Wellington: The Iron Duke Book + PRICE WATCH * Amazon pricing is not included in price watch

Wellington: The Iron Duke Book

We associate Wellington so much with the battle of Waterloo that it's easy to forget that, before the battle, he had had a long military career already and that, after it, he had an even longer career as politician, prime minister and pillar of the establishment. Richard Holmes's admirably clear and succinct biography of the Duke has a chapter on his youth as a slightly awkward loner from the Anglo-Irish nobility and a concluding chapter which races swiftly through the 37 years of his post-Waterloo life. However the bulk of the book, unsurprisingly, is given over to a description and analysis of his military exploits. As viewers of his TV series and readers of his previous books will know, Holmes is a brilliant interpreter of battlefields and what took place on them. He has visited most of the sites of Wellington's battles, not only those in Europe but those in India where the young Arthur Wellesley, as he then was, gained his first experiences as a general. (Wellington himself, in later life, claimed that his finest military achievement was not Waterloo but the winning of the Battle of Assaye during the Maratha Wars in 1803.) He uses his knowledge of the battle sites and his familiarity with all the extensive literature on the Peninsular War and Waterloo to produce a vivid account of Wellington's string of successes as a general. As the quotes in this book from his writings and despatches show, Wellington had a gift for the striking phrase and for concise description of complicated events. It's a gift his biographer shares and Holmes has produced a very readable and enjoyable book. --Nick RennisonRead More

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  • Amazon

    This title charts Wellington's military career from India to Europe, rediscovering the reasons Queen Victoria called him the greatest man the 19th century had produced. Combining historical analysis with a semi-biographical examination, it examines all facets of the Iron Duke.

  • Play

    Richard Holmes highly acclaimed military historian and broadcaster tells the exhilarating story of Britain's greatest-ever soldier the man who posed the most serious threat to Napoleon. The Duke of Wellington's remarkable life and extraordinary campaigns are recreated with Holmes' superb skill in this compelling book. Richard Holmes charts Wellington's stellar military career from India to Europe and in the process rediscovers the reasons Queen Victoria called him the greatest man the nineteenth century had produced. Combining his astute historical analysis with a semi-biographical examination of Wellington Holmes artfully illustrates the rapid evolution in military and political thinking of the time. Wellington is a brilliant figure idealistic in politics cynical in love a wit a beau a man of enormous courage often sickened by war. As Richard Holmes charts his progress from a shy indolent boy to commander-in-chief of the allied forces he also exposes the Iron Duke as a philanderer and a man who sometimes despised the men that he led and was not always in control of his soldiers.Particularly infamous is the bestial rampage of his men after the capture of Cuidad Rodgrigo and Badajoz. THE IRON DUKE is a beautifully produced book complete with stunning illustrations and colour plates. Richard Holmes' TV series to accompany THE IRON DUKE will be lavishly constructed in four parts and filmed on location in Britain India Spain Portugal France and Belgium.

  • TheBookPeople

    Richard Holmes, highly acclaimed military historian and broadcaster, tells the exhilarating story of Britain's greatest-ever soldier, the man who posed the most serious threat to Napoleon. The Duke of Wellington's remarkable life and extraordinary campaigns are recreated with Holmes' superb skill in this compelling book. Richard Holmes charts Wellington's stellar military career from India to Europe, and in the process, rediscovers the reasons Queen Victoria called him the greatest man the nineteenth century had produced. Combining his astute historical analysis with a semi-biographical examination of Wellington, Holmes artfully illustrates the rapid evolution in military and political thinking of the time. Wellington is a brilliant figure, idealistic in politics, cynical in love, a wit, a beau, a man of enormous courage often sickened by war. As Richard Holmes charts his progress from a shy, indolent boy to commander-in-chief of the allied forces, he also exposes the Iron Duke as a philanderer, and a man who sometimes despised the men that he led, and was not always in control of his soldiers. Particularly infamous is the bestial rampage of his men after the capture of Cuidad Rodgrigo and Badajoz. THE IRON DUKE is a beautifully produced book, complete with stunning illustrations and colour plates. Richard Holmes' TV series to accompany THE IRON DUKE will be lavishly constructed in four parts, and filmed on location in Britain, India, Spain, Portugal, France and Belgium.

  • BookDepository

    Wellington : Paperback : HarperCollins Publishers : 9780007137503 : 0007137508 : 30 Mar 2005 : Richard Holmes, highly acclaimed military historian and broadcaster, tells the exhilarating story of Britain's greatest-ever soldier, the man who posed the most serious threat to Napoleon. The Duke of Wellington's remarkable life and extraordinary campaigns are recreated with Holmes' superb skill in this compelling book.

  • 0007137508
  • 9780007137503
  • Richard Holmes
  • 3 February 2003
  • HarperCollins
  • Paperback (Book)
  • 416
  • New Ed
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