The invasion scheme begins with a problem of sea control. Napoleon can imagine a large covering fleet and a massive Channel crossing, but the Royal Navy blockade makes the first step, assembling and basing that fleet, the central obstacle. A plan that works on paper therefore depends on a naval concentration France cannot perform freely. The opening identifies Napoleon's strategic blind spot before the episode examines any landing beach or battlefield maneuver.
Chapter · 1:00-1:39
Napoleon's sea-control problem
The opening frames Napoleon's invasion plan around a basic maritime problem: gathering a fleet under Royal Navy blockade before any army can cross the Channel.