PDF The Art of Warfare in the Age of Napoleon by Gunther E. Rothenberg in History

Review

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful. A Great work on the art of war of NapoleonBy Nicholas RobertsRothenberg's book on the art of warfare during the Napoleonic era is generally referred to as a defining look into the topic. The book is often cited in other historians' works and the content is encompassing. Some pros and cons regarding the book:Pros:1. Virtually all aspects of war in the era are covered. Life in the army; tactics and strategy; life for the civilians; etc.2; The book has some great spreadsheets at the end outlining different battles and sieges which are excellent references.3. The book is very readable. Divided into subchapters the book is easy to follow and writing in an enjoyable style4. Although mostly dealing with the French; the book does spend a good chunk of material talking about the life and ways of the different armies facing France including Britain; Prussia; Russia and Austria.5. Well researched and accurateCons:1. The book could have been bigger and gone into greater detail regarding certain issues.Overall the book is a must for a Napoleonic enthusiast.0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Delivers What It PromisesBy CorwinAs a lay reader interested in the period; I found this book to be easy to read. It is chock full of information not easily found elsewhere in one place; and does an excellent job of providing a broad-brush view of Napoleonic militaries and the forces that formed them. The book starts with a review of military thinking and practices of the period just before the French Revolution; and then quickly and easily explains how the cataclysm of the Revolution changed everything -- sooner for the French; or later for most other European powers. There is relatively little description of individual battles; rather the emphasis is on general practices and approaches. Topics include the snap shots of life of soldiers -- not enough to bog you down with detail; but enough to give you a sense of how they lived. Information of weapons of the three branches of the army (infantry; cavalry; artillery) are described and compared across the competing powers. Other topics include the different types and styles of leadership; how officers were chosen; the strategies and tactics explained; the challenges faced in moving large armies without adequate infrastructure (e.g.; roads); fortifications and how they were assaulted; camp followers; organization and lack thereof (can you imagine relying on hired civilians to transport your artillery during a campaign?); medical services; and the problems of staff; illness; governmental oversight; planning; and logistics at a time when communication rarely went faster than a man on horseback.The author; Rothenberg (1923 - 2004); was himself a military man; serving the British Army in North Africa (including service in Intelligence). He went on to become an internationally known military historian; "best known for his publications on the Hapsburg military and Napoleonic Wars." His background in intelligence may help explain how well he has chosen; organized; and presented the information in this very informative book.The book does suffer from a few occasionally annoying sentence fragments; typos and misspellings. The book also uses British punctuation and spellings. Given the chance; I would encourage the publisher to do a better job of editing. But all in all; these are minor complaints that have little to do with the great content provided. I found the book to be a great overview; filling in a few of the missing jigsaw pieces not covered by the other books I've read (both serious histories and novels) on the period. If you're a lay reader wanting to understand the era's military; this book is an excellent choice.0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. It's an interesting read; but it has very few ...By OverheaterIt's an interesting read; but it has very few diagrams and pictures; which you really need if you're going to try to understand Napoleanic tactics. I found the Osprey series on Napoleanic tactics to be vastly more helpful.