THAT HORRIBLE RED LINE – Three Napoleonic battles, 46,000 deaths in six years

The German philosopher Hegel, said that “the Absolute” particular men used to determine the course of events. Throughout history, men were collecting special successes, but achieved their goal to “Absolute” left to their fate those heroes, precipitating in their human dimension. Alexander the Great, Julius Caesar and Napoleon Bonaparte are the personification of the profile of those heroes. In their battles it emerged the ability to drive events, on any terrain. Listening to the echoes of ancient battles that never turned off fueled the Napoleonic myth, we walk in time and in the places of three of those events, from 14 June 1800 to 14 October 1806.

An almost defeat, turned into victory, this is the Battle of Marengo (where they fought 45,000 men, whose deaths were 15.000), won after twelve hours of a retreat offensive, but perilous. Near Alexandria, Italy, June 14, 1800, the Austrian army led by General von Melas tried to take by surprise the French troops at Marengo. Superior in artillery and cavalry, the Austrians hoped to get rid quickly of the French, but the Napoleonic army was favored by the muddy (which did not favor either cavalry, or artillery).

Von Melas dispersed his forces, because he was worried about a possible attack from behind. With each passing hour, thanks to the arrival of the reinforcements General Desaix, the French routed the Austrians. That victory restored the French rule in northern Italy, helping to fuel the myth of Bonaparte. From June 12 to 14, each year you can relive a piece of history, in three days of events related to the mythical figure of Bonaparte, in the splendid setting of the Park and the Marengo Museum. http://www.alexala.it/ita/tourist-board/rievocazione-della-battaglia-di-marengo/d0d31c5dc41e6d7f1805a2698aa2a838.html#.WCM3rM8zXIU

The greatest triumph of Napoleon? The Battle of Austerlitz. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MqAv2L5vVJM Two years later, where Europe had formed the Third Coalition against the French, the most important took place December 2, 1805, in the Czech Republic. Napoleon he had occupied Vienna, but the Austrians, with the support of the Russians, had given rise to a counter-offensive. Napoleon carried out a risky tactic and ingenious. Planning a trap, he weakened his right flank, giving the impression of being in trouble. Austrians and Russians left unprotected the center of the forehead, what Bonaparte attacked by surprise. From Vienna arrived reinforcements of Marshal Davout, which contributed to the winding on the sides of the Austro-Russians. One tenth of those 160,000 men who had participated in that battle, not returned home. http://www.czechtourism.com/it/n/slavkov-austerlitz-anniversary/

On 14 October 1806, Napoleon was back on the field of battle, but this time against the German forces, picking up a new victory in the Battle of Jena (thanks to Marshal Davout). https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c43x8MoXhdo In previous months, French diplomacy had tried to heal relations with Russia and Great Britain. Forgetting that the Prussians pushed by the British. In the space of a morning, when Prussian and French clashed in Jena, Napoleon’s army took a new hit (5,000 French died, 10,000 Prussians ones), but a second victory was that of his Marshal Davout (sent by Bonaparte to Auerstadt, to deal with a part of the Prussian army). https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MQyMpZjzg3g

To pursue this issue, you can also read

http://meetingbenches.com/2016/11/horizons-glory-images-napoleonic-epic/

http://meetingbenches.com/2016/11/reading-novels-napoleonic-era/

http://meetingbenches.com/2016/11/little-stories-great-flavors-enjoy-pages-history-savoring-taste-glory/

http://meetingbenches.com/2016/11/cheese-epoisses-de-bourgogne-blood-ice-tastes-glory-times-napoleon/