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Napoleon's Gods: The Grenadiers à Cheval 1812–1815
AVAILABLE 15 MAY!
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Napoleon's Gods: The Grenadiers à Cheval 1812–1815
Napoleon’s
Imperial Guard was elite and self-confident,
its mesmeric effect on friend and foe alike
due to its close relationship with the
Emperor. It contained the best seasoned and
most highly-decorated veterans in the entire
French army, the
crème de la crème.
They were the most fearsome and dedicated
warriors of their day. From the plains of
Spain to the snows of Russia, they followed
closely behind the legendary black bicorn
hat with the tricolour cockade, trusting
absolutely in the genius of the man who wore
it.
The senior
regiment of the Imperial Guard was the
Grenadiers
à Cheval,
nicknamed the Gods, and hence the title of
this book.
The silhouette of
a
Grenadier à
Cheval
is one of the most symbolic and most easily
recognised images from the Napoleonic era,
second only to the silhouette of the Emperor
with his hat and grey riding cloak. As heavy cavalry of
the Guard, they took part in the charge of
the cavalry of the Guard at Austerlitz. They
especially took a share of glory with their
charge at Eylau on 8 February 1807. They
served in Spain, Austria and Russia. No
other cavalry regiment in the French army
compared to its service in 1813 and 1814,
the campaigns of the Guard par excellence.
They were present at Dresden, Leipzig and
especially Hanau where they charged the
Austrian and Bavarian cavalry, and took part
in the famous charges of the Imperial Guard
at Waterloo.
Now, for the
first time, the story of this regiment is
told in detail. This book provides a brief
introduction to Napoleon’s Imperial Guard
and the regiment’s place in it, as well as
brief early history of the regiment, and a
hoof to tack description of the
Grenadiers à
Cheval
from the fateful Russian campaign of 1812 to
its disbandment in 1815 following the
disaster of Waterloo. It describes the
horses, uniforms and equipment of the
regiment, as well as regimental
organisation, and provides short biographies
of the officers and some of the men, giving
a vivid picture of how the men of the
regiment lived, and in some cases, how they
died.
Illustrated in
colour and black-and-white, this book
provides a wealth of valuable reference
material for historians (both amateur and
professional), wargamers, re-enactors
seeking authenticity, and to aficionados of
the Napoleonic era alike.
. Discover the role played by the French cavalry during the Waterloo campaign, from period eye-witness accounts and testimonies. This unique series, using over 400 archival accounts of Waterloo, many not being in print before, bring the battle of Waterloo to life in a dramatic way in the two volumes that deal with the British and French cavalry forces in the battle (see the companion volume Charge the Guns! Wellington’s Cavalry at Waterloo). We see how the Allied light cavalry provided one of the hammer blows that defeated Napoleon when it rode down the Old Guard. Many cherished myths of Waterloo are also examined, for example that the Imperial Guard heavy cavalry charged under orders, contrary to Napoleon’s own take on the battle. The French training system, as demonstrated in the author’s book Au Galop! Horses and Riders of Napoleon’s Army, shows that the French were superior horsemen with a training regime that gave the French superior battlefield manoeuvrability, so that the French cavalry could charge time and time again, a trick the British only seem to have partially learned through hard fighting in Spain. It is obvious that the lack of training for the British was the death knell for the Union and Household Brigades – they had not been in action in some cases for over a decade, and this was exposed at Waterloo when the French rode over the Union Brigade and the King’s Dragoon Guards (see the companion volume Boots and Saddles: Horses and Riders of Wellington’s Army). This series of four complementary books by Paul L Dawson, a postgraduate of the University of Leeds with an MA in historical research as well as being an noted equestrian, brings to light new ground-breaking research into the study of cavalry in the Napoleonic wars. No similar study has been undertaken since Valentine Wood’s partial study at the turn of the 20th century. The author’s work goes far deeper, and using material overlooked by Wood, primarily French as well as archive sources, overturns a lot of the received wisdom on Napoleonic cavalry, its battlefield performance and theoretical training.
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