ABSTRACT
In the late afternoon, Napoleon Bonaparte, Emperor of France for a year and a day, reviewed the field of Austerlitz. The battle was over and he was pleased. On this day, December 2, 1805, the French army had seized 12,000 prisoners, captured 180 cannon, and taken 50 standards. A further 15,000 Russians and Austrians lay dead on the field of battle. Napoleon had achieved a phenomenal success. His outnumbered forces had successfully defeated the combined strength of Austria and Russia deep in enemy territory and at the cost of not even 9,000 French casualties. The Austrians, having previously lost their capital of Vienna to the French and now having lost the major battle of the campaign, quickly sued for peace. The Russians fled back east whence they had come. In a swift, preemptive campaign, Napoleon had crushed two of the allied armies of the Third Coalition. Still, Napoleon’s main enemy, England, remained unbeaten so no matter this victory, the war continued. To Napoleon, it was clear that just as this war had been forced upon him, so too would another. This reality dampened an otherwise glorious campaign.
