The Waterloo Archive - Volume II: German Sources

Gareth Glover (Edited by)

ISBN 10: 184832541X / ISBN 13: 9781848325418

Published by Frontline Books, Barnsley, South Yorkshire, 2010

About this Item

First-hand accounts by German troops, who formed the majority of Wellington's forces present at the Battle of Waterloo. 255pp with index, illustrated with 8 colour plates, 2 black and white drawings and a map to the text. Gilt lettering to spine. Minimal bumping to head of spine, two shades of paper and minor marking to top edges, otherwise very good copy with no inscriptions. Unclipped DJ has small internal tape repair to lower edges, otherwise very good. Size: 8vo - over 7¾ - 9¾" tall.

Seller Inventory # 017227

Bibliographic Details

• Title: The Waterloo Archive - Volume II: German Sources
• Publisher: Frontline Books, Barnsley, South Yorkshire
• Publication Date: 2010
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 184832541X
• ISBN 13: 9781848325418
• Binding: Black Cloth Boards
• Edition: First Thus.
• Condition: Very Good
• Dust Jacket Condition: Very Good
• Book Type: Book
• Seller catalogs:
  • Military History/Military Intelligence

About this title

Synopsis

German troops formed the majority of Wellington’s forces present at the Battle of Waterloo including those of Nassau, Brunswick, Hanover and the King’s German Legion, and they have left a large number of first-hand accounts of their role in the battle.

The actions of the King's German Legion – an integral part of the British Army and partly officered by British soldiers – has been published in English, but to a limited degree: Herbert Siborne published letters written to his father; Ompteda and Wheatley have had their memoirs published; and History of the King’s German Legion included a small number of letters, including the oft-misquoted account of the defense of La Haye Sainte by Major Baring. This forms a tiny proportion of the German material available. Therefore it is not surprising that early British histories of the battle have largely sidelined the achievements of the German troops, and this has been regurgitated by most that have followed. This situation did not change until the 1990s when Peter Hofschroer published his two-volume version of the campaign from the German perspective, which included snippets of German documents published in English for the first time. But even this proved not totally satisfactory, as it did not provide the whole document to allow full interpretation.

There is a great need to provide an English version of much of the original German source material to redress the imbalance; this volume is intended to remedy that situation by publishing sixty of these reports and letters fully translated into English for the first time, giving a clearer insight into the significant role these troops played.

About the Author

Gareth Glover is a former Royal Navy officer and military historian who has made a special study of the Napoleonic Wars for the last 30 years.