Was Typhus Responsible For Napoleon’s 1812 Defeat?

http://www.slate.com/articles/health_and_science/pandemics/2012/12/napoleon_march_to_russia_in_1812_typhus_spread_by_lice_was_more_powerful.single.html

According to author Stephan Talty, Napoleon’s Grand Armee was defeated in Russia during the 1812 campaign, not by Kutusov, the early onset of Winter or the burning of Moscow – but by lice.

For further reading: The Illustrious Dead: The Terrifying Story of How Typhus Killed Napoleon’s Greatest Army by Stephen Talty.

 

Coded Napoleon Kremlin Letter Sold

“I will blow up the Kremlin on the 22nd at three in the morning.”

So wrote Napoleon in this coded letter dated October 20, 1812 and sold at auction this week for 187,500 euros ($233,800). It had been expected to fetch between 10,000 and 15,000 euros but they didn’t expect the last-minute arrival of Markham with his entourage trailing behind them chariots full of Canadian gold.

The news sources are claiming that Napoleon followed through with his threat. In a coded email to me, Markham says “Leave it to the Brits to keep lying about Napoleon though, as he did not keep his promise to blow up the Kremlin and did not destroy the walls and towers as the article says.” I’ve asked him for clarification. My agents will ride like the wind on fresh horses to deliver this message to him over the next month. Stay tuned for his response, sometime early 2013.

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