Quote Originally Posted by Berthier View Post
I think Napoleon's loss at Waterloo was probably fatal to his cause despite the political intrigues in Paris. This was the first time a French army under him had been shattered in a single battle, losses to his veteran troops were high and morale consequently suffered. The loss of a sense of invulnerability was irredeemable and although Grouchy's corps was intact and fought well on the retreat back from the border, the boost to the Allied cause was immeasurable. With the Austrians and Russians coming on line within six weeks I cant see how he could have hung on. It would have been 1814 all over again.
There's some discussion about that -- Nappy's back had been to the wall before, and he'd pulled it off. Of course, this time he was going up against someone who was even more of a scumbag than himself -- one Joseph Fouche....

(Perfect name for a Marshal -- "Grouchy".... :) )