The Napoleonic Wars Podcast

1812 was a transformative year in the Napoleonic Wars. Whilst Napoleon lauched his disastrous invasion of Russia, at the other end of the European continent his 'Spanish Ulcer' which was the Peninsular War began to bleed. As the Allies won key victories at Ciudad Rodrigo in January, Badajoz in April and Salamanca in July it opened up an opportunity that had not even been a dream for three years, the liberation of Madrid. Maintaining that liberation would be more challenging than it first appeared. Allied troops marched into Madrid, stayed an Autumn and then left, how were they treated by the locals? Gavin Daly returns to the podcast to discuss all this and more. Gavin Daly's works; The British Soldier in the Peninsular War: Encounters with Spain and Portugal, 1808-1814 | SpringerLink Storm and Sack

Professor Noelle Gallagher joins us for a Vox-pop from the British Society for Eighteenth Century Studies Conference. Noelle schools Zack on why gout is NOT an 18th Century disease, how society viewed gout, and why it could impact on whether man was considered as 'manly'.

Dr Tom Cutterham joins us for the first episode of the Birth of America series, which will address US history from independence in 1783 up to 1825. Today, we discuss the Confederation period, in which America had 99 problems but a President wasn't one... Read about Tom's research here: https://www.birmingham.ac.uk/staff/profiles/history/cutterham-tom Follow the podcast, join our mailing list, and browse our shop at: https://linktr.ee/napwarspod

In 1813 and 1814, the British army was enjoying an unremitting period of success, or was it? Why were the British so interested in going back to the Netherlands after the disasterous expeditions of recent memory? Andrew Bamford returns to the show to talk about the British expedition to the Low Countries in 1813 and 14. We discussed the misconceptions, the characters at the heart of the story and all the action in a double bill on the campaign that is so often pushed the sidelines in favour of the more glamorous events of Wellington success in the Peninsular. This is Britain’s forgotten campaign: Graeme and the Netherlands. Andrew Bamford's, published works can be found at the following links; Pen and Sword Books: Titles by Andrew Bamford Search Results | Helion & Company Sickness, Suffering, and the Sword - University of Oklahoma Press

Ben Carp joins us to talk about the fire that gutted New York during the American Revolution, how the popular history of that fire is all wrong, and why Washington wasn't quite as innocent as everyone likes to think. Buy Ben's book: https://yalebooks.yale.edu/book/9780300276688/the-great-new-york-fire-of-1776/ Join our mailing list at https://linktr.ee/napwarspod

On the anniversary of the Battle of Corunna, this episode recites the famous poem by Charles Wolfe depicting the burial of Sir John Moore, and reflect on whether these soldiers deserve better than to be curiosities in museums.

Forget Sharpe, the Light Infantry of the 18th Century are far more interesting precisely because they weren't SAS adonises led by a mullet-wearing Yorkshireman.  Andrew Dorman, Alex Burns and Robbie MacNiven return in the latest instalment of our 18th Century way of war series, to talk about Light Infantry. Alex's book: https://www.helion.co.uk/military-history-books/infantry-in-battle-1733-1783-.php Our socials and shop: https://linktr.ee/napwarspod

Peter Smithurst joins us to talk about how the musket developed, the complexities of making large quantities of them in the 18th and 19th century, and why the French Charleville was the best of the bunch! Buy Peter's book: https://www.pen-and-sword.co.uk/The-Evolution-of-Gun-Making-Hardback/p/50908 Join our mailing list at https://linktr.ee/napwarspod

Was Napoleon a democrat? Malcolm Crook returns to talk about whether 'Napoleonic democracy' is an oxymoron, what the deal was with those dodgy plebiscites, and why he's been converted towards Bonaparte in some respects when it comes to electoral systems in France during the period. Our socials, patreon and mailing list: ⁠https://linktr.ee/napwarspod⁠

Josh Provan and Zack return to talk about Napoleon's personal descent into Spain, why British commander Sir John Moore might be overhyped, and the impact of the disastrous Corunna Campaign. Review this show on Apple Podcasts! Please, and thank you! Josh's books: https://www.helion.co.uk/people/joshua-provan.php Our social media and merch: https://linktr.ee/napwarspod