Upon French Fields by Martin McDowell (105th Wessex Foot. The Prince of Wales Own. #6)
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Overview: The sixth in the 105th Foot, ‘Rag and Bone Boys’ series. The Allies under Wellington are poised on the border of France to cross the Pyrenees and finally carry the fight to Napoleon on ‘sacred French soil’. San Sebastian and Pamplona continue to hold out and the former has to be taken by siege for which young Willoughby Carr has volunteered to become a member of the ‘Forlorn Hope’. Meanwhile his elder brother, Henry continues to run and lead his beloved 105th, first pursuing the wreck of the French defeat at Sorauren, then witnessing the doomed French attempt to relieve San Sebastian. Finally it comes, they form part of one of the many columns that descended from the Pyrenees to advance deep into France and menace Bayonne.
Willoughby Carr’s 16th Light Dragoons are heavily involved in the battle of Barrouillet, which was part of the French offensive alongside the River Nive to push the Allies back to the mountains. This included the desperate conflict of St Pierre in which Henry Carr played a part as a ‘detached Colonel’. However, the main issues soon evolve into the siege of Bayonne and Wellington’s ambition to push Soult Eastwards away from reinforcements in Bayonne. This resulted in the hard-fought battle of Orthez which pushed Soult further Eastwards and soon after comes the tragic and unnecessary battle of Toulouse which finally ended the war, unnecessary because Napoleon was by then off the throne. All throughout, Agent Jacques Dulongue is secreted into Bayonne to relay information out to the Allies, making good use of his ‘cover’ as a local fishmonger. However, this eventually comes apart when he is heavily involved in General Thouvenot’s ridiculous and costly sortie from Bayonne many days after Napoleon had abdicated.
Through this final year, the 105th live, work, fight and march as the strong community that they have become. The marches they are required to complete in the Spring of 1814 are the toughest of all, surpassed only by the two Retreats of 1809 and 1812, but they cling to their treasures and valuables, these closely guarded as part of their hopes for themselves when the war ends. Their Colonel’s wife arriving in France, and her eventual pregnancy, is taken in their stride as are the plans she has for those in the ranks and their families. Also required are the nefarious skills of such as Tom Miles and Len Bailey when Wellington is forced to set up his own illegal mint to produce coins that his forces can use as they progress across France.
Eventually, on an anonymous road South of Toulouse, they hear that the war has ended, their protagonist, Marshall Soult is finally presented with enough evidence of Napoleon’s abdication. Soon after, they witness their Portuguese Allies marching for home whilst they march for the coast to hear, to their great relief, that they will not be required to fight the Colonists in America nor police the island of Ireland. The ship they embark upon is bound for England and home.
Genre: Fiction > General Fiction/Classics
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