The County Lieutenancies and the Army: 1803-1814
The County Lieutenancies and the Army: 1803-1814

Author: The Hon. J. W. Fortescue

Publisher: Andrews UK Limited

Published: 2012-02-27

Total Pages: 346

ISBN-13: 1781505977

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

The author of this book needs no introduction as the one who wrote the monumental History of the British Army which to this day remains one of the greatest masterpieces in the field of military history. It covers a period of great crisis in Britain's history, the threat posed by Napoleon and is an account of recruiting in the Army during this period with all its difficulties and problems. In preparing this book the author draws on all the official records, returns, journals he can trace and which bear upon the problem. Fortescue calls this an "overflow" from his History, and with the encouragement (financial and otherwise) of the Secretary of State for War he turns what might have otherwise been thirty-page document into a detailed study ten times as long. Beginning with the desperate state the military forces had been brought to during the period 1784 to 1792 by the neglect of Pitt, he takes through the efforts to build up not just an army, but a very large army to back up his foreign policy. The county was a vital cog in the recruiting machine of those days of the Regular Army, Volunteers and Militia and the role of the Lords Lieutenant of those counties was of equal importance. There are a number of interesting tables of statistics for those twelve years:- casualties year on year with a high point of 21,630 in 1809, during the Peninsular War; recruits for the regular army totalling 115,967 men plus 18,349 boys; effective strengths by arm of service; effective strengths of Volunteers in Great Britain and in Ireland and much more besides.

The British Army, 1783–1815
The British Army, 1783–1815

Author: Kevin Linch

Publisher: Pen and Sword Military

Published: 2024-04-30

Total Pages: 314

ISBN-13: 1526738023

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

The British army between 1783 and 1815 – the army that fought in the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic wars – has received severe criticism and sometimes exaggerated praise from contemporaries and historians alike, and a balanced and perceptive reassessment of it as an institution and a fighting force is overdue. That is why this carefully considered new study by Kevin Linch is of such value. He brings together fresh perspectives on the army in one of its most tumultuous – and famous – eras, exploring the global range of its deployment, the varieties of soldiering it had to undertake, its close ties to the political and social situation of the time, and its complex relationship with British society and culture. In the face of huge demands on its manpower and direct military threats to the British Isles and territories across the globe, the army had to adapt. As Kevin Linch demonstrates, some changes were significant while others were, in the end, minor or temporary. In the process he challenges the ‘Road to Waterloo’ narrative of the army’s steady progress from the nadir of the 1780s and early 1790s, to its strong performances throughout the Peninsular War and its triumph at the Battle of Waterloo. His reassessment shows an army that was just good enough to cope with the demanding campaigns it undertook.

European Armies of the French Revolution, 1789–1802
European Armies of the French Revolution, 1789–1802

Author: Frederick C. Schneid

Publisher: University of Oklahoma Press

Published: 2015-05-26

Total Pages: 289

ISBN-13: 0806153121

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

Upon France’s defeat of the vaunted Prussian army at the Battle of Valmy in 1792, German author Johann Wolfgang von Goethe remarked, “From this place and from this day forth commences a new era in the world’s history.” The pronouncement proved prescient, for this first major victory emboldened France’s revolutionary government to end the monarchy and establish the first French Republic—with dramatic consequences for the wars that soon roiled the continent. In nine essays by leading scholars, European Armies of the French Revolution, 1789–1802 provides an authoritative, continent-wide analysis of the organization and constitution of these armies, the challenges they faced, and the impact they had on the French Revolutionary Wars and on European military practices. The volume opens with editor Frederick C. Schneid’s substantial introduction, which reviews the strategies and policies of each participating state throughout the wars, establishing a clear context for the essays that follow. Drawing on the latest research and thought, each contributor focuses on the army of a particular power: France, Prussia, Austria, Russia, Britain, Spain, the German principalities, the Italian states, and the Ottoman Empire. Their essays examine the system, tactics, operations, and strategies that each army adopted and developed in the Revolutionary Wars. The authors explore the conflicts’ wider influence on these policies and practices, along with significant battles and actions. Unique in its approach and reach, this volume offers a thorough and closely observed view of the composition, scope, and purpose of the European armies at the turn of the nineteenth century. It enhances and extends our insights into how the military powers of the post–French Revolutionary era—and thus, the era itself—took shape.

The Oxford History of the British Army
The Oxford History of the British Army

Author: David G. Chandler

Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA

Published: 2003

Total Pages: 518

ISBN-13: 9780192803115

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

From the Napoleonic Wars to the battle of the Falklands, from the pike and musket to the Challenger tank, The Oxford History of the British Army brings to life the far-reaching history of this long-lived institution. This definitive one-volume reference provides a wealth of historical detail as it takes readers on a lively journey through the annals of the British Army. Here are vivid descriptions of all the famous military campaigns and battles--from Agincourt and Crecy, to Trafalgar, Waterloo, and Yorktown Heights, to Dunkirk and D-Day--as well as insightful portraits of the great commanders, including Edward I, the Duke of Marlborough, Cromwell, the Duke of Wellington, and Field Marshall Montgomery. Military experts and military history buffs will be particularly interested in the special sections that highlight vital aspects of the Army, including tactics, weaponry, and major figures. Finally, the volume boasts a distinguished roster of contributors, including not only prominent military historians, but also former servicemen, who provide expert technical insight and vivid, eyewitness accounts of modern soldiering and warfare. Comprehensive and authoritative, The Oxford History of the British Army will fascinate military history buffs as well as anyone seeking a broader understanding of British or modern world history.

Wellington
Wellington

Author: Rory Muir

Publisher: Yale University Press

Published: 2013-12-03

Total Pages: 693

ISBN-13: 0300198604

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

The leading Wellington historian’s fascinating reassessment of the Iron Duke’s most famous victory and his role in the turbulent politics after Waterloo. For Arthur Wellesley, First Duke of Wellington, his momentous victory over Napoleon was the culminating point of a brilliant military career. Yet Wellington’s achievements were far from over: he commanded the allied army of occupation in France to the end of 1818, returned home to a seat in Lord Liverpool’s cabinet, and became prime minister in 1828. He later served as a senior minister in Peel’s government and remained commander-in-chief of the army for a decade until his death in 1852. In this richly detailed work, the second and concluding volume of Rory Muir’s definitive biography, the author offers a substantial reassessment of Wellington’s significance as a politician and a nuanced view of the private man behind the legend of the selfless hero. Muir presents new insights into Wellington’s determination to keep peace at home and abroad, achieved by maintaining good relations with the Continental powers and resisting radical agitation while granting political equality to the Catholics in Ireland rather than risk civil war. And countering one-dimensional pictures of Wellington as a national hero, Muir paints a portrait of a well-rounded man whose austere demeanor on the public stage belied his entertaining, gossipy, generous, and unpretentious private self. “[An] authoritative and enjoyable conclusion to a two-part biography.” —Lawrence James, Times (London) “Muir conveys the military, political, social and personal sides of Wellington’s career with equal brilliance. This will be the leading work on the subject for decades.” —Andrew Roberts, author of Napoleon and Wellington: The Long Duel