The Coalition Crumbles, Napoleon Returns

The 1799 Campaign in Italy and Switzerland, Volume 2

Carl von Clausewitz, Christopher Pringle, Nicholas Murray

• Publisher: University Press of Kansas
• Year: 2021
• Print ISBN: 9780700630349, 9780700630332
• eBook ISBN: 9780700630356
• Topic: History
• Subtopic: French History
• Index: History

Carl von Clausewitz (1780–1831) is best known for his masterpiece of military theory On War, yet that work formed only the first three of his ten-volume published writings. The others, historical analyses of the wars that roiled Europe from 1789 through 1815, informed and shaped Clausewitz’s military thought, so they offer invaluable insight into his dialectical, often difficult theoretical masterwork.

Among these historical works, one of the most important is Der Feldzug von 1799 in Italien und der Schweiz, which covers an important phase of the French Revolutionary Wars. The Coalition Crumbles, Napoleon Returns focuses mainly on the campaigns in Switzerland, where the cracks that finally fractured the alliance between Russia and Austria and led to the defeat of the Second Coalition first opened.

Moving from strategy to battle scene to analysis, this first English translation of volume 6 of Clausewitz’s collected works nimbly conveys the character of Clausewitz’s writing in all its registers: the brisk, often powerful description of events as they unfolded and the critical reflections on strategic theory and its implications.

The Coalition Crumbles, Napoleon Returns features Suvorov’s astonishing march through the St. Gotthard Pass and major actions such as the Second Battle of Zurich and the Battle of Mannheim. The nature of the campaign highlighted the contrast between the opposing armies’ different strengths and weaknesses and the problems of fighting as part of a coalition. This book will expand readers’ experience and understanding of not only this critical moment in European history but also the thought and writings of the modern master of military philosophy.

Index

Page numbers reflect those in print edition.

Airolo, 31, 33, 87, 89n20, 129–133, 141, 158

Albini, Franz, 24, 203, 219, 220

Alessandria, 127, 239, 242, 250, 254, 261, 262–263, 267, 274, 277

allies, working with, 72–80, 163, 208n11, 217–218, 220n33, 223n41, 272n36, 272–273n38–39, 287–292

Alt- and Neu-Lussheim, action at, 222–227

Am-Steg, 32–33, 90, 136, 138–140, 156, 300

Ancona, 239, 269, 271–274

Andelfingen, 158, 160, 161, 181, 215

Anschauung, 113n43, 140n73. See also genius; intuition

Auffenberg, Franz,

defeat of, 41, 65, 285, 300

Pragel, 147–148

troop movement and disposition, 83, 84, 131, 132, 136, 138–140, 142, 143, 144, 146, 149, 154, 158, 174, 175, 179, 215, 291, 301

Augereau, Charles, 235

Aulic Council, 170, 266n29, 290, 305

Bachmann, Niklaus, 83, 103

Bagration, Prince Peter, 7, 148, 152

Baraguey d’Hilliers, Louis, 23, 202, 203, 219, 222, 223

Basel, 9n2, 11, 15, 18, 26, 47, 60, 71, 8...

Table of contents

• Front Cover
• Half Title
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Dedication
• Table of Contents
• Translators’ Note
• Editors’ Note
• A Note on Wargaming
• Acknowledgments
• Introduction
• Original Editor’s Note
• Clausewitz’s Introduction
• 6. The Main Armies in Switzerland under the Archduke and Masséna Face Each Other Inactive for Three Months. Lecourbe Defeats the Austrian Left Wing in the Mountains
• 7. Suvorov Moves to Switzerland. Korsakov Is Beaten by Masséna at Zurich. The Allies Retreat behind the Rhine
• 8. Archduke Charles Relieves Philippsburg, Takes Mannheim, and Returns to Lake Constance. Suvorov Marches away to Swabia; End of the Campaign in Switzerland. Starray Relieves Philippsburg Twice. End of the Campaign on the Rhine
• 9. Melas Beats Championnet at Genola and Takes Cuneo. Fröhlich Besieges and Takes Ancona
• 10. Editors’ Overview and Afterword
• Bibliography
• Index
• Back Cover