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INTELLIGENCE IN THE ERA OF NAPOLEON

43

IMPERIAL INTELLIGENCE

Napoleon was clear in laying out his demands

for the acquisition of military intelligence:

“Carrying out of a rapid reconnaissance of

passes and fords, making sure to obtain

reliable guides, questioning the priest and the

postmaster, making rapid contact with local

inhabitants, sending out spies, translating and

analyzing postal correspondence, and finally

responding to the questions of the commander-

in-chief.” In real-world circumstances, however,

he was less happy with the intelligence he

received: “Nothing is so contradictory and

nonsensical as this mass of reports brought in

by spies and officers sent on scouting missions.

Often they do not even report their own

eyesight, but only repeat what they have heard

from panic-stricken or surprised people.”

“A GREAT PART OF THE

INFORMATION OBTAINED

IN WAR IS CONTRADICTORY,

A STILL GREATER PART IS FALSE

AND BY FAR THE GREATEST PART

IS OF DOUBTFUL CHARACTER.”

Carl von Clausewitz, Prussian military theorist

and officer in the Napoleonic Wars

Above: Sat astride his distinctive white horse, Napoleon watches as

Moscow burns. Russian troops had already abandoned the city to retreat

to the east. Napoleon’s invasion would end in a disastrous retreat.