Napoléon Ier

From 15 to 17 November 1796, near the bridge of Arcole on the Alpone in Venetia, Bonaparte halted the third Austrian attempt to relieve the Siege of Mantua. After setbacks at Bassano and Caldiero, General Alvinczy concentrated about 28,000 men; Bonaparte, with Masséna and Augereau, launched repeated assaults on the bridge and causeway. Legend holds that the commander-in-chief seized a flag to rally the troops; French victory forced Alvinczy to withdraw beyond the Brenta.

On 8 September 1796, at Bassano del Grappa, Bonaparte defeated Wurmser and forced a disorderly retreat eastward, abandoning artillery, baggage, and supplies.

At Caldiero, during the Italian campaign, Bonaparte's French attacked Alvinczy's Austrian positions as he made a third attempt to relieve Mantua; repulsed by enemy reinforcements, they fell back toward Verona before the decisive Battle of Arcole.

On 5 August 1796, at Castiglione delle Stiviere, Napoleon Bonaparte and his generals Masséna and Augereau defeated the Austrian columns of Quasdanovich and Wurmser attempting to relieve besieged Mantua; victory at Monte Medolano, key to the maneuver, neutralized this relief offensive.

On 14-15 April 1796, near Dego in Liguria, Bonaparte and Masséna took the Austro-Sardinian position controlling the enemy armies' junction route, then repulsed Colonel Vukasovich's surprise counter-attack the following day.

On 10 May 1796 at Lodi on the Adda, Bonaparte forced the bridge held by General Sebottendorf's Austrian rearguard. French artillery covered the assault of grenadiers and carabiniers who charged despite the hail of fire; Masséna, Lannes, and Berthier coordinated the breakthrough. This victory opened the road to Milan, capital of Lombardy, and in revolutionary memory marked the moment soldiers nicknamed Bonaparte 'the little corporal.'

On 13–14 April 1796, near Millesimo in Liguria, General Augereau won a victory over the Sardinians under General Provera, following the Battle of Montenotte. Provera, entrenched in Cosseria castle, resisted French assaults before capitulating on 14 April; the French suffered around 600 dead or wounded and took 1,134 prisoners.

On 21 April 1796, at Mondovì in Piedmont, Bonaparte defeated General Colli's Sardinian troops. The town surrendered around 6 p.m. after an hour's bombardment; the armistice of Cherasco was signed on 28 April, forcing the Kingdom of Sardinia to negotiate.

On 11 April 1796 at Montenotte in Liguria, Bonaparte won his first victory as commander-in-chief of the Army of Italy by defeating Austrian General Argenteau. This battle opened the lightning Italian campaign that would make Bonaparte's glory: within weeks he drove Austrians from Lombardy and directly threatened Austria from the south.

On 14–15 January 1797 at Rivoli Veronese in Venetia, Bonaparte won a decisive victory over Alvinczy's Austrian army, ending the fourth and final attempt to relieve the Siege of Mantua. About 22,000 French faced 28,000 Austrians on a steep plateau; Joubert opened battle at dawn, Masséna arrived after a forced march, and Bonaparte committed reserves to envelop the Austrian wing.

On 21 July 1798 (3 Thermidor Year VI), near Embabeh facing the Pyramids of Giza, Bonaparte crushed Murad Bey's Mamluk army. About 25,000 French in square formation repelled charges by 21,000 Mamluk and Ottoman horsemen; victory opened the road to Cairo and symbolized the superiority of disciplined infantry and artillery over Eastern cavalry.

On 25 July 1799, near Aboukir, Napoleon, with about 10,000 men and Murat's cavalry, defeated the Ottoman army of Mustafa Pasha landed by the British fleet, despite initial numerical inferiority.

On 14 June 1800 (25 Prairial Year VIII), near Alessandria in Piedmont, Bonaparte, then First Consul, reversed a surprise attack by Field Marshal Melas's Austrian army. After a difficult morning in which Victor and Lannes gave ground, Desaix's corps arrived and a late-day counterattack turned impending French defeat into decisive victory.

The Battle of Austerlitz, known as the "Battle of the Three Emperors," marks the apex of Napoleonic strategy. Facing a numerically superior allied army, Napoleon used ruse, meticulous preparation of the terrain, and the mobility of his troops to transform an apparently unfavorable position into a crushing victory. He deliberately placed his army on the Pratzen plateau, which he then had evacuated to lure the enemy into concentrating forces there. Convinced that the French right flank was weakened, the Austro-Russians committed the bulk of their troops to it. This maneuver dangerously weakened their center, which they believed out of reach. Napoleon waited until the enemy was fully committed to this error before ordering Soult's corps, concealed in the fog, to assault the plateau. The breakthrough at the center literally cut the allied army in two, sowing panic and making coordination impossible. On the wings, Davout and Lannes held or advanced according to plan, while Murat's cavalry and the Imperial Guard exploited the collapse of the enemy dispositions to capture thousands of prisoners. The rout was total: many Austro-Russian soldiers drowned attempting to flee across the frozen ponds of Satschan under French artillery fire. Austerlitz is not only a tactical masterpiece but also a political turning point for Europe; the victory placed Napoleon at the height of his glory and upended the continental balance.

From 15 to 20 October 1805, General Mack's Austrian army, about 27,000 men, capitulated at Ulm in Bavaria without decisive battle. Napoleon, on forced march, outflanked the Austrian army and cut its retreat lines. Mack surrendered on 20 October; 23 generals and 40 colors were captured. Ulm is considered the model of Napoleonic strategic maneuver.

On 14 October 1806 at Jena in Thuringia, Napoleon crushed the Prussian army of the Duke of Brunswick. Prussians, clinging to eighteenth-century tactics, were surprised by French speed and coordination. Brunswick was mortally wounded; about 25,000 Prussians were killed, wounded, or captured. The same day Davout won Auerstedt against the bulk of the Prussian army.

Eylau was one of the bloodiest battles of the Napoleonic era. Under a snowstorm, the French attacked Russian lines around the town of Eylau. The battlefield was chaotic, visibility nil. Murat led a cavalry charge of more than 10,000 men to halt the enemy advance. At day's end both sides remained on the field, drained of blood. Napoleon claimed victory, but the result was militarily indecisive.

The Battle of Friedland opposed Napoleon's French forces to Bennigsen's Russian army, which had imprudently engaged with the Alle River at its back. After a tenacious defense led by Lannes in the morning, Napoleon arrived with the bulk of his forces, launched a massive attack on the Russian left flank, and crushed the enemy army. Victory was total, sealing the end of the campaign.

To open the road to Madrid, Napoleon ordered an attack on Spanish redoubts defending the Somosierra pass. After several unsuccessful infantry assaults, he ordered a bold charge by the Polish Guard chasseurs. They broke enemy lines, captured the guns, and forced the Spanish to retreat. The road to the capital was cleared.

The Battle of Wagram was one of the largest engagements of the Napoleonic Wars, pitting the forces of Napoleon I against the Austrian army commanded by Archduke Charles. After suffering a reverse at Aspern-Essling, Napoleon crossed the Danube again in early July 1809 with the help of a vast pontoon bridge built in secret. On 5 July the French army was attacked while still deploying, but held against the assaults. The next day Napoleon organized a decisive counter-offensive, supported by a massive concentration of artillery in the center (the "grand battery") and a powerful attack on the right flank led by Marshal Davout. Archduke Charles, unable either to break the French lines or contain their coordinated attacks, ordered a retreat on the evening of 6 July. This victory allowed Napoleon to impose severe terms on Austria.

The Battle of the Moskva, known as the Battle of Borodino, was the bloodiest engagement of the Napoleonic Wars. Napoleon sought to break the Russian army before reaching Moscow. After a day of murderous frontal assaults on Russian redoubts, the French managed to pierce the enemy center without destroying the Russian army, which withdrew in order.

Napoleon attacked the fortified town of Smolensk to pin the Russian army and force a decisive battle. Despite intense fighting and devastating bombardments, the Russians finally abandoned the town at night, allowing the French to seize it.

Napoleon launched a massive attack on Russo-Prussian forces entrenched at Bautzen. Despite violent fighting and numerical superiority, the allied army managed to retreat. Imperfect coordination between Ney and Napoleon prevented the expected encirclement.

On 26–27 August 1813 at Dresden in Saxony, Napoleon won his last great victory in Germany against the Austro-Russo-Prussian coalition. Allies lost about 38,000 men, including Marshal Moreau, killed by a French cannonball while fighting alongside Russians. Napoleon could not exploit victory for lack of cavalry.

Lützen was the first great battle of the German campaign. Surprised by a Russo-Prussian attack on his flank, Napoleon reacted swiftly, gathered his forces, and launched a massive counterattack. The Allies withdrew in order but conceded the field.

Napoleon attempted to surprise Schwarzenberg's army at Arcis-sur-Aube. He engaged believing he faced only a rearguard, but discovered too late that he confronted the main allied army. On 20 March the French repulsed enemy outposts, but the next day found themselves heavily outnumbered. Napoleon then ordered an orderly retreat covered by Sébastiani's cavalry.

The Battle of Waterloo, fought on 18 June 1815, brutally ended the Hundred Days and the imperial destiny of Napoleon Bonaparte. Facing Anglo-allied forces of the Duke of Wellington and the decisive arrival of Blücher's Prussian army, Napoleon engaged his last great battle hoping to destroy his enemies separately. In the morning waterlogged ground slowed French movements, delaying the assault. Engagement began with a massive attack on the fortified farm of Hougoumont, followed by commitment of d'Erlon's corps against the allied center. Intervention of British cavalry, led by the Scots Greys and heavy dragoons, repulsed the French attempt. From 3 p.m. Ney, believing in enemy retreat, launched several cavalry charges without infantry or artillery support. These successive assaults failed against well-formed allied squares. Progressive arrival of Prussian troops on the French right flank reversed the balance. At day's end Napoleon committed the Imperial Guard in a final effort to pierce the enemy center. The Guard was repulsed by British and Belgian-Dutch troops, provoking panic in French ranks. Rout spread and defeat became irreversible. Waterloo was more than a military defeat: it was strategic and psychological collapse.