In October 1813, Napoleon had suffered his
heaviest ever defeat - at Leipzig… the Battle of the Nations. Surviving French forces, exhausted, sick,
and demoralized, retreated to the River Rhine, and prepared to defend France from invasion. But in November, the armies of the Sixth Coalition
paused their advance, and Austrian foreign minister Metternich offered peace terms: ‘The Frankfurt Proposals’ would allow
Napoleon to keep his throne, if France returned to her so-called ‘natural frontiers’. It was the best offer Napoleon was likely
to get, now that his back was to the wall, and all Europe’s great powers were united
against him. Even so, he did not accept the terms, he merely
agreed to reopen negotiations. To the Allies, and many in France itself,
it proved that Napoleon would not listen to reason. The war went on, and by January 1814, Napoleon’s
situation looked even worse. Many of his besieged garrisons in the east
were starved into surrender. Marshal Davout with 34,000 men in Hamburg
was now besieged. Denmark, one of France’s last allies, was
invaded by Bernadotte’s Swedish army, and made to join the Coalition. French troops evacuated the Netherlands, which
reasserted its independence after nearly 20 years of French control. In Italy, Eugène’s army faced a new enemy:
Joachim Murat, King of Naples - now marching north with 30,000 men, to honour his new alliance
with the Sixth Coalition. In Paris, Napoleon responded to the crisis
with a series of extreme measures: property taxes doubled, state salaries and pensions
suspended, 300,000 new conscripts called up… from a country already exhausted by 20 years
of war. He ordered the release of Pope Pius (under
French house arrest for the last five years), to try to shore up his support in Italy. He even agreed to release Fernando, the Bourbon
king of Spain, to take up his throne, in exchange for peace between France and Spain – a condition
that Fernando was in no position to honour. But these concessions were too little, far
too late. In January, two Coalition armies crossed the
Rhine into France: Blücher’s Army of Silesia… and Schwarzenberg’s
Army of Bohemia. Outnumbered French forces in their path could
only fall back. On 25th January, Napoleon said farewell to
his wife and son at the Tuileries Palace, before leaving for the front. He would never see either of them again. With just 70,000 men, he faced odds of four-to-one. Most of his troops were raw conscripts, some
without uniforms, many just learning how to hold a musket. But for the first time in years, Napoleon’s
army was so small that he’d be able to exercise direct command over all its movements. The result would be one of the most audacious
and brilliant campaigns in history. Imagine Napoleon waging war in the 20th century: His cavalry replaced by armoured vehicles; cannon by attack helicopters; the Old Guard in heavy tanks. The Emperor… with air support. Could you take the lessons of Napoleon, and use them to dominate a modern, three-dimensional battlefield? War Thunder, the free-to-play online game, and our video sponsor, gives you that chance. Take command of a tank, aircraft or ship… and fight it out across an immersive combined arms battlefield… with realistic physics and battle damage. There are an incredible 1500 + historically-accurate, playable vehicles, from 1930s tanks to Cold War jets; plus variable realism settings from Arcade to Simulator. War Thunder is available on PC, PlayStation and Xbox, and is cross-platform between PC and consoles. Use the link in our video description to join the action, and get a special sign up bonus. Thank you to War Thunder for sponsoring this video. The battle for France would be fought east
of Paris, mostly across Champagne: a flat region divided by the rivers Marne… and
Seine… and their tributaries. In late January fields were dusted with snow,
and roads quickly turned to mud. Napoleon learned that the Coalition armies
were widely scattered, with part of Blücher’s army near Napoleon’s old college at Brienne. The Emperor advanced rapidly, hoping to trap
and destroy part of Blücher’s army. But after a hard day’s fighting that cost
both sides 3,000 casualties, Blücher was able to retreat towards Schwarzenberg’s
army. That evening, Napoleon was nearly skewered
by a charging Cossack – saved only by General Gourgaud’s good shooting. As Napoleon tried to work out the enemy’s
movements, Blücher, heavily reinforced by Schwarzenberg, made a surprise attack at La
Rothière. Allied troops advanced through swirling snow
to assault the village, defiantly held by young French conscripts. One was so inexperienced that Marshal Marmont
had to personally show him how to load his musket during the battle. By late afternoon, Wrede’s Bavarian corps
was falling on Napoleon’s flank. Heavily outnumbered, Napoeon had no option
but to retreat, having lost 5,000 casualties, and 73 guns, abandoned in the thick mud. The Allies’ frontal attacks meant their
losses were greater. But by combining their armies, they’d defeated
Napoleon on French soil for the first time. Believing Napoleon would now retreat towards
Paris, the Allies decided to advance along two routes, to ease pressure on the roads: Blücher would take a northern route along
the Marne; Schwarzenberg would follow the Seine. But dividing their armies again… would play
right into Napoleon’s hands. After two days to reorganise, Napoleon continued
his retreat to Nogent, where he learned that the Allies had split their armies. Not only that, they were advancing at different
speeds: the aggressive Blücher racing ahead, while the more cautious Schwarzenberg lagged
behind. Leaving Oudinot and Victor to guard the Seine
bridges and delay Schwarzenberg, Napoleon raced north through mud and rain with 30,000
men. The Army of Silesia was strung out on the
march, oblivious to the danger it was in. First Napoleon fell on General Olsufiev’s
Russian Ninth Corps at Champaubert, destroying it, taking its commander and 2,000 men prisoner. The next morning he marched on General Osten-Sacken’s
force near Montmirail. This was a much larger force, with two infantry
and one cavalry corps, and was expecting support from Yorck’s Prussian First Corps. But the Prussians were late… and Sacken’s
troops could not withstand the French onslaught. At this desperate hour, the Emperor’s elite
Old Guard were no longer held back, but were often thrown into the thick of the fighting. By the end of the day Napoleon had inflicted
another 3,500 casualties – twice his own losses – and the Allies were in rapid retreat. Napoleon had ordered Marshal Macdonald to
cut off the enemy’s escape, by seizing the Marne bridge at Château-Thierry. But Yorck’s Prussians got there first. The next day Napoleon could only batter their
rearguard, as the enemy fled across the Marne, destroying the bridge behind them. Sending Marshal Mortier to rebuild the bridge
and continue the pursuit, Napoleon doubled-back to re-join Marmont, who had been left to keep
watch on Blücher. Napoleon attacked at Vauchamps, using General
Grouchy’s cavalry to outflank Blücher’s army, which was soon in headlong retreat. A merciless French pursuit inflicted 6,000
Prussian and Russian casualties. Napoleon lost just 600 men. Napoleon had taken on an enemy army almost
twice his size, and beaten it four times in just six days. Blücher had lost an estimated 15,000 casualties
in battle, and another 15,000 in smaller engagements, as stragglers, or deserters. For now, the Army of Silesia had been scattered,
and neutralised. But in the south, Marshals Victor and Oudinot
had not been able to prevent Schwarzenberg’s Army of Bohemia from crossing the Seine in
three places. Austrian troops were now just 40 miles from
Paris. Leaving Mortier and Marmont to keep watch
on Blücher, Napoleon raced south. Schwarzenberg, alarmed by news of Blücher’s
defeat, and of Napoleon’s approach, immediately ordered a retreat. It was too late for Wittgenstein’s advance
guard, routed at Mormant, with 2,000 casualties. Napoleon sent Victor’s Second Corps to seize
the bridge at Montereau, but was so infuriated by its slow progress that he sacked Victor,
and gave his corps to General Gérard. The next day, at the Battle of Montereau,
the French drove the Allied Württemberg corps back across the river with 30% losses. According to some accounts, the Emperor sighted
the French cannon himself, as he had at Lodi, 18 years before. Napoleon had the Allies on the run. But how long could it last? Even as fighting continued, negotiations between
France and the Coalition reopened at Châtillon-sur-Seine on 5th February. The Allied terms were now more severe: a return
to France’s frontiers of 1791, which meant the additional loss of Belgium – a humiliation
that Napoleon refused to accept. Instead he tried to revive the Frankfurt Proposals
– hoping to play for time, and to split the Coalition, whose war aims varied from
Britain’s hard line… to Austria’s more ambiguous position. But this hope was thwarted by British foreign
secretary Lord Castlereagh. On 1st March, he persuaded the Allies to sign
the Treaty of Chaumont. In it, Russia, Prussia, Austria and Great
Britain agreed to keep 150,000 troops in the field, and not to negotiate separately with
France, while Britain added the sweetener of a 5 million pound subsidy to be shared
among the Allies. The treaty’s secret articles specified common
war aims, including the future independence of the German
states, Switzerland, and Italy, while Spain was to be returned to the Bourbons, and Holland
to the House of Orange. The four powers even agreed that once they’d
defeated Napoleon, they’d form a 20-year defensive alliance to maintain peace in Europe
– a sign of their newfound commitment to each other. A split in the Coalition had been Napoleon’s
last, best hope for a favourable peace. That was gone... And news from across the country was bleak. French cities were surrendering to the Allies
without a fight: Nancy, Dijon and Mâcon had all fallen. In the south, Wellington defeated Marshal
Soult at Orthez, forcing him to fall back on Toulouse. Two weeks later, as British troops approached
the city of Bordeaux, it declared loyalty to France’s Bourbon kings. The mayor himself rode out to greet the British
bearing a white cockade – the sign of Bourbon allegiance. Napoleon’s hope for ‘a nation in arms’
to resist the Allies had not materialised. Allied troops, particularly Cossacks, often
robbed French civilians, and committed some atrocities. French peasants took revenge when they could
– but there was no guerrilla war to mirror what French troops had encountered in Spain
or Russia. The chief desire among ordinary French people
was for peace, at almost any price. Any talk of Napoleon’s defeat in late February
was premature. The French Emperor was driving Schwarzenberg’s
Army of Bohemia before him, even though it was twice his size. But Schwarzenberg scrambled to safety behind
the River Aube. Napoleon knew he had to land another decisive
blow soon, so turned his attention back to Blücher. After an aborted attempt to join forces with
Schwarzenberg, Blücher had decided to resume his advance on Paris – gathering reinforcements
en route – and with only Marmont and Mortier’s weak corps to oppose him. Leaving Marshal Macdonald in command in the
south, Napoleon set off to intercept Blücher, covering 60 miles in 3 days along terrible
roads, choked with mud. At Napoleon’s approach, Blücher retreated
across the Marne, burning the bridges behind him. 24 hours later they’d been rebuilt by French
engineers, and Napoleon was poised to crush Blücher against the Aisne River… because
the major crossing point, at Soissons, was held by a Franco-Polish garrison. But after just a day’s fighting, the garrison
commander at Soissons tamely surrendered, allowing Blücher to escape. Napoleon continued his pursuit across the
Aisne, still hoping to cut off the Army of Silesia. But at Craonne, he encountered Russian troops
in a strong defensive position. The Russians fought stubbornly. The French finally forced the enemy to withdraw,
but only at the cost of 6,000 casualties, including many irreplaceable veterans from
Napoleon’s Guard. Napoleon pushed on to Laon. But by now Blücher had concentrated his forces,
98,000 troops in all, and outnumbered Napoleon two-to-one. French attacks were repulsed, while Marmont’s
corps was caught off-guard by a late Allied counter-attack, and routed. Napoleon was lucky to avoid a much heavier
defeat: Blücher, usually aggressive to the point of recklessness, was unwell, and had
been told Napoleon’s army was twice as big as it was, leading him to act with unusual
caution. Laon was a heavy blow to Napoleon – 6,500
casualties he could not afford. Undaunted, he fell back to Soissons, and after
a brief moment to reorganise… he marched on the city of Reims, which had just fallen
to Saint-Priest’s Russian corps. In a whirlwind assault, Napoleon retook the
city. Saint-Priest himself was mortally wounded,
his corps routed. Meanwhile in the south, Schwarzenberg had
resumed his offensive as soon as he found out Napoleon had gone north. In heavy fighting, he’d driven Oudinot and
Macdonald back from the River Aube. Five days later, the Allies had recaptured
Troyes… as Macdonald retreated behind the River Seine. Now, after four days to rest and reorganise
his battered army, Napoleon was coming south once more. Schwarzenberg, emboldened by news of Napoleon’s
defeat at Laon, decided that this time he would stand and fight. Napoleon advanced on Arcis-sur-Aube, ignoring
reports that the enemy was not retreating, as he believed, but gathering for battle. As heavy fighting broke out, Napoleon still
believed he faced only the enemy rearguard. It was a nasty surprise to discover that he
faced the entire might of the Army of Bohemia: 28,000 men against 80,000. In desperate fighting, Napoleon personally
rallied fleeing troops, and exposed himself to enemy fire, having his horse killed under
him by an exploding shell. But the odds were too great. At the end of the second day, Napoleon was
forced to order the retreat. Napoleon believed his army was now too weak
to take on the Allies directly. So he decided to change strategy. He would march into the rear of the Allied
armies, join up with some of his isolated garrisons, and cut the enemy’s lines of
communication, forcing them to abandon their advance on Paris. But the Allies, until now always one step
behind Napoleon, had just received crucial information. Talleyrand. The most brilliant French diplomat of the
age, and the most slippery. He’d served France’s monarchy, the Revolution,
then Napoleon… until in 1807 he fell out irrevocably with the Emperor over foreign
policy. He now believed that Napoleon was dragging
France into ruin, and worked behind the scenes to ensure his downfall. From Paris, he wrote to the Russian Emperor
Alexander at Allied headquarters, informing him that in the capital, support for Napoleon
was crumbling, and the city’s defences had been completely neglected. He urged the Allies to march immediately on
Paris, without allowing Napoleon to distract them. Talleyrand’s information was confirmed when
the Allies intercepted a report from Napoleon’s chief of police, General Savary, meant for
the Emperor: “The treasury, arsenals, and powder stores
are empty. We are completely at the end of our resources. The population is discouraged and discontented,
wishing peace at any price.” As Napoleon advanced on Saint-Dizier, the
Allies sent General Witzingerode and 10,000 cavalry to harass his army, and to screen
their own movements… then began their march on Paris. At Fère-Champenoise, they collided with Marmont
and Mortier’s corps, advancing to join Napoleon. An entire National Guard division, 5,000 men,
was virtually wiped out, as the marshals suffered a crushing defeat. Napoleon feared that the fall of Paris would
be a fatal blow to his regime. His political authority, and ability to wage
war, might not recover. So when he received news of the Allies’
movements, he tore up his plans, and ordered a forced march back to Paris, intending to
lead its defence in person. Napoleon’s wife and son were evacuated from
the capital, along with most of his ministers. His brother Joseph, the ex-King of Spain,
was in charge of the city’s defences, but had done little. Paris was awash with rumours of treachery
and defeat. Marmont and Mortier were able to reach Paris
before the Allies, adding their troops to the garrison. It now totalled 37,000 men, including some
hardened veterans of the Guard – but many more young conscripts, while a third were
part-time soldiers of the National Guard. The Allies had 120,000 seasoned troops outside
the city. And given the urgency of taking Paris before
Napoleon could intervene, their elite guards and grenadier divisions would lead the way. On 30th March they began their assault from
the north. Heavy fighting raged throughout the day. The city’s defenders fought bravely, inflicting
several thousand casualties on the advancing enemy. But defeat was inevitable. That night, to save Paris from destruction,
Marshal Marmont agreed to surrender the city, on condition the garrison was permitted to
leave with its weapons. At the Hôtel des Invalides, the 71-year old
Marshal Sérurier oversaw the burning of 1,400 flags and standards captured from France’s
enemies, as well as Frederick the Great’s sword and sash, so they would not fall into
Allied hands. Napoleon was just 15 miles from Paris when
he was informed of the city’s surrender. He sat, with his head in his hands, for 15
minutes. On 31st March 1814, France’s enemies marched
into Paris for the first time since the Hundred Years’ War. Parisian crowds cheered the three Allied monarchs,
bringers of peace. Everyone in Paris was suddenly a royalist,
once more. Above all they cheered for Emperor Alexander
of Russia, now hailed as Europe’s saviour. Don cossacks bivouacked on the Champs-Élysées. Allied troops generally behaved well. 35 miles away, Napoleon was at Fontainebleau
with 36,000 men, all of them hungry and exhausted after their 100-mile forced march. Nevertheless, Napoleon began planning an immediate
advance on Paris. But for the first time, he faced unanimous
opposition from his ministers, and marshals, including Ney, Macdonald, Oudinot and Berthier. They reminded him of his oath to act for the
good of France. He accused them of disloyalty, acting only
to save themselves. They told him the war was lost, and he must
abdicate - in favour of his son, if possible. On 4th April Marshal Marmont surrendered his
entire corps to the Coalition, which was marched over to the enemy lines, against the wishes
of many of its officers and men. This was a devastating blow to Napoleon, and
encouraged the Allies to reject his offer of a conditional abdication in favour of his
son. Two days later, he abdicated without conditions. “The Allied Powers having proclaimed that
the Emperor Napoleon is the only obstacle to the re-establishment of peace in Europe,
the Emperor Napoleon, faithful to his oath, declares that he renounces, for himself and
his heirs, the thrones of France and Italy and that there is no personal sacrifice, including
his life, that he is not ready to make in the interests of France.” Napoleon’s abdication was formalised by
the Treaty of Fontainebleau, by which he was allowed to keep the title of Emperor, become
sovereign of the small island of Elba, and retain a bodyguard of 400 men. News came too late to prevent Wellington’s
attack on Toulouse, leading to a costly and pointless battle, with more than 7,000 casualties. The night after his abdication, Napoleon tried
to commit suicide, using the poison that had been made for him in Russia, in case of capture. But it had lost its potency, and he survived. Two weeks later, Napoleon bade farewell to
his Old Guard at Fontainebleau Palace, and began his journey into exile. The Napoleonic Wars, which had raged on land
and sea for eleven years, seemed finally at an end. The death toll is unknown, but historians
estimate that 2 to 3 million lives were lost across Europe. Most soldiers died not in battle, but from
disease. Many thousands were left maimed and disfigured. For most of this period, Napoleon was master
of Europe: imposing treaties on defeated enemies, redrawing frontiers, overthrowing old regimes
and making new kings. He was the last figure in history to combine
total political power with frontline, military genius - in the mould of Alexander, and Caesar. But it seemed Napoleon’s reign was to end
in abject military defeat. However - exile on Elba did not prove to Napoleon’s
taste. In less than 10 months, he would return to
France to fight one last, great campaign, to reclaim his throne. Thank you to all our Patreon supporters for
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