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The Memoirs of Baron De Marbot: Late Lieutenant - General in the French Army
This is a reproduction of a book published before 1923. This book may have occasional imperfections such as missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. that were either part of the original artifact, or were introduced by the scanning process. We believe this work is culturally important, and despite the imperfections, have elected to bring it back into print as part of our continuing commitment to the preservation of printed works worldwide. We appreciate your understanding of the imperfections in the preservation process, and hope you enjoy this valuable book.
728 pages, Paperback
First published October 3, 2009
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133 people want to read
About the author
Jean-Baptiste de Marbot
21 books5 followersJean Baptiste Antoine Marcellin de Marbot
City of Birth: La Riviere, France
City of Death: Paris, France
French soldier. Served as general under Napoleon during the Hundred Days.
City of Birth: La Riviere, France
City of Death: Paris, France
French soldier. Served as general under Napoleon during the Hundred Days.
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
February 27, 2018
I would say this book is probably 3.5 stars, but GR, in its wisdom, doesn't offer that option. Marbot concentrates on his early life for the first part of the book. He benefited from the fact that his father was a general, who unfortunately died during a typhus outbreak in Genoa. Still, his father had many friends who helped the young man along. He was wounded several times, fighting in many battles such Eylau, however, much of the book is told from a second-hand perspective because he was not always on hand to see some of the great actions of the Napoleonic period.
Most of his service was with the 23rd Chasseurs of which he eventually became its colonel. As such, he had many entertaining anecdotes. These and his conclusions about the debacle of the Russian campaign are probably the most interesting parts of the book. Also of interest, were his opinions on some of the marshals and generals he was assigned to, such as Bernadotte and Augerau. He despised the former, but seemed fond of the latter. All in all, you can tell he was devoted to the cause of France, but he does criticize some of the mistakes made by Napoleon in Russia and his invovement in Spain.
The book ends with the 1814 campaign. I enjoyed reading it, but I definitely had the feeling he was puffing up his own reputation. His men seemed devoted to him, and he frequently gave advice, which 'should' have been followed but wasn't. Like many men of war, perhaps time polished his memory of
the past to his advantage.
Most of his service was with the 23rd Chasseurs of which he eventually became its colonel. As such, he had many entertaining anecdotes. These and his conclusions about the debacle of the Russian campaign are probably the most interesting parts of the book. Also of interest, were his opinions on some of the marshals and generals he was assigned to, such as Bernadotte and Augerau. He despised the former, but seemed fond of the latter. All in all, you can tell he was devoted to the cause of France, but he does criticize some of the mistakes made by Napoleon in Russia and his invovement in Spain.
The book ends with the 1814 campaign. I enjoyed reading it, but I definitely had the feeling he was puffing up his own reputation. His men seemed devoted to him, and he frequently gave advice, which 'should' have been followed but wasn't. Like many men of war, perhaps time polished his memory of
the past to his advantage.
February 18, 2023
Written by the late lieutenant general for his children and published posthumously in Paris, in 1891, these memoirs chiefly depict the Baron de Marbot's experiences during 15 years of campaigning for the French empire in the Napoleonic wars. While I am no historian and cannot attest to which details and numbers may or may not be exaggerated for effect or bias, what I can say is that either way this book is an absolutely superb read and quickly became an all time favorite of mine that I cannot recommend enough to anyone with an interest in the Napoleonic wars, or military history and war memoirs in general. To me, it is a priceless thing.
While the book contains some very dry sections of descriptions of troop movements and maneuvers and such things that most who are familiar with military history will likely be accustomed to, and some commentaries from the author on important events written in order to put his experiences in their historical context, the real meat of the book is in the wonderful raw descriptions of his first hand experiences on the ground in battlefields and in dangerous territories, and his "behind the scenes" perspective from his direct interactions with many legendary Marshals of Napoleons Grande Armée, and even Napoleon himself.
The book begins with some quite humorous and entertaining tales of the Baron's childhood and youth, which are quickly contrasted with the harsh realities of the horrors of post-revolutionary France, and features some small bits of interesting, and I dare say, nuanced commentaries from the Baron's father, General Jean-Antoine Marbot, on his disgust with the terrible atrocities committed by the new government, and his justifications for continuing his career in the army despite his qualms.
Getting into Marbot's long and storied military career under the Emperor Napoleon, almost 15 years of constant campaigning, we get into the good stuff. highlights from the this narrative include Marbot's experiences during the siege of Genoa where the reader is treated to a great spectacle of life under siege in a city as the weeks drag on and attrition sets in and the threat of Disease, starvation, and death are a dark cloud constantly looming overhead, including some interesting anecdotes of his interactions with other people, deeply personal tragedy, and the handling of prisoners of war under such extreme conditions where the rules of war and human decency are pushed to their limits.
other highlights include the battle of Eylau, where Blizzard conditions on the battlefields spell disaster for thousands of men and almost cost our man his life, harrowing descriptions of marching through burned out villages with the sound, sight, and scent of charred corpses filling the air, the savage resistance at the the second siege of Zaragoza, a solo mission across the Spanish country side were death in the form of a violently angry occupied populace and guerrilla soldiers is creeping in ever nook and cranny, various other engagements throughout the Spain and Portugal, the Battle of Aspern-Essling, the Battle of Wagram, his time commanding Cavalry during the Russian campaign, including a humorous anecdote regarding a mission that led him and a selection of his men through a swamp, the Battle of Leipzig, and many many others.
Unfortunately, perhaps driven by grief of loss, our man quit writing his memoirs, so our narrative ends very abruptly following the defeat of France in War of the Sixth Coalition which led to Napoleon's abdication and the restoration the Bourbon monarchy in the person of Louis XVIII. Thankfully, in the edition I read at least, a final chapter is included which offers some scant details of the Barons return to action in the battle of Waterloo and some of his later career in the Algerian expeditions after returning from exile, as well as his personal life. while i wish there was more, this at least offers some closure to the abruptness of the memoirs conclusion.
As far as his own biases go, the Baron seems to keep a cool and level head, and communicates much unbiased praise and criticism where it is due regarding the people he crosses path with on both sides of the conflicts and both people he personally liked and disliked.
The one exception to this rule was that it seems to me that he harbored a very bitter, almost personal resentment of the Russian General Kutuzov during his recounting of the Russian campaign.
All in all, my time with this book was precious. It is truly an all time favorite of mine, offering an absolutely priceless and visceral first-person look at life in the ground in one of humanities most fascinating periods in military history and history an general.
While the book contains some very dry sections of descriptions of troop movements and maneuvers and such things that most who are familiar with military history will likely be accustomed to, and some commentaries from the author on important events written in order to put his experiences in their historical context, the real meat of the book is in the wonderful raw descriptions of his first hand experiences on the ground in battlefields and in dangerous territories, and his "behind the scenes" perspective from his direct interactions with many legendary Marshals of Napoleons Grande Armée, and even Napoleon himself.
The book begins with some quite humorous and entertaining tales of the Baron's childhood and youth, which are quickly contrasted with the harsh realities of the horrors of post-revolutionary France, and features some small bits of interesting, and I dare say, nuanced commentaries from the Baron's father, General Jean-Antoine Marbot, on his disgust with the terrible atrocities committed by the new government, and his justifications for continuing his career in the army despite his qualms.
Getting into Marbot's long and storied military career under the Emperor Napoleon, almost 15 years of constant campaigning, we get into the good stuff. highlights from the this narrative include Marbot's experiences during the siege of Genoa where the reader is treated to a great spectacle of life under siege in a city as the weeks drag on and attrition sets in and the threat of Disease, starvation, and death are a dark cloud constantly looming overhead, including some interesting anecdotes of his interactions with other people, deeply personal tragedy, and the handling of prisoners of war under such extreme conditions where the rules of war and human decency are pushed to their limits.
other highlights include the battle of Eylau, where Blizzard conditions on the battlefields spell disaster for thousands of men and almost cost our man his life, harrowing descriptions of marching through burned out villages with the sound, sight, and scent of charred corpses filling the air, the savage resistance at the the second siege of Zaragoza, a solo mission across the Spanish country side were death in the form of a violently angry occupied populace and guerrilla soldiers is creeping in ever nook and cranny, various other engagements throughout the Spain and Portugal, the Battle of Aspern-Essling, the Battle of Wagram, his time commanding Cavalry during the Russian campaign, including a humorous anecdote regarding a mission that led him and a selection of his men through a swamp, the Battle of Leipzig, and many many others.
Unfortunately, perhaps driven by grief of loss, our man quit writing his memoirs, so our narrative ends very abruptly following the defeat of France in War of the Sixth Coalition which led to Napoleon's abdication and the restoration the Bourbon monarchy in the person of Louis XVIII. Thankfully, in the edition I read at least, a final chapter is included which offers some scant details of the Barons return to action in the battle of Waterloo and some of his later career in the Algerian expeditions after returning from exile, as well as his personal life. while i wish there was more, this at least offers some closure to the abruptness of the memoirs conclusion.
As far as his own biases go, the Baron seems to keep a cool and level head, and communicates much unbiased praise and criticism where it is due regarding the people he crosses path with on both sides of the conflicts and both people he personally liked and disliked.
The one exception to this rule was that it seems to me that he harbored a very bitter, almost personal resentment of the Russian General Kutuzov during his recounting of the Russian campaign.
All in all, my time with this book was precious. It is truly an all time favorite of mine, offering an absolutely priceless and visceral first-person look at life in the ground in one of humanities most fascinating periods in military history and history an general.
May 2, 2013
Ernest Hemingway compiled a anthology of war literature on the eve of WWII so young Americans would have a better understanding of what war was about. Tucked away in there were several excerpts from Marbot's memoirs. Marbot was a soldier in Napoleon's army and wrote a remarkable account of his service from the time he was a young officer until he became a commander of cavalry himself. The stories are vivid, personal and very real. I was so taken by the excerpts that I looked long and hard to find a copy (it was out of print) back in the days before internet searches made that easy.
January 15, 2024
four star rating only applies to people with an interest in napoleonic period, would not recommend to others. incredible snapshot of the turmoil and lifestyle of an imperial cavalry trooper
March 12, 2018
The memoirs of Marbot takes you on the path on an accomplished general who has seen a lot of the Napoleonic wars. It shows an interesting second perspective that goes beyond the biographies of the titans of the periods to share insight about “commoners” (for instance, i really enjoyed the stories around Augereau’s dueling random people because of some bataillions’ rivalries). You really get a better understanding of the feeling of the soldiers and countrymen of the time , the organizational details of the army (Marbot studied the enemy armies) and more.
Worth a read if you’re into that period or you’re interested in the grande armée.
Worth a read if you’re into that period or you’re interested in the grande armée.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews