AHC: Successful Napoleonic Invasion of Russia

On paper, its a simple challenge: Napoleon still attacks Russia on schedule, and wins. You even can be flexible with your definition of winning. So long as its historically regarded as a French victory, it gets my stamp of approval.

Possible ideas to incorporate:
- Don’t go chasing after the Russian army once it becomes obvious they’re dedicated to scorched earth tactics.
- Don’t try to win in one year’s campaign. Be willing to winter in a well-supplied and secure winter base.
- More actively support nationalist revolts, such as among the Lithuanians and Balts.
- Free the serfs.
 
How long must the victory last?

He can't keep an army of occupation in Russia - it's too big. And when his army goes away the Russians can renew hostilities as soon as they get their breath back.
 
Maybe having the Prussians manage to take the fort of Riga might push Napoleon into changing his course into attacking towards St Petersburg instead. His troops would be way easier to supply that way.
 
As long as his campaign itself is a victory, it counts.

So if Russia sues for peace, gives him non-Crimea Ukraine and money, and then 10 years later the Russians join the Austrians (who got fed up and turned on France the moment they had weakness) and British (already at way) to smash France, it's a success?
 
So if Russia sues for peace, gives him non-Crimea Ukraine and money, and then 10 years later the Russians join the Austrians (who got fed up and turned on France the moment they had weakness) and British (already at way) to smash France, it's a success?

Yeah.
 
Napoleon had a penultimate fight at Borodino right before Moscow and won a pyrrhic victory. If he won a decisive one, he could shatter the Russian army and send cavalry to cut down stragglers carrying artillery or slowing down to enact the scorched earth policy... this means he takes Moscow mostly intact and can quarter for the winter without concerns for food (the Russians conveniently gathered enough food to house their own army and after it's been routed they are too disorganized to haul it all out) or cold (yay, all this firewood and we can use it for Napoleon's army).

Problem with this is that by this time, he probably only has a third of what he needs to finish the rest of the Russian positions off next summer, much less consolidate his gains after defeating the Russian army. No conquest of Russia. It's too late to capture the tsar, replace him with a puppet, or take the capital (which the goal seemed to switch to at some point in the campaign...).

But, once the Russians see he has an army left, they might decide to sue for peace with the terms I suggested. Whether or not Napoleon has the sense to take it or not is a question mark. Austria could have been made into a loyal ally, but Napoleon humiliated them instead. In this case, the deal is defiantly a Napoleonic victory rather than a power sharing agreement, so perhaps he would take it.
 

Maoistic

Banned
Napoleon's European empire was simply unsustainable. It still would have broken up even if Napoleon successfully conquered Russia, and the Tsarist regime would have returned just like the traditional Spanish monarchy did.
 

Deleted member 97083

Napoleon's European empire was simply unsustainable. It still would have broken up even if Napoleon successfully conquered Russia, and the Tsarist regime would have returned just like the traditional Spanish monarchy did.
Napoleon never attempted to conquer Russia, and Napoleon's empire wasn't unsustainable until he invaded Russia and lost. It was probably the Battle of Leipzig 1813 which sealed the First French Empire's fate.
 
Napoleon's European empire was simply unsustainable. It still would have broken up even if Napoleon successfully conquered Russia, and the Tsarist regime would have returned just like the traditional Spanish monarchy did.

Yeah if he tried to pull the stunt he did in the Confederation of the Rhine or the Netherlands (put in his own puppets), the position would unravel. However, the peace I mentioned that the OP quoted is also acceptable, so he doesn't have to go that far
 

Deleted member 97083

As for a possible Russian invasion strategy. Perhaps ally with Bernadotte and Sweden (promise them Pomerania publicly, Finland publicly, and Norway secretly) and the Grande Armee can march along the Baltic to St. Petersburg, with the French army being resupplied navally.

The best bet Napoleon has with fighting Russia though, is going on the defensive and defeating the Russians in Poland. Hopefully, the Tsar is also captured.
 
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