Coalition Wars

The Coalition Wars (French: Guerres de Coalitions, German: Koalitionskriege, Dutch: Coalitieoorlogen etc.) were a series of seven wars waged by various military alliances, known as the Coalitions, between great European powers against Revolutionary France, and from 1799 onwards First Consul and later Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte, between 1792 and 1815.[5][6] The term encompasses both the French Revolutionary Wars and the Napoleonic Wars, though, strictly speaking, it excludes conflicts like the French invasion of Switzerland that did not pit France against a coalition of powers.

This article is about the wars against Revolutionary France and Napoleon. For a modern multinational military intervention force, see coalition of the willing.
Coalition Wars

The French Empire in 1812:
 French Empire and colonies
 Client states and occupied territories
Date1792–1815
Location
Europe
Result Coalition victory
Belligerents
French First Republic (1792–1804)
First French Empire (1804–15)
French client states		 Main European powers
 Kingdom of Great Britain (pre-1801)
 United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland (from 1801)
 Holy Roman Empire (pre-1806)
 Austrian Empire (from 1804)
 Kingdom of Prussia
 Russian Empire
Casualties and losses
French:
1,000,000 dead, wounded, missing, captured, or deserted (1792–1801)[1]
306,000 killed (1805–15)[2]		 Austrian:
514,700 killed, wounded, or captured (1792–97)[3]
440,000 killed, wounded, or captured (1799–1801)[1]
396,000 killed in action (1805–15)[4]
Prussians:
154,000 killed in action[4]
Russians:
299,000 killed in action[4]
War of the Fourth Coalition:
700,000 deaths[4]
War of the Fifth Coalition:
300,000 deaths[4]
Peninsular War:
2,400,000 deaths[4]
War of the Sixth Coalition:
450,000 deaths[4]
War of the Seventh Coalition:
60,000 deaths[4]

The Coalition Wars were:

Terminology

Etymology

One of the first usages of the term can be found in the 1803 Tribunat report, titled Résultats des guerres, des négociations et des traités qui ont préced́é et suivi la coalition contre la France ("Results of the Wars, Negotiations and Treaties that preceded and followed the Coalition against France"). About the situation in April 1793, when General Dumouriez had just been defeated at Neerwinden and defected to Austria, causing despair in France, it states: "Les événements de cette époque sont les plus pénibles à décrire de tous ceux qui ont signalé les guerres de la coalition." ("The events of that time are the most painful to describe of all those that marked the wars of the coalition.")[7]

In January 1805, the Salzburger Intelligenzblatt was one of the first to number the Coalition Wars when it discussed "Das Staatsinteresse von Baiern bei dem dritten Koalitions-Kriege" ("The national interest of Bavaria in the Third Coalition War").[8] Although the Third Coalition had been formed by that time, war had not yet broken out;[9] the Austrian newspaper discussed why the neighbouring Electorate of Bavaria was likely to side with the French Republic rather than the Austrian-led Coalition. On 30 September 1805, a few days after the launch of the Ulm Campaign, Emperor Napoleon addressed his troops in Strasbourg, starting his speech with the words: "Soldats, la guerre de la troisième coalition est commencée." ("Soldiers, the war of the third coalition has begun.")[10]

Compared to other terms

The term is distinct from "French Revolutionary Wars", which covers any war involving Revolutionary France between 1792 and 1799, when Napoleon seized power with the Coup of 18 Brumaire (9 November 1799), which is usually considered the end of the French Revolution. Since the War of the Second Coalition (1798–1802) had already begun when Napoleon seized power, the war as a whole may[6] or may not be counted amongst the French Revolutionary Wars, which therefore may end in 1799, 1801 (Treaty of Lunéville) or 1802 (Treaty of Amiens).

It also differs from "Napoleonic Wars", which is variously defined as covering any war involving France ruled by Napoleon between 1799 and 1815 (which includes the War of the Second Coalition, 1798–1802), or not commencing until the War of the Third Coalition (1803/05, depending on periodisation). In the latter case, historians do not term the War of the Second Coalition "Napoleonic", since Napoleon did not initiate it himself, but merely "inherited" it from the Revolutionary French Directory which he overthrew during the war.

Because it only pertains to wars involving any of the Coalition parties, not all wars counted amongst the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars are considered "Coalition Wars". For example, the French invasion of Switzerland (1798, between the First and Second Coalition), the Stecklikrieg (1802, between the Second and Third Coalition) and the French invasion of Russia (1812, between the Fifth and Sixth Coalition) were not "Coalition Wars", since France fought against a single opponent.

Hundred DaysWar of the Sixth CoalitionWar of the Fifth CoalitionWar of the Fourth CoalitionWar of the Third CoalitionWar of the Second CoalitionWar of the First CoalitionCongress of ViennaTreaty of SchönbrunnContinental SystemConcordat of 1801Treaty of Campo FormioExecution of Louis XVIBourbon RestorationTreaties of TilsitCoronation of Napoleon ITreaty of AmiensTreaty of LunévilleFrench ConsulateProclamation of the abolition of the monarchyMinor campaigns of 1815Minor campaigns of 1815Gunboat WarHaitian RevolutionPeninsular WarAnglo-Spanish War (1796–1808)Anglo-Spanish War (1796–1808)War of the PyreneesNeapolitan WarNeapolitan WarDalmatian Campaign (1809)Invasion of Portugal (1807)Invasion of Portugal (1807)Invasion of Naples (1806)Invasion of Naples (1806)StecklikriegItalian campaigns of the French Revolutionary WarsItalian campaigns of the French Revolutionary WarsFrench invasion of SwitzerlandFrench invasion of SwitzerlandItalian campaigns of the French Revolutionary WarsItalian campaigns of the French Revolutionary WarsGerman Campaign of 1813German Campaign of 1813Walcheren CampaignBattle of WagramFrench campaign in Egypt and SyriaFrench campaign in Egypt and SyriaWar in the VendéeWar in the VendéeCampaign in north-east France (1814)Campaign in north-east France (1814)French invasion of RussiaFrench invasion of RussiaFinnish WarFranco-Swedish WarWar of the OrangesWar of the OrangesAnglo-Russian invasion of HollandAnglo-Russian invasion of HollandMediterranean campaign of 1798Mediterranean campaign of 1798Napoleonic WarsFrench Revolutionary Wars
  •   Phase
  •   French victory
  •   Anti-French victory
  •   Indecisive/compromise
  •   Coalition

Coalition parties

The main European powers who forged the various anti-French Coalitions were Great Britain, Russia, Austria and Prussia, although except for Great Britain not all of them were involved in every Coalition. Smaller powers that occasionally joined the Coalitions include Spain, Naples, Piedmont–Sardinia, the Dutch Republic, the Ottoman Empire, Portugal, Sweden, Denmark–Norway and various German and Italian states. The First until Fifth Coalitions fell apart when one or more parties were defeated by France and were forced to leave the alliance, and sometimes became French allies; the Sixth and Seventh were dissolved after Napoleon was defeated in 1814 and 1815 and a new balance of power was established between the parties at the Congress of Vienna.

Members of each Coalition
Members First
(1792–97)		 Second
(1798–1802)		 Third
(1803–06)		 Fourth
(1806–07)		 Fifth
(1809)		 Sixth
(1812–14)		 Seventh
(1815)
 Kingdom of Great Britain (pre-1801)YesYes
 United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland (from 1801)YesYesYesYesYes
 Holy Roman Empire (pre-1806)YesYesYes (until Dec 1805)
 Austrian Empire (from 1804)Yes (1805)YesYesYes
 Kingdom of PrussiaYes (until 1795)YesYesYes
 Kingdom of SardiniaYes (until 1796)Yes
 Kingdom of PortugalYesYes (until 1801)YesYesYes
Spanish EmpireYesYesYesYes
 Ottoman EmpireYes (until 1801)
 Russian EmpireYes (until 1799)Yes (1805)YesYesYes
Grand Duchy of Tuscany (to 1801/from 1815)Yes (until 1801)Yes
 MaltaYes (1798–1800)
 Order of St. John of MaltaYes (1798)
 Kingdom of NaplesYesYes (until 1801)Yes (from 1805)
 Kingdom of SicilyYes (from 1806)YesYesYesYes
 Dutch Republic (to 1795)Yes (until 1795)
Principality of the United Netherlands (1813–15)Yes
 United Kingdom of the Netherlands (from 1815)Yes
 SwedenYes (from 1805)YesYesYes
  SwitzerlandYes
Black Brunswickers (formed 1809)YesYesYes
Confederation of the Rhine (1806–13) and German Confederation (1815–66) members
 Kingdom of Bavaria (from 1806)Yes (from Oct 1813)Yes
 Kingdom of Württemberg (from 1806)Yes (from Oct 1813)
 Nassau (from 1806)Yes
 Kingdom of Saxony (from 1806)Yes (until Dec 1806)Yes (from Oct 1813)
 Grand Duchy of Baden (from 1806)Yes (from Oct 1813)
 Hanover (from 1814)Yes
gollark: Just undelete it.
gollark: At least have a blitter?!
gollark: By the way, our bees and , although it is not the case, as commonly claimed, that they .
gollark: Do NOT do this or you will have done this.
gollark: It has been decided.

See also

References
  1. Clodfelter 2017, pp. 109.
  2. Clodfelter 2017, pp. 171.
  3. Clodfelter 2017, pp. 100.
  4. Clodfelter 2017, pp. 170.
  5. Grab, Alexander (2003). Napoleon and the Transformation of Europe. Palgrave Macmillan. p. 1. ISBN 9781403937575. Retrieved 27 May 2016.
  6. (in Dutch) Encarta-encyclopedie Winkler Prins (1993–2002) s.v. "coalitieoorlogen". Microsoft Corporation/Het Spectrum.
  7. Arnould (1803). Résultats des guerres, des négociations et des traités qui ont préced́é et suivi la coalition contre la France (in French). Paris: Badouin. Retrieved 27 May 2016.
  8. "Intelligenzblatt von Salzburg: 1805". Salzburger Intelligenzblatt (in German). Verlag des Zeitungs-Comtoirs. 11 (1): 143–4. January 1805. Retrieved 27 May 2016.
  9. Great Britain had already declared war on France in 1803, but it had been fighting France on its own while forming the Third Coalition, whose other members (Austria, Russia, Sweden, Naples and Sicily) would not join the war against France until September 1805.
  10. Guizot, François (2015). L'histoire de France depuis 1789 jusqu'en 1848 racontée à mes petits-enfants (in French). Primento. p. 491. ISBN 9782335028768. Retrieved 27 May 2016.

Bibliography
  • Clodfelter, M. (2017). Warfare and Armed Conflicts: A Statistical Encyclopedia of Casualty and Other Figures, 1492-2015 (4th ed.). Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland. ISBN 978-0786474707.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
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