NDA (II) 2019 General Ability Test · Question 144 of 148

Correct — D, France. The Third Coalition (1805) was the alliance formed against Napoleon's France, so France was the target of the coalition, never a member of it. Its members were the United Kingdom, the Austrian Empire, Russia, Sweden and the Kingdom of Naples (with Sicily). A country cannot be part of a coalition raised against itself — which makes France the clear odd one out.

• (a)Russia — Russia was a leading member of the Third Coalition; its army fought Napoleon at Austerlitz in December 1805, so it was very much a part of it.
• (b)Prussia — Prussia is a genuine trap — it actually stayed neutral in 1805 and joined the fight against Napoleon only in 1806 (the Fourth Coalition). France, however, is the unambiguous intended answer, since the coalition was directed against France itself.
• (c)Sweden — Sweden allied with Britain in late 1804 and was a member of the Third Coalition, so it was part of the alliance against Napoleon.

The Napoleonic Wars saw a series of coalitions of European powers formed against France. The Third Coalition (1805) brought together Britain, Austria, Russia, Sweden and Naples/Sicily; it collapsed after Napoleon's victory at Austerlitz and the Treaty of Pressburg.

The item asks which listed country was NOT part of the coalition against Napoleon. France, being the very power the coalition opposed, is the definitive answer. Note that Prussia too stayed neutral in 1805 and joined only the Fourth Coalition (1806) — a subtlety, but France remains the clear-cut choice.

• The Third Coalition (1805) was an alliance against Napoleon's France.
• Its members included Britain, Austria, Russia, Sweden and Naples/Sicily.
• Prussia remained neutral in 1805 and joined the Fourth Coalition in 1806.
• The coalition unravelled after the Battle of Austerlitz (December 1805).

• Choosing Prussia — it was neutral in 1805 but joined only the Fourth Coalition (1806); the intended answer is France, the coalition's own target.
• Assuming every major European power was inside every coalition — membership changed from one coalition to the next.

'Which was/was not a member' of a European coalition, or ordering the anti-Napoleon coalitions.

No directly related past PYQ was found.

• practice — not a real PYQ

  The Third Coalition against Napoleon collapsed after his decisive victory at

  • (a)Waterloo
  • (b)Austerlitz
  • (c)Trafalgar
  • (d)Leipzig

  Answer(b) Austerlitz (1805) — followed by the Treaty of Pressburg.

• practice — not a real PYQ

  Which of the following stayed neutral during the Third Coalition (1805) and joined the war against Napoleon only in the Fourth Coalition (1806)?

  • (a)Austria
  • (b)Russia
  • (c)Prussia
  • (d)Sweden

  Answer(c) Prussia — neutral in 1805, it entered the Fourth Coalition in 1806.