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This book is about the formative years of the first field marshal
in the Corps of Royal Engineers, John Burgoyne, and his service in
the Napoleonic Wars. Burgoyne's early service was in the
Mediterranean, followed by service in the Iberian Peninsula from
1808-1814. Having built up a good relationship with Wellington,
Burgoyne was selected to command the engineers in the disastrous
American campaign of 1814-15. Burgoyne's father was also a
well-known British general who, sadly, is remembered for his
surrender of the British Army at Saratoga, rather than for more
positive reasons. He died penniless, leaving his children,
including John, to be cared for by family friends. Burgoyne seemed
to spend the rest of his life working to obtain his independence.
Like many engineers, Burgoyne kept detailed diaries, also writing
comprehensive letters and analyses of his actions. These give
contemporary knowledge of many notable events, particularly during
the Peninsular War. His letters to fellow officers give an insight
into the opinions and thoughts of an engineer officer, views which
are often not visible in official communications. The main theme of
the book is to show the development of a young officer during the
Napoleonic Wars from an inexperienced subaltern through to someone
who advised Wellington and his generals directly on military
matters. His involvement with the senior officers in the army was
not restricted to 'engineering' matters and he was trusted to carry
out staff roles on many occasions. Burgoyne was present at many of
the sieges and commanded at some. There is a wealth of unpublished
information in his journals and letters. Burgoyne was highly
critical of some of the sieges, even those that were considered
successful. He was also critical of those where he commanded,
particularly, Burgos in 1812. When Burgoyne was advising Raglan in
the Crimea at the siege of Sevastopol, the failures at Burgos were
used to undermine his position. The previous biography of Burgoyne
by his son-in-law, George Wrottesley, was published nearly 150
years ago and is flawed in a number of ways. This new
interpretation will help our understanding of this officer and
present a different view on some of the key events during the
Peninsular War. Wellington's Favourite Engineer includes a Foreword
by Rory Muir.
In October 1810, the Third French invasion of Portugal under
Marechal Massena arrived at the Lines of Torres Vedras and his
triumphal march into Lisbon came to an abrupt halt. Five months
later a thoroughly demoralised and defeated French army retreated
from Portugal and never returned. The Lines played a vital role in
enabling the allied army to operate against a more numerous enemy.
When threatened, there was a safe place for the allies to retire
to, and from this secure base, Wellington eventually liberated the
Iberian Peninsula. France, Portugal and Britain developed plans for
the defence of Lisbon in 1808 and 1809. In November 1809, the
British proposal was commenced and became the Lines of Torres
Vedras. The Memorandum on the construction was written in October
1809 but was more of an outline. The design and construction was
completed over the next 18 months, the bulk being completed before
the arrival of the French in October 1810. The initial design was
expanded through 1810 as more time became available and the
construction in October 1810 was significantly different to the
original memorandum. The book takes the reader through events in
1809 that led to the need for the construction of defences. The
construction work is detailed and illustrated through several maps
to explain the position and purpose of the several defences. The
French invasion of 1810 is summarised through to the time when the
French arrived at the Lines. The operations and movements over the
next month are again detailed along with the continuing
construction work on the Lines. One of the unusual elements of the
defences was the construction of a telegraph system and this is
described in great detail. One of the lesser-known facts about the
Lines, is the position of the opposing forces between October 1810
and March 1811. They were only facing each other at the Lines for a
few weeks during this period and most French troops never
approached them. The operations and defences were spread over a
much larger area. This book uses many new sources to prove a new,
in-depth, English language account of the massive engineering
exercise that built the Lines with the help of thousands of
Portuguese civilians. Without the construction of the Lines, it is
likely that Portugal would have been lost and history would tell a
very different story.
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