French Fortifications, 1715-1815

This book describes French fortifications from 1715 (the death of Louis XIV) to 1815 (the fall of Napoleon). After an historical background, it covers the heritage of the Ancient Regime with the important contributions of Vauban (the bastioned defense), Gribeauval's reforms in artillery, and Montalembert's innovations. Chapters explore the style of Napoleonic fortifications, siege warfare, artillery and engineering corps, as well as the Napoleonic achievements in France, Italy, German and the Netherlands, including both projects that were realized and those that were never completed. Included are nearly 250 line drawings of historic fortifications.