The Battle of Austerlitz (also known as the Battle of the Three Emperors) was a major engagement in the Napoleonic Wars during the War of the Third Coalition. It was fought on December 2, 1805 about four miles (6.4 km) east of the modern Czech town of Brno, then part of the Austrian Empire. The conflict involved forces of the recently formed First French Empire against the armies of the Russian Empire and the Austrian Empire. After nearly nine hours of fighting, the French troops, commanded by Emperor Napoleon I, managed to score a decisive victory over the Russo-Austrian army, commanded by Czar Alexander I. Despite difficult fighting in many sectors, the battle is often regarded as a tactical masterpiece.

Austerlitz effectively brought the Third Coalition to an end.

Read more about the Battle of Austerlitz on Wikipedia

Here’s the entire text of the famous Bulletin issues by Napoleon Bonaparte on the day after the battle, which you can find in David’s book “Imperial Glory” (link below):

Proclamation

Soldiers! I am pleased with you. On the day of Austerlitz, you have justified what I expected from your intrepidity. You have decorated your eagles with an immortal glory. In less than four hours an army of 100,000 men, commanded by the Emperors of Russia and Austria, has been cut down or dispersed. Those who escaped your iron have drowned in the lakes. Forty flags, the standards of the Russian Imperial Guard, 120 pieces of cannon, twenty generals and more than 30,000 prisoners are the results of this day, to be celebrated forever. That infantry, so vaunted, and superior to you in numbers, could not resist your impact, and henceforth you have no rivals to fear. Thus, in two months the third coalition is conquered and dissolved. Peace can no longer be at a great distance; but, as I promised to my people before crossing the Rhine, I will only make a peace that gives you some guarantees and assures some recompenses to our allies. Soldiers! When the French people placed the Imperial Crown on my head, I entrusted you to keep it always in a high state of glory, which alone could give it value in my eyes; but at that moment our enemies thought to destroy and demean it; and that Iron crown, which was gained by the blood of so many Frenchmen, they would have compelled me to place on the head of our cruelest enemies; an extravagant and foolish proposal, which you have ruined and confounded the very day of the anniversary of your Emperor’s coronation. You have taught them that it is easier for them to defy us and to threaten us than to vanquish us. Soldiers! When everything necessary to the happiness and prosperity of our country will have been achieved, I will lead you back to France. There you will be the objects of my most tender solicitudes. My people will see you again with joy, and it will be enough for you to say: “I was at the battle of Austerlitz,” for them to reply, “There is a brave man!”

Napoleon Bonaparte

David asked me bring to your attention a History Channel DVD that has a segment on Austerlitz. He was one of the featured historians. It also has Caesar’s campaign in Gaul, and he was one of the featured historians on that segment as well.

Don’t forget – we really value your feedback and comments and would love to have you participate in the conversation.

The post #14 – The Sun of Austerlitz appeared first on Napoleon.

This episode is pretty special – David and I recorded it sitting together, in the same hotel room, same city, same country and, as David likes to point out, on the same day (usually we’re in completely different timezones). As we were both in a strange city (San Francisco) and didn’t have access to our usual reference materials, we did a short show (for us that’s under an hour!) looking at the Third Coalition and the build up to Austerlitz. We cut the show before we covered Austerlitz though because we want to spend some time on it and have all of our books around us! It was Napoleon’s favourite victory and possibly the peak of his military achievments.

In the Napoleonic Wars, the Third Coalition against the French Empire emerged in 1805 and consisted of an alliance of the United Kingdom, Austria, Russia, Naples, and Sweden.

In this episode we discuss:

(photo of Arc de Triomphe detail by zakw845)

The post #13 – The War of the Third Coalition appeared first on Napoleon.

The post #12 – Emperor of the French appeared first on Napoleon.

After the signing of The Treaty of Luneville in February 1801, France was at peace with every country in Europe. Only Britian stood in the way of a total peace. Listen in as JDM and I discuss some of the key events of the following period:

David and I would like to sincerely thank the thousands of listeners who tuned in since our last episode and a special thanks to those of you who have left us some feedback. Please keep it up! It warms the cockles of our hearts to hear that you are being entertained and even in some cases educated.

The post #11 – Peace With Britian appeared first on Napoleon.

In this episode we explore First Consul Bonaparte’s failed attempts to make peace with the Kings of England and Austria after he took power in 1799 and the subsequent French campaign into Italy to regain the territory lost to the Austrians since Napoleon’s original Italian campaign.

We also cover:

The post #10 – The Battle of Marengo appeared first on Napoleon.

In 1799, when Napoleon became First Consul of France, he started a series of important domestic reforms which were revolutionary in Europe, many of which survive to this day. In this episode, we depart from Napoleon’s military triumphs and demonstrate a less-appreciated aspect of his career – his genius for domestic affairs.

We talk about:

As always, David and I had a lot of fun producing this show and we hope you enjoy it. We would really love it if you’d let us know if you’re enjoying the show by leaving a comment.

The post #9 – Domestic Affairs appeared first on Napoleon.

When we last left Napoleon he was leaving Egypt in the middle of the night to sail quickly back to a corrupt and floundering Paris. In this episode, we talk about:

And when we leave Napoleon in this episode he is, at the ripe old age of 30, the most powerful man in France.

In our next episode, we’ll talk about the new Constitution of the Year VIII, the Concordat with the Pope, and the drafting of the Civil Code aka the Code Napoleon.

The post #8 – The Coup of 18 Brumaire appeared first on Napoleon.

Is it just me or are these shows gradually getting longer? 🙂

When we last left Napoleon, he had concluded the Italian Campaign with the treaty of Campo Formio and was a national hero. In this episode we talk about the Egyptian Campaign of 1798-99:

In our next episode, we will watch with bated breath as Napoleon executes the coup of 18 Brumaire and becomes 1st Consul of France!

The post #7 – The Egyptian Campaign appeared first on Napoleon.

When we last left Napoleon, he had taken the helm of the Army of Italy and was proving his brilliance in matters of strategy and tactics. In this episode we discuss:

In our next episode, we will follow Napoleon as he enters Egypt!

The post #6 – The Army of Italy (part two) appeared first on Napoleon.

Napoleon is made Commander-In-Chief of the Army of France in Italy by Paul Barras in March 1796 (one week before he married Josephine). A couple of days later, he leaves to join his new command.

In this episode, we talk about:

Building a winning army

Strategy

Napoleon in Victory

The post #5 – The Army of Italy (part one) appeared first on Napoleon.