Book excerpt: Colonel Cathcart, as he was then, was assigned to the court of Russia just before Napoleon launched his massive assault in 1812. He attached himself to the Emperor Alexander’s suite and followed the war closely as the French struggled toward Moscow and, as the remnants, suffered upon marching back in the shattering cold of the winter. Colonel Cathcart saw and recorded in this book what few believed possible - Napoleon thoroughly defeated by his own hubris and hundreds of miles of snow covered desert. He marched on toward the climactic battles for the possession of Germany in 1813, with Napoleon restricted to the boundaries of France following the bloody battle of Leipzig. Colonel Cathcart recorded all he saw at head-quarters and beyond in the field and wrote his history of the campaigns shortly before his death in 1854 in the Crimean War. Accompanying his well-written text are numerous maps of the engagements and theatres. Author — General Sir George Cathcart (1794-1854) Text taken, whole and complete, from the edition published in London, J. Murray, 1850. Original Page Count – xv and 383 pages. Illustrations — 15 maps and plans