ePub Knowing Otherwise: Race; Gender; and Implicit Understanding by Alexis Shotwell in History

Description

Little has been written about the defense of the Kingdom of Northern Italy; and this is the first study in English to detail the two-year conflict (1813-1814) within the larger context of the Napoleonic Wars. The French commander responsible for the defense was Eugene Beauharnais; stepson of Napoleon and son-in-law of the King of Bavaria. Outnumbered three to one; Beauharnais fought an outstanding defensive campaign; covering all of Napoleon's southern front while Napoleon faced off against the main allied armies as they invaded France.This was only Beauharnais's third command; and as a result of his less than stellar performance in his two earlier posts; he had acquired a poor reputation as a leader. Nafziger and Gioannini explain; however; that in this instance Beauharnais proved himself once and for all as the commander of an independent army; defending one of the most important parts of the French Napoleonic Empire. He made full use of geography; keeping his army in being; rather than risking it to seek a decision in the field. Because his stepson held the plains of Italy; Napoleon was able to concentrate his energies upon the evacuation of Germany and to demonstrate his military prowess in France.