Redcoat: The British Soldier in the Age of Horse and Musket - Richard Holmes

During the 18th and 19th Centuries, the backbone of the British Army was the "Redcoat", the ordinary foot soldier. The Redcoats helped forge an empire the world had never seen before and has not seen since. The Duke of Wellington, on the eve of the Battle of Waterloo, when asked whether he would be victorious, pointed to a passing Redcoat and said "It all depends on that article there...Give me enough of it, and I am sure". As we all know, he had enough of "that article there" and victory was achieved, just. The British Army's Redcoats had a well deserved reputation for being fierce fighters, but also for savagery in ...  Read the complete review