The Napoleon Options: Alternate Decisions of the Napoleonic Wars
Alternate history is wildly popular. Very popular. This was my attempt to look at a few what ifs of the Napoleonic era. We put together a great team and some interesting scenarios.
Paddy Griffith looked at a successful French invasion of Ireland. Charles Grant has Napoleon winning in Egypt and Syria. Philip Haythornthwaite, an old fashioned and very erudite gentleman, sees the French humiliate Wellington. Jack Gill looks at an alternative outcome for the Austrians in 1809. Digby Smith has the Russians win at Borodino and inflict even more pain on the French invaders before Moscow. I looked at how Napoleon might have turned around and defeated the Russians at the Beresina in 1812. John Gallaher does the same for the French in 1813. Young Andrew Uffindell reworks Waterloo as does Peter Hofschröer. And Colonel John Elting, in one of his last published pieces of writing, has Napoleon inflict a nasty shock on Wellington in 1815.
It was great working with them all. Plenty of other scenarios spring to mind, of course. Rescuing Napoleon from St Helena and spiriting him off to South America would have been good. Shooting him at the bridge at Lodi would have had a few consequences. Not selling Louisiana, hmm, interesting. And having him not invade Russia would have changed all our lives.