Sunday 25 July 2010

My Napoleonic Book List


My next major project will be the Peninsular War. I've already collected a few books which I'll start reading in earnest next year. If anyone has some juicy morsels I must add, please tell me about it:

A History of the Peninsular War (vol. 1 - 6) - Charles Oman. [I know there are more volumes. I have been reliably informed that this is the defining history of the war.]
Napoleons War in Spain - Lachouque, Tranie & Carmigniani. [Pictorial history with lots of uniform plates.]
The Peninsular War 1807 - 1814 A Military History - Micael Glover. [good first read for an overview and chronology.]
Years of Victory - Arthur Bryant.
Napoleonic Source Book - P. J. Haythornthwaite. (Invaluable!]
Campiagning with the Duke of Wellington and Featherstone - Donald Featherstone. [A wargamers guide.]
The Peninsular War , Wargaming in History - Donald Featherstone [Signed and inscribed "To John Flight, my good friend, with whom I have wargamed .....and walked many of these fields." Also includes a typed letter  to John saying "......it is only a pot boiler...".]
Uniforms of the Peninsular Wars 1807 - 1814 - P. Haythornthwaite and M. Chapel.
Talavera - Peter Edwards. [I like his style.]
Albuera - Peter Edwards.
Salamanca - Peter Edwards [his last book.]
The Man who Broke Napoleons Code - Mark Urban. [Fascinating read. Wellington could be a shit.]
Rifles - Mark Urban. [He's a wargamer so it should be good, and is].
The War of Wars - Robert Harvey. [General history of the Napoleonic Wars.]
Redcoat - Richard Holmes.
Napoleon's Wars - Charles Esdaile.
Wellington (2 vols) - Elizabeth Longford.
Borodino and the War of 1812 - Christopher Duffy. [A good read before going to the battlefield.] 1812 - Adam Zamoyski.
Austerlitz 1805 - Christopher Duffy. [As Borodino.]
The Spanish Ulcer - D. Gates [Excellent 1 vol. history with lots of maps. Recommended]
The Peninsular War Atlas - Col. N. Lipscombe. [This is a large coffee table style hardback published by Osprey and has the 'Osprey feel' to it - not a bad for a Christmas gift].
Wellington's Army - Michael Glover. [As a newbie to the period, I found this book insightful and well written].
Fields of Fire, Battlefields of the Peninsular War - Ian Fletcher, photography by Andy Cook.
Wellington's Return, The Battle of Talavera 1809 - C.S. Grant. [ Signed and inscribed "To James, a great addition to the League of Gentlemen Wargamers. With Best Wishes, Charles." - which was awfully nice of him.]
British Napoleonic Uniforms - C.E. Franklin. [Pictured left. I was put onto this book by the guys over at WD3. It might be the best uniform guide I've ever seen - superb!]
Battle Tactics of Napoleon and his Enemies - Brent Nosworthy. [Very good book that deals with tactics, and the psychological effect of tactics, in Napoleonic battles - a must have book for wargame rule developers].
The Campaigns of Napoleon - David Chandler. [A classic work that gives a solid introduction to Napoleons campaigns in its c.1200 packed pages, with lots of simple to follow maps of the battles, etc. I picked up this single volume copy in an Oxfam shop (March 2018) for £6 - Bargain!]
1809 Thunder on the Danube (3 vols.) - John H. Gill [Details the Austrian Campaign of 1809. Not read yet. Highly recommended by Peter Anderson (a.k.a. Gonsalvo), and a quick scan reveals good maps and OOB. I bought this book because I might add an Austrian army to my Napoleonic collection (as an extra opponent for my Peninsular French) at some point in the future].
Wargame Scenarios: The Peninsular War 1808 - 1814 - J. Sutherland & D. Canwell [20 scenarios for Grand Battery rules by Pen and Sword in a 222 page volume - not anything like as good as it sounds and the maps leave a lot to be desired; mostly history re-hashed, and if I lost this book I wouldn't miss it as several other authors do the history better - harsh].
Galloping at Everything - Ian Fletcher. [A reappraisal of British cavalry performance 1808 - 1815. A very interesting and thoughtful read. Excellent stuff on several Peninsular cavalry actions.]
Wellington Invades France - Ian Robertson. [Gift from a client, reads very well].




Ospreys. [If you like that kinda'thing.]

Vimeiro 1808.
Telavera 1809.
Bussaco 1810.
Fuentes de Onoro.
Salamanca 1812. [I walked the field using only this as my guide and didn't get lost.]
Vittoria 1813
Napoleon's......, etc. [Men-at-arms series, several volumes, each by troop type.]
Wellington's....., etc. [Men-at-arms series, several volumes, each by troop type.]
Wellington's Peninsular Regiments 2.
Wellington's Army in the Peninsular 1809 - 1814 [Order Of Battle series - good, easy to follow guide to divisional organisations, by year, with notes, but doesn't have unit strengths. Excellent as a combo with Oman's numbers.]
The King's German Legion 1
Napoleonic Infantry Tactics (3 vols) [French and British (inc. Light Infantry) - they do two books on cavalry tactics that I'll pick up eventually]
British Napoleonic Artillery (1) 1803 - 1812.
The Portugese Army of the Peninsular Wars (3 vols).
The Portugese Army of the Peninsular Wars. [Earlier 'men-at-arms' version?]
Spanish Army of the Napoleonic Wars (3 vols).
Artillery Equipment of the Napoleonic Wars.
Flags of the Napoleonic Wars 1.
The Peninsular War Atlas - Colonel Nick Lipscombe (Big 400 page book of Osprey maps).

3 comments:

Donogh said...

Battle Tactics of Napoleon and His Enemies by Brent Nosworthy
Swords Around a Throne: Napoleon's Grande Armée by John Robert Elting
The Campaigns of Napoleon of David Chandler

I'd also recommend
The Road to Rivoli: Napoleon's First Campaign by Martin Boycott-Brown
(A little off-topic for Peninsular Reading but very very good)

Epictetus said...

Tactics and the Experience of battle in the Age of Napoleon - Rory Muir.

Unknown said...

Professor David Chandler's Campaign's of Napoleon, is a must read. in mu hmble opinion.