Featured battle : Gerona, the seige of

Part of The French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars

Date : 04 June 1809 - 12 December 1809

Napoleon gave St. Cyr a dual mission; firstly to save Barcelona and then to take Gerona. His campaign began in December 1808 but he did not fully invest Gerona until the following year. Eventually the town fell to Augereau, who had taken over command from St Cyr.

Running the Gauntlet

Bernard Edwards
I really enjoyed this book, as gripping as a good novel, until it hit home how inappropriate is the word ‘enjoyed’. The men in this book are not fictional characters from some author’s imagination. This is the story of some of the brave men who did a very dangerous job many of whom died in the course of their work. Some were blown to pieces in an instant others died after many days adrift in an open boat or on a Carley float. The job those fellow merchant seamen who survived did, showing courage and skilled seamanship, was crucial to the nation’s survival.
This well researched book covers only a few of the losses to the merchant navy fleet but it is well representative of the service we should never forget.
Once started it is a difficult book to put down and we highly recommend it.

Pen & Sword Maritime, 2022