Reader's Reviews

Napoleon's Soldiers
The Otto Manuscript

Reviewed by John Cook

Published by Arms and Armour Press. £20.

Every so often a book comes along which is simply exceptional. 'Napoleon's Soldiers' is such a book.

Executed, as far as can be told, in approximately 1807, the ingenuous style of the 'Otto Manuscript' will be well known to students of the period, amateur and professional, particularly those who own a copy of Henry Lachouque and Anne S.K. Brown's 'Anatomy of Glory'. The 98 colour plates have been arranged into six parts, dealing with the Guard, line infantry, light infantry and non-line types, line cavalry, artillery and supporting troops, and Italian troops, together with a text for each by Guy Dempsey, which describes, analyses and discusses the depicted uniforms. If the plates themselves were not enough, this text is a perfect compliment and makes the book doubly interesting and valuable.

By way of an introduction, Guy Dempsey also provides an extremely well reasoned analysis of the manuscript's origins and it is here that I have the only criticism, such as it is, more a difference in emphasis. There seems little doubt that the 'Otto Manuscript' dates from the Napoleonic period, even if the provenance and author cannot be determined with certainty, but I don't think it can really be described as a primary source. The primary source in this case was the "body of material" from which the paintings were made, to wit, the uniforms and people wearing them. The manuscript, therefore, is a contemporaneous secondary source.

This is, I know, being 'picky' in the extreme and does not alter the fact that this is a unique and beautifully produced work of art, the essential nature of which is its charming naïvety. It is also a genuine and important Napoleonic document, which makes it of intense interest for its own sake, now available to mortal man under a single cover. 'Napoleon's Soldiers' is a superb book at an almost unbelievable price. I predict that copies will change hands for a lot more than £20 in years to come. Guy Dempsey and Arms and Armour Press get full marks.

Here is a parting thought. When one bears in mind that here are 98 unique, genuine and beautiful Napoleonic colour plates, together with an extremely informative and readable text for a mere £20, it rather throws the price of an Osprey 'Men at Arms' into stark contrast.

I am reminded of the actress, I forget which one, Racquel Welch I think, who when asked to pose for 'Playboy' declined with the remark that at least the paper on which it was printed was excellent quality. 'Napoleon's Soldiers' is quality in every respect. Do not miss it.

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