Search results for ""author robert burnham""

There are many books on Wellington's campaigns during the Peninsular War. Yet very few examine the pivotal year of 1811, when he went on the offensive and forced Napoleon's armies back over 300 kilometres, from the doors of Lisbon to the Spanish border. For two months he pursued the retreating French, fighting skirmishes and rearguards virtually the whole way.The French finally halted at the Spanish border and turned on Wellington in early May, where an epic three-day battle was fought at Fuentes de Oñoro. The rest of the year, Wellington defended the border while making plans to liberate Spain in 1811. Wellington's Light Division and the Defence of Portugal looks at the famed Light Division as it led the pursuit of the French and was involved in almost every combat and battle fought that year.The book also explores the stalemate of January and February 1811, where the division maintained outposts overlooking French positions in the vicinity of Santarem, as well as the pursuit of the F

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In February 1810, Wellington formed what became the most famous British unit in the Peninsular War: the Light Division. Formed around the 43rd and 52nd Light Infantry and the 95th Rifles, the exploits of these three regiments would become legendary. Over the next 50 months, the division would fight and win glory in almost every battle and siege of the Peninsular War. From its origins as a brigade of light infantry which was involved in the first clashes of the British army in Portugal - the battles of Rolica and Vimeiro - and, having proved its worth, was developed into a full division when it returned to the Peninsula in 1810. The Light Division became famous for the speed of its marching over vast distances, its unique form of discipline based upon respect for the ordinary rankers and allowing individual initiative. The men were trained to operate independently and, unlike the musket-armed infantry of the line who delivered mass volleys, the men of the Light Division, many of who carried rifles, concentrated on aimed fire at individual targets. As such, Wellington expected the Light Division to perform the most difficult and hazardous operations, often being the first into battle and the last to retire. Understandably, some of the most memorable characters of Wellington's army and many of its notable diarist and historians. It is through those eyes and words that this major, and long-anticipated study of the early years of the Light Division, is compiled.

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During the Waterloo Campaign, Wellington had only one division that was composed entirely of British infantry, the 1st Division. This consisted of two brigades of the most famous regiments of the British Army-the three regiments of Guards. The exploits of the Guards at Waterloo have passed into legend. On that day, Wellington entrusted the most crucial part of his line to the men he knew would hold their position at all cost. That vital position was the Ch teau d'Hougoumont, and those men were the Guards. As the great battle unfolded, the French threw more and more troops at the walls of Hougoumont, setting some of the Ch teau's buildings on fire and almost forcing their way in through its northern gateway. Though almost an entire French corps was engaged in the struggle for Hougoumont, the detachment of the Guards valiantly resisted every attack. Then, as the battle reached its climax, Napoleon launched his Imperial Guard at the centre of Wellington's line. Just as the French believed that victory was in their grasp, up stood the 1st Guards Brigade to deliver a devastating volley, followed by a ferocious bayonet charge from which the French never recovered. The experienced duo of Robert Burnham and Ron McGuigan have compiled the first comprehensive study of the Guards Division throughout the entire Waterloo campaign, from the initial deployment in Belgium to the Occupation of Paris. The book also includes an explanation of the organisation and composition of the two brigades and personal details of many of the Guards' officers-the men who saved the day at Waterloo.

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The literature of the Peninsular War is rich with vivid source material -letters, diaries, memoirs, and dispatches -but most of it was written by British soldiers or by the French and their allies. As a result the history and experience of the Portuguese forces -which by 1812 composed close to half of Wellington's Army -have been seriously under-represented. That is why this pioneering book, which publishes for the first time in English the after-action reports written by the commanders of Portuguese battalions, regiments and brigades, is so important. For these detailed, graphic firsthand accounts give us a fascinating insight into the vital contribution the Portuguese made to the allied army and shed new light on the struggle against the French in the Iberian Peninsula. The authors provide an introduction tracing the history of the Portuguese Army prior to the Salamanca campaign of 1812, while tracking its organizational changes and assignment of commanders from 1808 to 1814\. They include detailed notes on the after-action reports which set them in the context of each stage of the conflict.

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Some of the most famous memoirs of Britain's long war against Napoleon have come from the pens of members of Wellington's Light Division, but many wonderful accounts were never published and have sat in archives, libraries, museums, and private collections, forgotten for 200 years. The regiments of the Light Division, and its predecessor, the Light Brigade, were involved in almost every major battle and skirmish fought by Wellington and Sir John Moore in the Peninsular War. Unlike the line infantry, these men were encouraged to think and fight independently and were, often, of a higher educational standard, resulting in vivid descriptions of warfare and campaign life. However, these memoirs do not simply cover old ground. Many of these accounts were produced within hours, or at most days, after the incidents they describe, and they often portray a very different view of many famous events and cause us to question numerous claims made in those later published memoirs. Never intended to be published, the memoirs in this book were written only for the men themselves and their families, being penned without the dreaded influence of hindsight' to alter and temper their views. Consequently, they provide brutally honest assessments of their senior officers, how operations were handled and who made mistakes that have subsequently been quietly covered over. The Men of Wellington's Light Division is certain to be welcomed by historians and enthusiasts alike, providing a glimpse into the past that has not been seen before.

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