreas de Boer Moran

Great work as always! Caught a spelling error at 39:00, "Britsh".

Alex Lower

I'm stoked! Only at 3:30. "Despatch" and "dispatch" are both acceptable but the latter is more common. Also one "etc." has a period and the other in the parentheses does not.

Jerome Kelly

Wow, what an astonishing series of videos you’ve made here Sire. I think we may not see the likes of it greatness again. Thank you EHTV, through you have I explored, studied and learned a great deal. I’ve always referred to the Marshalls as “The finest collection of men to have ever existed”. And you said it in your own way at the end of the video, thank you.

Chirag

Davout facing off against Bernadotte during the War of the Sixth Coalition would have definitely been poetic, but I doubt it would have changed the outcome. Napoleon lost too much in Russia and the Grand Armee was never the same.

Teixeira da Silva

On the arc du triumph it's written Davoust. You can say it both ways.

Beefcleave Beefcleave

What an outstanding series! Marengo or coalition commanders next?

Stuart Carver

1-5 would be easy, who would you pick? Wellington number 1 I do t care if I’m accused of British propaganda there’s no one who comes close

Dan

Amazing series. Enjoyed it greatly and looking forward to whatever comes next.

Historyman101

Totally worth donating to see this. Your work was absolutely impeccable on this topic and your passion for this interesting era of history is crystal clear. On behalf of all fans of the Napoleonic Age, thank you, thank you, thank you! Masterful work.

Zachary Zytnick

Some more fun facts: Marshal Lannes, when he was an ambassador to Portugal, wore his battle sword to the court instead of a ceremonial sword. His animosity with the English Ambassador was so great that one day, angered that the Ambassador' carriage was ahead of him, Lannes ordered his driver to cut him off. This sent the Englishman's carriage flying off the side of the road.

Zachary Zytnick

Furthermore, the reason why Lannes and Soult nearly fought a duel is this: when Napoleon discovered that the coalition army linked up near Austerlitz, he was unsure what to do. Marshals Murat and Soult persuaded Lannes to tell Napoleon that the French should retreat. Napoleon was incredulous to this, noting that Lannes rarely retreated. Soult and Murat, also listening to this discussion, immediately changed their opinions and persuaded Napoleon to attack the Coalition's armies. This is what sent Lannes into a furious rage and nearly led to him dueling Marshal Soult.

Ludo Belli

Excellent final episode and excellent series. The marshals deserved (and still deserve) more historical recognition.

Joel Milo

Marshal Lannes also has another title, the prince of siewierz But apart from that it is an amazing end to an amazing series well worth the wait

Matt White

Lannes is listed as becoming a Marshal at the age of 50, this is an error

Crown Prince Sebastian Johan of Ponte Corvo

I would agree with Wellington at No. 1. Archduke Charles and Bernadotte (Crown Prince of Sweden version) both can fight it out for No. 2 as they both have the edge over others as commanding both an army in the field that defeated the French in at least one major battle, but also controlling the grand strategy for all their nation's armies in the field and/or as a theater commander, as well as shaping and training their armies, then I would put Kutuzov at No. 4 for 1812, and then Blucher at No. 5, and he falls a bit because he lost a number of battles against the French. I think one cannot overstate enough how important Archduke Charles was to the new model Austrian Army that came out of 1805. His reforms closed the gap with the French and he did manage to defeat Napoleon at Aspern-Essling. And he took Napoleon to the limit at Wagram. Bernadotte as Crown Prince completely remade a defeated Swedish Army, gave invaluable advice to Alexander during 1812, authored the war winning Trachenberg Plan and defeated the French in two separate major battles before joining in at Leipzig, and then he proceeded to throttle the Danes as overall commander of the Northern Theater 1813-1814.

Crown Prince Sebastian Johan of Ponte Corvo

They hated each other before Auerstadt, actually. Bernadotte threatened to horse whip Davout for reading his mail in 1804 (Its a long story). And much of what followed the Battle of Auerstadt in terms of what Davout actually said to Napoleon the next day, as well as whether Bernadotte was at fault for not coming to the aid of III Corps, has been so clouded with legend that the reality of the situation has been greatly distorted. Napoleon was more to blame for Auerstadt, for leaving III Corps isolated because he misplaced where the main Prussian Army was rather than Bernadotte who was following orders to act as a blocking force at Apolda and was too far from Auerstadt to render substantive aid in any event. Actually, Davout did get his opportunity to stick it to Bernadotte in 1812. Napoleon chose Davout to lead the invasion of Swedish Pomerania on Bernadotte's birthday no less! As things turned out in 1813, Davout was never in a real position to take on Bernadotte, as his force was greatly outnumbered by the Army of the North, and was forced to retreat to Hamburg after Oudinot's defeat at GrossBeeran.

Crown Prince Sebastian Johan of Ponte Corvo

This is one of my favorite stories. I also love the Frenemy relationship between Murat and Lannes. They see-sawed between getting on nicely to outright hatred. During the Egyptian Campaign they were both in hospital at the same time, Murat after taking a bullet through his mouth and as a consequence was unable to talk. Lannes was laid up with something as well, and was put in the bed next to Murat. Taking advantage of the situation, Lannes used the next week to torment his fellow Gascon, knowing that the pretty boy couldn't respond.

Tom Vansel

Fantastic Video. Thank You, Toby, glad to be a patron. You have "General Desaix" underneath Leclerc's portrait in Davout's section.

EpicHistoryTV

Thank you Sean, you were the first (of many) to spot this typo! I'll be in contact to arrange your merch prize shortly..

EpicHistoryTV

Tough question. I agree with everything Sebastian says, and Wellington is definitely right up there. Blucher was a flawed general, but the Coalition needed something like that when they finally got such a big advantage in numbers. I think Kutuzov is probably overrated, except as a figurehead and steadying presence - by most accounts he was completely inactive during Borodino. Barclay de Tolly deserves a lot of the credit Kutuzov usually gets. If I have to pick 3 I probably go Napoleon, Wellington, Archduke Charles

EpicHistoryTV

You did guess correctly and you were unlucky. Very glad you enjoyed the series. I think my favourite is probably Ney - something of the things he did are almost unbelievable.

EpicHistoryTV

Thank you, and yes you are correct! Will get that fixed.

EpicHistoryTV

Thank you Lazar! Glad I was able to persuade you that Berthier is somewhat underrated! Yes Lannes left the stage at the peak of his powers, which always helps your legacy...

EpicHistoryTV

Thank you, great to hear! Yes doing the little fixes now.

EpicHistoryTV

Thank you, glad you've enjoyed the series! Yes Napoleon wasn't too interested in picking those who were best at independent command, since he expected everyone to always obey his instructions. It cost him later on.. I'm sure that part of this is because of his own history as a successful, popular general who seized political power. He did not want rivals.

EpicHistoryTV

Thanks Gavin, glad you've enjoyed it. Yes both those observations about Davout are true. It certainly had integrity.

EpicHistoryTV

Thank you, I'm glad that section had the desired effect!

EpicHistoryTV

I also wanted to get in the story about him shouting down the Papal Guard in Rome, but unfortunately there was no good way to illustrate it.

EpicHistoryTV

Thank you. Davoust is an alternative spelling of his name which is very common at the time, the other typos will be corrected.

EpicHistoryTV

Thank you Hisham, these are very kind words and great to have your support. The typos will be fixed.

Maggie Scott

He never used the title, and refused to even submit the paperwork for the letters patent. He did accept the annual revenues, however. Less than two months after his death, Jean-Boy's wife asked Napoleon to allow her to be called "princess" and he flatly refused, and told her why. She was livid. Quite the bitch, that one.

EpicHistoryTV

Thank you very much! I won't rule out an Allied generals series, but there's a few other things I'm keen to do first..

EpicHistoryTV

Thank you, very glad you've enjoyed the series!

EpicHistoryTV

Yes, the Patreon typo-spotting has become an important part of the creative process! Everything pointed out here (plus a few I spot myself\) gets fixed for the YouTube version.

EpicHistoryTV

Thanks Loki! Yes Eugene is a very impressive character. Napoleon personally thought he was not ready yet for higher command, but he's running some major operations by 1813, and with more success than some Marshals we could mention! There won't be a bio of him soon, but could be a future project..

EpicHistoryTV

Thank you! I think despatch is probably more common here in UK, but I think I may go for the one that gets least comments...

EpicHistoryTV

Thank you Jerome, very pleased you've enjoyed the series so much!

EpicHistoryTV

Thank you! Vitoria next, then a little break from Napoleon..

EpicHistoryTV

Thank you, very glad to hear how much you've enjoyed it!

EpicHistoryTV

I did like this story. It's exactly the sort of move that schoolboys play on each other, egging on their gullible friend to say something risky, then immediately denying all involvement!

EpicHistoryTV

Thanks Joel, very glad you enjoyed the series! Maggie knows more about this than me by the sounds of it. But my understanding is also that he did not hold the formal, imperial title of Prince, in the same way as Berthier or Bernadotte. The best indicator is that in all the orders and memoirs, Lannes is referred to as Duke of Montebello, not as a prince.

Crown Prince Sebastian Johan of Ponte Corvo

That is probably the best answer. I know we have talked briefly about Archduke Charles' earlier work. His driving the French out of Germany in 1797 was no small feat, Battle of Theiningen aside, defeating Moreau and Jourdan in that campaign.

PARAGON MD

I wonder if any of Napoleons marshalls could've beaten Wellington at waterloo. I find Davout vs Wellington interesting to ponder

Joel Milo

Okay I finally understand why that title isn't in the video hope you'll do Napoleon's first italian campaign EHTV

John

One of the greatest public history outputs of all time, you should be enormously proud of yourself.

Amin Ibrahim

Great video and end to the series. My only gripe is that my man Berthier was robbed! Recount!

Alex Lower

Great end. Such attention to detail and depth is inspiring. I'd only further note that Davout and Davoust were both contemporary spellings, but the same image (the Delpech lithograph) is captioned differently at 38:17 and 40:19.

CJ Tabunda III

Although it might be a silly request, still I'm gonna say it. Can you say the names of all 26 marshals, from Perignon to Davout, at the end one last time? 😁

Stuart Carver

Fantastic as ever you've outdone yourself I hope this, and the rest of the napoleonic series, will be released in long form at some point too. Just a few things: wasn’t Marmont not Davout the youngest Marshal? At 34 min exactly shouldn’t the Dutchy of Warsaw be labelled in blue as a French ally? In your Prussian video it says saalfeld was commanded by Louis Frederick and the main Prussian army was 52000 men against Davout’s 27000. But here it says Louis Ferdinand 63000 men and 26000 men respectively?

Stuart Carver

Also is there any discussion among historians about anyone other than Davout being the best? He seems to be almost mythologised and put on a pedestal rather than being examined as a human being?

EpicHistoryTV

Sorry, the script has already been recorded and edited.. maybe I'll release a remix one day..

EpicHistoryTV

Thank you Stuart! Yes Marmont was the youngest Marshal, but Davout was the youngest at the time of the first creation in 1804. RE Duchy yes it should, I'll take a look at that. Louis Frederick was a mistake in the old video, it should be Ferdinand. I've clearly used a different source (or found a better source) for the strength of Brunswick's army for this video!

EpicHistoryTV

I've not heard anyone make a major case for anyone other than Davout. With his combination of military and administrative achievements, he's a clear winner in the eyes of most. I don't entirely agree he's on a pedestal - there's plenty of criticism in this video (which reflects criticisms in other sources) of his awkward manner and inability to work well with others, and his mediocre performance on the Russian retreat.

Louis Chiodo

Can’t get better than that, personally viewing Bluchers career it seemed like he was just at the right place at the right time a lot of the time lol I wish generals such as Suvorov lived long enough, would’ve been interesting to see him at Austerlitz instead of Kutuzov

Stuart Carver

I mainly meant he’s put on a pedestal in general by everyone rather than by you, I should have made that clear but it just seems so cut and dry among most historians and it’s surprising that there’s little disagreement.

Babatunwa Aderinokun

Magnificent end to much needed series. Epic as always 👏🏾

Stuart Carver

Yes I guess so it’s just the overview right at the end where it feels like he’s being called the youngest of all which I took to mean all 26 rather than 18. Oh ok then I guess all sources will vary a little I just meant in terms of consistency as I’ve no idea myself which source is the best like you do.

Stuart Carver

Also the date for the battle of Montebello is the 9th of June not the 7th

EpicHistoryTV

Well hopefully the video will change a few minds - at least in that he wasn't perfect.

Crown Prince Sebastian Johan of Ponte Corvo

Lannes never had the best luck with women, even though one would think he'd have his pick being a handsome and dashing warrior. Lannes' first wife was no winner either. But his untamable character limited his options. For a time Lannes courted Aimee Leclerc, but she wouldn't have him on the account of his uncouth behavior. She of course later married a certain Louis-Nicolas Davout.

Crown Prince Sebastian Johan of Ponte Corvo

There are a number of people who would rank Berthier first. Davout deserves his standing, but maybe also he is given too much credit. One could say he never really went up against first string talent one-on-one.

Crown Prince Sebastian Johan of Ponte Corvo

Historians in many cases tend to repeat each other over the years. But I think the other issue is that other contenders for the title did not have the chances Davout did to prove himself. Lannes died early, and Suchet came to late to the Marshalate. Personally I give more weight to the marshals who were successful independent of Napoleon, and who could command elements larger than the corps. In my mind Suchet really comes to the fore as a person who could match, and maybe even surpass Davout's abilities as an administrator, and who succeeded under conditions that were most difficult, far from Napoleon's guidance. The Russian Campaign both showcases Davout's strengths and weaknesses. His I Corps went into the campaign the best trained, equipped and supplied. Davout was one of a handful who could competently commanded a body of troops larger than corps (on occasion Marshals led wings of the Grand Army comprised of 60,000 or more, during campaigns, Bernadotte, Murat and Lannes did so off and on in 1805, 1806 and 1807). But he was not as great as the rear-guard commander. But even that is a very minor criticism. I think it is a shame we never got to see Davout command a full army independently. How would he have faired in Spain one wonders.

Stuart Carver

As good as he was I’m not convinced that Davout, or any other Marshal, could best Wellington one on one in Spain even Napoleon on even numbers would find that a rough nut to crack. I think the dream team would be Davout on the ring wing with Lannes as the vanguard and Ney as the rearguard. Plus Soult, Suchet and maybe a younger Massena commanding the other corps? Plus Murat with the cavalry of course

Louis Chiodo

I mean, defeating the main Prussian army isn’t something done everyday

Line_of_Blood

are you planning to releasing the last part of Napoleon (Parts 9-12) when you reach 1 million subscribers?

Joel Milo

Brussels is misspelled at 12:00 it is "Brusssels"

Stuart Carver

Why did Napoleon call Lannes a companion in arms for 16 years when they met in 1796 13 years previously?

Stuart Carver

If Lannes retook command at the start of June 1807 then I’d say that was summer not spring?

EpicHistoryTV

I will release the compilation once I've completed Vitoria - the missing piece of the puzzle..

EpicHistoryTV

I presume he's referring to service in the French army, as opposed to personal acquaintance.

EpicHistoryTV

I'm not sure which day he got command of his new corps, possibly end of May or first few days of June. Either way it's a matter of a few days.

Bert Lammens

Are you planning on releasing an actual book about the marshals?

EpicHistoryTV

I probably have enough material for one now! But no, I'm sticking to videos. Napoleon's Marshals (ed.David Chandler) is a good read though, a little dated perhaps but still the best in English as far as I'm aware.

Line_of_Blood

I thought it would been better to have Napoleon's campaign in Germany and France in one video and then the Spanish Campaign in a separate video for a better narrative flow in terms of covering the campaign from start to finish rather jumping between theaters.

Alfredo Ríos Escandón

Never doubted the 1. and 2. How much did Lannes was missed in Russia and Germany. Had the chance to visit his tomb at le Pantheon in Paris. Definitely my favorite Marshal.

Maggie Scott

Not really. We just had a pretty heated debate about this very tome amongst some pretty knowledgeable Nap era fans on Tumblr yesterday. The problem with Chandler's work, other than it is dated [published in 1987] and utterly predictable, is that of the 26 contributors, 19 are British, complete with biases, and an over-reliance on English-language secondary sources. Of course, I have always wondered why folks who are interested in the subject--Napoleon, the marshals, or whatever aspect floats their boat--don't bother to learn a second language or at least French.

finalscarab

Thank for this series. I had looked forward to every release after the first one, and made time from my day to watch it for when it did get released. Is it possible for you to release your original ranking of the marshals and the rankings proposed by Remy Porte?

Lewis C

Yeah I gotta agree with Stuart. To be honest, Davout's defeat of the Prussians is impressive, but I also was kind of struck by how badly it seems they were lead... their tactics sucked right? At least that is the impression I got from the battle map. I think Lannes would have to be my pick for number 1 and I think he likely would have been in this vid if not for his early death.

Lewis C

Oh and if Ney was only ever put in command of rear guards, and never given other rolls, I think he would be number 1 haha. Literally the king of rear guards srsly.

Crown Prince Sebastian Johan of Ponte Corvo

No, it isn't, but it was also rather incompetently led by a guy well past his prime, and the very definition of a mediocre monarch in FWIII. No knock on Davout, for numbers are a competence in themselves.

Crown Prince Sebastian Johan of Ponte Corvo

Yeah, the Prussians were very poorly led at J-A. The Duke of Brunswick was well past his prime at 71, and stuck in the Seven Years War. He was shot in the head during the battle, and lost both his eyes, and then his second in command was killed. The chain of command utterly broke down and the King of Prussia, the rather unworthy Frederick Wilhelm III was forced to call the retreat.

Miibez

This would be fun to see and compare.

EpicHistoryTV

Not just that, but some of the authors are pretty advanced in years, so they're drawing on knowledge and studies that are themselves going back to mid-century or earlier. In terms of single-volume coverage of all 26 in English, I'd still recommend it as the best starting point.

EpicHistoryTV

Very glad you enjoyed it! Someone else asked about this, but it's not really possible - it was more of an evolving conversation than two lists drawn up separately.

Wali Siddiq

Hello, What is the scheduale of upcoming videos? Will an update be coming out for that soon? Also, will we be able to vote for the next series?

EpicHistoryTV

Hi Wali, I'll do a fuller update in due course, but the next videos will be Apollo Program Part 2, the Battle of Vitoria 1813 (the last episode in the current Napoleonic Wars series), then Salamis and HMS Victory. There will be a vote on the next big series coming up too.

Hisham Yousif

I thought the rankings were appropriate and the Iron Marshal was indeed talented. No debate there but if anyone were to rival him Lannes certainly will. His conduct at Friedland is comparable to Davout at Jena and perhaps more difficult since the Russians were competent and aware that they only faced an isolated Corps. Davout’s usual post was the right wing but Lannes was the VANGUARD! Always. The toughest position of a marching Army and the toughest in a battle since the enemy is at his most keen. He was always nearly outnumbered. He died early, sure, but to me that has an almost esoteric quality - it coincides with a removal of grace by providence from Napoleon. Aspern-Essling is the moment the Grande Armeès sun began to set. Lannes death was a message that French hubris was overstepping it's bounds. He had a premonition about his death and was getting weary of war. Finally, charisma matters in leadership. He was far more charismatic than Davout. Davout weakness caused Napoleon to stunt his growth and potential which in a way limits Davout’s greatness. Lannes was untested administratively but his conduct as ambassador to Portugal is indicative of ability in that realm. Lannes is number 1 in my estimation.

EpicHistoryTV

Interesting to read, I agree with much of this.

Patrick wilcher

Great series! Well made! Best presentation was Neys! Wish I had been able to stand with him in the Russian retreat or the final charge of the Imperial guard at waterloo! Gave it all away for France! He's still inspiring to this day!

Joel Milo

Hope you'll do Napoleon's First Italian Campaign after HMS Victory EHTV

finalscarab

In the same way Davout is stunted by his manners, so too is Lannes by his temper. This is something touched on briefly by our host, but bears receiving more attention. Lannes challenging Soult to a duel on the eve of Austerlitz was self-defeating. Resigning his position because Soult got more attention than him after Austerlitz served no one. His orders to Bessieres accusing him of cowardice was also unnecessarily. It was Napoleon who said "That devil Lannes possesses all the qualities of a great commander, but he will never be one, because he cannot master his temper, and is constantly bickering with his subalterns, the greatest fault that a commander can make." Davout and Lannes can go either way. Both men have flaws that can cut them down to size.

luc

Hi,

luc

What will be the next video theme ????

EpicHistoryTV

Hi luc, The next video will be the Apollo Program Part 2, then Battle of Vitoria 1813. I'll do a proper production update soon.

luc

Coooolll. Can we have, after, the best campaign of Napoleon : Italian campaign ?

Hisham Yousif

You’re certainly right, and I can see your point. Lannes had his foibles well documented in the video. What a marvelous quote about Lannes, who said that of him? I read somewhere that he began to consciously look for ways to control his anger, like a fatal flaw that a hero is trying to rectify. And honestly, I found his anger toward Soult and Bessieres to be well placed. He wasn’t competing with tame men but ambitious ones who would sense weakness if given the license. I read his temper as the reaction of a sensitive soul with an heroic soul dealing with wolves. I found all his antagonists - Murat, Bessieres, and Soult - to be loathsome (Bessieres the least among them). Finally, I look at his men and their reaction to him - there seems to be a genuine attachment absent with the Iron Marshal and his Soldiers.

BenDrums24

Absolutely epic. Excellent work, and I'm sure this is what the History Channel (US) strives to be. Wow, what a ride. Thanks for creating this.

Louis Chiodo

Could you guys imagine if Davout was in charge instead of Ney? A Davout vs Wellington confrontation would be interesting, I wonder who would win