Book Review:
Cavalry in the Waterloo Campaign
by Dave Watkins, UK.
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Author: General Sir Evelyn Wood, V.C., facsimile of 2nd Edition first published in 1895, published by Worley Publications, Telephone: 091 469 2414. Price £ 18.00. Evelyn Wood, 1834 - 1919, hero of the Crimean War (13th Light Dragoons), erstwhile 17th Lancer officer (during the Indian Mutiny where he gained his VC), campaigned against the Ashantee, fought through the Kafir, Transvaal and Zulu Wars and finally raised the Egyptian Army 1882 of which he became Commander in Chief. Regarded by many Victorians as the first soldier of the empire. Well I think that qualifies this long dead war hero to know something of his subject. And it shows! The books title is somewhat misleading as the actions of infantry and artillery are covered in considerable detail where they had an influence on Cavalry operations. Its all here, detailed accounts of squares, being ridden down, standing firm, cavalry charging, routing, retiring, - the account of the 42nd forming square at Quatre Bras is fascinating, did you know that the prime cause for the heavy losses incurred by the Allies to the French Cavalry was caused by firstly the Brunswick Lancers failing to stand before French Chasseurs Cheval, and secondly by the Brunswick Hussars sent to `plug the gap' retiring through the British lines? Maybe you did, but the anecdotes that illustrate and accompany this incident rarely turn up in studies of this campaign. Perhaps, the appeal of this book, is that as a `high flyer' Wood would have been subject to the tales of daring-do from his fellow officers old enough to have served in 1815 and many of these `forgotten' exploits found there way into the book. Do not be mislead into thinking that only the British Cavalry are covered, this book is what it says, Cavalry in the Waterloo Campaign. 220 pages of enjoyable and informative history. Recommended. More Book Reviews:
Book Review: Cavalry in the Waterloo Campaign Book Review: The Leipzig Campaign of 1813 Back to Table of Contents -- First Empire #13 Back to First Empire List of Issues Back to MagWeb Master Magazine List © Copyright 1993 by First Empire. This article appears in MagWeb (Magazine Web) on the Internet World Wide Web. Other military history articles and gaming articles are available at http://www.magweb.com |