The Anatomy of Glory
by Henry Lachouque
On This Page
Description
Napoleons Imperial Guard was arguably the most famous military formation to tread the battlefields of Europe. La Garde Imperial was created on 18 May 1804, and from its origins as a small personal escort, the Guard grew in size and importance throughout the Napoleonic era. Eventually, it became the tactical reserve of the Grande Arme, comprising almost a third of Napoleons field forces. The men of the Imperial Guard were the lite of the First Empire, its officers and men the military show more aristocracy of post-Revolutionary France.Used only sparingly, the Guard acquired a reputation of invincibility. Such had become its prestige, when the attacks of the Guard were repulsed at Waterloo, they signaled not only the defeat of the French army but also the end of an era.In this magnificent study, unparalleled in depth and scope, the renowned French historian Commandant Henry Lachouque has produced a lavish and sumptuous work. It combines vivid narrative with valuable and unique uniform illustrations, including seventy-four full color plates from the Anne S.K. Brown collection, to make The Anatomy of Glory one of the most important and most sought-after books on military history ever published. show lessTags
Recommendations
Member Recommendations
Member Reviews
This is a great classic work abut Napoleon and his Imperial Guard. The story of the Guard is told in all its adventure. There may be books about the Guard that contain a lot more detail, but this is the best work for capturing the spirit of this legendary military unit.
A Lavish Book, with good paper, and a great many illustrations. The guard travels first class in these pages, and a great deal of research went into this presentation of the unit followed in its pages. All the way from the splendid but tiny Mamluk unit to the durable engineers of the Marines of the Guard, they followed Napoleon to his final fate. The details relate to the organization, weapons, and the uniforms, and there is very little on the social and technical life of these elite troops. Another omission is coverage of the guard units of the client kingdoms. If the translation was good, this book was not a lively read, but the author tried to be exhaustive on his topics. I read the Greenhill Books reprint.
Ratings
Members
- Recently Added By
Author Information
25 Works 278 Members
All Editions
Common Knowledge
- Canonical title
- The Anatomy of Glory
- Original title
- Napoléon et la Garde Impériale
- Original publication date
- 1950
- People/Characters
- Napoleon Bonaparte
- Important events
- Napoleonic Wars
- First words
- In the distant past the chief was served by a mayor, or 'major', who guarded his door, and a constable who took charge of his stables, assissted by a marshal.
- Last words
- (Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)Napoleon, a citizen of France, was a universal genius. From he Frenchmen of his day he fashioned the Imperial Guard and led it to immortality.
- Original language
- French
Classifications
- Genres
- History, Nonfiction, General Nonfiction, Biography & Memoir
- DDC/MDS
- 944.05 — History & geography History of Europe France and Monaco France First empire 1804-1815
- LCC
- DC152 .L313 — History of Europe, Asia, Africa and Oceania France – Andorra – Monaco History of France Modern, 1515- Revolutionary and Napoleonic period, 1789-1815
- BISAC
Statistics
- Members
- 144
- Popularity
- 227,186
- Reviews
- 2
- Rating
- (4.07)
- Languages
- English, French
- Media
- Paper, Ebook
- ISBNs
- 8
- ASINs
- 1
