The Journal of the Three Days of the Battle of Waterloo: An Account of the Campaign of 1815 from Within the French Army

A telling account from a soldier of France

This anonymously written account tells of the experiences of a French soldier during the Waterloo campaign. It of course recounts the events of those momentous days from the raising of the French forces and their march to Belgium, to the Battle at Ligny, the conflict before Mont St. Jean (the author's own name for the battle), the defeat and the rout that followed and led to the fall of Paris. The author's recollections are concisely related and he is careful, perhaps, to give the reader few clues as to his identity or to the specific role he played. However, what makes this book particularly fascinating is the writers views on this moment in French history. He is no adoring disciple of the Emperor of the kind we often read about; nor yet is he a closet Royalist. He is an educated, intelligent, professional soldier marching to fight for a leader for whom he has no regard and for a cause in which he has no belief. French accounts are rare in the English language and though this one is not extensive it certainly provides the modern reader with valuable insights into the thoughts of at least some who marched under the tricolour during those fateful days of June 1815. The original publishers have augmented the authors text with the inclusion of several dispatches penned by notable participants after the battle. Available in softcover and hardcover with dust jacket for collectors.