The 10 Key Battles That Made Napoleon Bonaparte

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Published 2023-11-22
Napoleon Bonaparte. One of history’s greatest commanders or a bit overrated?

In this video, Dan Snow breaks down the pivotal battles that shaped the legendary commander’s legacy and left an indelible mark on the pages of history. From his sweeping victories at the Battle of Marengo and the Battles of Austerliz to the disastrous Russian campaign and the iconic Battle of Waterloo, Dan revisits the epic clashes, analyses the strategies, and witnesses the drama and chaos of the biggest battles that shaped Napoleon's rise and fall.

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00:00 Introduction
00:45 Siege of Toulon (1793)
04:29 Battle of the Pyramids (1798)
06:40 Battle of Marengo (1800)
08:56 Battle of Trafalgar (1805)
13:59 Battle of Austerlitz (1805)
17:12 Battle of Jena-Auerstedt (1806)
20:27 Battle of Borodino (1812)
23:43 Battle of Leipzig (1813)
26:18 Battle of Ligny (1815)
28:11 Battle of Waterloo (1815)
30:04 Conclusion
31:03 Watch Napoleon in Cinemas November 22

All Comments (21)
  • @Wonderwall627
    I would put both Rivoli and Arcole as two of his greatest victories. Not having the Italian campaign in his top ten is a big miss. Egypt is a footnote next to those.
  • @hanstun1
    No one ever mentions that most of the army he defeated was headed by people who got that position due to a noble birth. Napoleon got there on merit.
  • @zakluck1686
    For those questioning about battles not mentioned it's almost like this video is clearly sponsored by and done to promote the new Napoleon movie and these are the battles shown in the movie, hence why they use so many clips from the movie.
  • @Steven-jn2cw
    He was brilliant in every way, but in the end he had too many enemies.
  • @anonnymousperson
    Funny how this video talks more about Trafalgar than any other battle, the one battle that Napoleon was not actually in charge of.
  • @taivo55
    The grand strategic maneuver at Ulm should have been included. It wasn't a tactical victory, but a major strategic one and was directly the result of Napoleon's grand plan of deception and rapid movement into the enemy's rear.
  • @davidhollins870
    This is a slightly odd video: 1) Why no mention of the First Italian Campaign? It was N's first time as a commanding general and he raced across Italy to Rivoli - where he had the Austrian plans. That victory was what made his name, far more than Toulon, and it ended five years of war. 2) Napoleon did not devise divisional squares in Egypt - the Russians used them in their 18th century wars against the Turks; the Austrians also copied the tactic in the 1788-91 war with the Turks. The Egyptian campaign was a disaster and by the time Napoleon returned, Massena had saved the Republic at Second Zurich. N then stopped in Ajaccio and planted news of his land victory at Aboukir. He was propelled to the top of French politics by Sieyes, who thought he would be a sword in his overthrow of the Directory and Lucien ran the coup (this is done particularly well in the Scott film). 3) On the day of Trafalgar, Napoleon was at Ulm in Germany, which he secured using the German road system. His "peace envoy" Savary was probably trying to make contact with Rulzki, ADC to Kienmayer, who commanded the Allied advance-guard at Austerlitz. 4) Jena was just luck - it showed the shortcomings of the French system. N's plan was to attack Prussian forces around Gera - his intelligence system was failing and told him they were the main Prussian force. Then two flanking columns under Bernadotte and Davout were supposed to encircle the Prussian left. Davout ran into the main prussian army and bernadotte was left hanging as his orders were vaguely and badly set out. 5) You missed out Friedland, which secured the Peace of Tilsit with Russia and Aspern, where Napoleon was defeated for the first time. 6) Once his intelligence failed, Napoleon resorts to these frontal assaults starting at Wagram in 1809, not Borodino. 7) Far more troops were lost on the advance into Russia than on the retreat. https://www.researchgate.net/figure/Depiction-mapping-of-successive-loss-of-French-Army-soldiers-during-Napoleons-Russian_fig2_332227018 8) Leipzig was THE largest battle in the Napoleonic wars and history in general prior to WW1.
  • @osscouter
    If Napoleon understood the effect that the Tambora eruption would have on global climate, he might have changed his strategy or his tactics. oceans of mud had an extreme negative effect on cavalry and artillery. 1815 was, after all, the "year without a summer".
  • @dennisjk768
    The title is incorrect. True title is: "The Battles that made Napoleon that are featured in the Ridley Scott movie"
  • Really good. I realise, as some have said, that there were other battles, but this is a wonderfully done precis of N's rise & fall. Pacy and full of detail, one to revisit. I like the way that the role of the navy is contextualised. Brilliantly compiled, edited and presented. Impressive. ⭐👍
  • @Jayjay-qe6um
    The French dish chicken Marengo was named in honour of Napoleon's victory of the Battle of Morengo. A minor planet 3455 Borodino, discovered by Soviet astronomer Nikolai Stepanovich Chernykh in 1977, was named after the village of Borodino.
  • @MTGeomancer
    When you do a sponsored video you really should disclose that upfront.
  • Great video that will help fill in a lot of gaps that may have been left by the movie.
  • @kevindarke7646
    Toulon, Rivoli, Pyramids, Marengo, Austerlitz, Jena and Auerstedt , Friedland , Wagram , Borodino, Leipzig, Waterloo