Napoleonic Wars: Battle of Leipzig 1813
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 25 มี.ค. 2020
- In October 1813 Napoleon faced the combined might of the Sixth Coalition (Russia, Austria, Prussia, Sweden) near Leipzig, in what would prove to be the decisive battle of his career. Outnumbered, virtually encircled, Napoleon opted for a high-risk strategy of striking against Schwarzenberg's Army of Bohemia, before the other Coalition armies could come to his aid. The four-day Battle of Leipzig would be the largest and bloodiest battle in European history before the First World War, and one that changed the destiny of Europe.
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📖Leipzig 1813: The Battle of the Nations www.ospreypublishing.com/uk/l...
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📖Combat: French Guardsman vs Russian Jäger 1812-14 www.ospreypublishing.com/uk/f...
📖Napoleon and the Struggle for Germany Vol 1 by Michael Leggiere uk.bookshop.org/a/12275/97811... / www.amazon.com/Napoleon-Strug...
📖1813: Leipzig - Napoleon & the Battle of the Nations by Digby Smith
📖Napoleon's Wars by Charles Esdaile bookshop.org/a/99532/97801431... / www.amazon.co.uk/Napoleons-Wa...
📖Napoleon the Great by Andrew Roberts uk.bookshop.org/a/12275/97801... / www.amazon.com/Napoleon-Great...
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I hope you enjoy the latest video in our Napoleonic Wars series! As far as I'm aware, this is now the most detailed coverage of the Battle of Leipzig in an English-language documentary. It's a very neglected battle, particularly among English-speakers, but deserves to be much better known and understood. Not only was it fought on a vast scale, but this is where Napoleon's empire suffered its mortal blow.
For those interested in details: for the battle, I've used a VERY rough scale of 1 big block (of 4 smaller blocks) = 1 infantry division, or roughly 5,000 troops. That means a small block is roughly half a brigade / 2-3 battalions, or 1,250 troops. For artillery, roughly 1 cannon icon = 50 guns (in reality, of course, guns were much more widely dispersed across the battlefield). For cavalry, the scale is roughly double that of infantry, so one big block = 2,500 cavalry. However cavalry operated in much smaller formations than this, so they, plus smaller units and skirmishers, should be thought of as operating in most of the gaps between units on the map. For anyone interested in detailed orders-of-battle for Leipzig, I recommend this page from The Napoleon Series: www.napoleon-series.org/military/battles/leipzig/c_leipzigoob6.html
When will there be the next video on napoleonic wars?
@@aritrasamaddar4714 the question is if there will be one. They have already, long time ago, made videos on Napoleons escape from Elba and the Battle of Waterloo.
unless the plan to re-do them?
Will you make a video on the 1814campaign and the battle of Toulouse ?
Epic History TV can made a remake of battle of waterloo? The video is so short and its one of the most important battle in history
Idea for a random episode @Epic History TV; do a episode about the kosciusko rebellion, it featured many polish, Prussian, and Russian generals that would later fight for and against napoleon.
In the darkest hours of qurantine, TOP QUALITY CONTENT ARRIVES
Bad
This is some *epic* content
In the darkest hours of self-besieging, NAPOLEON (or a video about him) ARRIVES
We're under seige by COVID-19, we need Blucher's forces to arrive!
@@FieldMarshalYT were you dropped as a child?
For anyone who is wondering, Marshal MacDonald was born and raised in France, the son of a Scottish Jacobite who had fled there after the failed 1745 Rising. MacDonald was made a Marshal on the battlefield of Wagram after distinguishing himself there, and later received the Grand Eagle of the Legion of Honor and was named the Duke of Tarente.
Due to his Scottish heritage, Napoleon often joked that he wouldn't dare let Macdonald within the sound of bagpipes, lest he defect and join the British.
NymArcadion thanks I love learning more about the marshals fascinating figures themselves.
@@CelticAngloPress2nd Thanks mate
Fascinating. Yeah, MacDonald isn’t exactly the most “French-sounding” of names. And I didn’t recall there ever being a brigade of British traitors serving in the Grande Armee. Thanks for that.
Thanks for info, I began wondering about him in last video.
Wrong McDonald was made a franchise
"If all were demoralized and he appeared, his presence was like an electric shock. All shouted 'Vive l'Empereur!' and everyone charged into the fire." what a great quote to discover.
His aura was so strong
his mere presence showed how much the men respected him, even after his defeats here and there he gave the men glory, something to fight for and to uphold the french name
Was there even such a concept of an ‘electric shock’ in 1813??
@@rhysnichols8608 Static electricity is most likely what’s being referred to, like when you rub your feet on a carpet or something and shock a friend
@@rhysnichols8608 Of course there was.
The Leyden Jard, an early type of capacitor, had been invented in Germany 70 years prior and was capable of delivering powerful electric shocks.
People in general have always been accustomed to static electricity and its very apparent effects that were documented and experimented on as early as Greek antiquity.
Electricity, though it had yet no practical application, was a well known thing by that time.
I like how Bernadotte went immediately and attacked Denmark... a true Swede keeping the feud alive
As a Swede, yes i aggre
Wasnt he French though?
Traitor🤬Swede
@@styllfresco8821 Sweden "adopted" him ^^
Bernadotte was, ironically, one of Napoleon’s marshals. However, after a very interesting turn of events, he was adopted by our king (I’m a Swede) because the king had no heirs and was dying. As such, he picked Bernadotte, now known as Karl Johan, to be his heir.
The descendants of Karl Johan are the ones sitting on the Swedish throne to this day.
>Difficulty: Mad Emperor
>Spain: Disabled
>Enemy Rockets: Enabled
2:16
*rulebritannia
cheats enabled!
rocketsredglare - 1 Congreve Rocket Brigade
Enemy manpower: unlimited.
Hotel: Trivago
Blücher: ON
Wew
In the words of Count Dooku: "I've been looking forward to this"
Read that in Sir Christopher Lee's voice
"twice the pride, double the fall"
Hello there!
@@willgirvan2491
Precisely!
Hell
Yeah viveeeee Napoleón!!!!!! For
Franceeee for glory !!!!!
Regular battles: "Sir, the enemy right wing is advancing"
Leipzig: "The enemy is approaching from the South, North, East, South-West and North-East !!!"
Then we shall advance to the West!
@@whynot-tomorrow_1945 yup
French officer: don’t worry Napoleon could buy us some time for 1 day
After the battle of Leipzig
French officer: Damn and I thought barely a day but 2 days??!!
Don't worry Steiner will protect our West flank.
@@whynot-tomorrow_1945 more like retreat to the west
People talk a lot about dogs, but Horses have been our allies in War, sport, agriculture, transport and more. They deserve some recognition, they are the real MVP.
Lo he dicho por años, el mejor amigo del hombre es el caballo. Han peleado lado a lado desde el principio de los tiempos.
True. Fortunately, we stopped of using horses in war.
Not forget donkeys and cammels.
I too cast my vote for the horse over dog, in the horse/dog issue! Let it be the horse and may you always roam free Hidalgo!
Agreed, yeah they are good animals but apart from the "caring" Factor, a horse surpasses a dog in all other spheres. Dogs are used for home defense, horses are used to win wars.
"i made him a count but i couldn't make him a general" Well done Napoleon you certainly managed to give General Von Wrede a sick burn.
👑🍷😁
How you published a comment 4 hours ago????
@@igesbpro Patreon :)
@@Fenniks- oh
So you basically bought the First Comment?
Here's an interesting bit of history: Beethoven's 7th Symphony, which you heard in Napoleon’s Invasion of Russia, was first performed for the Allied wounded in the Battle of Hanau!
Pretty sure it's actually the egmont overture (1810)
Luke Mitchell I don’t know who to trust now
Wasn’t Beethoven’s 3rd symphony “Eroica” first dedicated to Napoleon?
It's Egmont
Also Beethoven's "Battle Symphony" or "Wellington's Victory", which nowadays is performed mainly in the UK
I've studied the Napoleonic Wars for 60 years (started when I was 15. This the most clear and concise description of the battle that I have ever seen! Most of the books that deal with the battle leave one befuddled and confused. Great job!!
Just imagine being in that exact scenario, 4 days of artillery, gun fire, no sleep, outnumbered, and soo lil left ammunition... Also Marshal Poniatowski sounds like a brave man along with the rear guard. "Sire, we will hold on! We are all ready to die for your Majesty!
*Vive l Empereurer!*
Polish troops were vicious, almost fanatic throughout the entire Napoleonic wars.
And they did die as part of the 3 million people that died because of Napoleons ego.kiñd of like the 55 million that died because of Hitler.
@@michaelbrett3749 And that's why British always brainwashed their coalition rulers while not sending a single soldier during Battle of Leipzig. That's the limit of hypocrisy
@@VaibhavGupta-hr8vc Oh really you don't know your history. The most important aspect of History are the facts and you seem to ignorantly blissful of them.The British rocket detachment were there at the Battle of Leipzig. The British army itself was actually busy at the time fighting the French in the Peninsular war.
@@michaelbrett3749 How many troops really fought against France. If we compare number of troops we see the difference. I am not saying that they don't play any role in Napoleon's downfall , but here sorry their role is meagre. And from my point of view, Rockets detachments were firstly used against British itself. Go and type Mysorean Rocket and see the adoption of technology by British in 1805. And by the way Rockets were really inaccurate during that period
*If Napoleon would have been alive he would have probably given Epic History TV Salute of Guns and Cannons for describing his era with such professionalism.*
And That's a fact
too bad he's british :P
A Légion d'honneur from his own chest to be sure!
That would depend on the characterization of Waterloo. N was quite obsessed with trying to control the narrative of what happened there. Wellington as well.
@Tekstil Art France is a secular state. Not Christian, not Muslim. Just secular. It allows every citizen to choose its religion. And there is absolutely no muslim colony in France. Muslim citizens are just normal citizens. By the way they represent less than 10% of the population and a lot of them don't practice their religion. Moron.
Man, that was a lengthy interesting insight into the battle of Leipzig. It was the Battle of the Nations. The battle for Europe. The men of their respective nations fought with a greater determination and courage one could have bear to witness. Poniatowski, who was made a Marshal by Napoleon made the ultimate sacrifice in covering the retreat of the French army. Marshal MacDonald barely escaped with his life in the retreat. And Marshal Murat, went secretly to the allies in order to preserve his kingdom. It clearly was the end for Napoleon. He was down, but not out. He could win battles, but never hope to win the war.
As a french, i'll always be thanksfull for Marshall Poniatowsky's great act of Loyalty. A true hero.
Poniatowski is of course a legend. He has his Boulevard in Paris, and his name on the Arc de Triomphe.
Napoleon said later at St.Helena: "The real king of Poland was Poniatowski: he gathered all the titles, he had all the talents."
The battle for Europe ??? No, the battle for england and colonial business.
@@manualteirac9817 Germans and Russians are fighting for British? lol)))
OST/BGM:
00:00 - 01:15 Nanga -- Ben Hayden
01:15 - 03:30 Centurion -- Ben Hayden
03:30 - 04:42 Agent -- Ben Hayden
Day 1 Title Card
09:00 - 12:11 Renegade -- Seb Jaeger
12:11 - 14:35 Kilimanjaro -- Seb Jaeger
14:35 - 16:02 Turbulence -- Ben Hayden
Day 2 Title Card
Day 3 Title Card
18:03 - 20:45 Parbat -- Ben Hayden
20:45 - 24:00 Turbulence -- Ben Hayden
Day 4 Title Card
25:23 - 26:20 Viking -- Joseph Heath
29:55 - 32:47 Barbarian -- Seb Jaeger
Music of the title cards of Day 1, 2 and 4
06:00 - 09:00
16:02 - 18:03
24:00 - 25:23
Major Incursion -- Ben Hayden
+Yat Sum Leung
I see, you're talking about the "Epic History TV" music.. Well, thank you very much for the information 👍.
@@diegocobosanchez4373 that's not all! The originating website Filmstro has a built in mixer which you can vary the depth, momentum and power according to the situation. There are at least 27 variations to each track and you can make your own remix!
not all heroes wear capes. thx so much.
@@TheIsemgrim Edna Mode: NO CAPES!!!
Thnx man
Only a man of Napoleons genius could hold at against a coalition force of this magnitude. A testament to his place in history as one of the most brilliant generals in human history.
Imagined your enemy had 300k-400k soldiers from all direction except west and you have to hold with your 190k soldiers
I see it as a tactic victory. All the others generals would have been crushed the first day by the coalition, but napoleon, his marshals and his troops have held the line for very long time
@@maskr5520
Yeah 4 days too
@@derpynerdy6294 not only was it 365k v 195k but the coalition had reformed their armies all in Napoleonic ideas as best as they could
@@fredbarker9201
see almost 3:1
Absolute masterpiece, this battle as well as it's depiction over here at this channel. Can't believe a 200 year old event had me glued to my screen for half an hour.
Prakhar Singh it is truly amazing
you should watch more videos / read more history books. all the world's best stories are in them.
Fun Fact this Battle was the 3rd largest battle of the 1800s!
@@kakashi101able Which was the first largest battle? I'm curious.
@@devildog7792 Number One was the Third Battle of Nanking (1864). It was part of the deadliest war of the 19th century. Taiping Rebellion (1850-1864). In the Third battle of nanking, it was the the last major battle of the this war, over 900,000 fought (counting both sides). The battle lasted 3 days with over 120,000 died, and many more thousands wounded.
This channel sure earned his "Bâton de maréchal" :)
Yep. 7 stars for Epic History TV
* * * * * * *
Bernadotte : " I'm only pursue Swedish interests"
Everyone : "It's treason then"
Lol he a traitor. Attacked Norway instead of Russia.
Ordering the killing of men from the country you were born and raised is treason
@@onehope6448 cope
@@mint8648 Yeah to be honest he should recover Finland. Then move on to Norway latter. Dude he not going to recover Finland. The only left of the Swedish Empire.
@@onehope6448 attacking Finland (and by extension russia) was counter to Swedish interests as he was trying to build relations with the coalition members Russia, Prussia, and Britain and attacking Russia is not a good look
You've got to love Blucher such a ferocious commander and the sheer scale of these battles is amazing considering it was all foot, horse, and controlled with vague notes and the sound of trumpets.
Blucher was a pretty poor tactician
@@lesdodoclips3915 True but still crazy inspiring.
@@markgrehan3726 for as old as he was defiantly
@@lesdodoclips3915 He was old fart by that time,but his ferocity is what made him a dangerous opponent.He also very well understood importance of mobility,which was proven both here and at Waterloo.Thry didn't call him "Marshall Forward!" for nothing.
@@lesdodoclips3915 He didn't need the tactics if he could seize the initiative.
Checklist of what it takes to beat Napoleon, Leipzig 1813 (acc. to Epic History TV):
- 1 Trachenburg plan to force key battle with favourable odds
- 1 Skirmish in the south of France
- 4 days
- 360,000 Austrians, Prussians, Russians, Swedes and others (combined)
- 1500 cannon (combined)
- Numerical advantage of almost 2 to 1
- Absence of Key Marshals and 140,000 reinforcements
- Defection of Bavaria
- Arriving ahead of schedule (Blucher)
- Schwarzenburgian diplomacy
- 3 Monarchs, 1 Crown Prince
- 1 British Rocket Artillery detachment
swanner95 you’re entirely right, there is no real glory to win in those conditions
There were much more than skirmish in the south of France. Wellington and his hardened veterans entered France in late 1813. So Boney was forced to fight a multi-front war.
@@lsatep my man have you ever heard about the Charge at arcole river
Corrections:
*Trachenberg Plan
*Blücher
... And Saxony who changed sides
Fun fact: During the Battle of Leipzig and other campaigns, the Russian army employed Bashkir and Kalmyk horse archers against Napoleon, essentially in a manner similar to that of the Mongols. The French called them some of the most useless troops they had ever fought, but they were among occupying troops in Paris in 1814
That's interesting. This just might be the first time Mongol and Turkic forces occupied a part of Western Europe.
If you look closely you can actually spot some of them among cossacks on a period illustration in the previous video. In the part talking about Russian Cossacks reaching Hamburg.
They were called “Cupids” by the French due to their employment of bow and arrows. In 1807 in eastern Prussia and Poland, their use was seen as a joke by the French. In many instances they would miss their arrows and rarely hit someone. If they did, and in one instance a French corporal pulled out the arrow and scoffed. Only to fall dead a minute later. Weird stuff.
@@TheHippoBLT heh, you'd tend to be mocked if you say you bring a bow to a gun fight.
But poisoned arrows can kill as much as bullets did.
Really says something about the age of gunpowder, that troops whos fighting style used to rule Asia were being mocked as useless. Napoleonic weapons get mocked too much in modern pop culture for how effective they were.
Even tho Napolean eventually lost the fact he won so many big battles and against such immense odds is crazy. He was literally finding the most powerful countries all at once
industry is everything... im fascinated by murat and his charge...
average french vs coalitions war lol. frances entire history is fighting all of europe.
Napoleon would leave resounding impact on all of Europe
Still does
Still does
I so want HBO to make a series about the Napoleonic wars in the style of Rome or Game of Thrones.
The Russian's made something close to it but its part Drama part Documantery here is a trailer(its kinda low budget but its really good and the actors are godly the french actualy speak french in the series its from 2014):
th-cam.com/video/jm9rSxPhLD8/w-d-xo.html
@@command_unit7792 yup from star media i really liked it
Hbo made? Will not happen,.I guess to unknown in the usa.
Why? They would only ruin it. Read ASOIAF and then watch a Game of Thrones and tell me if you want a HBO series about this.
@@HebrewsElevenTwentyFive I liked GoT at first but hated the direction the show was heading in after about season 4 or so. Even so, HBO also did Rome, of which they did a better job IMO, even if it wasn't necessarily historically accurate.
Coalition Commanders: "Where on earth is Bernadotte?"
Bernadotte: *Slow marching intensifies* "Just taking in the view, that's all."
One would say Bernadotte was taking his time knowing full well that Austria and Prussia would stab Sweden in the back the first chance they got once Napoleon was vanquished. And he was right.
If it weren't for Alexander and the British, the Prussians and Austrians would have cheated Sweden of its prize, Norway, and sided with the Danes and attempted to dethrone Bernadotte because he wasn't royal born and was a product of the Revolution. Metternich loathed Bernadotte for being the son of a law clerk. Bernadotte may have been a braggart and a Gascon par Gascony, but he was no fool.
also, I love your book, Carl!
@@johnghudjars3496 damn I never knew that. Well I know something new about bernadotte's "leisure" march
@@KingKurotrol2000 I recommend reading, by noted historian Franklin D. Scott "Bernadotte and the Fall of Napoleon." It is a masterwork on intrigue and deceit on the part of the Allies. They wanted to use Sweden and cast her aside. Metternich was dealing with Denmark even after Denmark said it would stand with Napoleon to the end and then some. Metternich was determined to see every one of Napoleon's former associates removed from power on principle.
The diplomatic history of the Sixth Coalition is insane to read. I have always thought that had the Emperor simply waited six more months on Elba he would have returned to a drastically different situation than he encountered in early 1815, one where the Allies would be engaged in all-out war with each other.
Anyway, you're my favorite Marshal!
@@johnghudjars3496 Yes, Napoleon returning to France too fast actually reinvigorated the fragile alliance into one which simply was hellbent on finishing Napoleon for good. Had he stayed on Elba a little longer and bid his time he might have seen his former enemies fight it out for the spoils of war and who gets what. Either Napoleon sits it out or returns to France when one of the countries is eager to deal with a powerful ally yet again. If anything it buys Napoleon a whole lot of time and gives him better odds.
That being said the wars had taken quite a toll on the French economy and it's therefore doubtful Napoleon could have engaged in any campaigns on his former scale.
"Napoleon would prove he was still the master of war."
Positively cannot wait. I was never interested in the history of the Napoleonic era until this series came along. I've been following it for months now and I eagerly await the next chapter. Thank you for this amazing work.
It's a great alternative to getting your history from Time Bandits.
Why hello there 🦉
Agreed! I can't wait!
@@lsatep conquers half of europe while being against 3 superpowers at the time and manage to defeat them all while reinventing the Way to make war and becoming the general with the most battles won in history "Napoleón was not máster of war"
@@lsatep on a scale of 1-10, how british are you?
You have inspired me to reinstall Total War: Napoleon.
The NTW3 mod makes it the best total war game
“ I made him a Count, but I couldn’t make him a General “ the burn😂😂
The Bavarians were deployed with their backs to a river after all
I can safely say that after reading countless books on the battle and playing snippets of the battles on a table that I never truly got the feel for Leipzig as like most people I'm a visual learner .....and seeing this now joins all the dots together which now makes me want to read the books again as I'll be able to follow the narrative now that I've watched this excellent video.
Agreed! I was so lost tgebmany tines I read about it. Excellent video.
If Ridley Scott wanted to spend 200 million dollars on any good Napoleon movie, he should have make movie about this battle,starting from crossing of Berezina.
I think it's amazing how over the 8 years or so from Austerlirz to Leipzig, the number of cannon just exploded (sure, pun intended, why not). Back then I remember hearing in these videos there would be Grand Batteries of 30 or so guns; and the overall numbers were not much greater. Now at Leipzig there are several Grand Batteries of 100+ guns. Artillery really became the King of the Battlefield towards the war's end; and it stayed that way until it culminated in The Great War.
Even today, artillery still plays a crucial role on the battlefield, although it may be second to air power.
@@ebonaparte3853air power is artilerry on jet engines
Those fighting in Ukraine might argue that artillery is as important today as then.
28:33 "3 Allied Monarchs met"
Bernadotte: Okay, then.
Good point, but technically Bernadotte was still only Crown Prince! i.e. next in line to the throne, although already effectively ruling as regent.
@@EpichistoryTv nah, it's cool, man. Just wanted to make a joke.
Bernadotte was the first one in.
But it is fitting he is left out considering that Austrians and Prussians more or less never reconciled themselves to dealing with a son of the Revolution as an equal.
For years afterwards, Bernadotte would ask about how people in France thought of him since the end of the wars. It bothered him very much that he was regarded badly.
Epic History TV I have a question for you. Will you be doing a video on the Battle of the Pyramids, the Battle of Marengo, or the Battle of Rivoli? These are three of Napoleon’s most decisive victories and you still haven’t covered them yet, so I’m wondering if you will or not?
This series is one of the best on TH-cam. It's an event when a new episode is released. I have to mentally prepare before I watch the video.
"I have to mentally prepare before I watch the video." hahahahahaha xD me too
This series has caused me to play Napoleon Total war for like 200 additional hours.
same man, they should add more battles (including leipzig and in the penninsular war )
"I made him a Count but I couldnt make him a general"
Napoleon was ruthless.
That's our French Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte alright
very good of him
honestly, sounds pretty fair and objective
No! He was very kind and only ordered the inprisonment of millions of people
He had a sense of humour
"Książę Poniatowski zginął w nurtach Elstery" - "Prince Poniatowski fell in the Elster river."
Poniatowski was a nephew to the last King of Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, and spent most of his youth partying, often riding naked on the streets of Warsaw.
Died as a hardened soldier, refusing to desert Napoleon, while most of his own country was already occupied by Russia, hoping for a turn of events that would lead to Poland's liberation.
@Nitsky89 - That's very interesting. I need to learn more about Maréchal Poniatowski.
How on earth do you pronounce the name
What countries did Russia occupy?
@@user-qj5dj5hk1y Poland - Lithuania
@@anvilanvil7253 russia already invaded Poland-Lithuania like 2 or 3 Times before capture of moscow and even after that invaded Poland shit load of Time. Thry didnt calm they didnt want to calm situation they rather wanted to expand. And that puppet tsardom thing was basically puppet goverment and Poland was still defacto controlled by Russian tsar
Fun fact is that Poniatowski was the only foreigner in French army with title of marshal.
Interestingly, he was born in Vienna.
Napoleon even said that he would have been the true king of Poland
He was also the last king of Poland!
@@matejeber91 That wold be his uncle, Stanisław August Poniatowski.
@@DarthPlato Andrzej Poniatowski, his father, emigrated to Austria and became a well respected militiary commander. He settled in Vienna and soon after his son Józef was born.
When Józef grown up he started service in austrian army, another fun fact - some sources say that in 1788 during austro-turkish war he saved life of... Schwarzenberg - main commander of allied forces during Battle of Leipzig this video is about.
When country was falling apart he came back to serve as commander of polish army and after the ultimate fall as he was respected noble he focused on improving relations with Prussian royalty with hopes that Poles in annexed territories will be treated better (during partitions Prussia got regions mostly populated with Poles, including Warsaw).
Within few years Napoleon came and Józef decided that he will fight for him to his last days as he was the only person he considered to be able to revive polish state.
Quite an intresting story.
Imagine how outstanding this Battle was for its time. Essentially all of Europe had gather to fight a giant battle with muskets cannons and horses. Horrobal for those who had to fight,but very impressive for us to imagine.
the greatest climax in all of history
Its a timeless testament to the marshal prowess of Napoleon that even after twin disasters in Spain and Russia it STILL took several massive armies, which all had to advance and collapse on one location to defeat what remained of the greatest army and greatest commander on the planet. Napoleon was truly the last of the great politico-military giants.
@@geordiejones5618 The battle of Leipzig showed that, the fact that 4 armies all together, consulting together and with all the monarchs assembling, just to fight french troops lead by napoleon really shows something. To me, the only reason why napoleon lost his power over all of Europe was because of his overconfidence but to be fair if I was him I would be to.
@@yaresmiguelsebastiancanlap2849 agreed 100% he should of left Russia alone focused on Spain with him there personally. After Spain then go after Russia. Fighting on 2 fronts like the Germans after and many others it almost never ever goes well
bro said "horrobal"
Fun fact. Descendant of von Schwarzenberg (Karel Schwarzenberg) was running for a president in Czech republic in 2008 :)
Fun fact this was the 4th largest battle of the 19th century.
Largest battle during the Napoleonic Wars with coalition forces from all major nations
The British - One Rocket Boi
To be far we where kinda busy in France and the USA at the time :) but nice to be represented even if its only be like 50 guys hehe :)
Delogros not to mentioned that the British army was with Wellington in Spain at the time, fighting alongside the Portuguese and Spanish.
@@Delogros In 1812 the brits lost against the americans.
@@Brumairevideo You mean when the Americans failed to invade Canada multiple times or when they lost Detroit?... Given there where only 5,000 British troops in the whole of Canada for a lot of 1812 I'm not sure what it is in that year you think the Americans won?... Even the war as a whole wasn't an American victory, none of the war aims where achieved by the war and the US military spent a fairly disturbing portion of the war being pasted by less the 1/6 (at it's height in 1815) of the British military on it's home soil, i.e. when Detroit fell the US population was about 8 million, total British forces in the US like 1,400 and you still lost territory... US trade was cut from $135 Million a year to $7 and $3.1 million of that was the Northern states trading under license with the British largely to supply the British army in the Peninsular war. When the war ended US land was occupied by British forces while no British land was occupied by Americans forces, plus capital burned.
My point is, given no land changed hands you can, at best from an American perspective call this war a stalemate but even that's pushing it for a best case scenario, the only British objective at the outset of the war by contrast was to defend Canada from US aggression, just need to look at a map to see who achieved their objectives in the end.
@@Brumairevideo the brits did not lose by an means, the us failed to invade Canada and Britain burned the White House down. They got there revenge
32:31 "But in the next campaing... fought for France itself... Napoleon would prove that he was still the master of the war."
@@lsatep do you understand what that phrase meant?
That was because the Austrians dont really want to damage France. They need France to balance the Russians so they half assed the campaign and just let Blucher do most of the fighting
@@lsatep
Master of nothing? Of course, everyone ultimately finishes in ashes. However, I won immortality. And this video proves it. Unlike you anonymous British troll XD
@@napoleonbonaparte9166 britains empire is now down too whereas france has a bigger empire now
Deepyaman Das Dyutiman
Woah! Theres two napoleons, do whos who?
It took all of Europe to defeat the emperor, and still suffer heavy casualties.
Even throwing as much man as possible to the enemy is a strategy. The key of such strategy is to tire out the enemy in such decisive battles of the Allied’s choosing like Leipzig, and then crush them like a nut on a nutcracker.
It took 3 superpowers and millions of men in the Eastern Front dying to defeat Nazi Germany. Would you call the Nazi leadership brilliant strategists like the Emperor Napoleon, despite them showing questionable tactics and strategy throughout that segment of the war?
Alexander Christopher Never compare Nazis and Napoleon please. Napoleon brings new rights for the European people. He never committed multiple genocide. The wars were triggered by the allies especially UK who wanted the leadership in Europe.
@@freewal he also brought slavery back to france
@@aaronstorey9712 but then abolished it
@@deepyamandas1192 yeah he then re abolished slavery.... in 1815
Such a brilliant video. High quality animations, fitting use of the era's paintings, quotes and portraits, a narrator with a pleasant voice and all told in an exciting, yet neutral and unbiased manner. Truly a great mini-documentary of this decisive moment of the Napoleonic wars!
Wrede at Hanau: Prepare to finally be stopped, Napoleon!
Napoleon: *Lmao*
Napoleon: ok noob
Napoleon: no u
napoleon: You have chosen death
That was doomed to fail, but critical for wounding his army even more.
Popo : Ok Boomer
French corporal lighting the fuse “I wonder if all the troops have made it back across? Yeah, I’m sure they’re all fine.”
@Han Lockhart I think he was scared. I mean, I think he was panicking when he did that.
Imagine yourself being near the bridge. You don't know how many troops are left on the other side of the bridge. You don't know how much Leiptzig has fallen. There is fear, panic and it all depends on you if enemy troops can cross the bridge or not. And then you see enemy troops. You know that the enemy will do anything to kill you to prevent the bridge's explosion.
A lot of people over the years have obviously blamed the corporal, but he was left with unclear orders and no timetable for the retreat. The reason he was left in charge was because his commanding officer had gone off to get clearer orders, but when he got them, he couldn't get back to the bridge because of the number of men and vehicles coming the other way.
@@EpichistoryTv yeah I think one can say that the corporal shouldn't have been in a position where his decision would count for the whole rear gaurd.
Si Wi yep exactly. His officers were more responsible than him IMO. You can’t let a Caporal take a role as important as that without clear orders.
This was so epic. Just imagine Murat's 10,000 Heavy Cuirassiers coming straight at you
Napoleon although genious in the fields of battle he often perform poorly in diplomacy, if not because of Talleyrand. Had he content with peace of Amiens, or never invade Spain and Russia even accept Matternich's proposal i bet we still seeing a Bonaparte in French throne to this day.
This Video is so great! I live very close to Leipzig so this is extra interesting. :D
Fun Fact: In 2013 - the 200 year anniversary of the battle - the local radio station gave „Live“ Updates on how the battle went as if it was going on right now. :)
Thank you, and interesting to hear. How did you find the pronunciation of place names? Tolerable, or terrible?!
Epic History TV the pronunciation was pretty good. Of course here and there you could here the accent (for example with „Markkleeberg“) but over all it was probably as close as a non native speaker can get 👍🏼 and way better then most other history channels.
Thanks for your great videos!
Good to know, thank you. Another comment said we butchered them all, which seemed strange as we research them carefully and do our best. Of course a bit/lot of accent is inevitable!
Damn, that radio event would have been amazing!
You can debate a lot of things but I'm 100% sure Prince Poniatowski last words were "Kurwa mac!"
Joshua Lieberman If you don’t mind me asking, what does that translate to?
Coco Taveras I wonder too
@RogerwilcoFoxtrot I've seen video when one pole jumped from tower with parachute and he was screaming that all the way to the ground. The polish seems to be a very patriotic people.
I figure his last words were , oh shit.
hahahaha :D ye i bet
Napoleon was a Genius, but he wouldn’t have had as much success if Germany was already united. The Rhine federation helped him immensely in the beginning. Ironically Napoleon was the man that started German unification…
Greatest battle of all time and Britain be like “Hey guys check out my new rocket toy”
Yup copied from mysore and tipu sultan
Interesting to imagine how the tables would have turned if Napoleon decisively defeated the Sixth Coalition here. Mesmerizing really, six coalitions, SIX!
It took 6 attempts from the major powers at that time to defeat him, now that's badass
The British would still of beat France at some point , we always did no matter the number's . War's are not just won on the battlefield and Britain ruled the sea's and were better when fighting the French on land too . France would of been beat eventually anyway .
@@britishpatriot7386 Great Britain was a key element in the defeat of the French Empire but arguing that Great Britain would have won the war alone is nonsense.
"were better when fighting the French on land" : Englishmen were "better" on land at the end of the war and by carefully selecting their battles after almost 20 years of conflict (1793-1815). They knew that a confrontation against the French army before that would have been madness.
Yet he couldn't even invade, let alone threaten, an island. Such 'overwhelming' French power. 🙄
@L'Aigle don't be salty the Brits were simply protecting their interests
What a journey, which unfortunately will soon be over. So we eagerly await Napoleon's campaign in France.
Hey, hi guys :)
@@aka99 Hi !You here?
@@ParaLightWorX haha yes :D
Inspiration für einen neuen Film?
Can you imagine being a peaceful farmer living you life in the fields close to Leipzig when all of a sudden a battle for the continent takes place in your front yard?
Reminds of the guy who had the first battle of the American Civil War happening at his backyard at Manassas, only to see the war ended on his porch in Appamatox Courthouse.
And all he got was this crummy T-shirt.
i guess the farmer were smart enough to run as far away as possible.
@@alexanderchristopher6237 Yea!
Glory to Napoleon...his name lives on
@Liberal Patriot lmfao I bet you felt clever when you typed that out. Embarrassing.
@Liberal Patriot comparing both is again an insult towards Napoleon the great.
@@DOPEdwarf his name is liberal patriot and pfp is a beef look at me big biceps man, what did you think?
Views: 78
Likes: 63
That is an incredible 85% View-to-Like ratio, and utterly deserved for such an incredible job! This whole series will remain a staple of TH-cam’s historical community till the end days!
@RogerwilcoFoxtrot Or the remains of the French army who couldn't swim
"Endgame is the best crossover ever."
France, Prussia, Austria, Russia, Poland, Italy, Sweden, United Kingdom, and The Netherlands: eNdGaEm Iz D bEsT kRoSoBeR eBeR.
Endgame doesn't hold a candle to Infinity War. It's a 3 hour bore with little going on, whereas Infinity War is jam packed with goodness.
@@ChrisDynamo true
cringe
Don't forget the Czech soldiers.
@@blurryart1898 ah yes, Czechoslovaks. Don't forget the "one-side-athiest-one-side-Christian" duo.
This series is legendary, seriously, best Napoleon content and historical content ever.
The Royal Rumble of the Century
Hi brother !
🍾🍷🍷
Take one
Battle Royale before it was cool
Napoleon Bonaparte, Empereur des Français Who is the real Napoleon and who is the impostor? 🤔🤔
@@cocotaveras8975 Obviously the first one since he speaks English.
Prins van Oranje Yes, how silly of me. Pardon my ignorance 😂😂!
Now, I knew how the napoleonic wars ended, but I didn't know how they got there. When the road to leipzig was released, I was so hyped for this. Was pretty sure I knew the outcome, but I stopped myself from going on wikipedia so I could be told here!
And told I was, this series is simply amazing. No interviews, no reenactments, just animation, battle tactics and deployments, quotes, gritty narration, my inner history buff is screaming :P amazing content!
Congratulations on having detailed the "battle of the nations" so well. The video with all the troop movements on the map is much clearer than reading a book, as this battle is complex with multiple beligerents.
I first became interested in the Napoleonic wars when I was eight years old, after seeing a documentary about the Battle of Austerlitz. This series is by far the best I've ever seen on the subject and my inner child is absolutely roaring for the next part.
The Ultimate Showdown of Ultimate Destiny of the Napoleonic War, I would say.
Speaking of WW1, I wonder how many Generals and Field Marshals thought that the worst case scenario would be like Leipzig, only to then come out in the aftermath and realise that the battles of the Western Front were far, FAR worse.
The battles on the Eastern Front as well. Galicia in 1914 alone was an even worse version of Leipzig every week, fought by many of the exact empires that had been allied one hundred years before.
Weapons in Napoleon's era did not have the rate of fire that was had in WW1. It was assumed that modern industry, railroad would be enough to force a decision, like what was had in 1870.
Do you think they had machine guns and poison gas in 1813??
@@anjusanal I know that the technologies of 1914 onwards which made WW1 infamous were not available during the Napoleonic War. My thoughts were on how the events of this battle (and subsequent battles and wars such as the Crimean War - possibly a future topic for a new Epic History TV series) were overshadowed by WW1's own brutal form of warfare.
@@anonymousmind8402
This battle and Napoleonic wars were very present in memories in the 19th century. They are overshadowed by WW1 because WW1 is closer to present day, and WW1 has also been overshadowed by WW2.
*Nepoleon would still prove he's the master of war*
Instant goosebump
Ah, yes. Single goosebump
69
“Napoleon would prove that he was still the master of war” is the correct phrase
NAH, HE LOSE
@@leozaz9402 imagine being mad at some French guy 300 years ago
This is the best documentary channel in all of entertainment. You guys deserve an Academy Award for this. I literally felt like a French soldier fighting for one of my idols, Napoleon Bonaparte!!!!!
This is incredible. The drama of the retreat, the bridge's destruction, the trapped men...astonishing.
Man, Napoleon keeps getting his victories snatched away by Blucher arriving places sooner than expected.
Meanwhile Grouchy goes for a walk eating some berries with his 30,000 soldiers.
Blucher was a tough customer, wasn't he?
@@markhenley3097
To be fair Napoleon defeated Blucher in battle a few times in 1814 alone
*Blücher not Blucher, cmon guys you can do better
That's why his nickname was Marshal Forwards!
Respect to marshal Poniatowski and all the polish troops fighting with Napoleon. They were great allies.
Even until today , Polish Anthem mentioning Napoleon. They really were loving him and he left his influence to them.
Polish attack dogs
Lmao get wrecked noobs INGURLUNNDDDDD
Still lost bozo
Yeah we always fail to switch sides on time
31:10, General von wrede never recovered from that sick burn.
It's mind-blowing how close he came to rout the Austrian army on the first day. That would certainly won him the battle.
If the mad dash to the Monarch's HQ had resulted in them killing a few of them, that would definitely have turned the tide.
@@dynamo1796 Napoleon seemed to be wholly aware of the danger of slaying any heads of state and ever strived to settle matters between them in a peaceful manner, no matter how many times he had been betrayed. If he had captured the HQ of the Coalition it is quite likely he would have arranged some peace, perhaps taking his father-in-law "home" to visit the family, inviting his "dearest friend" Alexander for a tour of France, and so on. Napoleon recognized that needlessly antagonizing the people of countries by slaying their rulers was ill-advised.
It would have definitely given the empire a new lease on life, give him time to challenge Wellesley in the South, and possibly regain and re-establish communication with his garrisons elsewhere.
Close, but not close enough.
I'm just getting into Napoleonic gaming with GMT's Commands & Colors game and the Napoleon 20 system. So glad I found these videos. Amazing quality and really give you an appreciation for the history behind the games. Thank you!
Jesus, that man was really really a monster, he lost this battle, but the allies suffer as hell to win ...
This must be the first doc i have ever seen that explains this battle so accurately, congratulations and continue to the incoming FRANCE CAMPAIGN ...
It took the wealth of the British Empire, the armies of Europe and nearly 20 years to defeat Napoleon.
At some point they weren't fighting France, they were fighting him ... They were fighting a man, not a nation ...
@@mprpo946 yeah, imagine fighting for feudalism, what a monster was napoleon, dumbass
@@Xigakoz the old order was on its way out anyway. Napoleon didn't care about kings or liberty. He killed millions out of pure megalomania. That fits the definition of monster in my book. He was a good general and somewhat less good politician but thats pretty much his only admirable trait.
Napoleon was only outnumbered about 2:1. There are hundreds of battles where forces outnumbered in such a way have emerged victorious. His achievement here is nothing extraordinary. Yes, the Allies lost a lot of men, but they could afford it.
Once again, top notch work. I was glued to the screen for the entirety of the battle.
From a strategic point of view, the aftermath of the campaign into Russia, and Leipzig is devestating. Hundreds of thousands lost to attrition after no gain, another hundred thousand trapped as garrisons unable to be rescued or be used in battle. In addition to hundreds of thousands more that were lost in Spain.
Perhaps after you're complete with the Napoleonic Wars, you could do a smaller video that evaluates the demographic effects it had on Europe and how this changed the geopolitical power dynamics forever. Surely decades of mass conscription, and losses had an enormous impact as young men were dying instead of having children.
It seems like no matter how long bloody hard fought Leipzig was. Only Waterloo gets talked about more.
Thank you so much for depicting the Battle of Nations. I never knew the proper order of battle and sequence of events. There is a dearth of adequate content and the books I've read don't capture it correctly. This topic is best understood through videos.
More generally, thank you so much for this wonderful Napoleon series. I'm a big fan of this channel now because of it. This is my favourite period of history!
Can I suggest that you make a video talking about Napoleon's main Marshals? There are a lot to keep track of and they lead interesting lives, sometimes with tragic fates.
Never seen such a huge material on a video about Lepizig. Thank you EHTV, looks to me ,like you did your own revolution on videos concerning the napoleonic wars. Best animations , narrator and statistics out there.
Upcoming, on my watchlist TH-cam was siege of Toulon by Ehtv, if i could only warn Napoleon about what i saw..
Ferhat Erduran amd if he could consider listening to us :-D
id rather not change history because the outcome would be unpredictable but i would go to st helena and show him this series. :)
"I made him a count, but I couldn't make him count"
You may not realize it, but that is actually where counts come from. A count made sure about organizing the soldiers into correct numbers for the Dux.
@@DarthPlato
Thanks for the info, I didn't know that! (obviously)
Darth Plato Cool story but no, ‘Count’ (noun) comes from the Norman French Comte which stems from the Latin ‘Comes’ which means companion. To count comes from the Norman ‘counte’ which ultimately stems from the Latin ‘computare’. Interestingly the Germanic form of Count such as ‘Graaf’ in Dutch, ‘Greve’ in Swedish and ‘Graf’ in German comes from the Koine Greek ‘grapheus’ a Byzantine official who called people together as you described.
@@seamonster936
Interesting. Keep it coming!
@@seamonster936
I'm Greek you know, and grapheus (γραφεύς, as far as I can tell) is derived from the Greek word γράφω, meaning "the one who writes". This is layman's knowledge though, so I imagine there's more to it than this literal translation.
Thank you guys for making such great videos. Ive always loved history ever since I was a kid, I always enjoyed famous historic wars and strategies. I've been watching each and every one of your videos for 4 hours straight and haven't gotten bored yet. Also your videos are very informative and entertaining to watch. Thank you👍🏼
Brilliantly done, you guys really captured the pressure and claustrophobia of the conflict
What a huge battle, to be in this lands during these four days must have been something immense and terrifying.
And what poles we had, one of the greatest allies in our history, we don't forget you...
Hello,
A few pieces of trivia I'd like to add. Firstly, about the fight over Möckern. It is said that General von Yorck, who was considered by his subordinates and soldiers to be the most cold blooded general in the Prussian Army, if not all of Europe, was close to breaking down in tears, when he ordered his Cavalry to attack by saying " If the Cavalry doesn't work a miracle right now, all will be lost." At this point his Corps had led 17 Attacks on french positions in Möckern. Secondly, In the video the number of roughly 20.000 french wounded was cited. To put that into perspective, Leipzig had roughly 30.000 citizens at the time. Field hospitals were so overcrowded that wounded men were just laying everywhere on the streets. Supply-Wagons had to be rolled over them. I might also add, that the battle was fought in unusually cold weather for the time of year.
Thirdly, although Napoléon retreated from Leipzig, and the City was spared an artillery bombardment, Leipzig and all of Saxony for that matter, suffered a terrible Typhus-Epidemic, following this campaign. One of the reasons why none of the encircled Garrisons could even seriously attempt a breakout, was the large number of Typhus-cases. Torgau, Wittenberg and other citys suffered terribly.
Finally I'd like to add a few things about the saxon Army. Their soldiers had been put on half rations long before the battle, they had unjustly been blamed for Neys Failure at Großbeeren also. The Saxon army at this point consisted of barely 5.000 men, suffering from lack of food and equipment. Most of the officers saw their duty to their soldiers first and foremost, and urged both Napoleon and King Frederick August pf Saxony to reposition them away from the fighting. Neither of whom complied. When they had to fight the entirety of Blüchers Corps Langeron, many of them surrendered. Many but not all of them. The saxon Cuirassiers for remained with the Grande Armée for the first day of it's retreat. Then after a nearly bloody incident they were honorably discharged from the Grand Armée. So while yes the Saxons deserting wasbad for Napoléon, I do believe he is at least partially to blame, as he didn't deploy aedequate reserves to plug this whole in his line which was inevitably going to open up.
Okay that was a long post. Sorry. I am in Quarantine and Lord knows I've got nothing better to do.
I hope you all Enjoyed the video and this comment .
Have a great day or night.
Yours Truly
N.N.
@N. N. - Thank you very much for your informed, detailed, and most interesting comment!
Please don’t apologise. This was really interesting and adds a lot to a video I thought was perfect already. Thanks
Brilliant pieces of information. Thanks
Saxon trahison is not acceptable.
When your own monarch support Napoleon who gave a lot to Saxony, elevated them as a Kingdom, gave the crown of Poland to Friedrich-August.
At this stage the whole Grande Armée suffered terribly after Russia still was loyal.
In an army this deserves immediate execution for desertion and high trahison.
This is the most illustrative and best narrated war documentary I have ever seen about... well, most wars! Brilliant!
Say what you want about Murat but the man was undoubtedly brave leading cavalry charges with nothing but his riding crop at Eylau and here.
Traitor to France and it's people. France remembers.
@@couldbeanybody2508 I mean does anyone in France really care about him nowadays?
Well, Murat did try to support Napoleon upon his return to France, declaring war on Austria and began an expedition of leading most of the Neapolitan Army through Italy and into France, and increase Napoleon’s troop numbers. However, the Austrians had suspected him of being sympathetic towards Napoleon, and increased their troop count in northern Italy before Murat made his attempt to escape. They managed to crush Murat’s army before he could be reinforced by an Anti-Austrian rule Italian army that had formed mostly of Pro-Napoleon veterans and also managed to get the Bourbon monarchy of Naples back into the Kingdom before Murat returned. Murat was captured by the Bourbons and executed 5 days later that year by firing squad.
Of course, whether or not you consider Murat a traitor to France is up to the individual, but it doesn’t change the fact his descendants still live under the name Murat, and that Marshal Murat’s name is inscribed along with Napoleon’s other Marshals on the Arc de Triomphe.
Cossacks respected him mate.
@@samkonstantinos4319 austruans were ked by frimont
Been waiting for this. Napoleon is one of the most important figures to study if you want to understand Geo-politics and global warfare. So for all you fellow History junkies out there, please don't skip this era of Europe in your studies.
Too bad schools are replacing European history with crap.
@@DarthPlato I dont know to what school you went, but I had pretty extensive lessons on the Napoleonic wars. XD
@@DarthPlato I agree. It's a shame. It's this crazy alt-left ideology nowa days, it is destroying our education system. They are literally saying that it's racist to be European lol. Silly people.
I find it absolutely incredible how generals and field marshals managed to control the chaos of these battles.
And without the use of radios.
Charisma, its called Officer Presence.
So, I already know how the battle ends: In one of the greatest miscommunications in military history. That being said, you guys still edited this video in a way that kept me on the edge of my seat, so well done!
I’ve been looking forward to this, but also not so due to the loss of Poniatowski.
Pathetic polish nationalist commenting in TH-cam. What a surprise…
-suggests an alternate topic to plagues
-suggests a series on the middles ages
Hmm
Chris Persen
-suggests the northern great war 😋
Respect to the rear guards, willing to die for their emperor.
@@lsatep In my personal view you're doing the man a disservice. Sure there's no such thing as a perfect human and yes episodes like Egypt for instance do leave a stain. But if Napoleon's men did not feel like he was there with them, suffering as they did (even if it was exaggerated) then why did they follow him so fervently and for so long? Napoleon proved at Arcole for instance where he rallied his troops by seizing the colour of one of his battalions and exposing himself to intense Austrian fire that he wasnt afraid to be get stuck in with his men. He took a bayonet in the thigh at Toulon storming the fort and a spent musket round at Aspern. They followed him because they felt that he valued them. I find some of your other points a bit rich too. Trying to call an armistice in the middle of a battle your losing - Why not? Its worth a shot. Would you prefer just to lose than instead trying everything in your power to change things? Abandoning troops in Russia - A contentious one but by the time Napoleon did on December 5th General Malet had attempted a coup d'etat in Paris and the Grande Armee was close to leaving Russian territory. Sure it left a bad taste but the Emperor had been there with his men from the start in Moscow, at Maloyaroslavets, along the road and crossing the Berezina. What use would a shattered Grande Armee in Poland have been when someone has taken the throne at home? Who would raise new levies for the next campaign? Making poison to avoid capture by Cossacks - Only natural, would you want to fall into their hands? Escaping to the US - Again why not? Would you rather just give up? Should the Free French who escaped to Britain in 1940 have just stayed and faced German justice? Refusing to enter Spain - when did he refuse this? Id like to see proof.
@@lsatep Do you have nightmares where brave and handsome french soldiers bully you at Napoleon's command ?
@@michealohaodha9351 He probably means in 1809 when Napoleon departed from Spain to fight the Austrians and after his victory didn't return to lead his men. Which, by the way, makes me wonder why he didn't do that? Why didn't he took the command of the army there?
@@sandrosaladze8095 Hard to tell really - in my own view I think Napoleon began to look more at the future of his dynasty for one - marrying Marie-Louise of Austria and fathering a heir. But mostly I think that he considered Spain a secondary theatre. In 1809 he was busy with defeating Austria but news from Spain was not all together bad - yes there was Talavera but the British retreated after that, Zaragoza and Galicia fell to the French and the Spanish were crushed at Ocana. 1810 brought the emergence of the guerilla war and an ultimately unsuccessful drive on Cadiz down south but also the fall of Ciudad Rodrigo and another advance into Portugal. 1811 was similar too. I'm just guessing that Napoleon trusted the see-saw campaign to his Marshals and once Russia appeared on the horizon it was never seriously a priority.
@@sandrosaladze8095
Spain was a war of attrition, French troops were fighting guerillas. Napoleon was a military commander BUT also the head of state. So yes he took command for campaigns that were supposed to be lighting campaigns (3rd, 4th, 5th coalition, as well as the 2nd invasion of Spain or the invasion of Russia), because he was supposed to be back in France few weeks/months after. Spain was a guerilla war who lasted 6 years. Napoleon couldn't leave France for so long time. A lot of people outside France only see him as a military commander but they forget he was also the ruler of France and had also to deal with domestic policy.
Soooo glad I found this channel during lockdown! Thank you so much for this engaging series!
Bravo! Well done! Greatly clarified the description in David Chandler's tome about the Campaigns of Napoleon, which strangely, omitted a decent map of the battle.
We´ve waited so long for this speaker! This voice is the best ever.
One can see the mark the Battle of Jena left on Blucher...his blind fury to send in Russian troops to take the village. In the Six days campaign, which will be covered in the next video (I hope), Napoleon made Blucher suffer for every inch, but Blucher just kept feeding the war machine with more men.
Blucher's fury even extended to the Jena bridge (which now is opposite of the Eiffel) which he wanted to destroy. The first time around, Talleyrand had Czar Alexander re-dedicate the bridge (thus Blucher couldn't destroy a bridge dedicated by an ally). And after Waterloo, Blucher again wanted to destroy the bridge; which Wellington thought idiotic and had a British soldier stationed on the bridge (Blucher couldn't destroy a bridge while an Allied soldier was stationed there).
Blucher wanted to demolish the bridge as payback for French soldiers ruining the Rossbach Column, a monument that memorialized Frederick the Great's victory over the French.
Darth Plato yeah and Napoleon admired Frederich The Great.. so destroying the Column was not fair. The French army at this time (During Louis XV) was leaded by a complete incompetent.
Blücher not Blucher, cmon thats not so hard
Funny fact, in Russia many streets are named after him.
@@user-ms8cd2yp1c не в честь него, а в честь советского маршала Блюхера
This episode is absolutely bananas. Excellent production as usual guys, thanks!
The napoleonic wars were truly amazing as far as war goes, Waterloo is one of the best movies I’ve ever seen, I’d love to see this battle in a movie, hopefully it’ll be in the new napoleon movie
The new Napoleon movie sucks. Regarding the battle of Waterloo they show Blucher for like 2 secs and show that the Brits defeated him single handedly
THIS battle, the battle of Leipzig, is the true final battle that ended the first French empire and Napoleon. Waterloo was just a spin-off, a desperate attempt that could not really lead anywhere. People remember Waterloo more than Leipzig only because the British were present in the first but not in the latter, and their propaganda then did the rest, even though they won it thanks to the Prussians.
I almost never post(or log in) to TH-cam, but this astonishing series, directed and produced with THE most intense non-video documentary I've ever seen, I simply had to say how excited I was to see this final conclusive battle covered here. The mastery of Napoleon is virtually mirrored by the incredibly brilliant work of EPIC HISTORY TV. If this is the only video you've seen so far, I compel you to watch as many of these as you can in your lifetime. All hail EPIC HISTORY TV!!
Absolutely amazing. I've been fascinated by every video in Napoleonic War series, so I expected nothing less than full engagement in October of 1813 for the whole 30+ minutes. But I received even more, because indeed, I've never seen such detailed coverage of the Battle of Leipzig, though it's kind of shame that such important battle is neglected. For me history had never been a boring subject, but after such interpretation, visualization, simplified but at the same time sophisticated narration, I cannot imagine, how such content could not provoke interest to study.
This is the best Military History Channel I have ever seen in my life, keep up the good work!
Apart from the interest of history, which you might be sensible to or not, I find the stylised citations at the beginning of various narratives of the highest order. This really help connect with the stories. This is beautifully done.
Hey great content! Józef Poniatowski, the Polish prince didn't die crushed by his horse. He was wounded multiple times and stiil commanding. When the bridge was blown up he swam on the horseback to the other side of the river but his horse drowned under him. He almost got to the other bank, but was shot by the French (confirmed only in 2005). Fun fact is that a gypsy foretold to Poniatowski that he will die because of a magpie - in German "Elster" - the same as the name of the river he died in.
What is the evidence that confirmed this? Seems interesting
@@rhysnichols8608 don't remember exactly, but it's all well known facts nowadays. Probably even Wikipedia could be a good source
@@rhysnichols8608Read Piotr Bejrowski's novel, "Józef Poniatowski: Greater Than the King, this Prince", which covers his life (and death) in great detail. According to Bejrowski, this comment is correct. Before looking into this, I had never known that!