Once Napoleon had consolidated his grip on the reins of power of the new-born French Republic; he began to change the nature of the state from a nascent democracy of sorts; into an Empire with all the trappings of dynastic royalty. The Senatus Consultum of 18th May 1804 gave the form to the Imperial Court; households of courtiers were established for the Emperor and Empress and the Imperial family; dignitaries of the Empire and ministers of the Empire were appointed; and having previously been abolished in 1793 the dignity of the Marshal of the Empire was recreated. Fourteen active and four honorary Marshals were handed their bâtons; eight more would be created during the years following; intended to be bulwarks of the regime and the cutting edge of Napoleon's armies. However these men were not plucked from obscurity; they were men of genuine renown and in most cases significant military talent; they had fought in numerous battles and campaigns during the tumultuous early days of the Republic. However apart from a handful of individual biographies and collections of anecdotes which mainly dealt with the years of glory under the Empire; few works in English had really investigated the formative careers of the Marshals under the banners of the Republic. In his epic five volume work; published posthumously between 1926-1936; Colonel Phipps looks into the early careers of the Marshals as they pursued La Gloire from their varied beginnings as sons of inn-keepers; coopers; officers of the Royal French Army; some of noble blood; some of the most common. The careers of men such as Masséna; Ney; Soult; Mortier; Murat and Davout are charted in detail; they are compared and contrasted with each other with expert judgement. The Author uses his extensive knowledge of the numerous French first-hand sources of the period along with published histories which have never been translated into English. The first volume concentrates on the Armée du Nord and its battles in the Belgian/Dutch/Northern French theatre between 1792-1797. The text is whole and complete; there are no missing or indistinct pages; the fold-out maps have been re-aligned to fit into the text spread across two pages.
#306938 in Books Adventures Unlimited Press 2013-01-15Original language:EnglishPDF # 1 9.00 x 1.00 x 6.00l; 1.65 #File Name: 1905815662561 pages
Review
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful. He is brilliant and has a completely different take on the roots ...By CustomerThis book is so interesting and thought-provoking that I am still thinking about what I learned months after I finished reading it. I ended-up ordering all of the books by this author. He is brilliant and has a completely different take on the roots of our civilization.4 of 5 people found the following review helpful. Very interesting if you have an open mind.By GregAnother great Ralph Ellis book that tries to clarify the real history of the first century A.D. The topic might be controversial to some readers but the book itself does not try to discredit any religion. The author repeatedly tries to tie together historical writings with the belief that the victors write the history and this could be difficult for a reader that believes in a strict literal interpretation of documents from this era.Having read all of his other books; I was happy to see that this book ties into his other works while still adding significant new information.Some readers might enjoy finding podcasts or radio interviews that Ralph Ellis has given on this topic to get the big picture then read the book to appreciate all the details that support his alternative view of history.5 of 7 people found the following review helpful. The Search for the Historical Jesus Is 60% Complete.By Stephen CampbellThis book changes Christianity. Like Water Bearing Fish--the end of the Age of Pisces into the Age of the Waterbearer; Aquarius--Christianity is more coherent and true. New Testament studies at colleges and seminaries across the globe should lose accreditation if the advances in knowledge mentioned in this book are not discussed and taught on their campuses.The narrative style is challenging. There were a number of typos in the version of the book I read. Some assertions put forth may not persuade and are not advances. Nevertheless; what the author gets right is tectonically important for understanding the Works of Josephus and the New Testament. It is so also for Christian theology; Latter Day Saints theology; and Muslim theology that is tied to Jesus.Objective Hebrew Studies are also enriched here. That point is arguable to the extent that within Hebrew Studies; Queen Helena is thoroughly explored. What Ralph Ellis writes about Queen Helena in this book is monumentally important.At Marble Collegiate Church; former pastor Dr. Arthur Caliandro used to have an annual trialogue sermon: a Jewish minister (rabbi); a Christian minister (himself); and a Muslim minister (imam). Queen Helena is monumentally important to the Judeo-Christian dialogue; for she had an "only begotten son." The theological discussions between Jew; Christian; and Muslim are at a groundbreaking moment.Part of the 40% completion of the search for the historical Jesus is to be found in a book I only reviewed as being worthy of two stars. How this book earned its two stars can be found by the chapters that earned an A-; A; or A+. Please see my 2-star review of:Caesar's Messiah: The Roman Conspiracy to Invent Jesus: Flavian Signature EditionIn the chapter; Emmanuel; Ralph Ellis puts forth that James; "the brother of Jesus" is Manahem and that Manahem is King Manu V. Josephus gives an account of the death of James and he gives an account of the death of Manahem. They cannot be reconciled into a compilation.Ralph Ellis does this with Jesus of Gamala and the biblical Jesus. Again; these two personages cannot be reconciled into a compilation because the accounts of their deaths are different.December 24; 2012 7:33 a.m. Central Time (Texas)Edited January 29; 2013; 12:47 p.m.Edited February 28; 2015 after buying an electronic version for my Nook on 2/27/2015.
