This is the first comprehensive modern atlas of the Peninsular War, the series of campaigns in Spain and Portugal between Napoleonic France and British forces commanded by the Duke of Wellington. Here a distinguished military historian examines and explains the sequence of battles and the course of the war through expertly drawn cartography in color. A general introduction, together with a historical summary setting the campaigns in context, is followed by 53 detailed maps and plans, each with a complementary text providing a succinct description of the action depicted. The great battles of Vimeiro, Talavera, Busaco, Albuera, Salamanca, Vitoria, and the Pyrenees are all graphically described, together with the main sieges and many minor combats. This is an indispensable companion to both serious students and military enthusiasts interested in the Napoleonic wars.

Now back in print, this new and revised edition of The Peninsular War Atlas has added new and updated maps and content to reflect the latest research into the long struggle for control of the Iberian Peninsula, all in an attractive slip case gift package. Colonel Nick Lipscombe, who is based in Spain and is the chairman of the Peninsular War 200 organization, has used his unique perspective to make this new edition the very best study of the subject on the market. The Peninsular War saw some of the bloodiest fighting of the Napoleonic Wars. Over a period of five years it is estimated that half a million soldiers and civilians were killed in this bloodbath, however the battles there are far less well-known than other Napoleonic battles like Waterloo. Despite the exposure given this theatre in the Sharpe novels, the soldiers who fought there have received little public recognition. The bicentennial commemorations of this war aim to bring the war to wider recognition, bringing the Spanish, Portuguese and British together in remembering the dead, and re-examining the war in a balanced way.

The enjoyment of wargaming is greatly enhanced if the battles (games) are played within well thought-out scenarios. Instead of simply lining up evenly-matched armies and fighting to the death, the players can have realistic objectives (such as the capture of a vital piece of terrain or delaying a superior enemy to cover a retreat) and be confronted with more challenging tactical decisions. Devising such scenarios can take a lot of effort, and more critically, time, which is always in short supply. This book is designed to take the time and effort out of organising fascinating and challenging wargames set in the Peninsular War. rnrnIn addition to 20 carefully devised scenarios of varying size and complexity, this book contains a concise introduction to the theatre of operations and an integrated chronology of battles and campaigns, showing where the scenarios fit into the wider events. The scenarios and orders of battle are intended for use with Pen & Sword's own Napolenic wargame rules, Grand Battery, but they are easily adaptable for use with other leading systems.rnrn Briefing notes on the context of the battle and the dilemmas and objectives facing each commander.rn Orders of battle for each side and any other information required to set up. rnContents :rnrn Concise introduction to the Peninsular War with chronology to place the scenarios in context.rn 20 carefully devised scenarios of varying size and complexity.rn a wargamer-friendly map, showing players where to place terrain, buildings and other features that had an impact on the battlefield. It will also show initial dispositions (historical) and mark the point of entrance (or exit) of units during the battle. rn Clear win/lose/draw conditions.

An historic account of the Peninsula War written by the man leading forces against the French, Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington. Though pressed many times to write about his battles and campaigns, the Duke of Wellington always replied that people should refer to his published dispatches. Yet Wellington did, in effect, write a history of the Peninsular War in the form of four lengthy memoranda, summarizing the conduct of the war in 1809, 1810, and 1811 respectively. These lengthy accounts demonstrate Wellington’s unmatched appreciation of the nature of the war in Spain and Portugal, and relate to the operations of the French and Spanish forces as well as the Anglo-Portuguese army under his command. Unlike personal diaries or journals written by individual soldiers, with their inevitably limited knowledge, Wellington was in an unparalleled position to provide a comprehensive overview of the war. Equally, the memoranda were written as the war unfolded, not tainted with the knowledge of hindsight, providing a unique contemporaneous commentary. Brought together by renowned historian Stuart Reid with reports and key dispatches from the other years of the campaign, the result is the story of the Peninsular War told through the writings of the man who knew and understood the conflict in Iberia better than any other. These memoranda and dispatches have never been published before in a single connected narrative. Therefore, Wellington’s History of the Peninsular War 1808-1814 offers a uniquely accessible perspective on the conflict in the own words of Britain’s greatest general.

At last, in this absorbing and authoritative study, the story of the epic struggle on SpainÕs eastern front during the Peninsular War has been told. Often overlooked as not integral to the Duke of WellingtonÕs main army and their campaigns in Portugal and western Spain, they were, in point of fact, intrinsically linked. Nick Lipscombe, a leading historian of the Napoleonic Wars and an expert on the fighting in the Iberian peninsula, describes in graphic detail the battles fought by the French army of General Suchet against the Spanish regulars and guerrillas and subsequently the Anglo-Sicilian force sent by the British government to stabilize the region. Despite Suchet's initial successes and repeated setbacks for the allied armies, by late 1813 the east coast of Spain held a key to Wellington's invasion of France and the ultimate defeat of Napoleon's armies in the Peninsula. At a tactical level the allies were undeniably successful and made an important contribution to the eventual French defeat.

In the first groundbreaking volume of a new series, acclaimed Napoleonic scholar Gareth Glover brings together previously unpublished material relating to the Battle of Waterloo. The range and unique nature of much of the research will intrigue and fascinate enthusiasts and historians alike. The wealth of hitherto unseen British material contained in Volume I includes: a series of letters written by a senior officer on Wellington's staff to Sir Thomas Graham immediately following the battle; the letters of a member of the Wedgwood family in the Guards at Waterloo; the journal of Sergeant Johnston of the Scots Greys, detailing all his experiences, including a very rare transcript of his own court martial; and letters from eminent surgeons – including those of Hume, Davy and Haddy James – who recall their harrowing tales of the horrific wounds suffered at Waterloo. In addition to these letters and journals, this volume will include 21 original line drawings created by Cavalié Mercer to accompany his famous book on his experiences at Waterloo, but which was never published. Subsequent volumes will include French, German, Dutch and Belgian material that has never been translated into English before.