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"Coalition Wars" redirects here. For the general concept of coalitions of co-belligerents, see coalition war.
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French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars (including the Coalition Wars)
Siege of Toulon (1793) Battle of Arcole Battle of the Pyramids Battle of Marengo Battle of Trafalgar Battle of Austerlitz Fall of Berlin (1806) Battle of Wagram Battle of Leipzig Battle of Paris (1814) Battle of WaterlooCoalition wars

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Left to right, top to bottom:
Battles of Toulon, Arcole, the Pyramids, Marengo, Trafalgar, Austerlitz, Berlin, Wagram, Leipzig, Paris, Waterloo
Date 20 April 1792 — 20 November 1815
(23 years and 7 months)
Location
Europe, overseas colonies of European states
Result Coalition victory
Belligerents
French First Republic French First Republic (1792–1804)
First French Empire First French Empire (1804–1815)
French client states		 Main European powers:
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland Great Britain
 Holy Roman Empire (pre-1806)
 Austrian Empire (from 1804)
 Kingdom of Prussia
 Russian Empire
Commanders and leaders
First French Empire Napoleon Surrendered (until 1815)
French First Republic Jacques Pierre Brissot Executed (until 1793)
French First Republic Maximilien Robespierre Executed (until 1794)
French First Republic Paul Barras (until 1799)		 United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland George III
Austrian Empire Francis I
Kingdom of Prussia Frederick William II #
Kingdom of Prussia Frederick William III
Russian Empire Paul I #
Russian Empire Alexander I
Casualties and losses
French:
1,000,000 dead, wounded, missing, captured, or deserted (1792–1801)
306,000 killed (1805–15)		 Austrian:
514,700 killed, wounded, or captured (1792–97)
440,000 killed, wounded, or captured (1799–1801)
396,000 killed in action (1805–15)
Prussians:
154,000 killed in action
Russians:
299,000 killed in action
War of the Fourth Coalition:
700,000 deaths
War of the Fifth Coalition:
300,000 deaths
Peninsular War:
2,400,000 deaths
War of the Sixth Coalition:
450,000 deaths
War of the Seventh Coalition:
60,000 deaths

The French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars, sometimes called the Great French War, were a series of conflicts between the French and several European monarchies between 1792 and 1815. They encompass first the French Revolutionary Wars against the newly declared French Republic and from 1803 onwards the Napoleonic Wars against First Consul and later Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte. They include the Coalition Wars as a subset: seven wars waged by various military alliances of great European powers, known as Coalitions, against Revolutionary France – later the First French Empire – and its allies between 1792 and 1815:

Although the Coalition Wars are the most prominent subset of conflicts of this era, some French Revolutionary Wars such as the French invasion of Switzerland (1798), and some Napoleonic Wars such as the French invasion of Russia (June – December 1812) and the Peninsular War (October 1807 – April 1814), are not counted amongst the "Coalition Wars" proper.

Terminology

Etymology of Coalition Wars

One of the first usages of the term "Coalition Wars" 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." [emphasis added]).

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"). Although the Third Coalition had been formed by that time, war had not yet broken out; the Austrian newspaper discussed why the neighbouring Electorate of Bavaria was likely to side with the French Empire 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.")

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 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), the Peninsular War (1807-1814) and the French invasion of Russia (1812, between the Fifth and Sixth Coalition) were not assigned to the "Coalition Wars".

Hundred Days War of the Sixth Coalition War of the Fifth Coalition War of the Fourth Coalition War of the Third Coalition War of the Second Coalition War of the First Coalition Congress of Vienna Treaty of Schönbrunn Continental System Concordat of 1801 Treaty of Campo Formio Execution of Louis XVI Bourbon Restoration Treaties of Tilsit Coronation of Napoleon I Treaty of Amiens Treaty of Lunéville French Consulate Proclamation of the abolition of the monarchy Minor campaigns of 1815 Minor campaigns of 1815 Gunboat War Trafalgar Campaign Trafalgar Campaign Haitian Revolution Peninsular War Anglo-Spanish War (1796–1808) Anglo-Spanish War (1796–1808) War of the Pyrenees Neapolitan War Neapolitan War Dalmatian Campaign (1809) Adriatic campaign of 1807–14 Invasion of Portugal (1807) Invasion of Portugal (1807) Invasion of Naples (1806) Invasion of Naples (1806) Stecklikrieg Italian campaigns of the French Revolutionary Wars Italian campaigns of the French Revolutionary Wars French invasion of Switzerland French invasion of Switzerland Italian campaigns of the French Revolutionary Wars Italian campaigns of the French Revolutionary Wars Waterloo Campaign Waterloo Campaign German Campaign of 1813 German Campaign of 1813 Walcheren Campaign Battle of Wagram War of the Fourth Coalition#Prussian campaign War of the Fourth Coalition#Prussian campaign Ulm Campaign Ulm Campaign French campaign in Egypt and Syria French campaign in Egypt and Syria Expedition d'Irlande Expedition d'Irlande War in the Vendée War in the Vendée Campaign in north-east France (1814) Campaign in north-east France (1814) French invasion of Russia French invasion of Russia Finnish War Franco-Swedish War War of the Oranges War of the Oranges Anglo-Russian invasion of Holland Anglo-Russian invasion of Holland Mediterranean campaign of 1798 Mediterranean campaign of 1798 Flanders Campaign Flanders Campaign Napoleonic Wars French 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
(1792–1797)		 Second
(1798–1802)		 Third
(1803–1806)		 Fourth
(1806–1807)		 Fifth
(1809)		 Sixth
(1813–1814)		 Seventh
(1815)
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland Great Britain Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
 Holy Roman Empire (to 1806) Yes Yes Yes
  
Grand Duchy of Baden Baden (from 1806)   Yes
(from Oct 1813)		  
Kingdom of Bavaria Bavaria (from 1806)   Yes
(from Oct 1813)		 Yes
 Nassau (from 1806)   Yes
Kingdom of Saxony Saxony (from 1806) Yes
(until Dec 1806)		   Yes
(from Oct 1813)		  
Kingdom of Württemberg Württemberg (from 1806)   Yes
(from Oct 1813)		  
Duchy of Brunswick Black Brunswickers (from 1809) Yes Yes Yes
Province of Hanover Hanover (from 1814) Yes
 Austrian Empire (from 1804) Yes
(1805)		   Yes Yes Yes
Kingdom of Prussia Prussia Yes
(until 1795)		   Yes   Yes Yes
Kingdom of Sardinia Sardinia Yes
(until 1796)		 Yes   Yes Yes Yes
Kingdom of Portugal Portugal Yes Yes
(until 1801)		   Yes Yes Yes
Spain Spain Yes
(until 1795)		   Yes Yes Yes
 Ottoman Empire   Yes
(until 1801)		  
Russian Empire Russia   Yes
(until 1799)		 Yes
(1805)		 Yes   Yes Yes
Tuscany Tuscany (to 1801 and from 1815)   Yes
(until 1801)		   Yes
Sovereign Military Order of Malta Malta   Yes
(1798–1800)		  
Sovereign Military Order of Malta Order of St. John of Malta   Yes
(1798)		  
Kingdom of Naples Naples Yes Yes
(until 1801)		 Yes
(from 1805)		  
Kingdom of Sicily Sicily   Yes
(from 1806)		 Yes Yes Yes Yes
United Kingdom of the Netherlands Netherlands Yes
(until 1795)		   Yes Yes
 Sweden   Yes
(from 1805)		 Yes   Yes Yes
 Switzerland   Yes
War of the Sixth Coalition 1812
Map of European belligerents, August 1813      French Empire and allies      Sixth Coalition and allies

See also

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