Napoleon I | Letter signed, to General Brune, regarding the invasion of England, 1804

Napoleon I

Letter signed, as First Consul, to General Brune

on plans for the proposed invasion of England, informing General Brune that he is in a position to send 100,000 men and 10,000 horses to England, sharing the latest French victory over the English in the Indies and remarking on the present sorry state of England, stating his intention of supporting the Turkish empire because of the importance of the Eastern powers, providing details of a secret letter which he is sending to the Emperor in Constantinople, making oblique reference to the Duc d'Enghien, who had been arrested that day, with autograph postscript, 3 pages, 4to, on headed stationery with engraved vignette, Malmaison, 24 ventose an 12 [15 March 1804], two light spots, one horizontal and one vertical fold

Napoleon's planned invasion of England dominated his military strategy from the very start of the nineteenth century until mid 1805. Napoleon gathered a new army known as the Armée d'Angleterre and trained them at camps in Boulogne, Bruges and Montreuil. He also built a large National Flotilla of barges designed to cross the Channel for the invasion. In order to divert the English navy, Napoleon initiated several attacks on the English in the West Indies, following which the French forces would quickly sail across the Atlantic to land forces on the unguarded shores of Ireland and England. There were several drawbacks due to failed tests of the National Flotilla, a naval raid on Boulogne by the English in 1804 and the defeat of the French at the Battle of Cape Finisterre, leading to the planned invasion being quashed by the English before it began. Napoleon then incorporated his Armée d'Angleterre into the Grande Armée.

The letter also mentions the Duc d'Enghien (1772-21 March 1804), who was executed by Napoleon six days after this letter was written on charges of allegedly aiding Britain and plotting against France. The Duc was a member of the House of Bourbon, and his execution on somewhat unfounded charges shocked European royalty, including Tsar Alexander I of Russia who then decided to curb Napoleon's power.

PROVENANCE

Sotheby's, London, 27 September 1988