To War with Wellington: From the Peninsula to Waterloo - Softcover

Peter Snow

Softcover

ISBN 10: 184854104X ISBN 13: 9781848541047

Publisher: John Murray Publishers, 2011

Synopsis

The seven-year campaign that saved Europe from Napoleon told by those who were there.

What made Arthur Duke of Wellington the military genius who was never defeated in battle? In the vivid narrative style that is his trademark, Peter Snow recalls how Wellington evolved from a backward, sensitive schoolboy into the aloof but brilliant commander. He tracks the development of Wellington's leadership and his relationship with the extraordinary band of men he led from Portugal in 1808 to their final destruction of Napoleon at the Battle of Waterloo seven years. Having described his soldiers as the 'scum of the earth' Wellington transformed them into the finest fighting force of their time.

Digging deep into the rich treasure house of diaries and journals that make this war the first in history to be so well recorded, Snow examines how Wellington won the devotion of generals such as the irascible Thomas Picton and the starry but reckless 'Black Bob' Crauford and soldiers like Rifleman Benjamin Harris and Irishman Ned Costello. Through many first-hand accounts, Snow brings to life the horrors and all of the humanity of life in and out of battle, as well as shows the way that Wellington mastered the battlefield to outsmart the French and change the future of Europe.

To War with Wellingtonis the gripping account of a very human story about a remarkable leader and his men.

About this title

About the Author:

Peter Snow is a highly respected journalist, author and broadcaster. He was ITN's Diplomatic and Defence Correspondent from 1966 to 1979, and presentedNewsnightfrom 1980 to 1997. An indispensable part of election nights, he has also covered military matters on and off the world's battlefields for forty years. Peter is married and has six children.

Review:

'Snow writes with tremendous elan and his appraisal of Wellington is scrupulously fair' * Mail on Sunday * A must-read * Heritage Today * A refreshingly accessible portrait of one of Britain's greatest generals, it will take some beating * Yorkshire Evening Post * Snow's descriptions of battles . . . are unrivalled * Oxford Times * The bloodcurdling (and surprisingly steamy) soldiers' diaries that reveal how Britain trounced Napoleon in battle * Daily Mail * Dramatic, often moving, sometimes shocking . . . Snow's story is far more powerful than fiction * Herald * Fascinating. History written as it should be: entertaining and informative * Independent on Sunday * A superb account of what it must have been like serving under Britain's greatest - but also most exacting - soldier * Andrew Roberts, Sunday Telegraph, Books of the Year *

About this edition

• Publisher: John Murray Publishers
• Publication date: 2011
• ISBN 10: 184854104X
• ISBN 13: 9781848541047
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 400