You may have to Search all our reviewed books and magazines, click the sign up button below to create a free account.
“A rare example of a memoir of a private soldier from the Napoleonic Wars . . . valuable insight into the daily life and preoccupations of Wellington’s men” (HistoryOfWar.org). By all accounts, Friedrich Lindau was a remarkable soldier of the King’s German Legion. He served with distinction under Wellington from Lisbon to as far as Bayonne, and was involved in all major engagements, including Albuera, Badajoz, Salamanca, Vitoria, and San Sebastian. Most notably, he fought and was captured at La Haye Sainte but was the only ranking soldier mentioned by name in Major Baring’s account of the battle. For his actions he was awarded the Guelphic Medal for Bravery. That said, he had a rep...
The authors sharp eye for the illuminating detail and the oddities of human behavior enabled him to present a picture of army life as graphic and revealing as any drawn by a private soldier during the Napoleonic Wars - Christopher HibbertThis remarkable memoir was first published in Edinburgh in 1819 and has withstood the test of time. One cannot improve on Sir Charles Omans description of the book as: the work of a man of superior education, who had enlisted in a moment of pique and humiliation to avoid facing at home the consequences of his own conceit and folly. The author wrote from the ranks, yet was so different in education and mental equipment from his comrades that he does not take their vices and habits for granted. The reader receives the narrative of an intelligent observer, describing the behavior of his regiment as it traveled the globe. His account covers Whitelocks disastrous South American adventure in 1806, the Peninsular War, the Walcheren Expedition and the Battle of Waterloo. For the first time, Joseph Sinclair has been unmasked as the author of the memoir, thanks to new research work by Stuart Reid.
This spirited history of the 1815 campaign provides a new and stimulating account of the epic confrontation at Waterloo and, in addition, acts as a reliable guide to the battlefield and all related sites. The authors have divided the battlefield of Waterloo into three distinct sectors: one for each of the three armies involved. This allows the reader to follow the fighting from three different perspectives and gain an objective understanding of the dramatic course of the battle. The authors also make use of vivid eyewitness testimony, drawn from participants in all three armies, and this brings to life the epic battle and provides a dramatic backcloth to the rapid course of events. Previousl...
None
German troops formed the majority of Wellingtons forces present at the Battle of Waterloo including those of Nassau, Brunswick, Hanover and the Kings German Legion, and they have left a large number of first-hand accounts of their role in the battle. The actions of the King's German Legion an integral part of the British Army and partly officered by British soldiers has been published in English, but to a limited degree: Herbert Siborne published letters written to his father; Ompteda and Wheatley have had their memoirs published; and History of the Kings German Legion included a small number of letters, including the oft-misquoted account of the defence of La Haye Sainte by Majo...
Two hundred years ago the Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars convulsed the whole of Europe. These were key events in the history of the continent, and for Britain, and they are a fascinating field for historical _ and family history _ research. More records than ever are available on the men who served in the British army during the wars _ and on their families - and Carole DivallÍs new book is the perfect guide to how to locate and understand these sources - and get the most out of them. She gives a vivid insight into what soldiersÍ lives were like during the period and shows how much of their experience can be recovered from the records. Using the full range of sources - contemporary mili...
More has probably been written about the Waterloo campaign than almost any other in history. It was the climax of the Napoleonic Wars and forms a watershed in both European and world history. However, the lethal combination of national bias, wilful distortion and simple error has unfortunately led to the constantly regurgitated traditional 'accepted' version being significantly wrong regarding many episodes in the campaign. Oft-repeated claims have morphed into established fact and, with the bicentenary of this famous battle soon to be commemorated, it is high time that these are challenged and finally dismissed.?Gareth Glover has spent a decade uncovering hundreds of previously unpublished ...
'A superb little book that is micro-history at its best' Washington Post 'The brevity of this remarkable book belies the amount of work that went into it. One can only marvel at how well Professor Simms has gone through the original sources - the surviving journals, reminiscences and letters of the individual combatants - to produce a coherent and gripping narrative' Nick Lezard, Guardian The true story, told minute by minute, of the soldiers who defeated Napoleon - from Brendan Simms, acclaimed author of Europe: The Struggle for Supremacy Europe had been at war for over twenty years. After a short respite in exile, Napoleon had returned to France and threatened another generation of fightin...
Nation-states have long used representational architecture to create symbolic identities for public consumption both at home and abroad. Government buildings, major ensembles and urban plans have a visibility that lends them authority, while their repeated portrayals in the media cement their image as icons of a shared national character. Existing in tandem with this official self, however, is a second, often divergent identity, represented by the vast realm of domestic space defined largely by those who occupy it as well as those with a vested interest in its cultural meaning. Using both historical inquiry and visual, spatial and film analysis, this book explores the interaction of these tw...