The Peninsular War

Oct 10, 2024 4:15 AM

Author:Charles Esdaile

The Peninsular War

For centuries Spain had been the most feared and predatory power in Europe - it had the largest empire and one of the world's great navies to defend it. Nothing could have prepared the Spanish for the devastating implosion of 1805-14. Trafalgar destroyed its navy and the country degenerated into a brutalized shambles with French and British armies marching across it at will. The result was a war which killed over a million Spaniards and ended its empire.

This book is the first in a generation to come to terms with this spectacular and terrible conflict, immortalised by Goya and the arena in which Wellington and his redcoats carved out one of the greatest episodes in British military history.

Reviews

As well as being a rare military historian who can also write gracefully, John Keegan has a distinguished capacity for peering behind the conventional view of events

—— Alistair Horne , Sunday Times

Magisterial ... anyone who wishes to understand the third reich must read Kershaw, for no on has done more to lay bare Hitler's morbid psyche

—— Niall Ferguson , Sunday Telegraph

An achievement of the very highest order ... Kershaw communicates a genuine sense of tension as Hitler embarked on ever-riskier stratagems, bringing a fresh eye to the over-familiar diplomatic or military story ... a marvellous book

—— Michael Burleigh , Financial Times

Extraordinarily convincing ... I do not know any other Hitler biography that so coolly, factually and devastatingly presents the phenomena of "obedience" and charisma

—— Gitta Sereny , The Times

For the present generation, Kershaw's Hitler stands as our clear beacon of truth, illuminating a dark age of terror and mendacity

—— Craig Brown , Mail on Sunday

No previous biographer has examined Hitler's devilishness in Kershaw's detail ... his book is so comprehensive, so richly documented and so judicious that it will not soon be superseded

—— Daniel Johnson , Daily Telegraph

A riveting narrative ... the text positively crackles with fascinating insights and interesting perceptions ... this is unquestionably an outstanding biography

—— Frank McLynn , Herald

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