| Sebastian Palmer | 30 Apr 2015 11:46 p.m. PST |
Hello My Waterloo reading mania continues unabated. Recently read and reviewed David Howarth's splendid A Near Run Thing: link shorter review on Amazon: link Let me know here or on my blog if you enjoyed the review.
Cheers Sebastian |
| 4th Cuirassier | 01 May 2015 5:23 a.m. PST |
Does he claim Waterloo was a British victory? I have been trying since about 1998 to source an actual British writer on Waterloo who makes this claim. The only one I've come across was in an R J Unstead children's history book. |
rvandusen  | 01 May 2015 9:00 a.m. PST |
I have the same book under the title Waterloo: Day of Battle. It is an excellent read with a skillful paraphrasing of eyewitness accounts. |
| Who asked this joker | 01 May 2015 9:39 a.m. PST |
Sounds like the book I read in college. Same guy the wrote the one on Trafalgar right? I thought he did the Trafalgar book fairly impartially. I thought his bias showed a little in the Waterloo book. Not too much but you could kind of tell. From memory, I was left with the impression that he felt that Wellington didn't need Blucher. Still a fine read. |
| Trajanus | 01 May 2015 10:31 a.m. PST |
I have been trying since about 1998 to source an actual British writer on Waterloo who makes this claim. Try contacting Hofschroer, he may have a list. |
| 4th Cuirassier | 01 May 2015 10:51 a.m. PST |
Try contacting Hofschroer, he may have a list. I don't think he does. I've looked in the bibiography and he cites I think one or perhaps two English language historians. So it is a bit of mystery where this claim came from. Where Hoffie is now, he probably doesn't have access to a library. |
| svsavory | 01 May 2015 12:50 p.m. PST |
I read Howarth's book years ago when I was in school, it was in the school library. It really sparked my interest in the Napoleonic period and especially Waterloo. I've since acquired a used copy for my collection, mostly for nostalgia. Edit: Nice review, Sebastian! |
| Dances with Clydesdales | 01 May 2015 3:48 p.m. PST |
I too read this when I was at school, not a bad read. |
| matthewgreen | 02 May 2015 3:33 a.m. PST |
Yes this was my favourite account as a teenager. It made the whole thing come alive. As I became more interested in the nuts and bolts, its appeal diminished. But if somebody wants to read a single book about the battle, this one still takes a lot of beating. I can say that about very few books on the wars written at that time – a bit of a low ebb so far as proper historical writing was concerned. |
| goragrad | 02 May 2015 1:52 p.m. PST |
Amusingly I just finished this (Atheneum edition – Waterloo – Day of Battle) last week. Very interesting read. Having just finished it I would say my impression was that the arrival of the Prussians on the ridge was portrayed as being the deciding factor. |
paints grey horses - specifically, dapple greys.
