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Through Spain with Wellington: The Letters of Lieutenant Peter Le Mesurier of the `Fighting Ninth`

The letters of Peter Le Mesurier (1789-1813) cover his service in the 9th Foot, from leaving for Portugal as an ensign in 1808 at the very start of the Peninsular War, up until Le Mesurier`s death at the Battle of the Nive in December 1813. The `Fighting Ninth` saw more action than any other regiment, and this correspondence covers most of the key events of the Peninsular War; finally, grimly, `book-ended` by the young lieutenant`s death, just as Wellington invades France. He fought through Spain and Portugal: Salamanca, Corunna, San Sebastian, Vitoria these battles are spectacularly bloody and of great interest to the Napoleonic Wars reading public. The letters bring fresh insights and a wealth of telling detail. Le Mesurier had a fine eye: `The Portuguese of our Division behaved uncommonly well when the cannon shots were thinning their ranks; not a man stirred.` The letters show the transformation of the boy into the man.He falls in love, suffers retreats and celebrates victories, witnesses sieges, rape and plunder, always spicing his letters with fascinating asides, wry humour, rich period detail, some very human fears and admissions, and the casual understatement of the British officer. Any unpublished letters from the conflict are scarce, but such an extensive unpublished collection is rare indeed. With background information and commentary provided by expert Adrian Greenwood, meticulously footnoted, this is a worthy addition to the literature of the Napoleonic Wars.

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