'HOW FAR FROM AUSTERLITZ?: NAPOLEON, 1805-15' - Hardcover

HORNE, Alistair

3.9

195 ratings by Goodreads

9780333655498: 'HOW FAR FROM AUSTERLITZ?: NAPOLEON, 1805-15'

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0333655494 ISBN 13: 9780333655498

Publisher: St Martin's, 1996

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A London Sunday Times Book of the Year
A Daily Telegraph Book of the Year

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Review:

In How Far from Austerlitz? accomplished military historian Alistair Horne covers the pivotal decade of Napoleon's career. Starting with the victories at Ulm and Austerlitz and concluding with the defeat at Waterloo, Horne treats his subject like the hero of a Greek tragedy, full of the hubris that ultimately will cause his downfall. He shows, for instance, that once the conquering begins, it can rarely stop. One victory demands a second to protect the gains of the first, and so on. Before long, resources are spread thin and the empire topples. That's essentially what happened to Napoleon, and Horne tells the tale well. In addition, he draws interesting parallels between the French emperor and Hitler: both were more or less confined to the European continent by British naval power, both launched a doomed invasion of Russia, and both had an fatal thirst for conquest.

About the Author:

Alistair Horne, described by C.P. Snow as "one of the best writers of history in the English-speaking world," is the recipient of the French Legion of Honor, a Wolfson Literary Award, the Hawthornden Prize, and the CBE. His A Savage War of Peace and A Bundle form Britain were both New York Times Notable Books of the Year. He has written for The New York Times, Esquire, and The Washington Post. Alistair Horne lives in England and is a trustee of the Imperial War Museum.

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