Bernie Campbell is joined by Rachel Blackman-Rogers, lecturer in defence studies at Kings College London, and Olivier Aranda, Assistant Professor of History at the University of Brest, to discuss a remarkable set of naval engagements, unique in many ways in the 1792-1815 period and the last of their kind during the French Revolutionary wars.…

Is this the most significant opposed landing of the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars? The assault on the beaches of Aboukir Bay by British forces under Abercromby [from around 13:00] was certainly a dramatic affair. So too was the Battle of Alexandria [from 23:15] which followed against the desperate remnants of the French expeditionary for…

1802. October... November... December... three months in which the longstanding contest between the British and the French switches from the battlefield to the negotiating table... After two complete years in power Napoleon Bonaparte's position looks increasingly secure... And the decision is taken to send a French fleet across the Atlantic with Sa…

Charles Mackay reviews the experiences and achievements in Egypt of the extraordinary group of savants - engineers, scientists, mathematicians - who accompanied Napoleon Bonaparte to Cairo and beyond in 1798 and whose findings laid the groundwork for modern Egyptology.

Marlene Daut, Professor of French and African Diaspora Studies at Yale University, discusses the incredible 13-year period from 1791 to 1804 which saw self-liberated slaves, not least leader Toussaint Louverture, overcome French colonial rule to win freedom on Haiti. Including: [01:00] - Reflections on the complexity of the Haitian Revolution [05:1…

Clemens Bemmann is joined by Zack White and Alex Mikaberidze to work their way through the Napoleonic Quarterly mailbag. Topics include Napoleon's motives in Illyria, the reasons behind British success, Alex S' 'Trump derangement syndrome', the chances of war and... flogging, actually.

1801. July... August... September... Three months in which the British mount an opposed amphibious landing against French forces in Egypt... on Saint Domingue Toussaint Louverture promulgates a constitution for the colony before getting the greenlight from Bonaparte... and tensions between the French state and the Catholic church are resolved but n…

Rachel Blackman-Rogers is joined by contemporary Black Sea maritime scholar Prof Deborah Sanders of Kings College London to discuss the history and evolution of Black Sea Navies, the historical significance of the Black Sea itself, and the Black Sea's current importance in Russia's war with Ukraine. [01:00] - to what extent has the Black Sea been a…

Spain's story during the Napoleonic period is an Atlantic one, as Dr Mark Lawrence of the University of Kent has pointed out. Fresh from recording on the War of the Oranges, which you can hear in episode 38, here Mark discusses a range of topics including the legacy of the Spanish Empire and notions of the 'Black Legend' of anti-Spanish propaganda;…

Rachel Blackman-Rogers joins Alex Stevenson to discuss the First Battle of Copenhagen - featuring some tricky navigation, the Royal Navy's superior bludgeoning rate of firepower, some brutal diplomacy and Horatio Nelson's infamous blind eye. Please support the podcast on Patreon at patreon/com/napoleonicquarterly.…

1801. April... May... June... Three months in which Horatio Nelson pulverises the Danish fleet at Copenhagen... Napoleon Bonaparte turns his ire on the pro-British Portuguese... and war breaks out between the piratical Barbary States and the fledgeling US of A. This is episode 38 of the Napoleonic Quarterly - covering three months which show that, …

While France was thrown into chaos by the revolution, the political situation in Britain wasn't exactly calm either. Bernie Campbell sat down with Jacquelin Reiter and Neil Gregory Howe to talk about the tumultuous mood in Britain during the 1790s, Pitt's policies and much more.

Assassinating Napoleon Bonaparte, it turns out, was on the minds of lots of people frustrated with how the French Revolution was playing out. Off the back of the Infernal Machine attempt on the First Consul's life we've got an episode here about William Wordsworth, that most revered of English Romantic poets, who was so frustrated by the unfulfille…

Liam Gauci, Curator at the Malta Maritime Museum in Valletta, joins Dr Rachel Blackman-Rogers to discuss the fascinating history of his very special island. This episode is sponsored by Heritage Malta.

1801. January… February… March… Three months in which the assassination of Tsar Paul stuns Europe… The Act of Union brings together Britain and Ireland... And Austria and France sign the Treaty of Luneville, inking in French dominance in western Europe. This is episode 37 of the Napoleonic Quarterly - covering three months in which the grisly drama…

Kathleen Burk, Professor Emerita of Modern and Contemporary History at University College London, is an amazing historian whose books spanning a long and distinguished career reflect the breadth of her interests: she's written about Anglo-American relations over the decades, a biography of AJP Taylor, even a history of wine reflecting her own backg…

Professor Alan Forrest of the University of York sat down with his long time academic friend Charles Esdaile to talk about the Napoleon Movie, the legacy of the Emperor and more.

Louis Sarkozy talks to Bernie Campbell about his upcoming book on Napoleon's Library, the cultural influence of the Emperor and how his legacy is seen today in France.

Professor Emeritus Michael Broers of the University of Oxford, biography of Napoleon and historical adviser to 'Napoleon' (2023), sat down virtually with his old chum and sparring partner Charles Esdaile. In this conversation they covered: [02:00] - their shared outsider perspective on the French Revolution [06:00] - the usefulness of the Napoleoni…

A Napoleonic professor is despatched to the field hospital, delaying our next main episode by a month. But we have lots of bonus episodes in the meantime.

Dr Rachel Blackman-Rogers is joined by King's College London colleague Professor Andrew Lambert to discuss the current conflict in Ukraine and how lessons from history can be applied to contemporary challenges in containing Russian aggression.

Bernie Campbell takes us on a whistlestop tour of the world as it was at the turn of the 19th century, in the company of Professor Alexander Mikaberidze of Louisiana State University-Shreveport and the NQ's intrepid Quartermaster-Patreons.

Here's a deep dive into the Battle of Hohenlinden, in which Moreau decisively beats the Austrians under Archduke John. Thanks to David Hollins and Hans-Karl Weiß for talking us through it!

1800. January… February… March… Three months in which Jean-Victor Moreau’s snowy victory at Hohenlinden takes the Austrians out of the war… Napoleon Bonaparte survives the world’s first car bombing attempt in Paris… And across the Atlantic those huge swathes of land west of the Appalachians change hands between the European powers once again, causi…

Could some of the decisions made by those making Sir Ridley Scott's 'Napoleon' (2023) be better understood by the generally disappointed Napoleonic community? Alex Stevenson is joined by James Topham, who knows a thing or two about screenwriting, to conclude their analysis of the film. Yes that's right, it's the Napoleon Movie Quarter-Hourly - taki…

Could some of the decisions made by those making Sir Ridley Scott's 'Napoleon' (2023) be better understood by the generally disappointed Napoleonic community? Alex Stevenson is joined by James Topham, who knows a thing or two about screenwriting, to analyse the film in 15-minute chunks. Yes, that's right, it's the Napoleon Movie Quarter-Hourly - ta…

Could some of the decisions made by those making Sir Ridley Scott's 'Napoleon' (2023) be better understood by the generally disappointed Napoleonic community? Alex Stevenson is joined by James Topham, who knows a thing or two about screenwriting, to analyse the film in 15-minute chunks. Yes, that's right, it's the Napoleon Movie Quarter-Hourly - ta…

Could some of the decisions made by those making Sir Ridley Scott's 'Napoleon' (2023) be better understood by the generally disappointed Napoleonic community? Alex Stevenson is joined by James Topham, who knows a thing or two about screenwriting, to analyse the film in 15-minute chunks. Yes, that's right, it's the Napoleon Movie Quarter-Hourly - ta…

Could some of the decisions made by those making Sir Ridley Scott's 'Napoleon' (2023) be better understood by the generally disappointed Napoleonic community? Alex Stevenson is joined by James Topham, who knows a thing or two about screenwriting, to analyse the film in 15-minute chunks. Yes, that's right, it's the Napoleon Movie Quarter-Hourly - ta…

Could some of the decisions made by those making Sir Ridley Scott's 'Napoleon' (2023) be better understood by the generally disappointed Napoleonic community? Alex Stevenson is joined by James Topham, who knows a thing or two about screenwriting, to analyse the film in 15-minute chunks. Yes, that's right, it's the Napoleon Movie Quarter-Hourly - ta…

Could some of the decisions made by those making Sir Ridley Scott's 'Napoleon' (2023) be better understood by the generally disappointed Napoleonic community? Alex Stevenson is joined by James Topham, who knows a thing or two about screenwriting, to analyse the film in 15-minute chunks. Yes, that's right, it's the Napoleon Movie Quarter-Hourly - ta…

Could some of the decisions made by those making Sir Ridley Scott's 'Napoleon' (2023) be better understood by the generally disappointed Napoleonic community? Alex Stevenson is joined by James Topham, who knows a thing or two about screenwriting, to analyse the film in 15-minute chunks. Yes, that's right, it's the Napoleon Movie Quarter-Hourly - ta…

Could some of the decisions made by those making Sir Ridley Scott's 'Napoleon' (2023) be better understood by the generally disappointed Napoleonic community? Alex Stevenson is joined by James Topham, who knows a thing or two about screenwriting, to analyse the film in 15-minute chunks. Yes, that's right, it's the Napoleon Movie Quarter-Hourly - ta…

Could some of the decisions made by those making Sir Ridley Scott's 'Napoleon' (2023) be better understood by the generally disappointed Napoleonic community? Alex Stevenson is joined by James Topham, who knows a thing or two about screenwriting, to analyse and perhaps explain the approach taken by the film's creators. Yes, that's right, it's the N…

Could some of the decisions made by those behind Sir Ridley Scott's spectacle-filled 'Napoleon' (2023) be better understood by the generally disappointed Napoleonic community? Alex Stevenson is joined by James Topham, who knows a thing or two about screenwriting, to analyse the film in 15-minute chunks. Yes, that's right, it's the Napoleon Movie Qu…

1800. July... August... September. Three months in which the British seek to feel less insecure in southern India... in the Baltic the Russians look to muster Danish and Swedish forces against the Royal Navy... and as the United States patches things up with France, domestic tempers fray amidst the election of 1800. This is episode 35 of the Napole…

David Hollins concludes his three-part deep dive into the military action of Q2-1800 with a full hour devoted to the Battle of Marengo, a big victory for Napoleon Bonaparte over the Austrians. There is more to this battle than meets the eye, however, and here David talks us through the detail. These more in-depth explorations are the first of their…

In the middle episode of this three-parter covering the fighting of Q2-1800 in more detail David Hollins talks through the siege of Genoa, Napoleon Bonaparte's famous crossing of the Alps and the critical role of the spy Carlo Gioelli - all in the build-up to the battle of Marengo.

Here's a deep dive into the fighting of 1800 in southern Germany which culminated in the battle of Höchstadt on 19 June. Thanks to David Hollins for talking us through the campaign and the battle which proved such a big breakthrough for France against the Austrians in such detail. This is the first part of a multi-part episode, with more to come on…

Liam Gauci, curator at the Malta Maritime Museum, interviews Sakis Gekas, Associate Professor in the Department of History at York University. Dr Gekas is Hellenic Heritage Foundation Chair of Modern Greek History. Following their conversation about the establishment of the Septinsular Republic on April 2nd 1800, Liam and Sakis explore the subseque…

1800... April... May... June... Three months in which Generals Desaix and Kellermann help Napoleon to victory against the Austrians at Marengo... French hopes in Egypt receive a big setback with the assassination of their commander, General Kleber... and in the Ionian Islands off mainland Greece, a new republic emerges out of political turmoil. Thi…

Professor Emeritus Elise Wirtschafter of CalPolyPomona is joined by Alexander Mikaberidze and Charles Esdaile to discuss the unique nature of Russian imperialism; and the challenges and responsibilities of being historians in times of war.

1800. January... February... March... Three months in which Napoleon Bonaparte familiarises himself with the levers of power... French general Jean-Victor Moreau's battle plans clash with those of his new boss... and the election to choose a new Pope becomes delayed by division. This is episode 33 of the Napoleonic Quarterly, covering three months …

Bernie Campbell is joined by Charles, Alexes x2, Josh and a host of contributors and Patrons to assess the rather disappointing Hollywood blockbuster 'Napoleon'. Discussion points included: -how Spain played absolutely no part in the Napoleonic Wars whatsoever -the hitherto unappreciated importance of trenches at Waterloo -why Josephine shouting 'y…

This third edition of 'Napoleonic Qs', our listener Q&A format, was recorded on 19 November 2023. Thanks to all those who have commented or left questions! Introductory section: Charles Esdaile and Alexander Mikaberidze offer their thoughts on director Ridley Scott's attacks on historians. [13:30] - On abusive language targeting Prof Esdaile [23:47…

In this episode, Bernie Campbell follows up his interview with Charles by talking with Alexander Mikaberidze about the books he has found inspiring during his work on the Napoleonic era. It's a really interesting list, since Alex's background has brought him into contact with some interesting works that may not be familiar to the English speaking w…

William Doyle is Emeritus Professor of History at the University of Bristol. As the author of the Oxford History of the French Revolution he is also the rescuer of many an undergraduate essay crisis. William's new book Napoleon At Peace, however, sees him examine Bonaparte's performance in the top job in those first years of the 19th century. Its s…

While we wait for Season 5 to begin, we at Quartermaster Productions have a series of Bonus Episodes we plan to share with all of you. In our first episode, Bernie Campbell interviews esteemed panellist Charles Esdaile about the books he has enjoyed and the books he would recommend for listeners interested in a deeper dive into the Napoleonic Era. …

1799. October... November... December... Three months in which Napoleon Bonaparte forces France away from democratic politics in the coup of Brumaire... a frustrated and disappointed Tsar Paul gives up on the Second Coalition... and after another British failure in the Low Countries, British ministers are in denial. This is episode 32 of the Napole…

Napoleonic Quarterly regulars Charles Esdaile and Alexander Mikaberidze join Alex Stevenson to respond to listeners' questions and comments. Featuring the following topics: [3:46] - an anti-Charles missive [21:07] - the sexual proclivities of Napoleon Bonaparte [32:39] - French leadership in the Revolution and afterwards: executive by committee vs …