War Feeding War?: The Impact of Logistics on the Napoleonic Occupation of Catalonia

Abstract

This essay stresses the crucial importance of logistics during the French occupation of Catalonia during the Peninsular War. The supplies found in the occupied territory were insufficient for French needs, leading to the failure of Napoleon's "war feeds war" policy in that region. It became necessary to find alternative sources and modes of supply in the midst of a permanent guerrilla war and the British blockade of Catalan ports. Logistical operations largely dominated the French campaigns, while the requirement to supply a besieged Barcelona made it nearly impossible to conquer the province and led to the collapse of French plans to incorporate Catalonia into the French Empire.