Napoleon had excellent military command ability. During the 23 years from the Battle of Toulon to the Battle of Waterloo, he commanded countless battles. He repeatedly repelled the invasion of the anti-French alliance, suppressed the rebellion of reactionary forces at home and abroad, and fought seven wars with the anti-French alliance, most of which were victories. The battle he commanded is still of great significance in military history. His constant expansion broke the balance of power among European countries, dealt a heavy blow to the feudal system of European countries, defended the achievements of the French Revolution and safeguarded the interests of the bourgeoisie.
However, not all wars launched by Napoleon were just, and the nature of the war changed from self-defense counterattack to aggression and expansion. The general demarcation point is 18 10:
(1) Early period: Before that, the war focused on justice, repelled the invasion of anti-French alliance many times, and suppressed the rebellion of reactionary forces at home and abroad; The First Empire of France, established by him, defended the achievements of the French Revolution, dealt a heavy blow to the feudal system of European countries, laid the social order of western capitalist countries, represented the interests of the bourgeoisie and spread the victory of the French bourgeois revolution. Objectively, it is conducive to the disintegration of feudal systems in European countries and the revolutionary movement and liberation war of local people (just self-defense counterattack to defend the achievements of the French Revolution).
(2) Later period: the war of aggression and expansion followed. Napoleon invaded Spain one after another, and the mainland economy blocked Britain and marched into Moscow, Russia. Armed forces violated the sovereignty and independence of many European countries, plundered the property of many European countries, aroused the resistance of local people, and led to the ultimate failure of the war. Seven Anti-French Alliances under Napoleon's Command and Seven Famous Campaigns Time Member Napoleon's Famous Campaign Results The First Anti-French Alliance 1793- 1797: The Battle of Britain, Austria, the Netherlands, Belgium, Spain and Nettoulon (victory in France), the Battle of Repressing Royalists (victory in France) The Second Anti-French Alliance1798-18012000, France and Austria signed the Luneville Peace Treaty, France and Britain signed the Amiens Treaty, and the second anti-French alliance collapsed. The Third Anti-French Alliance 1805 Britain, Russia, Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Switzerland, the Battle of Thurm (French victory) and the Battle of Austerlitz (French victory) France, Russia and Austria signed the Pressburg Peace Treaty, the Holy Roman Empire ended and the third anti-French alliance collapsed. The Fourth Anti-French Alliance 1806 The Battle of Britain, Russia, Switzerland and Puyena (victory in France), the Battle of Mourning Prison (fruitless) and the Battle of friedland (victory in France) France and Russia signed the Tilsit Peace Treaty, the three countries formed an alliance, and the fourth anti-French alliance collapsed. The Fifth Anti-French Alliance 1809, France and Austria signed the Vienna Peace Treaty in the Battle of Aspen-Iselin (France defeated) and the Battle of Vagram (France won), Vienna was occupied and the fifth anti-French alliance collapsed. The Sixth Anti-French Alliance 18 13 Russia, Belgium, Britain, Switzerland and Austria signed the Fontainebleau Treaty with the anti-French alliance in Lu Sen (victory in France), Bautzen (victory in France), Dresden (victory in France) and Leipzig (defeat in France). The Rhine Federation disintegrated and Napoleon abdicated for the first time. The 7th Anti-French Alliance imprisoned Elba 18 15 Battle of Oprini between Britain and Russia (France won) Battle of Waterloo (France lost) Napoleon abdicated for the second time and was finally exiled to St. Helena.
1. Concentrate the superior forces and split in two.
Concentrating superior forces and defeating the enemy one by one is an unnoticed mass soldier tactic used by the French revolutionary army. Napoleon applied and developed it, forming a classic law: the secret of military art lies in making his military strength surpass the enemy in the necessary place and time. When talking about Napoleon's two operational principles, Marx pointed out: "First. Only do what you can, only do what you are most sure of winning', and second,' the main force is only used for the main purpose of war-destroying the enemy'. Napoleon himself said, "There are many excellent generals in Europe who want to see many things at once, but I only look at one thing: enemy soldiers and try to destroy them." When talking about the defeat of the strong army and the victory of the weak army in history, Mao Zedong also took most of Napoleon's battles as examples, pointing out that "they all used their local advantages and initiative to defeat the enemy's local disadvantages and passivity, won the first world war, and then carved up the rest, thus turning the overall situation into advantages and initiative." Because Napoleon decided that the main goal of the battle was to destroy the enemy's effective strength, in June of 1805+0 1, he ignored his brother-in-law Miao La and was bent on occupying Vienna abandoned by Austria. Instead of pursuing the enemy immediately, he flew into a rage and denounced Miao La, saying, "You delayed me for two days just to gain the vanity of entering Vienna first. Honor can only be gained in places full of danger. What is the honor of entering an unsuspecting capital? "
2. Pay attention to the combination of attack and defense
Napoleon always paid attention to promoting the coordinated development of infantry, artillery and cavalry to adapt to the operational characteristics and new methods at that time. His excellent command ability is also shown in 18 14 and 18 15. During the defensive war, he still dared to attack and win, which was highly praised by Engels. Engels regarded these two excellent war situations as the best examples of attack and continuous attack in a completely defensive war situation, and pointed out: "In these two famous war situations, the commander-in-chief who fought solely to defend the country invaded by the enemy attacked the enemy whenever he had the opportunity; Although the overall strength is always much less than the invading enemy, he always has an advantage in the attack site and usually wins. Although the former ended in Napoleon's exile to the island of Elba, and the latter ended in the failure of Waterloo and the fall of Paris, the unfavorable endings of these two wars did not reduce their advantages in overall intentions or the significance of local actions. " He once pointed out: "The art of the whole war is to make a reasonable and thorough defense first, and then make a quick and bold attack." He also pays attention to taking offense and defense as an organic whole. He said: "defensive warfare does not exclude attack, and offensive warfare does not exclude defense." He also believes that "the transition from defensive warfare to offensive warfare is one of the most subtle operations."
Second, the army building thought
1. Improve the command system
The earliest headquarters in the world dedicated to operational command was the Staff Office established during Napoleon's time. /kloc-before the 0 th and 9 th centuries, the military command organization not only included operational command, but also included logistics work and political work, which appeared in the form of trinity. After the world entered the19th century, the rapid development of science and technology greatly promoted the development of military industry. In the army, new guns have replaced old firearms, iron boats have replaced wooden boats, cars and trains have replaced carriages and so on. Great changes have taken place in the scale of the military establishment system, many new features have emerged in the war, and the operational command has become increasingly complex. The original trinity simple organization can no longer meet the needs of war, and the command system must be changed.
Napoleon fought dozens of wars in his life, but later he felt that he could not command the whole army. 1807, he appointed Betty, who had served as chief of staff in Italy, as his chief of staff. Bettier has a good knowledge of the work of staff officers and has written a book "The Operational Program of Alpine General Staff Officers". After some painstaking research, Bettier proposed to Napoleon the idea of establishing a staff office, which was supported by Napoleon. 18 12 established the world's first staff office to assist the commander-in-chief in operational command, which well adapted to the needs of the war at that time. The general office is led by the director of the general office and consists of four departments. The first section is responsible for the establishment and strength of the army, organizing troops to move and review, collecting and formulating military laws, and dealing with prisoners of war and deserters. The second section is responsible for military equipment. The third section is subjective reconnaissance, making operational plans, organizing communication and domestic service. With the implementation of military command, the command system has been gradually improved.
2. Reform the conscription system
The reform of the European military system from 18 to 19 was essentially the transformation of the armed forces from privatization to nationalization, and the army was essentially only a private soldier of the monarch or Lord. This change began with the opening of the "conscription system". The real revolutionary change came from the French Revolution, when the royal family was overthrown and the name "the king's army" no longer existed. However, under the encirclement and suppression of the anti-French alliance, the nature of the war has become a "people's war" to "defend the motherland", not for the glory of knights, nor for making money. As citizens of the country, they all have the obligation to join the army. In fact, this change was very hasty and completely forced by the situation. Inspired by the spirit of patriotism, through the French Revolution, the concept of the so-called "nation state" began to occupy a dominant position, and the national army was also the "people's army". In short, from the French Revolution to the Napoleonic era, the army gradually completed the evolution to the bourgeois army: in the military service system, it mainly changed from the mercenary system to the compulsory military service system, and basically realized the bourgeois principle that everyone was equal before military service. Napoleon I reformed the army established by the French Revolution, implemented universal compulsory military service, established a division and army composed of infantry, cavalry and artillery, and formed a strong reserve.
3. Pay attention to the selection and use of outstanding military talents.
In the practice of war, Napoleon always put the issue of army-building in an important position, and strived to build a powerful bourgeois army capable of fighting well.
"If you want to rule a soldier, you must first choose a general." . Napoleon has a famous saying: the lion army under the command of reindeer can never be a lion army again. Therefore, selecting generals is an important condition for building a strong army. On the question of how to select generals: he dares to use new people and create opportunities for young officers. It is reported that most of the 18 marshals he promoted in 1805 are under 40, about 7 are under 37, and Dawu is only 34. At the same time, it completely broke the traditional concept of attaching importance to noble birth and meritocracy. This is Napoleon's selection criteria: that is, focusing on young and promising; Strive to be eclectic and emphasize quality and ability.
Soldiers who don't want to be marshals are not good soldiers. He once said, "Every soldier has a marshal's baton in his backpack." . Advocate everyone to be a general and marshal. From the Italian war of 1796, Napoleon deeply realized that it was mainly spiritual strength, not quantity, that decided the outcome of the war. "It is not the number of people who bring strength to the army, but loyalty and heroism that add fighting spirit to the army." First of all, try to stimulate the sense of honor of officers and men. He believes that courage can't be bought by money, and should do everything possible to encourage officers and men to sacrifice their lives for reasons they don't usually understand. Secondly, I will not hesitate to offer a reward. Although Napoleon said that money can't buy grandiloquence, in order to boost morale, he still spent a lot of looted gold and silver as material rewards.
"Grasp with both hands, both hands should be hard". Napoleon put education and training in an important position in building the army, and thought that good education and training were important conditions for building a good army. An untrained army will only cause trouble. In political education, the army is required to have a sense of patriotism and national honor, and it is strictly forbidden to defect and treason, and it is strictly forbidden to dedicate defense zones to outsiders. Surrender is regarded as a traitor and sentenced to death. Advocate the management mode of replacing whip with honor. Inspire the sense of honor by establishing an honorary officer corps, and try crimes with military courts. He often visits various units and gives inspiring and inspiring speeches to the soldiers. He is especially good at using the ideological slogan of the Enlightenment popular in the French Revolution to inspire soldiers' sense of national honor and self-confidence, so that soldiers can devote themselves to the upcoming battle with great enthusiasm. He creatively used the system of "comrade trial meeting" to enforce discipline, which not only rectified discipline, but also educated others. In military training, Napoleon believed that the art of military command was first manifested in being good at quickly arming, training and building a huge army. He trained officers in military schools and in middle schools. After graduation, students pass the exam and enter higher professional military schools. In order to strengthen the training of troops, training barracks have been specially set up. Training should proceed from actual combat and oppose formalism and rigid training. At the same time, it takes the form of training recruits with the camp.
Napoleon loved mathematics from an early age. Laplace, his math teacher, tested him when he was in military school, and later became his interior minister. In his spare time in marching and fighting, he often studies plane geometry; He arranged a special crowd in the army, that is, a team of scientists, to plunder the cultural relics and scientific and technological achievements of the conquered countries.
4. Enforcement of military legislation
An important feature of Napoleon's military practice is to standardize the management and command of the army through legislation, bring the army construction into the legal track, and form a certain norm, which is fundamentally different from the feudal royal army under "I am the country", thus maintaining and consolidating the leadership and control of the bourgeoisie over the army. Napoleon's military laws and regulations are mainly scattered in the specific systems and measures he formulated. Although they are not systematic, they have normative characteristics.
First, establish a strict bourgeois hierarchy within the military through legislative procedures.
Napoleon built the most powerful army in Europe at that time. In order to make this army obey him completely, he not only fixed the ranks between officers and men, but also fixed the ranks between the guards and the ordinary queue troops, and brought them into the competition mechanism. Napoleon created a loyal guard and gave them all kinds of privileges and concessions, thus attracting excellent officers and talents and establishing his prestige and the worship of soldiers. 1865438+March, 2003 19, Napoleon clearly defined the corresponding relationship between the ranks of the guards and ordinary officers by decree. As a reward system, excellent queue officers can be transferred to guard posts, and for ordinary officers, entering guard posts has become a channel for promotion and wealth. This system attracted a large number of officers loyal to Napoleon.
The great revolution buried an insurmountable class gap in feudal society among officers and men of the army. For ordinary people, being a soldier is not only to serve the country, but also a realistic way to improve and improve their social and economic status. Napoleon tried his best to use people's psychology to attract them to become soldiers. He believes that the French "have only one feeling, and that is honor. Therefore, it is necessary to provide nourishment for this emotion. " This kind of nourishment is an appropriate promotion system, that is, the promotion of officers depends on the size and amount of military exploits, and has nothing to do with qualifications and origins. In this way, Napoleon led the soldiers' sense of honor to promotion, thought and action. "Every soldier dreams of entering the ranks of officers", making the army completely obey him.
The second is to issue decrees, vigorously establish military schools, improve the cultural and educational quality of soldiers, and regard cultural and educational level as an important condition for promotion.
Napoleon was deeply influenced by French enlightenment thinkers. After he took office, he attached importance to the education of the country and the army. In order to improve the political and military qualities of soldiers, Napoleon promulgated many laws and established many military schools. 1803 1 year, Napoleon founded a vocational military school in Fontainebleau on the basis of the Mars Military Academy opened in jacobins in June 1794 1 year, with the aim of training officers for the army and laying a good organizational foundation. This school was later the famous St Cyril Military Academy (renamed as 1806).
During the imperial period, Napoleon also founded the Paris Institute of Technology, the Metz Artillery School, the Saint-Germain Military Academy, the Versailles Military Academy and the Italian Brescia Military Academy. He vigorously hired military school graduates in the army, which ensured that Napoleon's officers had high cultural and military qualities and became an important factor in high combat effectiveness. Engels spoke highly of Napoleon's level as an officer. He said: "Napoleon was able to let his recruits graduate from the camp in four weeks only because he had the best cadres."
Third, the unique military social security legislation.
The army is the power base of Napoleon, which is related to the stability of Napoleon's rule. Therefore, Napoleon attached great importance to relieving the worries of soldiers, the most important of which was the legislative protection of veterans and disabled soldiers. After Napoleon came to power, the social legislation on retired and disabled soldiers was constantly supplemented and improved, forming a relatively complete legal system.
In addition, Napoleon's government also attached importance to the living arrangements of veterans and arranged for them to re-employment as much as possible. On the one hand, they are dissatisfied with the government because of the difficulties in their future lives. At the same time, putting the housing problem of retired disabled soldiers in an important position, Napoleon provided a more comfortable living environment for retired disabled soldiers. On the basis of the military hospital in feudal times, he built a disabled soldier hospital for veterans, which gave them a place to live. And called the palace of Versailles, the palace of the French emperor, for disabled soldiers to live in, which shows Napoleon's concern about this issue.
To sum up, Napoleon's military strategy is to make full use of and give full play to the characteristics of his own army, use the army quickly and flexibly, concentrate superior forces in excellent sports, launch a resolute attack, annihilate the enemy and win the battle. Among them, annihilating the enemy is the core of Napoleon's military thought; To sum up, Narun's thought of building the army is a humanized reform and propaganda of the principles, military system and ideological construction of the army.
Third, the influence of Napoleon's military thought.
Napoleon fought bravely for more than 20 years and personally commanded about 60 battles, especially the five victories against the French alliance, which made his military thoughts and theories constantly improve and develop in the war practice, and was called "the real master of military art" by later generations.
Different road choices will have extremely different effects on national development and its consequences. Historically, Britain forced the United States to become a dependency of British capital like India. Napoleon blocked the European continent, but also used violence to expand French capital in Europe. He inherited the achievements made during the Great Revolution and consolidated them through foreign wars. In particular, he ordered the compilation of the Napoleonic Code, which is the embryonic form of the legal system of many modern democratic countries. In addition, Napoleon was also the first person who put forward the idea of the United States of Europe and tried to realize it by force. Although he himself failed to realize this dream, Europe is moving towards the goal of integration.
The war made Napoleon climb to the peak of French power and become the overlord of the European continent, but it also made Napoleon end his political life. Under the historical conditions at that time, the Napoleonic Wars also had the function of defending the victory of the French Revolution, and extended the French revolutionary ideas and systems to Europe, which destroyed the feudal order and shook the feudal system in Europe and created the premise for the development of European capitalism. In particular, Napoleon's military legislative activities marked the establishment of a professional bourgeois army. He legalized the principle of material incentives as the basic principle to promote army building. He showed us a new model of bourgeois army building, that is, he completely abandoned the feudal army model and established and developed his own army through bourgeois revolution and war. His military thoughts and theories have made great contributions to the development of modern military science. Selected Works of Napoleon (dictated by Napoléon Bonaparte)
Selected Works of Napoleon is the memory of several wars dictated by himself but recorded by others when he was exiled to St. Helena in his later years, as well as the abstracts of some works. This book records in detail the Battle of Toulon in 1793, the war against Italy from 1796 to 1797 and the war of 1798 to 1799 to explore the Middle East, as well as his speeches and orders to soldiers in these wars. Napoléon Bonaparte has special respect for mathematics and mathematicians, and appreciates his own questions. In fact, the following theorem belongs to him:
Napoleon's Theorem-If every side of any triangle is an equilateral triangle, then their centers form an equilateral triangle.
This equilateral triangle is called Napoleon triangle. If you make a triangle inward, the conclusion is also true.