Featured battle : Alba des Tormes

Part of The French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars

Date : 28 November 1809

Nine days after smashing the Southern arm of the Spanish pincer movement [see Ocana] Soult's corps came upon the Northern arm. The Spanish were split in their crossing of the bridge over the river Tormes at Alba. The French cavalry attacked vigorously and the Spaniards were overwhelmed suffering 3,000 casualties to the French loss of 480. Ney's Vl Corps came up late in the day but were not engaged.

The Men of Wellington's Light Division

Gareth Glover and Robert Burnham
The vast majority of this book consists of letters written by officers of the 43rd Light Infantry to their families and friends back home. The authors have done a splendid job in searching out these previously unpublished accounts of the lives of these men. The reader gets a fascinating insight into what mattered to the men. The range of their concerns/interests is enormous but food, money, clothing, billeting and promotion get regular mention. There isn’t a great deal of detail about the actions they were part of perhaps this is avoided to spare the recipients although the wounding and death of fellow officers and men is often reported. One particular poignant letter from Ensign John Brumwell where, after having the officers on each side of him killed, he writes ‘I am beginning to think the ball is not yet cast that is intended for me.’ The next letter his parents received was to tell them of his death.
This book contains a wealth of information, written without the ‘benefit’ of hindsight, which will enrich our understanding of life in Wellington’s army. We highly recommend it as a jolly good read.

Frontline Books, 2022