AN INFAMOUS ARMY is how Wellington described the motley troops he was in charge of on the eve of the Battle of Waterloo, fought on 18 June 1815, and it is also the title of this novel (Book 4 in the Alastair-Audley series.)
As many of you know, Waterloo was one of Britain’s greatest triumphs, for at the end of it they had annihilated the French Army and destroyed Napoleon’s power. A famous railway station in London is named after this battle.
But, according to Georgette Heyer, the author of this novel which was published in 1937, the Battle of Waterloo was nearly lost. It did not help that the allied army was made up of three parts. There were the British, who knew and trusted the Duke of Wellington, including many officers who had fought (and won) battle in the Peninsula Campaign. Then there were the Dutch-Belgians under the command of Prince Henry of Orange, a rather excitable young man who nearly ruined the day by his impulsive decisions around Quatre Bras, where his troops held a thin line against Marshal Ney’s left wing. These troops did not know Wellington, consisted mainly of raw recruits, and couldn’t be made to fight.
Then there were the Prussians.
Many of us who have studied this battle have been told that it was the Prussians who saved the day, arriving late in the afternoon to reinforce the Allied line. What we are NOT told is that General Blücher, their commander, was so drunk that no-one could find him for several hours on the morning of battle! If it had not been for the determination and heroism of the much better-trained British forces, who held the Chateau of Hougomont and the farm at La Haye Sainte, for eight hours, Waterloo would have been a great loss.
Anyone who reads this volume will be amazed at the amount of research Ms. Heyer did for this novel, which she brings to life so brilliantly.
If you don’t know much about the Battle of Waterloo and want to know more, or want to read another Regency romance, this novel is for you! Five stars.
