"Rod Speed" wrote in message
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I've been reading the memoirs of a sergeant in Napoleon's
Grande Arme in the utter fiasco of the retreat back from
Moscow in 1812

Andrew Roberts wrote a very readable biography of
Napoleon which is lightened by his very dry sense
of humour. (On the basis of new letters being made
available) Napoleon is something of a hero for Roberts
who he somewhat physically resembles and so he does
spend a lot of time defending him against mostly baseless
charges which have laid against him by his detractors
down the years. Which is maybe not surprising given
the hundreds of books that have been written about him.
From the book Napoleon happily mixed with his troops
and would take naps by the fire almost anywhere.
He put in lot of work drawing up new enlightened
constitutions for each new country he conquered only
for them to be largely abandoned after his fall.
The big mistake was in burning Moscow in a scorched
earth move when he could have used its resources
himself.
He wasn't only a brilliant general who commanded unrivalled
loyalty from his troops but an enlightened statesman who
simply ran out of luck.i.e if the Prussians hadn't shown
up, who knows ?

michael adams

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