Napoleon: The Russian Campaign is a docudrama (divided into two episodes) which premiered in 2015.
The topic is Napoleon and the Russian campaign which took place in 1812.
Here is some basic information about this docudrama:
** Director: Fabrice Hourlier
** Writers: Fabrice Hourlier and Marc Eisenchteter
** Narrator: no name
** Run time: 2 x 51 minutes = 102 minutes
A docudrama is a combination of two elements:
(1) Some historical experts are interviewed
(2) Some historical moments are reconstructed by actors
The history of the Russian campaign can be summarized in five chapters which follow a chronological line from June to December 1812:
Chapter 1 – Napoleon prepares for the campaign – he assembles a grand army (more than 500,000 men) to conduct the mission
Chapter 2 – Napoleon invades the Russian Empire
Chapter 3 – Napoleon takes control of Moscow (the former capital) – he is waiting for a delegation from the Russian tsar which never comes
Chapter 4 – Napoleon decides to stop waiting – he begins the retreat from Moscow
Chapter 5 – The final results of the Russian campaign – a military disaster – a human disaster
In June 1812, Napoleon enters the Russian Empire with a grand army of 600,000 men. About half is from France. The other half is from European nations which had been conquered by Napoleon.
The invasion is moving towards the east. There are some battles but not many. The Russian army does not do much to stop his advance.
The Russians are withdrawing towards the east, allowing Napoleon and his army to proceed. But the Russians are using the policy of the scorched earth:
** Anything useful that can be transported is carried away
** Anything useful that cannot be transported is burned or destroyed
** The general policy is: do not leave anything behind which may be useful to the enemy
In September 1812, Napoleon and his army reach Moscow. But the former capital has been abandoned. It is almost empty. Before leaving the city, the Russians burned many buildings to ground.
The conquest of the former capital does not offer much comfort for the foreign invaders. There is no food to feed the soldiers. There is no fuel to keep them warm. There is no ammunition which they can use to shoot the enemy.
While in Moscow, Napoleon is waiting for a delegation from the Russian tsar. Napoleon believes the tsar must realize that he has been defeated. The tsar must send a delegation and start negotiations with Napoleon.
But Napoleon is waiting for a delegation which never comes. The Russian army has not been defeated. It has merely withdrawn towards the east which has allowed Napoleon and his army to have a temporary stay in the western part of the empire. They are not going to stay for long.
In October 1812, Napoleon finally understands what has happened here. He has walked into a trap. He is far from home and the winter is approaching fast.
Napoleon and his army cannot spend the winter in Moscow. Why not? Because he cannot feed his men. Because he cannot keep them warm.
Right now, he has only one option left: the French army must retreat as fast as possible. They must get out of this place before they are killed by starvation or by the cold.
The retreat begins in October 1812. It is slowed down by the cold weather and disturbed by the Russian army which begins to attack the rear end of the French army.
Many French soldiers are weak because they are starving or because they are sick. They cannot defend themselves very well, because they have no power to fight.
During battles in Russia, some French soldiers
have been killed or wounded. Some French soldiers have been captured by the
Russians. They are now prisoners of war. The size of the French army has been greatly reduced.
In December 1812, the remains of the grand army are back where they started six months before. Napoleon has made it. He is still alive. How many of his men have made it? How many of them are still alive?
The figures are not certain.
There is a high estimate and a low estimate:
** High estimate = 60,000
** Low estimate = 30,000
If the high estimate is correct, it means the survival rate is 10 percent. If the low estimate is correct, it means the survival rate only 5 percent. The Russian campaign is not only a military disaster. It is also a human disaster.
What was the purpose of the Russian campaign?
Why did Napoleon invade the Russian Empire?
The Russian tsar had been an ally of Napoleon for a while, but according to Napoleon, the Russians were not enforcing the blockade against the British.
The emperor was angry. He told the Russian tsar to obey his orders. Support the blockade or else! The Russian tsar did not obey. Now Napoleon had to teach him a lesson!
This is why Napoleon had to assemble a grand army. This is why he had to invade the Russian Empire. He wanted to force the Russian tsar to obey his command!
Napoleon and his army made it all the way to Moscow, but his invasion did not persuade the tsar to change his mind.
Following the French invasion of Russia, the Russian tsar was no longer an ally of Napoleon. Now the Russian tsar joined the European coalition which had two goals:
(1) To defeat Napoleon
(2) To roll back the results of the French revolution
By invading Russia, the French emperor made a new and powerful enemy. Hardly the result he had hoped for.
Napoleon is often described as a military genius. This description is not supported by the historical facts.
The Russian campaign is one of many examples which proves this point beyond any doubt: he was not a military genius.
Napoleon was not only a general who had to deal with military affairs. He was also an emperor who had to deal with political, economic, social, and cultural affairs.
If we look at the military battles, one by one, we can see that he was talented. He knew how to make tactical decisions for the short term.
Even when he was in trouble, he would often find a way out or sometimes win the battle. This is why some people call him a military genius.
If we look at the wars, as a whole, or the conflicts, as a whole, we can see that he was not so talented. He did not know how to make strategical decisions for the long term.
His empire was over-extended. He had too much confidence in his ability to achieve his goals and his power to force other nations to obey his command.
This is why he should not be described as a military genius.
His ideology includes a remarkable contradiction:
One part of his ideology was democratic. He supported the French revolution which called for liberty and equality. He believed every man should have a chance to succeed.
He said: you should not be promoted because of your name and your family. You should be promoted because of your merits and your qualifications.
But his notion of democracy was limited. Another part of his ideology was authoritarian and dictatorial.
He believed every man should have a chance to succeed. Not every woman. He did not believe every person should have a chance to succeed.
Even though he supported the French revolution and the abolition of the social classes, he wanted to control and dominate the people of France. And not only that.
He also wanted to control and dominate the people of other nations. Having conquered these nations, he installed members of his family as kings who would rule the people of the nations.
As a person, he was vain. While he was living in exile on the island of St Helena, he insisted on a strict protocol which everybody had to obey.
The British governor of the island, Hudson Lowe, would often send a message to him. If it was addressed to General Bonaparte, he refused to read it. He insisted that he must be addressed as Emperor Napoleon.
In his mind, he was still Napoleon the Great, the Emperor of the French, even though he was living in exile on a remote island in the South Atlantic Ocean as a prisoner of the British!
What did he say and do regarding slavery?
While the French revolution of 1789 called for liberty and equality, these concepts did not apply to the slaves in Saint Domingue (Haiti).
In 1794, five years after the French revolution began, the French Republic finally decided to abolish slavery in the colonies.
At that time, Napoleon was not yet in charge. He took control of the government in 1799. What did he do about slavery?
In 1802, he decided that slavery should be restored. The abolition of slavery was cancelled by Napoleon!
This decision did nothing to improve the level of harmony and peace in the French colonies.
If Napoleon was a military genius - and a man who believed in liberty and equality - would he have restored slavery in the French colonies?
If Napoleon was a military genius - and a man who cared deeply for the welfare of his soldiers - would he have abandoned his army in Egypt? Would he have conducted an invasion of Russia which turned into a military and a human disaster?
The answer to such questions is obvious.
What do reviewers say about this docudrama?
On IMDb it has a rating of 73 percent which corresponds to a rating of 3.7 stars on Amazon.
In my opinion, this rating is too low. The story about Napoleon and his Russian campaign deserves to be told. And in this docudrama, it is done very well.
I want to go all the way to the top with this product. I think it deserves a rating of five stars (100 percent).
REFERENCES
# 1. Books
Napoleon Against Russia
By Digby Smith
2005
Napoleon and Russia
By Michael Adams
2006
Russia Against Napoleon:
The True Story of the Campaigns of War and Peace
By Dominic Lieven
2009 = Hardcover
2011 = Paperback
Napoleon’s Invasion of Russia:
Invasion and Retreat, 1812
By R. G. Burton
2010
# 2. Film and video
Monsieur N
A historical drama
2003
Napoleon: The Egyptian Campaign
A docudrama with two episodes
2016
Napoleon: In the Name of Art
A documentary
2021
Les îles de Napoléon
A documentary
2021
Napoleon - Metternich: Der Anfang vom Ende
A docudrama which describes a meeting between Napoleon and Klemens von Metternich which took place in Dresden in June 1813, six months after the end of the Russian campaign
2021
*****
Napoleon:
The Russian Campaign
A documentary film
(divided into two episodes)
which premiered in 2015
*****
No comments:
Post a Comment