That is Peter III of Russia. The coup his wife supposedly plotted in 1762 succeeds.
Whoa, slow down there buddy. I know Peter III was a good Tsar, and made up the big three of enlightened despotism with Joseph II and Frederick the Great, but he wasn't all good. His handling of the French Revolution was naive and bordered on appeasement, which of course led to big trouble for Russia when the Jacobins suddenly weren't so far away and it was Prussia and Russia vs a Europe ruled by madmen.
Yeah, it did bring us the no holds barred fight to the death that was Suvurov vs Hoche at the Battle of the Five Armies. Man, the movie of that is still one of my favorites. Hoche and Suvurov, two until then undefeated generals, but Suvurov pulled through in the end after winning one of if not the greatest battle in European history. Come to think of it, Napoleone I was a genius too. I wonder what would have happened if he and Suvurov ever fought. But of course that would never happen.By that point Tsar Peter was in his 60s, his mind had waned. But you are right his actions allowed the Jacobin revolution to expand far beyond France and turn into a continental war. But the war did lead to some of the most interesting pieces of history. Obviously Suvorov's continued brilliance, but also Napoleone di Buonaparte's liberation of Northern Italy from the Jacobins and creation of the Kingdom of Lombardy.
Yeah, it did bring us the no holds barred fight to the death that was Suvurov vs Hoche at the Battle of the Five Armies. Man, the movie of that is still one of my favorites. Hoche and Suvurov, two until then undefeated generals, but Suvurov pulled through in the end after winning one of if not the greatest battle in European history. Come to think of it, Napoleone I was a genius too. I wonder what would have happened if he and Suvurov ever fought. But of course that would never happen.
Depends, Napoleone was an engineer by heart and that affected his method of waging war. He had a fondness for artillery units, and was one of the pioneers in using them to shock enemy formations and to pin them down for short periods. He also could be credited with the birth of the culcioculpes, since he commissioned engineers to create an artillery piece that specifically fires multiple shots akin to the grapeshot, proving he had an understanding of technology and its use on the battlefield. He also had an extremely keen eye when it came to detecting weak points in an enemy lines and a natural affinity to hitting the "hinges" of an army and devouring the army bit by bit using quick assaults. His affinity with irregular tactics is one of his only weak points.Could a modernized Russia have defeated Karl XII and Sweden?
His support of the various "rebels" was indeed noteworthy. I might point to his efforts in 1780 to broker a peace between UK and its rebel colonies which essentially saved rebels from complete route. I doubt British would listen to a lesser Russian tsar and probably devastate the lands which eventually become powerhouse of the Commonwealth (which ironically brought down British monarchy, but that is another story.)