Description
The Age of Napoleon is a history podcast about the life and career of Napoleon Bonaparte as well as the general context of Europe between the early eighteenth and early nineteenth century. It is about big trends and the grand sweep of history, as well as the smaller, individual stories that bring them to life.
Episodes
- 2026 / 7 / 4July 4th Special EpisodeA little bonus material in honor of the 250th anniversary of America's Declaration of Independence: a conversation with Will Clark of Grey History and David Montgomery of The Siècle. Learn more about your ad...
- 2026 / 7 / 1Episode 139: The Jacobin PrinceAfter a humiliating military defeat by the Russians, Sweden found itself strategically isolated, politically unstable, and without an heir to the throne. Desperate to change course, the Swedes turned to an...
- 2026 / 5 / 31Episode 138: Le BrutalA guide to the artillery of the Napoleonic era... the artillery was a marvel of organization and logistics, and stood at the forefront of technical and doctrinal innovation. Its internal culture made a major...
- 2026 / 5 / 1Episode 137: Spain on the PrecipiceLate 1809 saw disaster after disaster for the Spanish Patriots. The French were ascendant in Iberia, but the Empire was struggling with the expense of constant warfare, and Wellington was preparing to fight...
- 2026 / 4 / 1Episode 136: The Stumbling Colossus1809 was another trying year for the Spanish Patriots. The will to resist remained strong, but the Spanish leadership seemed unable to come up with a winning strategy. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit...
- 2026 / 3 / 1Episode 135: A Bed of RosesThe spring and summer of 1810 saw Napoleon enjoying life as a newlywed. Bonaparte was happy, but there were ominous signs of trouble ahead. He himself would later admit the Empire was headed towards "the edge...
- 2026 / 2 / 1Episode 134: By Gentler MeansNapoleon's search for a new wife eventually led to Vienna, where the new Austrian Foreign Minister, Klemens von Metternich, was preparing to take Austria in a new direction on the world stage. Learn more...
- 2026 / 1 / 16Prix Napoléon Special EpisodeWe interview David Serero of the Festival Napoléon and get a special message from Will Clark of Grey History. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
- 2026 / 1 / 1Episode 133: Long Live AmericaNews of the Abdications of Bayonne shook Spanish colonial societies to their foundations. Within a few years, the nations of South and Central America would be on the road to independence. Learn more...
- 2025 / 12 / 1Episode 132: The Old MasterWe examine Spanish America on the eve of the Wars of Independence. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
- 2025 / 11 / 1Episode 131: The SacrificeJosephine was the great love of Napoleon's life, but in late 1809, he had their marriage annulled -- how had it come to this? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
- 2025 / 10 / 1Episode 130: The Heart of the EmpireWe examine Napoleon's private life, with a special focus on the most important person in it: the charming and controversial Empress of the French, Josephine. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit...
- 2025 / 9 / 1Episode 129: I Am CharlemagneIn the summer of 1809, General Sir Arthur Wellesley led a small British army into Spain. While the war raged on, Napoleon was also picking a political fight with a powerful enemy: the Roman Catholic...
- 2025 / 8 / 1Episode 128: To Conquer a ThroneIberia, 1809: the Aragonese capital of Zaragoza was under siege once again. To the west, the French prepared another invasion of Portugal. Meanwhile, in London, the British leadership debated a renewed...
- 2025 / 7 / 1Episode 127: The LiberatorsThroughout 1809, small groups of brave (or foolish) German patriots tried to stir up nationalist uprisings against France. Meanwhile, in Iberia, a very ugly war dragged on with no end in sight. Learn more...
- 2025 / 6 / 1Episode 126: Martyrs and ScapegoatsLate 1809: Napoleon negotiated a punitive peace treaty with Austria and survived a strange assassination attempt. Meanwhile, the British launched a surprise invasion of the continent and dealt with political...
- 2025 / 5 / 1Episode 125: An Age ForlornAfter his victory at Wagram, Napoleon pursued the Austrians. Peace was in the air, but the war would end on an almost unbelievably dramatic note in the middle of a Bohemian thunderstorm. Learn more about...
- 2025 / 4 / 1Episode 124: My Blood for the EmperorIn the summer of 1809, Napoleon crossed the Danube again to confront Archduke Charles and the Habsburg field army and avenge his defeat at Aspern-Essling. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit...
- 2025 / 3 / 1Episode 123: Heroes and RebelsAs the War of the Fifth Coalition raged on, anti-French rebels rose up in the Alps and a remarkable Royal Navy captain fought one of the era's strangest battles on the Atlantic. Learn more about your ad...
- 2025 / 2 / 1Episode 122: The Emperor AloneAustria, 1809: Napoleon was stunned after the first defeat of his career at Aspern-Essling and the death of his best friend and closest confidant, Marshal Lannes. But all across the continent, the war raged...
- 2025 / 1 / 1Episode 121: The Red DanubeOn May 21st, 1809, the Austrians attacked the Grande Armée at the towns of Aspern and Essling. The ensuing two days were the hardest test of Napoleon's career to date. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit...
- 2024 / 12 / 1Episode 120: More Terrible than EverIn April, 1809, the Austrians finally launched their long-awaited invasion of the Napoleonic Empire. The French were taken by surprise, but Napoleon had a plan to turn the tables. Learn more about your ad...
- 2024 / 11 / 1Episode 119: Setting the World AflameFrench and British forces continue fighting in Spain. In Paris, Napoleon's frustrations with Talleyrand finally boil over as he prepares to face off against a renewed and reformed Habsburg army. Learn more...
- 2024 / 10 / 1Episode 118: The Hornets' NestAfter taking Madrid, Napoleon chased a British army into northwestern Spain. Meanwhile, behind the lines, Spanish guerrillas waged a brutal war against the occupiers. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit...
- 2024 / 9 / 1Episode 117: ImpossibleThe Spanish Patriots prepared to hold off Bonaparte in a rocky mountain pass, but they didn't count on the heroism of the Polish cavalry of Napoleon's Imperial Guard. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit...
- 2024 / 8 / 9Paris Games SpecialI sat down with two fellow French history podcasters for a Paris Games-themed discussion of some of our favorite characters of 18th and 19th century French history. You can find Will's show, Grey History, at:...
- 2024 / 8 / 1Episode 116: Strike HardIn early November 1808, French troops crossed the Ebro River in their second invasion of Spain, led by the Emperor himself. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
- 2024 / 6 / 30Episode 115: War to the KnifeThe summer of 1808 saw desperate fighting across Iberia as Spanish and Portuguese patriots rose up against Napoleon. France's most powerful enemy, Great Britain, sought to take advantage. Learn more about...
- 2024 / 6 / 1Episode 114: The Limits of PowerThe Spanish uprising was a disaster for France. Napoleon tried to shore up his diplomatic situation but found himself undermined by a surprising new enemy. Cameo appearances by José de San Martín and Johann...
- 2024 / 5 / 1Episode 113: Victory or DeathIn the spring of 1808, Napoleon said he considered Spain conquered. That summer, Spanish forces dealt France its first major battlefield defeat in nearly a decade. How did Spain manage this stunning...
- 2024 / 4 / 16Grey Histories CollaborationI recently recorded a collaboration with Will Clark of Grey Histories: the French Revolution. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
- 2024 / 4 / 16Grey History CollaborationI recently recorded a collaboration with Will Clark of Grey History: the French Revolution. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
- 2024 / 4 / 1Episode 112: The Way of the BanditIn the Spring of 1808, Napoleon installed his brother Joseph on the Spanish throne. However, the people of Madrid had had enough of the French, and took matters into their own hands. Learn more about your ad...
- 2024 / 3 / 1Episode 111: Bad OmensWith Portugal conquered, Napoleon turned his attention to Spain. As French troops began occupying the country, it soon became clear they were sitting on a political powder keg. Learn more about your ad...
- 2024 / 2 / 1Episode 110: Barbarians1807 saw Napoleon and the British jockeying for influence among the remaining neutral states of Europe. Average people paid the price for this competition. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit...
- 2024 / 1 / 1Episode 109: The Rise of the Sausage-MakerIn 1808, France would find itself in a new war on the Iberian Peninsula. How did Napoleon find himself engaged in a new war less than a year after the Treaty of Tilsit? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit...
- 2023 / 12 / 1Episode 108: Europe Under the EagleBy 1808, the Napoleonic empire stretched from Poland to the Pyrenees, and from the North Sea to the southern tip of Italy. How was Europe adjusting to Napoleon's new order? Learn more about your ad...
- 2023 / 11 / 1Episode 107: The Will of the EmperorBy 1809, Napoleon had ruled France for a decade. How did the Napoleonic regime actually function? How could one person effectively exercise his will over half a continent? Learn more about your ad choices....
- 2023 / 9 / 30Episode 106: The Art of PowerIn Europe at the dawn of the nineteenth century, art and politics were deeply intertwined, sometimes in surprising ways. No one understood this better than Napoleon Bonaparte. Learn more about your ad...
- 2023 / 9 / 1Episode 105: The Imperial CityDuring his 15 years in power, Napoleon put an indelible mark on his adopted city: Paris. The First Empire was a formative period in the history of the city, but what did it mean for average people? Learn more...
- 2023 / 8 / 1Episode 104: Man of the CenturyNapoleon's new treaty with Russia had totally transformed European geopolitics. What did it mean for the future of the continent? For France? For Napoleon himself? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit...
- 2023 / 7 / 1Episode 103: The Two EaglesIn the summer of 1807, the emperors of France and Russia, and the King and Queen of Prussia met at the Baltic town of Tilsit for a remarkable diplomatic summit aimed at forging a new geopolitical status quo...
- 2023 / 6 / 1Episode 102: Bennigsen's GambleIn the summer of 1807, Napoleon was on the verge of seizing a prize that had eluded him for 6 months: Königsberg. The end of the war was in sight, but before he could take the city, he would have to deal with...
- 2023 / 5 / 1Episode 101: Beyond BraveryAs Napoleon struggled to rebuild his army after Eylau, French forces lay siege to the port city of Danzig. In late Spring, the Grande Armée went back out on campaign, to square off against General Bennigsen...
- 2023 / 4 / 1Episode 100: What a MassacreThe Battle of Eylau was the greatest challenge of Napoleon's career so far. For two days, the French and Russian armies fought with unbelievable tenacity in the worst conditions imaginable. Learn more about...
- 2023 / 3 / 1The Soul of a Free ManA recording of a recent talk I gave on the life of Toussaint Louverture You can find out more about the Symposium at: https://www.historysymposium.com/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit...
- 2023 / 2 / 1Episode 99: Dangers of Every KindIn January of 1807, Napoleon ordered his men to make winter quarters and turned his attention to an exciting, but dangerous new mistress with a hidden agenda. But before the month was over, fate would draw...
- 2023 / 1 / 1Episode 98: Eagles EastFrance and the Grande Armée were growing tired of war, but in the winter of 1806, Napoleon led his forces east, into a harsh, new environment that would test the limits of his soldiers' endurance. Learn...
- 2022 / 12 / 1Episode 97: The Rights of WarAs Napoleon and the Grande Armée enjoyed a pleasant interlude in occupied Berlin, the war was escalating in unprecedented ways. Sailors, smugglers, and corsairs all over the world were engaged in a new style...
- 2022 / 11 / 1Episode 96: Our Favorite EnemyAfter their defeats at Jena and Auerstedt, the vaunted Prussian army collapsed in the face of Napoleon's onslaught. As the French pushed into the heart of Central Europe, their presence began to awaken...