In this article, Kevin offers us the broad view of what the Campaigns of Napoleon were all about. I think you may find the discussion illuminates the design rationale behind the Campaign series of games. The quotes followed by a Roman numeral in brackets are from Napoleon's Maxims. You can view the complete Maxims on OSGs website: Napoleongames.com -Ed.
Definitions
To understand the Campaigns of Napoleon one must know the armies, the terrain they fought over, and the strategies they used. An Army is an organization of men so that they can be moved across the terrain according to a plan. Strategy is the plan guiding all the moves of the army, and in Napoleon's case always implied the destruction of the enemy army. A single strategy may be employed throughout one campaign or a long war. If the strategy changes frequently, it can become difficult to discern at all.
All wars should be governed by certain principles, for every war should have a definite object, and be conducted according to the rules of art. War should only be undertaken with forces proportioned to the obstacles to be overcome. [V]
You will compel the enemy to fight you on your approach; by means of a forced march, you will place yourself in his rear and cut his communications, or, alternatively, you will menace a town whose preservation is vital to him.
- --Frederick the Great
"Strategy is the art of making use of time and space. I am less
chary of the latter than of the former; space we can recover, time
never." [1]
The selection of objectives, and the assignment of
forces proportioned to achieve the objectives, takes place at the
strategic level. Objectives are selected in the light of overall
strategy. Putting this plan into execution is termed Operations.
Prior to Napoleon, military planning was limited either to
Strategy-the overall aims of a war-or Tactics-the deployment of
forces on the battlefield. Following Frederick's precepts,
Napoleon introduced a third, intermediate level between Strategy
and Tactics: the Operational Level. [1]
"Unlike his eighteenth-century forebears, who rigidly distinguished between
maneuvering and giving battle, adopting different formations for
each activity, Napoleon fused marching, fighting and pursuing
into one continuous process." [1]
For Napoleon and some of his later adversaries, victory
on the battlefield was determined days or weeks beforehand, by
ascertaining in advance where the battle would be fought, and
then arranging for a preponderance of force, with mobile
columns descending upon the battlefield from widely separated
directions at the last minute.
Planning at this level could be most effective against an
opponent who was limited in his thinking to 'Strategic' and
Tactical' levels. At his best, Napoleon concealed from his
opponent exactly where the battlefield was going to be.
In the planning process, operations begin the moment a
strategic goal has been selected. The coordination of the
different masses of men takes place at the operational level. The
Operations Plan details the specific marches that have to be
executed to accomplish the strategic objective. Excellence in
coordinating the march of forces is the whole art. The duration
of a complete operation can be as little as five days or as long as 21.
The four steps in an Operation are always:
The most interesting moment in this whole sequence is the
transition from maneuver into contact, up to the commencement
of the battle--the transition from the Operational to the Tactical
Level.
The campaigns of Napoleon were fought in every season of
the year, in every type of terrain except for high mountains and
swamps. Weather often had a crucial impact on operations. In
the campaign in Italy, the mild Mediterranean climate helped
provide a rich and supportive environment for troops
constantly exposed to the elements.
In later years, the theater of operations moved northward
into far more brutal climes. During the morning of the battle of
Austerlitz the French took advantage of the ground fog lying in
the valleys to conceal important forces from nearby enemies. In
1807 mud proved the worst enemy of an army. Frost, if not too
severe, was not as bad, since it prevented the roads from turning
to mud. But in extreme cold, it is important to keep everybody
moving, to keep the body temperature up.
The Russians used snow and blowing cold to
devastating effect during the Eylau Campaign, keeping the wind
to their backs as they selected their defensive positions. In
northern latitudes, the variation in temperature can be extreme,
swinging from sweltering heat to severe frost. Entering Russia
the French were greeted with violent thunderstorms, hail, pouring rain, and mud. Thunder is
an elemental force of nature whose morale effect was significant.
Napoleonic Operations From Castiglione to Waterloo
1. Planning & Preparation
2. A Period of Maneuver
3. Attack: a Major Battle
4. Follow Through: PursuitWeather
Definitions and Weather
Planning and Preparation: Logistics, Liaison, Administration
Command and Organization
Maneuver
Attack and Pursuit
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