Was well aware of Napoleon's Egyptian campaign, but really didn't know what he did there. Now I do.
I LOL when I saw how close Admiral Nelson came to causing Napoleon to have a very bad day!
"If brute force doesn't work you aren't using enough brute force." - mTk
War does not determine who is right, but it does determine who is left. - B.Russell
"Turn based games don't need a pause key". - mTk
"Overkill is underrated." - Col John "Hannibal" Smith
Senatus Populusque Romanus- SPQR - The Senate and People of Rome (circa 60 BC)
What stands out here is how much this feels like Napoleon winning himself into a dead end.
He racks up the usual tactical victories, but once the fleet is gone, the whole campaign is already compromised. From a wargame perspective, he’s operating with no supply line, no reinforcement, and no real exit — just trying to push forward and hope something breaks.
The move into Syria especially feels like overreach. Instead of consolidating, he doubles down, and by that point it’s less a campaign and more a slow-motion collapse.
A good reminder that even great commanders can mistake momentum for strategy.
"Si vis pacem, para bellum." — Vegetius
"Do not hurry to the sound of the guns without knowing why they are firing." — British maxim
"In war, the simplest things are difficult." — Clausewitz
"No plan survives first contact with the enemy." — Moltke
"The side that can most quickly exploit success is the side that will win." — Guderian
Some days you’re the hammer, some days you’re the nail. 🪖🎲
Looking for a game? Challenge me here:
@panzer-lehr There were some similarities with Rommel in North Africa, perhaps.
"En cualquier dirección que recorras el alma, nunca tropezarás con sus límites." Sócrates
If you’re looking for a moment where Napoleon very nearly wasn’t Napoleon, the Battle of Marengo (1800) is hard to beat.
Early in the day, things went badly wrong. The Austrians under Michael von Melas pushed the French back steadily, and by afternoon Napoleon’s army was in full retreat—his lines scattered, his assumptions about enemy strength completely off. For a few hours, this looked like the battle that would end his Italian campaign, perhaps even his political rise.
Then came the hinge. Louis Desaix—marching back toward the guns after being detached earlier—arrived late in the day and immediately sized up the situation: “This battle is completely lost—but there is time to win another.” His fresh troops stiffened the line just long enough for a coordinated counterattack. Desaix was killed in the moment of success, but his intervention, combined with Kellermann’s cavalry charge, shattered the overextended Austrians.
By evening, a defeat had been turned into a victory.
What makes Marengo fascinating isn’t just the reversal—it’s how close Napoleon came to strategic ruin through faulty intelligence and overconfidence. Strip away the legend, and you see something rarer: a commander rescued by subordinates, timing, and a bit of fortune. Marengo didn’t just save the campaign—it helped cement the myth.
"Si vis pacem, para bellum." — Vegetius
"Do not hurry to the sound of the guns without knowing why they are firing." — British maxim
"In war, the simplest things are difficult." — Clausewitz
"No plan survives first contact with the enemy." — Moltke
"The side that can most quickly exploit success is the side that will win." — Guderian
Some days you’re the hammer, some days you’re the nail. 🪖🎲
Looking for a game? Challenge me here:
Got my interest so had to delve a bit deeper.
This video answers most of my questions. Epic History on YT is a extraordinary battle recreation resource.
"I have fought sixty battles, and I have learnt nothing which I did not know at the beginning." - Napoleon
"If brute force doesn't work you aren't using enough brute force." - mTk
War does not determine who is right, but it does determine who is left. - B.Russell
"Turn based games don't need a pause key". - mTk
"Overkill is underrated." - Col John "Hannibal" Smith
Senatus Populusque Romanus- SPQR - The Senate and People of Rome (circa 60 BC)
It's been a long time since I reviewed the Battle of Quatre Bra. I'd forgotten what a chaotic fight it was.
This is the first time I've seen any videos from Lionsberg Cinematic History. I think it's pretty good with
a graphics style that is unique. I admit to a certain amount of confusion initially as a lot the battle flags
have similar colors. Still, well done indeed.
"If brute force doesn't work you aren't using enough brute force." - mTk
War does not determine who is right, but it does determine who is left. - B.Russell
"Turn based games don't need a pause key". - mTk
"Overkill is underrated." - Col John "Hannibal" Smith
Senatus Populusque Romanus- SPQR - The Senate and People of Rome (circa 60 BC)
The Battle of Eylau (1807)
Fought in the depths of a Polish winter against Levin August von Bennigsen, Eylau descended into chaos almost immediately. Snowstorms blinded both sides, formations dissolved, and units stumbled into each other at point-blank range. This wasn’t maneuver warfare—it was a brutal, grinding slugfest.
At one point, the French center began to collapse under Russian pressure. Napoleon responded with one of the most desperate measures of his career: unleashing Joachim Murat in a massive cavalry charge—something like 10,000 horsemen thundering straight into the Russian line. It stabilized the situation, barely, but didn’t break the enemy.
By nightfall, the battlefield was a frozen charnel house. Tens of thousands lay dead or wounded in the snow. Neither side could claim a real victory.
And that’s what makes Eylau so important.
Up to this point, Napoleon’s campaigns had an air of inevitability—decisive victories, clean operational brilliance. Eylau shattered that illusion. For the first time, Europe saw that the Grande Armée could be stopped, bloodied, and held in place.
A grim reminder: even at the height of his power, Napoleon could win battles—but not always control them.
"Si vis pacem, para bellum." — Vegetius
"Do not hurry to the sound of the guns without knowing why they are firing." — British maxim
"In war, the simplest things are difficult." — Clausewitz
"No plan survives first contact with the enemy." — Moltke
"The side that can most quickly exploit success is the side that will win." — Guderian
Some days you’re the hammer, some days you’re the nail. 🪖🎲
Looking for a game? Challenge me here:
If you prefer a video 😀
"Si vis pacem, para bellum." — Vegetius
"Do not hurry to the sound of the guns without knowing why they are firing." — British maxim
"In war, the simplest things are difficult." — Clausewitz
"No plan survives first contact with the enemy." — Moltke
"The side that can most quickly exploit success is the side that will win." — Guderian
Some days you’re the hammer, some days you’re the nail. 🪖🎲
Looking for a game? Challenge me here:
Really like the Lionsgate Cinema graphical presentation soo here's part II. Or, as Omar might say "part eleven."
"If brute force doesn't work you aren't using enough brute force." - mTk
War does not determine who is right, but it does determine who is left. - B.Russell
"Turn based games don't need a pause key". - mTk
"Overkill is underrated." - Col John "Hannibal" Smith
Senatus Populusque Romanus- SPQR - The Senate and People of Rome (circa 60 BC)