With the gloomiest time of the year upon us I felt the need to reacquaint myself with some of my more distant relatives, as is only fitting in these darkest days, and so I chose to pay a visit to my late grandmother’s younger sister. Before you click the ‘back’ button in your browser: my grandmother’s name was…
Warlord’s own Dave Matthews presents a historical account of one of the lesser known Napoleonic battles – the Bridge at Lodi. As a somewhat less epic engagement than the likes of Waterloo, it makes a great scenario for the tabletop, so Dave has included suggestions for fighting the battle with Black Powder rules, to enable gamers…
At the outbreak of the Napoleonic wars the French light infantry was the finest in Europe. They could best the fierce obedience of the Germans and Dutch with their high level of independence and initiative, those of the Spanish and Italians through their determination and bravery and, in some situations, the British, using their own…
Napoleon was born on the 15th of August 1769 in Ajaccio, Corsica. His military career started early as he was sent to France and enrolled in the military academy at Brienne-le-Château at the age of nine. In 1784, at the ripe old age of fifteen, he began his training as an artillery officer at the École Militaire in Paris. He graduated a…
Born in Dublin in 1769, this remarkable man had a very unexceptional life prior to joining the British Army in 1787 as an ensign in the 73rd Highlanders. Family influence and money eased his way through the ranks, as he took advantage of the Purchase system to buy one promotion after another. By the time the…
Born in Rostock, Mecklenburg the son of a land-owning family, Blücher was destined for military service. In 1758, at the age of 16, he joined the Swedish Army as a hussar, to fight against Prussia in the Seven Years War (1756-1763). Blücher was captured two years later whilst fighting against Prussian hussars. The Prussians were so…
Born in 1758 into modest circumstances, Massena had a colourful early life. He was a cabin boy, soldier and smuggler before he joined the army for a second time in 1791, and a year later he had risen to the rank of colonel. During the next few years Massena campaigned in Italy, rising quickly to become…
Born in 1758 in Pembrokeshire, Wales, he joined the 12th Suffolk Regiment of Foot in 1773 as an ensign. His initial army career ended in disillusionment when the 12th were disbanded in 1783. He rejoined the Army some eleven years later, acting as an aide-de-camp in an expedition to the West Indies, which led to a…
Junot was born in 1771 to a middle class family and he was studying law in Paris when the French Revolution began. He immediately connected with the revolutionary cause and joined a battalion of volunteer infantry, showed great promise and was promoted to Sergeant. He was probably the man who knew Napoleon the longest, their paths…
The campaign of the ‘Hundred Days’ was to become the thundering climax of the Napoleonic Wars. The shattering of the Grande Armèe in the snows of Russia in 1812, followed by two years of desperate fighting, forced the Emperor of the French to abdicate in 1814. The elated emperors and kings of the Sixth Coalition exiled Bonaparte to the tiny…
Rich Dando
Graham Davey