Bulletin de la Grande Armée
The term Bulletin de la Grande Armée was only used in France during the First Empire .
These bulletins reported exclusively on the completed and planned activities of the Grande Armée and their opponents. From time to time enthusiastic comments were also made about soldiers, officers and units who had made a difference in battles or in any other way.
The bulletins were only published in the official government organ Le Moniteur universel , (colloquially also simply called "Moniteur"). Copies were made available to the local administrations and posted on the walls of public buildings.
The bulletins were not only drawn up for the soldiers of the Grande Armée, to whom they gave an overview of the actions of the army, they were also addressed to the public and to foreign governments.
The Bulletins de la Grande Armée did not take the truth very seriously and were generally regarded as purely propaganda. The lack of credibility went so far that the Grognards soon adopted the expression: "menteur comme un bulletin" ("lying like a bulletin").
Number of bulletins
- 1805 to 1806: 38 bulletins
- 1806 to 1807: 87 bulletins
- 1809: 30 bulletins
- 1812: 29 bulletins
In 1813 and 1814 the bulletins were replaced by official reports (rapports officiels) .
literature
- J. David Markham: Imperial Glory. The Bulletins of Napoleon's Grande Armée, 1805-1814. Greenhill Books, London 2003, ISBN 978-1-85367-542-3 ( limited preview in Google Book Search).
Web links
- Bulletins de la Grande Armée (Campagnes de Austerlitz et de Jena) on Gallica . Baudouin frères, Paris 1820
- Bulletins de la Grande Armée (Campagnes de Prusse, de Pologne et d'Autriche) on Gallica. Baudouin frères, Paris 1821
- Bulletins de la Grande Armée (Campagnes de Russie et de Saxe) on Gallica. Baudouin frères, Paris 1821