The National Army Museum has obtained three important archival collections containing soldiers’ first-hand accounts of the Napoleonic Wars. The first is an account of the Waterloo campaign by Lieutenant and Captain Henry Weyland Powell. In it, he details events from…
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Currently on the Historic England Heritage at Risk Register and described as being in ‘very bad’ condition, the Woolwich Rotunda is supported by a web of scaffolding and faces an uncertain future. Chris Catling reports on a new book that tells the story of this remarkable 200-year-old building – constructed as a ballroom and then repurposed as a military museum – and explains why it must be saved.
The French Revolution was a turbulent era of shifting loyalties, during which even humbly born soldiers could rise to the top, as Nigel Jones reveals in the final part of his series on treachery.
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Most of us associate prisoner-of-war camps with 20th-century conflicts, but an archaeological evaluation undertaken in July 2009 by Channel 4’s Time Team revealed that the first specially constructed camp dates to the late 18th century, when it was used for incarcerating thousands of enemy prisoners taken during the Napoleonic Wars of 1793-1815.
The site of what is believed to be the world’s first purpose-built prisoner-of-war camp will soon be open to visitors. The Norman Cross Camp, just south of Peterborough in Cambridgeshire, was established by the British government during the Napoleonic Wars.…
REVIEW BY GRAHAM GOODLAD Andrew Lambert has earned a reputation as the leading naval historian of his generation with a series of books on Nelson, the Anglo-American War of 1812-1814, and the Crimean War. In 2018, his Seapower States chronicled…
Napoleonic war camp saved for the nation The first purpose-built prisoner-of-war camp in the world – dating from the French Revolution and Napoleonic Wars – has been saved for future generations through its recent purchase by Nene Park Trust, with…
REVIEW BY ANDRÉ VAN LOON To start with what this book is not: Martin Sullivan, a lecturer in business and previously an investment banker, does not give us a straightforward biography of Louis-Nicolas Davout, Duke of Auerstädt and Prince of…
In the final part of our series on Napoleon Bonaparte, Graham Goodlad examines the reasons for his decline and eventual defeat.
In the second part of our series on Napoleon’s rise and fall, Graham Goodlad analyses his extraordinary run of military successes in the decade between 1800 and 1810.
This image shows the remains of a horse excavated recently from a trench at Mont-Saint-Jean Farm in Waterloo, Belgium. The farm was the site of a field hospital for the Duke of Wellington’s troops in the aftermath of the battle…
In 1809, a young Royal Navy midshipman, Charles Hare, made a daring escape from a Napoleonic prison – with a French uniform as his disguise and a dog in tow. Now, two centuries later, Hare’s uniform, along with a fascinating…
Graham Goodlad analyses the clashes that made Napoleon’s name as a soldier of genius.
REVIEW BY NICK HEWITT No matter how long you study a subject, there is always something new to learn, and this reviewer learned a great deal from Michael Barritt’s excellent account of ‘how Thomas Herd made hydrographic capability a crucial…
With Marc DeSantis
Research for a new experience that opened at Dover Castle this July has led to the discovery of a heavily graffitied door dating to the 1790s, revealing intriguing insights into the thoughts of the soldiers stationed there at that time.…
MHM’s round-up of the latest military history titles
Nick Spenceley recalls one of the great works of military history.
Napoleon and Hitler both drew up detailed plans for the invasion of Britain, spreading alarm among the public and forcing urgent measures from the UK government in return. Here, David Porter compares the plans, and the threat posed by the country’s two would-be invaders.
Graham Goodlad describes the capture of two key frontier fortresses, whose fall opened Spain to the advance of Wellington’s army.
A painting depicting a key moment before the Battle of Waterloo has gone on public display for the first time in a generation. Dawn of Waterloo, painted by Victorian artist Lady Butler, was acquired by the National Army Museum (NAM)…
REVIEW BY PATRICK MERCER When I joined the army there were sphinxes all over the place: on cap badges, collar badges, sporran badges, embroidered on Regimental Colours… The Gloucesters even wore two, one fore and another aft, to commemorate fighting…
REVIEW BY ANDRÉ VAN LOON The subject of The Coalitions Against Napoleon is fascinating and rich in potential. Moving beyond the well-trodden path of personality-based writing (such as Napoleon versus Wellington, biographies of Napoleon’s marshals, or the career of Horatio…
![Right The sword belonging to General Everard Bouverie, pictured [far right] in 1860. Some 45 years earlier, he had used it during the Battle of Waterloo.](https://i0.wp.com/the-past.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/post-1_image0-6.jpg?fit=768%2C818&ssl=1)
The weapon belonged to General Everard Bouverie, of the Royal Horse Guards.
In this picture, a conservator at the National Army Museum in London holds the skull of Marengo, the most famous of the horses that belonged to French Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte. Named after Napoleon’s victory over the Austrian Empire at the…
In his latest book, the distinguished historian Peter Burke considers the many ways that misunderstandings, arrogance, and lack of knowledge can affect events on the battlefield.
REVIEW BY ANDRÉ VAN LOON Napoleon: the decline and fall of an empire is the compelling, if partial, closing volume of Michael Broers’ Napoleon trilogy. It marks the end of more than a decade of Napoleon-centred writing for Broers, Professor…
In the early years of the 19th century, military camps sprang up along the south coast of England to guard against French invasion. Once the Napoleonic Wars ended, most were dismantled, leaving little trace of this turbulent period – but now archaeological work at Weeley, a small village 11 miles from Colchester, has uncovered the remains of one such site, as Nick Cox reports.
La Débâcle prefigures both the changing nature of warfare, and the ongoing struggle of France’s national identity. Within 22 years, another generation would be sacrificed defending their homeland.
![TOP Human remains discovered at the Mont Saint Jean farm complex. Team members, including military veterans [above], excavated the site at Waterloo this summer.](https://i0.wp.com/the-past.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/post-1_image0.jpg?fit=768%2C537&ssl=1)
The latest discoveries – including parts of at least three horses, one of which looks nearly complete, and the skull and arm of a soldier – are incredibly rare finds.
Chandler sees Napoleon as a gifted improviser whose operations were nonetheless underpinned by certain consistent principles. Amongst his key skills as a commander were a personal charisma that inspired and moulded others to his will
REVIEW BY PATRICK BONIFACE. Military success throughout time has been dependent on the orderly and safe supply of goods, food, fuel, ammunition, and personnel. Ancient mariners devised the convoy system to protect these vital supplies, and over the centuries little…
The discovery was announced by Waterloo Uncovered, the archaeological charity which has returned to the battlefield site in Belgium for its first excavations there since 2019.
Patrick Mercer recalls one of the great works of military history.