George Woodberry was commissioned into the 18th Light Dragoons (Hussars) as a cornet on 16 Jan 1812, and joined Wellington’s army as a lieutenant, seeing action in the key battles of 1813 and 14 – Moralles, Vittoria, Nivelle, Nive, Orthes, Croix d’Orade and the final battle of the war at Toulouse. He was wounded at Mendionde in a clash with French cavalry as Wellington advanced into France. He also served in the 1815 campaign, being at Waterloo and the march to Paris.
What is most remarkable is that Woodberry found time to record events at length in his journal almost every single day. This enables the reader to trace accurately the movements of the 18th Hussars and Wellington’s army in general with precision. It also provides an insight into life on campaign in Spain, France and Belgium with the British Army of the early nineteenth century
His lively, detailed and entertaining account of his time in Wellington’s army is matched by the unusual story of the history of his journal. It was published once before, in 1898, but in French by a Paris-based publisher. The original journal, in two leather-bound volumes, has since been lost, but the French edition has now been translated back into English by renowned Napoleonic historian Gareth Glover and is published in the UK for the first time.
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