Naval and Military Press Ltd

Condition: New. Softback Published Price £14.99 Working in four-man patrols, the SAS teams first made friends with the head-hunting border tribes and even trained some of them as an irregular military force. As the conflict continued, SAS teams went beyond the borders into Indonesia, where they tracked down enemy camps, fired on supply convoys, staged ambushes, and attacked enemy soldiers in their riverboats. By talking to those who were there, Peter Dickens has recreated what it was really like to fight in the jungles of Malaysia. He also captures the bravery and relentless pursuit of excellence that make the SAS the elite and prestigious regiment it is.

Condition: New. Softback, 150 pagesPublished Price £9.99 Concentrating on the Ploegsteert and Neuve Eglise sectors in Belgium, this book features stories on such well known figures as sculptor Charles Sargent Jagger, ARA ; R Poulton Palmer and 'Tanky' Turner, great friends and rugby football captains of England and Scotland respectively; as well the discovery and eventual burial of a Lancashire Fuslier who was killed in action in 1914; the research leading to the erection in 2002 of a 'Believed to be buried' headstone in the Strand cemetery of an Australian killed in action at Messines in 1917; the action in 1914 that initiated the birth of the infamous 'Birdcage' on the western edge of Ploegsteert Wood and other stories of interest to enthusiasts of the Great War.

Condition: New. Hardback 240 pagesPublished Price £19.99 Today the Victoria Cross remains the supreme British award for bravery. It takes precedence over all other awards and decorations. During its 160-year history, since the first medals were given for gallantry during the Crimean War in the 1850s, 1,357 of these medals have been won, and no less than 69 of them have gone to Yorkshiremen. Alan Whitworth, in this carefully researched and revealing account, describes in graphic detail the exploits and the lives of this elite group of heroes.Among the roll of the brave whose gallantry and self-sacrifice are celebrated in these pages the reader will find the names and extraordinary deeds of men who were either born or bred or lived and died in Yorkshire. The first was Yorkshire-born Bombardier Thomas Wilkinson in 1857. He set an example that has been followed by generations of Yorkshire soldiers through the conflicts of the late nineteenth century â" among them the Indian Mutiny and the wars in Afghanistan and South Africa â" and then, in the twentieth century, in the two world wars and more recent operations in the Gulf and Afghanistan. Their stories give an unforgettable insight into the nature of heroism and into the role of individual soldiers who stand out from the ranks of men who took part in Britain's many wars and campaigns.The stories of these ordinary individuals who have 'performed some signal act of valour or devotion to their country' will be fascinating reading for anyone who is interested in military history in general and in the long military tradition of Yorkshire.AS REVIEWED IN THE 'YORKSHIRE POST'.

Condition: New. Hardback 240 pagesPublished Price £25 Tanks caused a havoc among the Germans when they first appeared on the battlefields of Europe in 1917. These metal monsters broke up the trench warfare stalemate and thus hastened the armistice. This is the first full study of the U.S. Army's World War I Tank Corps.Because of production delays and political manoeuvring, no American tanks made it into the war, and American tankers had to use French machines instead. But a new breed of army officers, of which Eisenhower and Patton are the most famous, saw the promise of this new technology and staked their careers on it. Ike trained the first generation of tankers at Camp Colt at Gettysburg, and Patton led them into battle in France.

Condition: New. Hardback, 256 pagesPublished Price £19.99 The most notorious, and most contentious, cavalry charge in history still remains an enigma. Though numerous books have been written about the charge, all claiming to 'reveal the truth' or to understand 'the reason why'; exactly what happened at Balaklava on 25 October 1854 continues to be fiercely debated. Voices from the Past, The Charge of the Light Brigade relives that fateful day not through the opinions of such historians but from the words of those that were there. This is the story of the charge told by the soldiers of both sides, in the most detailed description of the Battle of Balaklava yet written. Gallop with the light dragoons and lancers into the mouths of the Russian cannon as the shells and cannonballs decimate their ranks. Read of the desperate efforts to return down the Valley of Death as the enemy pressed around the remnants of the Light Brigade, and of the nine Victoria Crosses won that day. Possibly more significant are the accusations and counter-arguments that followed the loss of the Light Brigade. Just who was responsible for that terrible blunder? The leading figures all defended their own positions, leading to presentations in Parliament and legal action. Yet one of those senior figures made an astonishing admission immediately after the battle, only to change his story when the charge became headline news. Just who was it that made the fatal error that cost the British Army its Light Brigade?

Condition: New. Hardback, 450 pagesPublished Price £29.95 The First World War demanded one of the most sustained and extraordinary efforts ever made by the British people. It was made possible by a multitude of individuals and by the communities of which they were a part. This study is a celebration one of those communities.Appendices offer data about many of the Old Boys and Girls who served, including contemporary obituaries and photographs for almost all of those killed. No final figures can be established, but over 500 Old Boys saw military service and more than 80 were killed. In a sense, everyone at home served, but the study includes an account of over 200 Old Girls who took on new responsibilities on the Home Front or abroad. As this suggests, the studyâs principal focus is on all those involved in the war at Home and at the Fronts, and in particular on what they felt about it at the time. The echo of footsteps and voices in school corridors are accordingly as much part of the story as are moments of valour or desperation on the Western Front. The history of the schools just before and after the Great War and some account of their place in the local community are dealt with to provide context. For the same reason, attention is given to the key events of the period and to the ways in which they have been interpreted.Overseas clients please note: Due to excessively high wrapped weight shipping is weighted on this title.

Condition: New. Hardback xv+ 304 pages + plates in colourPublished Price £25.

Condition: New. Softback, 176 pagesPublished Price £9.99 In 1914 Torquay was the crown jewel of the English Riviera, long the haunt of the rich and famous but this status was not to last. The Great War of 1914-1918 brought a shuddering end to this golden period in amongst the blood and mud of the Western Front as hundreds of Torquinians gave their lives in the fight against the Kaiser. This book documents the town's experience, both militarily and socially through the extensive use of previously unpublished letters from those who served, by following the career of General Sir Herbert Plumer, commander of the British Second Army and native Torquinian and by featuring a detailed analysis of the home front throughout the war. In doing so it challenges many of the war's myths including the idea of war enthusiasm in 1914, widespread opposition to the war and the old myth of lions led by donkeys. In doing so it reveals the extent to which even a small town such as Torquay contributed to the war effort and how much the war permanently changed Torquay.

Condition: New. SB 64 pp IllustratedPublished Price £8.99 Five ships and a shore establishment of the Royal Navy have all born the name HMS Cambridge, after the famous English university city.The first HMS Cambridge was a 70-gun third rate ship of the line launched in 1666 and wrecked in 1694. The second HMS Cambridge was an 80-gun third rate ship of the line launched in 1695. She was rebuilt in 1715 and broken up in 1750. The third HMS Cambridge was an 80-gun third rate ship of the line launched in 1755. She was on harbour service from 1793 and was broken up in 1808.The fourth HMS Cambridge was a 80-gun second rater launched in 1815. She became a gunnery training ship in 1856 and was broken up in 1869. The fifth HMS Cambridge was a 116-gun first rater launched in 1858 as HMS Windsor Castle. She was renamed HMS Cambridge in 1869 when she replaced the 1815 vessel as gunnery ship off Plymouth. She was sold in 1908.Finally, HMS Cambridge was commissioned as a shore establishment between 1956 to 2001 (formerly named HM Gunnery School, Devonport, then Cambridge Gunnery School at Wembury).This book tells the fascinating story of one of the most famous names in the Royal Navyâs history.

Condition: New. Softback 224 pagesPublished Price £14.99 Britainâs elite Special Air Service Regiment, the SAS, is one of the most revered and feared special-ops units in the world. Its high-profile operations include the spectacular storming of the Iranian Embassy in London on 5 May 1980 and the hunt for Osama bin Laden in southern Afghanistan following 9/11. The regiment has become a byword for the highest possible standards in both conventional and unorthodox methods of warfare. But where did it all begin? In this compelling book, Tim Jones tackles this fascinating question from a fresh perspective. It is commonly held that the regiment was the brainchild of just one man, David Stirling. While not dismissing Stirling s considerable contribution to the regiment s genesis, Jones s insightful investigation identifies all of the major factors that played a part in shaping the SAS, including the role of such notables as Dudley Clarke, Archibald Wavell and Claude Auchinleck, among others. Drawing extensively on primary sources, as well as reassessing the more recent regimental histories and memoirs, SAS Zero Hour is an illuminating and provocative account of how this renowned regiment came into being.

Condition: New. 2002 N & M Press reprint, original pub 1937. 175pp with numerous b/w photos This is not a war record but a register of all Old Wycliffians from the time of the foundation of the college in 1882 to 1937. After an account of the collegeâs fifty-five years of existence it lists all the old boys in alphabetical order with short biographical details, including where the pupil came from, the years at school and his House. Any wartime service is noted. There are various chapters concerning school matters - chronological list of masters, school constitution, a topographical index listing all the pupils by county of residence and overseas students, school staff in 1937 and other miscellaneous notes.

Condition: New. Softback, 256 pagesPublished Price £14.99 George Frederick 'Fred' Dallas wrote 137 letters to his family and friends while on active service in the Crimea. A company commander in the 46th Foot, his first letters reflect a soldier's enthusiasm for the brilliant affair that awaits the British Army overseas. Within weeks of arriving, excitement turns to disbelief at the continual misjudgement of his leaders. Poor preparation and divided command exposed the troops to surprise attacks from The Russe , and to the appalling conditions of the Crimean winter. By contrast, Dallas' reports on the casual bravery of his comrades recognise the true heroes of a mismanaged campaign.

Condition: New. DVDPublished Price £9.99 The German Propaganda Kompanien (PK) captured the events of Hitler s war on every front. Their footage was used to produce Die Deutsche Wochenschau, a weekly cinema newsreel detailing the events of World War II on land, sea and air. For the first time these unique primary source films have been collated, edited and translated into English in order to produce a complete military history of the Third Reich drawn exclusively from German primary sources. This amazing range of films captures the events of World War II exactly as they were presented to contemporary cinema audiences while the actions on the battlefield were still unfolding.

Condition: New. Softback 184 pages illustrated throughoutPublished Price £14.99 2000 French residents were conscripted into the French Army. Pre 1914 large numbers had settled in Canada to pursue fishing, boat building and farming. Yet more fought with the Canadian Army.The departure of so many men had a serious affect on agriculture and potato growing in particular which had both an economic impact and caused shortages for export to GB.We learn how defences were established to prevent invasion which was a real threat. The French developed a large seaplane base in Guernsey as part of the anti-U-boat war. A POW camp was built and, despite being unusually luxurious, many Germans attempted to escape.The book covers the social changes that war brought; in particular the work of women both on the mainland and in voluntary services in France and at home. Many interesting characters emerge; Prince Blucher who owned the island of Herm and whose son served in the Guernsey Militia, the Dame of Sark's service in the VAD; Lawrence of Arabia; Elinor Glyn, socialite and sex symbol, became war correspondent for the News of the World.Twenty-two years later the Channel Islands saw war at first hand an a former German POW became the first Kommandant.The author paints a varied tableau of events and personalities in what is a fascinating and never previously told story.

Condition: New. Softback, 68 pages with Maps & IllustrationsPublished Price £12.99.

Condition: New. Hardback, 240 pagesPublished Price £19.99 Wellington s Headquarters is an essential introduction to the administration of the British army in the early nineteenth century. It offers a fascinating insight into the structure and operation of the Duke of Wellington s command during the Peninsular War. Wardâs classic study, first published over sixty years ago, describes the complicated tangle of departments that administered the army, departments which had grown up haphazard and survived virtually unchanged until the time of the Crimean War. Wellington adapted the existing system in order to turn it into an efficient instrument in the war against Napoleon, despite clashes of responsibility and personality that frustrated him and impaired the armyâs performance on campaign. Chapters cover peacetime and wartime administration, the relationships of the staff officers, the supply and maintenance of the army in the Peninsula, the gathering and interpretation of intelligence, the organisation of the army on the march and the sometimes tense relations between Wellington and his subordinates. The study raises the quartermaster general s department to its proper position, and discusses Wellington s attitude to the chief of staff system which was then favoured on the continent. The result of this lucid and absorbing survey is an enhanced understanding of the system that had evolved to administer the British army two hundred years ago.

Condition: New. Hardback, 192 pagesPublished Price £25 Although Marcus Junius Brutus is one of the most famous, or infamous, conspirators of Rome and the ancient world, if not of all time, knowledge of this historical figure has principally been passed to the modern world through the literary medium of Shakespeare's tragedy, Julius Caesar. Furthermore, any interest in Brutus has tended to focus only on events surrounding his most legendary act, Caesar's murder. This biography instead considers Brutus in his historical context, gathering details from ancient evidence and piecing together, as far as possible, his whole life. While his actions played a pivotal role in Roman history, ultimately, although completely unintentionally, bringing about the downfall of the Roman republic, Brutus has often been neglected. Indeed, he has rarely been considered on his own merits, instead featuring as part of the biographies and studies of other leading political figures of the time, especially those of Julius Caesar, Cicero and Octavian.

Condition: New. Hardback, 289 pages Published Price £25 This book tells the story of an incredibly capable naval aircraft, based primarily on the words of those who flew and maintained it. Beginning with the Lynx's entry into service in 1976, it goes on to discuss its remarkable performance in the Falklands War. Here it was used in both its primary roles of anti-submarine and anti-surface warfare, as well as several others for which it had never been designed, such as Airborne Early Warning and anti-Exocet missile counter measures. The Lynx has been continuously employed in the Gulf from 1980 until the present day. What is not generally known is the fact that these aircraft were responsible for effectively destroying the Iraqi navy, sinking over fifteen warships in a matter of a weeks. All related operational details are included here. Also included are accounts of operations conducted around the world, including anti-drug interdiction, Arctic deployments, Search and Rescue, hurricane relief, as well as a few notable mishaps. Also described is the development of the aircraft from the Mark 2 to the current Mark 8 (SRU), bringing the narrative fully up to date.Although only a snapshot, the stories narrated here offer the reader a real understanding of the capabilities of an aircraft with a truly remarkable history of service.

Condition: New. Softback, 176 pagesPublished Price £12.99 Authors Nigel Cave and Jack Sheldon combine their respective expertise to tell the story of the men - British, French, Indian and German - who fought over the unremarkable undulating ground that was to become firmly placed in British national conscience ever afterwards. At the end of October 1914 an increasingly desperate Falkenhayn, aware that his offensive in Flanders had stalled, decided to make one final effort to break through the Allied lines south of Ypres. Pulling together a large strike force, the so-called Army Group Fabeck, he launched a violent offensive designed to capture the Messines Ridge and to use this dominating terrain as a springboard for a further advance. Inadequately resourced, assembled in a rush, this thrust was soon in trouble.Confused fighting in the wooded areas to the south of the Menin Road slowed the advance and initial attempts to gain a foothold on the ridge failed. A supreme effort by the men of the 26th Infantry Division ultimately brought about the capture of the town of Messines and similar heroics by the Bavarian 6th Reserve Division led to the fall of Wytschaete, but it was all in vain. Yet again a valiant Allied defence had buckled, but not broken.

Condition: New. Softback, 103 pagesPublished Price £14.99 During the First World War, Italy was on the side of their British Allies and their fight was against the Austro-Hungarian Empire, bordering on Austria. In October 1917, the Austro-Hungarians managed to push the Italians back during the battle of Caporetto. With the danger signs obvious, both Britain and France sent reinforcements. Britainâs Royal Flying Corps sent three squadrons of Sopwith Camel fighters, plus one RE8 reconnaissance squadron, and these Camel squadrons fought gallantly over the plains and mountainous regions of north-east Italy, sharing the air battle with aircraft of the Italian Air Force. Despite the difference in landscape between France and Italy, the Camel pilots employed the same air-fighting tactics and assisted in ground support missions that proved just as destructive in Italy as they had in France. Accompanied by a large selection of photographs of the men and the machines that saw action in this conflict.

Condition: New. Softback 128 pagesPublished Price £12.99 Reconnaissance aircraft have always been the spearhead of the various air forces, helping to provide the basis for any further military operations. At the time of the Cold War and before the satellite era, the use of reconnaissance aircraft reached its zenith, as the warring nations were determined to know what was happening on the other side. Consequently, powerful aircraft emerged during this time, especially in terms of deployment altitude, speed and flight time;

Condition: New. Hardback, 565 pagesPublished Price £45 As the centuries pass, war has generally become increasingly hideous. Yet in some respects it is more humane today. The monstrous cruelty which their warring masters used to inflict on dumb animals is now a thing of the past. The South African War, which lasted from October 1899 until May 1902, saw the destruction of some 350000 out of the half million horses employed by the British to win it. The appalling cruelties inflicted upon this mass of horseflesh are fully examined in this volume of Lord Angleseyâs magisterial eight volume history. He reveals the horrifying extent of the pitiless barbarity and delves deeply into its causes. In all the vast literature dealing with what is dubiously known as the âlast of the gentlemanâs warsâ scant attention has been paid to this aspect of it. Even less has been paid to finding out how such colossal number of remounts were provided. Without them the waging, let alone the winning of the war would have been impossible. Lord Anglesey shows how a miniscule staff, headed by an obscure major-general, organised a brilliant and intricate operation the magnitude of which, until then, had no equal in the history of the British Army.The fascinating story of the war itself, and how the farmers of the veld, natural horsemen and skilled marksmen, humiliated but failed in the end to overcome the regular and hastily formed irregular forces of the British Empire at its height is told here as much in the words of individual officers and men as in the Blue Books and official reports. The other chief subject with which this volume deals is the heated âCavalry Debateâ which followed the Boer War and which continued unabated until the outbreak of the much greater conflict (see volume 7 and 8).This controversy resolved itself into three major questions: Did automatic long-range fire relegate the horse in war to a purely transporting role or could the mounted arm still be employed as an essential part of the Armyâs âweapons systemâ? Were the sword and lance bound to face extinction? Would dismounted men firing sophisticated rifles kill off the âcavalry spiritâ?

Condition: New. Softback, 80 pages 91 b/w photos/ills, 16 colour profiles, 3 maps, 9 colour photos/ills, 7 tablesPublished Price £16.99 In 1979, the Sandinista government established itself in power in Managua, the capitol of Nicaragua. It found the country ruined by the long war against the Somosa dictatorship and natural disasters alike, and nearly half of the population either homeless or living in exile. Attempting to restructure and recover the underdeveloped economy, Sandinisas introduced a wide range of reforms and a cultural revolution. Considering the Sandinistas to be âCuban-supported Marxistsâ and therefore a major threat to the US domination of Latin America, in 1980-1981 the USA began supporting the creation of the Contrarevolutionary forces (better known as âContrasâ), and thus helped provoke a new war that was to rage through Nicaragua until 1988. Leaning upon extensive studies of the armed groups involved, and their combat operations of the 1981-1988 period, Nicaragua, 1961-1990, Volume 2 provides an in-depth coverage of military history during the second phase of one of bloodiest, and most-publicised armed conflicts of Latin America in modern times. Guiding the reader meticulously through the details of the involved forces, their ideologies, organisation and equipment, this book offers a uniquely accurate, blow-by-blow account of the Nicaraguan War and is profusely illustrated with more than 120 photos, maps, and colour artworks.

Condition: New. Softback, 282 pagesPublished Price £14.99 Forces of the independent Zulu kingdom inflicted a crushing defeat on British imperial forces at Isandlwana in January 1879. The Zulu Army was not, however, a professional force, unlike its British counterpart, but was the mobilized manpower of the Zulu state. Ian Knight details how the Zulu army functioned and ties its role firmly to the broader context of Zulu society and culture. The Zulu army had its roots in the early groups of young men who took part in combats between tribes, but such warfare was limited to disputes over cattle ownership, grazing rights, or avenging insults. In the early nineteenth century the Zulu nation began a period of rapid expansion, and King Shaka began to reform his forces into regular military units. Ian Knight charts the development and training of the men that formed the impi which later operated so successfully under King Cetshwayo. He analysis the Zulu's fighting methods, weapons and philosophy, all of which led to the disciplined force that faced the British army in 1879.

Condition: New. Hardback, 162 pagesPublished Price £19.99 In 1916, at the age of fifty four, a slight, short sighted, unassuming country vicar and local school master became an Army Chaplain. Theodore Bayley Hardy was destined to become the most decorated non-combatant in the First World War. He was to be awarded the Victoria Cross, the D.S.O., and the M.C. By day he performed the usual priestly and chaplaincy tasks but by night he would work the trenches dropping in with his inimitable "It's only me!" to bring comfort and moral and spiritual support in the nightmare of wars. On 10 October 1918, Hardy was hit by machine gun fire, as the Lincolns were crossing the river Selle by night. The first soldiers to reach Hardy remembered him saying quietly: 'Iâve been hit. Iâm sorry to be a nuisance.' Hardy died on 18 October, three days before his 55th birthday and less than four weeks before the Armistice.

Condition: New. Hardback. 181 pages with 32 illustrations. Published Price £19.99 Created in 1945 when Korea was partitioned, North Korea or the Democratic Peopleâs Republic of Korea remains the worldâs most secretive nation. Even the few permitted visitors are tightly monitored by minders, so accounts of those who have escaped are the main source of information on conditions within the country.What is not in doubt is the totalitarian control over the population exercised by the ruling dynasty. Kim Jong-un is the grandson of the first dictator Kim Il-sung.Until the development of a credible nuclear arsenal, it was possible to ignore North Korean posturing. But that is no longer an option as test firing proved that not only were other Asian nations directly threatened but the USA as well. While President Trump and Kim Jong-un met in Singapore in June 2018, there remains distrust and dangerous uncertainty.

Condition: New. Softback, 64 pagesPublished Price £14.99 The 'ShipCraft' series provides in-depth information about building and modifying model kits of famous warship types. Lavishly illustrated, each book takes the modeller through a brief history of the subject class, highlighting differences between sisterships and changes in their appearance over their careers. This includes paint schemes and camouflage, featuring colour profiles and highly-detailed line drawings and scale plans. The modelling section reviews the strengths and weaknesses of available kits, lists commercial accessory sets for super-detailing of the ships, and provides hints on modifying and improving the basic kit. This is followed by an extensive photographic survey of selected high-quality models in a variety of scales, and the book concludes with a section on research referencesâ"books, monographs, large-scale plans and relevant websites.This volume is devoted to the famous ships of Admiral Hipper's First Scouting Group. Slower but more robust than their British equivalents, German battlecruisers enjoyed a reputation for absorbing punishment, and although Lutzow was sunk at Jutland, Seydlitz and the rest of the Scouting Group survived heavy damage. This book concentrates on the seven completed ships but coverage extends to the 'proto-battlecruiser' Blucher and the ships building or designed by the end of the war.

Condition: New. Softback 128 pagesPublished Price £12.99 The Soviet Union had already begun building an armoured industry as early as the 1920s. Although initially limited to reconstructing and developing Western European armoured vehicles, an independent line of powerful and easy-to-produce models had been established by 1939\. Even after the Second World War, the USSR expanded its armament force considerably, even planning to cross western Europe in a massive armoured wave in the event of any conflict with NATO. In this book, Alexander Ldeke looks at all the important Soviet tanks that were built from 1917 up until the end of the Second World War.

Condition: New. Softback, 234 pagesPublished Price £14.99 The attack by Rudderâs Rangers on Pointe du Hoc, as one of the opening acts of D Day, is without doubt an epic of military history. As a result of Montgomeryâs upscaling of the invasion General Bradleyâs First US Army had to deal with a dangerous coastal gun battery that would dominate the approaches to both Omaha and Utah Beaches. When the plan to climb the defended cliff and put the guns out of action was first discussed, an astounded staff officer said Two old ladies with brooms cold sweep them off those cliffs! Lieutenant Colonel James Rudder, commander of the Provisional Ranger Group consisting of 2nd and 5th US Rangers, set about training his men and developing techniques to get up the hundred-foot-high cliff. Rocket fired grapples, ladders of various types and even free climbing of a similar lose cliff on England s south coast were practiced. On D-Day everything that could go wrong did go wrong. Lesser men would have given up, with the force having navigated towards the wrong headland, been continuously under fire as they motored back towards Pointe du Hoc, shipping water in the rough seas, craft sinking and few of the saturated grapples reaching the cliff top. None the less determined Rangers with German infantry hurling grenades down on them struggled up the cliff but the guns were not there. With the Rangers fanning out across the wrecked battery and into the fields beyond the guns were found in an orchard and destroyed with thermite grenades. Mission accomplished but at 1300 hours there was no sign of the relieving force from Omaha. Colonel Rudder with his radios barely working appealed for help but with a near disaster at Omaha, neither help or relief was forthcoming. Consequently, the 200 Rangers fought on against mounting pressure in an equally epic battle until finally relieved two days later.

Condition: New. Hardback, 220 pagesPublished Price £19.99 These lively memoirs date from the time of Barres' entry into the Chasseurs Velites (skirmishers, or light infantry) of Napoleon's Imperial Guard in 1804. Always modest in recounting his own exploits, Barres was not only at the cannon's mouth, but also a participant at such spectacular events as the Coronation of the Emperor Napoleon in Paris and Rome, the torchlight procession on the eve of Austerlitz, the meeting of the two Emperors at Tilsit, and the magnificent military display in the Champ de Mars. His duties involved mounting guard at Malmaison and the palace of Saint-Cloud and also allowed him many fascinating glimpses of the Emperor at reviews, presenting awards and receiving trophies.