Letters from the Peninsula 1808-1812

Eyewitness to many of the engagements of the Peninsular War

William Warre perhaps took the Peninsular War more closely to his heart than most British soldiers for he belonged to an Anglo-Portuguese family and had been born in Oporto. However, early in his life Warre decided he was not temperamentally suited to the dull commercial life his family proposed for him and he became a soldier. The outbreak of war in Iberia brought Warre back to Portugal in 1808 as a British Army staff officer. He took part in Sir John Moore’s brief, abortive campaign and the subsequent gruelling retreat to Corunna through the Spanish winter. Warre fought at the bloody siege and assault at Badajoz and it was war he accepted the sword of the defeated French commander. Through Warre’s letters written to his family, which are often irreverent and humorous, the reader is able to see, from an eyewitness perspective, many of the notable battles of this fascinating conflict. Following the Battle of Salamanca, Warre was instructed to assist in the reorganisation of the Portuguese Army and act as liaison officer for the British at the Portuguese court. This is an unusual perspective on the Peninsular War from the pen of an English-speaking soldier who could also see the war from a Portuguese perspective. Recommended.

Leonaur editions are newly typeset and are not facsimiles; each title is available in softcover and hardback with dustjacket.