The book is divided into seven chapters: Wars of the French Revolution; The road to Austerlitz; War and Peace; Invading Russia; Moscow; Retreat! and Decline and fall of the French Empire. Readers are given a narrative of the various campaigns, told through extracts from memoirs of French officers and men. The majority – nearly a hundred pages – of the book is devoted to the invasion of Russia in 1812 and its aftermath.

In their short Conclusion, the editors suggest that ‘the advent of peace [in 1815] transformed Russia from a remote power, almost alien to Europe, into a crucial player in the continent’s politics…the Napoleonic Wars definitely marked Russia’s arrival on the European political scene.’

Eight pages of monochrome plates, bound in the centre of the book, include reproductions of contemporary portraits and battle-scenes, the majority of which will be familiar to readers. Some, such as Lejeune’s pictures of the eve of Austerlitz and the battle of Borodino, cannot be done justice in such half-page reproductions.

The only map in the entire book is a half-page reproduction of that of the Battle of Friedland from the Encyclopaedia Britannica of 1911.

References are given in footnotes to the text. A three-page bibliography and an index conclude the book.

Readers who wargame any of the campaigns fought by the French against the Russians will appreciate the editors making these primary sources available in English.

Miniature Wargames, Arthur Harman

A wonderful book that analyzes and brings back to life from Austerlitz to Borodino La Moscowa, passing through the formidable charge of Eylau, the epic of battles but also of alliances between France and Russia. Extremely well documented, this book helped me understand why Russian culture is still today so deeply rooted in the French collective unconscious and why Russians continue to toast "Prince Murat".

Prince Joachim Murat

Bernard and Rene Wilkin bring fresh insights into the trauma that the French Army experienced when facing the Russian army. Using a wealth of published letters and diaries – many never translated to English before- as well as unpublished archive documents, the march on Moscow, Borodino and the route are recalled in compelling detail. Of all Napoleon’s enemies, the Russians were the most tenacious: since the Flanders campaign, the Russians had challenged France for control and dominance of Europe. For Russia, the war with Napoleon was an “annoyance” that distracted from the war in the east with Turkey. Yet war when it came to the borders of Mother Russia, showed the Russian soldiers were every bit the equal of the French. In the climatic campaigns of 1813 and 1814, French eye-witnesses relate the savage brutality of the last battles of the Empire and how Napoleon was nearly captured by Cossacks. Bernard and Rene are to be congratulated for making these sources available to the reader, in a narrative drive by the men and civilians who witnessed the fighting first hand. The authors show, how Russia once involved in European affairs, became transformed into a European super power, resulting in a trauma cemented into French and Russian national psyche: 1812 which marked the high and low points of the war. Highly recommended.

Paul L Dawson, fellow author

'A fascinating and often intimate glimpse into the Revolutionary and Napoleonic wars against Russia from the perspective of French officers and soldiers: highly recommended.'

Andrew Field