“A superb read . . . destined to become the go-to book for anyone interested in this long-neglected period of the Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars.” —The Napoleon Series To crush the French Revolution, the armies of the First Coalition gathered round France’s borders, the largest of which was assembled in Flanders. Composed of Anglo-Hanoverian, Dutch, Hessian, Prussian and Imperial Austrian troops, its aim was to invade France and restore the nobility to what was considered their rightful place. Opposing them was the French Armée du Nord. In command of the Anglo-Hanoverian contingent was the son of George III, the Duke of York. The campaign was a disaster for the Coalition forces, particularly during the severe winter of 1794/5 when the troops were forced into a terrible and humiliating retreat. Britain’s reputation and that of its military leaders was severely diminished, with the forces of the Revolution sweeping all before them on a tide of popularism. Yet, from this defeat grew an army that under the Duke of Wellington would eventually crush the Revolution’s greatest general, Napoleon Bonaparte. Of the Flanders Campaign, Wellington, who fought as a junior officer under the Duke of York, remarked that the experience had at least taught him what not to do. Napoleon Series research editor Steve Brown has produced one of the most insightful, and much-needed studies of this disastrous but intriguing campaign, with particular focus on the British Army’s contribution. With copious maps and nineteen appendices including detailed orders of battle, he concludes this important work with an analysis that draws striking, and significant comparisons with the Flanders campaigns of 1914 and 1940. How history repeats itself . . .

A Military history of the 1793-95 campaign in Flanders and the Netherlands

The structure of the headquarters staff, the commissariat, and the medical departments of the Duke of York's army in Flanders is examined in detail using mostly unpublished sources from the campaign.

In 1793 France was facing foreign invasion along its borders and a fierce political war was raging in Paris when a large-scale revolt, centered on the western Department of the Vendée, suddenly erupted, almost bringing the new-born French Republic to its knees. The immediate trigger for this Great War of the Vendée, barely known outside of France, was the attempted imposition of conscription but the region seethed at the erosion of its traditional values and way of life. The persecution of the Catholic Church and killing of the king symbolized to the Vendéens how dangerous the new Republic had become; in a matter of weeks tens of thousands had flocked to fight for the 'Catholic and Royal' cause. This is the story of the new Republic's ferocious military campaigns against the armies of the Vendée, which fiercely defied them between March and December 1793, tying down hundreds of thousands of troops desperately needed on the frontiers. Napoleon later called it 'The War of Giants' and it directly led to the implementation of some of the Republic's most extreme laws.

Based on the letters and diaries of the British soldiers who served as the backbone of the army from 1760 to 1860, this illuminating book is rich in the history of a fascinating era. of illustrations.

Filled with unforgettable characters and martime adventure, the incredible story of a forgotten war that shaped the fate of the United States—and the entire Western Hemisphere. In the early 18th century, the British and Spanish Empires were fighting for economic supremacy in the Americas. Tensions between the two powers were high, and wars blossomed like violent flowers for nearly a hundred years, from the War of Spanish Succession (sometimes known as Queen Anne's War in the Americas), culminating in the War of Jenkins' Ear. This war would lay the ground work for the French and Indian War and, eventually, the War of the American Revolution. The War of Jenkins' Ear was a world war in the truest sense, engaging the major European powers on battlefields ranging from Europe to the Americas to the Asian subcontinent. Yet the conflict that would eventually become known as the War of Jenkins' Ear—a moniker coined by the 19th century historian Robert Carlyle more than a century later—is barely known to us today. Yet it resulted in the invasion of Georgia and even involved members of George Washington’s own family. It would cost fifty-thousand lives, millions in treasure, and over six hundred ships. With vivid prose, Robert Gaudi takes the reader from the brackish waters of the Chesapeake Bay to the rocky shores of Tierra del Fuego. We travel around the Cape of Good Hope and across the Pacific to the Philippines and the Cantonese coast, with stops in Cartagena, Panama, and beyond. Yet even though it happened decades before American independence, The War of Jenkins' Ear reveals that this was truly an American war; a hard-fought, costly struggle that determined the fate of the Americas, and in which, for the first time, American armies participated. In this definitive work of history—the only single comprehensive volume on the subject—The War of Jenkins’ Ear explores the war that establed the future of two entire continents.

This book explores the relations and exchanges between Flanders and the Anglo-Norman realm following the union of England and Normandy in 1066.

“A modern look at HRH the Duke of York . . . a nice addition to Napoleonic Era history” from the historian and author of The Mighty Montagus (The Napoleon Series Reviews). Oh, the grand old Duke of York, He had ten thousand men; He marched them up to the top of the hill, And he marched them down again. And when they were up, they were up, And when they were down, they were down, And when they were only half-way up, They were neither up nor down. Prince Frederick, Duke of York and Albany is famous because of the nursery rhyme which ridicules him for poor leadership but, as Derek Winterbottom’s biography shows, he was far from incompetent as a commander. What is more, the famous rhyme does not even hint at his achievements as commander-in-chief of the British army during the Napoleonic Wars. His career as a commander and administrator and his scandalous private life are long overdue for reassessment, and that is what this perceptive and absorbing study provides. He transformed the British military machine, and the Duke of Wellington admitted that without York’s reforms he would not have had the army that fought so well in the Peninsular War and at Waterloo. York also led a turbulent personal life which was engulfed by scandal when his mistress was accused of using her influence over him to obtain promotion for ambitious officers. Today the Duke of York is a neglected, often derided figure. This biography should go some way towards restoring his reputation as a commander and military reformer. “This is an excellent, readable biography of a major but somewhat neglected historical figure.” —History of War