Army of the Duchy of Warsaw refers to the military forces of the Duchy of Warsaw during the Napoleonic era. The book are based to several finest artwork of various famous Polish artist as Jan Chelmisnski, Julius Kosacks, Jozef Brandt Bronislaw Gembarzewski and other
This book draws on original regimental records to give by far the most detailed account ever published in English of the organization and personalities of the most renowned of the foreign units that served in the Emperor's armies. Unlike most of his foreign troops, these Polish horsemen were true volunteers, who owed their honoured place in his Imperial Guard to their proven courage and dash on battlefields from Spain to Russia. The text is illustrated with rare portraits and photographs, and with detailed colour plates of the Lancers' magnificent uniforms.
In the Legions of Napoleon recounts the adventures of an intrepid Polish soldier who fought for Napoleon the length and breadth of Europe. By the time he was twenty-five, Heinrich von Brandt had marched from Madrid to Moscow and had been severely wounded on three separate occasions. From 1808 to 1812 he was caught up in Napoleons attempt to subjugate Spain, fighting in battles, sieges including the siege of Saragossa and hunting and being hunted by merciless bands of guerrillas. In 1812 his unit took part in the crossing of the Niemen and the epic retreat from Moscow.In his extraordinary memoirs Brandt describes in great detail the actions in which he fought, the type of officers and men he served with, and the grueling campaigns in which they participated. He also gives fascinating insight into the minds of his comrades and superiors. This book is a must for every Napoleonic historian, enthusiast, and anyone who likes a good story of high adventure.
The volume focuses on the involvement of Polish units that participated as unwitting pawns of Napoleon in the so-called Haitian War of Independence (1802-1803).
The drama of Napoleon’s ill-fated invasion of Russia is captured through the letters and diaries of Polish soldiers who fought with the French. Napoleon’s invasion of Russia cost hundreds of thousands lives and changed the course of history. Europe had never seen an army like the one gathering in Poland in 1812—half a million men in brilliant uniforms and shimmering helmets. Six months later, it was the ghost of an army, frozen and horrified, retreating home. This illuminating volume tells the story of this epic military disaster from the viewpoint of the tens of thousands of Polish soldiers who took part. Some of them were patriots eager to regain independence for their country. Others were charmed by the glory of Napoleonic warfare or were professional soldiers who were simply doing their jobs. They all tell an unrivaled tale of ruthless battles, burning villages, numbing hunger, and biting cold. By the end the great army had been reduced to a pitiless mob and the Polish soldiers, who had set out with such hope, recalled it with horror.
In 1917 Poland was recognised as a state by Russia, but the Bolshevik coup threatened this. The Polish leader Marshal Pilsudski hurried to build an army around Polish World War I veterans, and in 1918 war broke out for Poland's independence, involving the the Poles, the Red and White Russian armies, at least two different Ukrainian forces, and Allied intervention troops. The armies that fought these campaigns were extraordinarily varied in their uniforms and insignia, equipment and weapons, and when peace was signed in 1921, Poland had achieved recognised nationhood for the first time since 1794. Featuring specially commissioned full-colour artwork, this engaging study explains and illustrates the armies that fought in the epic struggle for the rebirth of the independent Polish nation, in the bitter aftermath of World War I.
The Nazi invasion of Poland in September 1939 saw mostly untested German troops face equally inexperienced Polish forces. With the Polish senior leadership endeavouring to hold the country's industrialized east, Hitler's forces unleashed what was essentially a large pincer operation intended to encircle and eliminate much of Poland's military strength. Harnessing this initial operational advantage, the Germans were able to attack Polish logistics, communications and command centres, thereby gaining and maintaining battlefield momentum. With the average infantry soldier on both sides comparatively well-led, equipped and transported, vital differences in battlefield support (especially air power and artillery), tactics, organization and technology would make all the difference in combat. Featuring specially commissioned artwork, archive photography and battle maps, this study focuses upon three actions that reveal the evolving nature of the 1939 campaign. The battle of Tuchola Forest (1–5 September) pitted fast-moving German forces against uncoordinated Polish resistance, while the battle of Wizna (7–10 September) saw outnumbered Polish forces impede the German push north-east of Warsaw. Finally, the battle of Bzura (9–19 September) demonstrated the Polish forces' ability to surprise the Germans operationally during a spirited counter-attack against the invaders. All three battles featured in this book cast light on the motivation, training, tactics and combat performance of the fighting men of both sides in the 1939 struggle for Poland.
The Duchy of Warsaw, 1807-1815 is the first academic history of the state established by Napoleon in pre-partitioned Poland at the turn of the 19th century. The book examines the political, social and cultural dynamics of the Duchy and considers its role in Napoleon's wider empire and the politics he engaged in across the European continent during the period. Czubaty explores the history of the Duchy to reveal how political and social ideas, systems and mechanisms from France, Italy and Germany began permeating Central Eastern Europe at this time and goes on to consider how this impacted on the changing political mentalities of the Polish people.
This superb and comprehensive book details the foreign units which formed such an important part of Napoleon's forces. It examines each non-French unit in turn, giving an overview of the unit's origins, its organizational and combat history, its uniforms and standards, and details of the unit's eventual fate. Colourful accounts, taken from contemporary reports and memoirs, emphasize the qualities of the unit and throw light on what life was like for many of the foreign soldiers recruited into the Grande Armée. In total more than 100 different foreign units that served in the French Army are investigated in detail in this ambitious publication. Some foreign units fought and flourished throughout the Consulate and Empire, whilst others lasted for just a few months. Covers Polish, German, Swiss, Italian, Spanish, and other units in the French Army and presents a combat history and details uniforms for each regiment. Napoleon's Mercenaries is the best single-volume study of this aspect of Napoleon s army and a vital reference for every Napoleonic enthusiast. Little can be found on the foreign units that were an integral part of the French army ... For a long time a gap has existed, but now Napoleon s Mercenaries fills this gap. Robert Burnham, Napoleonic Series