Questions about a series of wars from 1803 to 1815 between the First French Empire and opposing (mostly European) coalitions.
15
votes
4answers
131 views
How would you accurately use older British currencies?
For writing a story set in Napoleonic Wars era, how should one use the currencies accurately? I read in novels they use currencies like shilling, pound, guinea, sovereign, four (or six-, etc) pence, ...
12
votes
5answers
750 views
What's the advantage of the infantry column formation in the Napoleonic Wars?
In movies/books set in the Napoleonic Wars, the British are normally deployed into lines and the French into columns. The columns are usually the advancing ones, charging into the line as the line ...
10
votes
2answers
113 views
Was the Napoleonic era cavalry armour effective against firearms?
During the Napoleonic wars in Europe, many heavy cavalry units still retain the use of armours, for example, French Carabiniers-à-Cheval below,
How effective were these to protect the cavalryman ...
8
votes
3answers
419 views
Why Napoleon was not executed or imprisoned?
I wonder why the Allies did not execute or imprison Napoleon in Bastille for life after both times when he was captured. Even more, they risked by granting him an island in possession. This is quite ...
7
votes
2answers
163 views
Supplies for army of Napoleon
How was such a great army, like the army of Napoleon on its way to Moscow, supplied with food and other needed things? Were they transporting it from France or maybe stealing from territory on their ...
6
votes
0answers
37 views
Health precautions before going into Battle of Trafalgar and other battles
Tom Pocock's The Terror Before Trafalgar: Nelson, Napoleon, and the Secret War contains this memorable description of preparations aboard HMS Victory immediately before the Battle of Trafalgar in ...
5
votes
1answer
103 views
Comparison of naval fleet strengths during the Napoleonic wars
Do we have knowledge on the number of vessels in the armadas of the various belligerents of the Napoleonic wars? Information on the types of boats, captured vessels, and sunk vessels will also be ...
4
votes
2answers
180 views
What is the motivation of having heavy infantry to the right and light infantry to the left flank?
In Napoleonic wars era, a line contains mostly regular troops except for two kind of elite units, the heavy one, e.g. grenadiers, they normally are the bravest, strongest troops with the best stamina, ...
-1
votes
1answer
44 views
Recommended order for reading Horatio Hornblower series? [closed]
I am interested in reading the Horatio Hornblower series by C.S. Forester. The first book in terms of publication order is Hornblower and the Crisis (story dates: August 1805-December 1805). However, ...
