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Napoleon's Defeat of the Habsburgs (1809: Thunder on the Danube Book 1) Kindle Edition

by John H. Gill (Author) Format: Kindle Edition
4.3 4.3 out of 5 stars 110 ratings
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This history of the 1809 Franco-Austrian War presents an in-depth chronicle Napoleon’s last great victory.
 
On April 10th, 1809, while Napoleon was occupied in Western Europe with the Peninsular War, the Austrian Empire launched a surprise attack that sparked the War of the Fifth Coalition. Though France would ultimately win the conflict, it would be Napoleon’s last victorious war. Even then, the margin of French superiority was decreasing. Archduke Charles, the best of the Habsburg commanders, led a reformed Austrian Army that was arguably the best ever fielded by the Danubian Monarchy.
 
Though caught off guard, the French Emperor reversed a dire strategic situation with stunning blows that he called his 'most brilliant and most skillful maneuvers'. Following a breathless pursuit down the Danube valley, Napoleon occupied the palaces of the Habsburgs for the second time in four years. He would win many battles in his future campaigns, but never again would one of Europe's great powers lie broken at his feet.
 
In Thunder on the Danube, historian John H. Gill tackles the political background of the war, including the motivations behind the Austrian offensive. Gill also demonstrates that 1809 was both a high point of the First Empire as well as a watershed, for Napoleon's armies were declining in quality and he was beginning to display the corrosive flaws that contributed to his downfall five years later. His opponents, on the other hand, were improving.
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  1. Book 1 of 3
    1809: Thunder on the Danube
  2. Print length
    894 pages
  3. Language
    English
  4. Sticky notes
    On Kindle Scribe
  5. Publisher
    Frontline Books
  6. Publication date
    May 19, 2014
  7. File size
    11618 KB
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Editorial Reviews

Review

“…gives a detailed account of the decisions, movements, maneuvers, and individuals involved... does well on the military aspects of the story…I look forward to seeing the next two volumes.”
Air Power History

“…moves fluently from the strategic, through the operational and into the tactical modes and back, providing a rich and enthralling narrative and analysis…”
Military Illustrated

About the Author

John H. Gill (Jack), a military historian specializing in the Napoleonic era, is the author of With Eagles to Glory and the editor of A Soldier for Napoleon. He has contributed numerous papers to the Consortium on the Revolutionary Era and other academic forums. His latest work is 1809: Thunder on the Danube, just published in March 2008, which is to be the first of three volumes.

An associate professor at the Near East-South Asia Center for Strategic Studies in Washington, DC, he has also published on military history and
contemporary security issues relating to India, Pakistan, and other South Asian countries.

A retired US Army colonel, he lives in Virginia, USA with his wife, and their two teenage sons.

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B00NIUGG5C
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Frontline Books; Reprint edition (May 19, 2014)
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ May 19, 2014
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 11618 KB
  • Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 894 pages
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.3 4.3 out of 5 stars 110 ratings

About the author

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John H. Gill

John H. Gill

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John H. Gill (Jack) is an an associate fellow with the International Institute for Strategic Studies of London and an adjunct professor at the Near East-South Asia Center for Strategic Studies, affiliated with the National Defense University in Washington DC. His most recent book is The Battle of Znaim: Napoleon, the Habsburgs and End of the War of 1809 (2020), but he has long specialized in the military history of the Napoleonic period with previous publications that include 1809—Thunder on the Danube, With Eagles to Glory, and A Soldier for Napoleon (editor). He has also authored book chapters, journal articles and book reviews on this era, led tours of Napoleonic battlefields and presented papers to the Society for Military History, the Consortium on the Revolutionary Era and the German Studies Association. A former U.S. Army South Asia Foreign Area Officer, his other publications include an Atlas of the 1971 India-Pakistan War, chapters on current Indian and Pakistani political-military affairs, U.S.-India relations and India-Pakistan crisis behavior. An avid boardgamer with several Napoleonic simulations to his credit, he resides in northern Virginia where he is able to study battlefields of the American Civil War on a regular basis.

Customer reviews

4.3 out of 5 stars
4.3 out of 5
110 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Paul Krause
5.0 out of 5 stars Philipp Stadion's War
Reviewed in the United States on July 27, 2014
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I've long waited for a more affordable and accessible version of Mr. Gill's three volume history of the "War of the Fifth Coalition", 1809: Thunder on the Danube to appear. So in this, I am very pleased that Frontline books has produced Mr. Gill's magisterial three volume history into paperback form.

The first volume largely deals with the politics, perhaps, paranoia, of the Habsburg Court in fearing that Napoleon was going to invade and dismantle the ancient Austrian (more properly - Habsburg) Monarchy. The Court was filled with many aristocrats of the former Holy Roman Empire, born in the German states that were not directly ruled over by the Austrian Archduke (in this case, Franz I/II). Many of these expatriates, Philipp Graf von Stadion among them, created a strong and powerful cabal known as the Kriegspartei, "War Party," and clamored for war with French. Their vision was apocalyptic in nature, and overly optimistic. Believing that the Germans of the Rhine Confederacy would join the Habsburg cause, leading to the final showdown with Napoleon, ending with his defeat, and the whimsical dream of the restoration of the Holy Roman Empire.

At the same time, Austria's greatest commander of the Revolutionary and Napoleonic Era -- Archduke Charles, a younger brother of the Emperor Franz, was hardly favoring war. A hero of the Revolutionary Era, Charles had seen first hand the ability of Napoleon and the French Army. He instituted a sweeping series of reforms to bolster the Habsburg Army, including modeling it off of the French "Corps" System. Thus, when war finally began in April, Austria had a much more modern (but still cumbersome) army to fight the French.

Napoleon had gotten whim of the invasion, and rushed off to Bavaria (the principle theater of the first weeks of the war) to take control of his army. In a stunning blow, to which Napoleon fondly remembered these "8 Days" in April, he nearly crushed Archduke Charles who barely managed to slip away into Bohemia to fight another day. Leading to the rest of the war of 1809, which Mr. Gill covers in Volume II and Volume III of his work.

On a side note concerning the integrity of the paper back edition, the covering is somewhat lacking and easily frays after extensive handling. Of course, this is nothing a well-placed piece of tape can't fix, but handling them with a little more proper diligence is all that is necessary to prevent the covering from fraying off.
21 people found this helpful
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James Holloway
4.0 out of 5 stars All the details, but a very tedious read
Reviewed in the United States on February 1, 2023
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The Napoleonic Wars are a passion of mine and last year I decided that I would read deeply regarding each campaign, using Chandler and Petre's books to provide an overview, then a deep-dive with an author specializing in one campaign. Gill is, quite definitely, the authority on the 1809 campaign. The level of detail he amasses in movements/actions down to the brigade level is truly amazing. Alas, the book is an incredibly tedious read. It's not badly written, it just lacks any sort of spark, and it can also be hard to keep the bounty of details straight (even with the excellent maps). In addition, Gill is a great admirer of Bonaparte. I am not. So when Gill writes about Napoleon's "dynamic spirit" and morale-boosting speeches inspiring the troops to prodigies of valor, I quite honestly cringe. He's not wrong, of course; Bonaparte was, for better or worse, the greatest soldier in history and a magnificent leader, but the fan-boy stuff just grates on me a bit.

I'll definitely read the whole series, but I won't enjoy it, I don't think. Maybe it will pick up in Vol 2 (Aspern/Essling) or Vol 3 (Wagram), but can't say Im hopeful. Anyway, the TL;DR here is absolutely essential for any Napoleonic Wars scholar, but a tedious slog to read.
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Alfy
5.0 out of 5 stars Exhaustive work, but not for the faint of heart
Reviewed in the United States on April 13, 2017
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I was looking for something complete on the 1809 campaign, and I was not disappointed. Gill dedicates half of this first volume to the diplomatic machinations, mostly Austrian, that took place in preparation of the war. Austria's paranoia, but also opportunistic stab at taking advantage of Napoleon's Spanish quagmire are described in great details, as well as both countries preparations for war, including the half-successful attempts at modernising the Austrian army. Compositions of each armies are provided in great details, with inclusion of helpful details on the level of experience and the personalities of the various commanders. When the hostilities start, the maps are of great help in following the armies positions and movements, although as always in Kindle editions, they are not as sharp as they could be, even when zooming in. Nevertheless, Gill is equally at ease when describing strategic and tactical manoeuvres, and one never feels lost as to the aims of each side.
The style is always clear and readable, but the level of detail will rebut those looking for a more casual read of the campaign. Thunder on the Danube is not an epic telling, it is an attempt at producing a serious, and perhaps definitive opus on the campaign. As for me, I look forward reading Gill's treatment of the battles of Aspern-Essling and Wagram.
3 people found this helpful
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Michael Lapelosa
5.0 out of 5 stars Very Comprehensive
Reviewed in the United States on October 4, 2016
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This book is the first volume of a three volume history of The Franco-Austrian War of 1809 which was Napoleon’s last victorious war. In this volume the author depicts the political background to the war and the opening battles of Abensberg, Eggmühl and Regensberg. In many ways this is one of Napoleon's most interesting campaigns. Although taken by surprise, he completely reversed a dire strategic situation.

The author does an excellent job of unraveling the tedious diplomatic maneuvers, the intricate military movements and the complex strategic situation with superb prose which makes these situations clear and understandable. In addition, fantastic maps allow the reader to follow the action. The text is balanced, objective and informative.

However, this is a VERY detailed work, perhaps not for the casual reader. If you are interested in this historical era, if you have a working knowledge of the Napoleonic Wars, and if you want a deeper understanding then this is a book for you!
8 people found this helpful
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David K.
3.0 out of 5 stars Three Stars
Reviewed in the United States on July 21, 2016
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Tedious
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Kindle Customer
4.0 out of 5 stars Well Researched
Reviewed in the United States on September 12, 2019
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This work is highly detailed right down to individual unit action. The casual reader therefore, may find it a bit hard to follow, but it is well written and easy to follow the general actions of the both armies.
3 people found this helpful
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James T McGuffick
5.0 out of 5 stars Five Stars
Reviewed in the United States on April 19, 2018
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so good I purchased the series
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Top reviews from other countries

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Vladimir Medev
5.0 out of 5 stars Good narative.
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on December 5, 2023
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I`m almoust finished this book and I`m very satisfied by narative and maps. Recomend it very strong.
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Giovanni
5.0 out of 5 stars Completo
Reviewed in Italy on July 19, 2016
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Ho comprato tutti e tre i libri della serie sulla campagna del 1809. È sorprendente il livello di dettaglio. Decisamente consigliati.
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Andy Gass
5.0 out of 5 stars Readable and revealing
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on March 9, 2021
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Excellent, derailed but very readable. Just when you think you know all there is two about this campaign, Gill pulls this very credable and extremely well researched book out of the hat. The political build up is particularly revealing and Napoleons build and deployment up of his forces in face of the Austrian agressian while still heavily committed in Spain is pure genius with Gill explaining a very misunderstood part of this war. Highly recommended.
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Amazon Customer
3.0 out of 5 stars Detailed, impressive first part of three - but really short
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on February 11, 2018
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Very detailed - sometimes a bit too much - and it's sometimes hard to read as an ebook because of the small maps.

As the first part of three, it's very good on the reasons for war, and the incredible series of mistakes the Austrians made in the build-up and in the first days of the campaign - especially the ones they'd made before when fighting Napoleon, although it also points out that those mistakes led Napoleon to underestimate the Austrians in the next stage of the war.

However, the ebook ends at 59% - after that the appendices start! This is something that happens a lot with ebooks, particularly historical ones - when was the last time you read a paperback or hardback where the book ended before three-fifths of the way through?
One person found this helpful
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Gregor Morgan
5.0 out of 5 stars Masterful
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on September 18, 2019
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Excellent read. Exceptionally detailed account of the early conflict of 1809 against Austria. Looking forward to reading next volumes. Recommended.
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