Send Me Safely Back Again (50 page)
The French
General LASALLE – Dashing leader of French light cavalry. Although of aristocratic birth, Lasalle won fame and promotion during the Revolution and has since become a favourite of Napoleon. In 1806 he bluffed the Prussian garrison of the fortress of Stettin into surrendering to his lightly armed hussars. Since then he has fought the Russians and more recently the Spanish.
Marshal VICTOR, Duke of Belluno – Victor originally served in the ranks of the artillery, and then won rapid promotion during the Revolutionary Wars so that within three years he led an entire division. He has fought and beaten the Austrians, Prussians, Russians and recently the Spanish and is a capable, if extremely aggressive, commander.
General LEVAL – Commander of a division in Sebastiani’s IV Corps, Leval leads a Dutch contingent and regiments from four of the small principalities of Germany.
KING JOSEPH Bonaparte – As Napoleon’s elder brother, Joseph has reluctantly been moved from the comfort of his Kingdom in Naples to Spain, where he finds himself less welcome. A man of strong literary and philosophical tastes, he has done his best to win popularity. Recently he has lifted a ban imposed on bullfighting by the chief minister of his Spanish predecessor.
Chasseur LEBEQUE
– A young conscript serving in a light infantry regiment, Lebeque happily undertakes the light duty of guarding the captive Hanley.SOTERO – Spanish lawyer working for King Joseph
– A Spaniard working for King Joseph, Sotero does his best to convince his countrymen of the attractions of siding with the new regime.General LAPISSE – Commander of the Second Division in Marshal Victor’s I Corps, Lapisse has recently returned from skirmishing with Sir Robert Wilson on the Spanish–Portuguese border.
Marshal JOURDAN – As a young soldier, Jourdan served against the British in the American War of Independence. Now somewhat elderly for active service, he has been appointed as an experienced chief of staff to the Emperor’s brother.
General SEBASTIANI – Like Napoleon himself, Sebastiani hailed from Corsica, and became closely associated with the future Emperor early on. In his career he has mixed diplomatic with military posts, but has proved a capable if unexceptional soldier.
The Portuguese
MARIA
– High-class courtesan. In the summer of 1808 she inveigled Pringle, Truscott, Hanley, Williams and Dobson into a dangerous encounter with a rogue Russian officer.
Fiction
True Soldier Gentlemen
Beat the Drums Slowly
Non-Fiction
Antony and Cleopatra
The Fall of the West: The Death of the Roman Superpower
Caesar: The Life of a Colossus
In the Name of Rome:
The Men Who Won the Roman Empire
The Complete Roman Army
Cannae: Hannibal’s Greatest Victory
The Punic Wars
Roman Warfare
The Roman Army at War,
100 BC-AD 200
A Weidenfeld & Nicolson ebook
First published in Great Britain in 2012
by Weidenfeld & Nicolson
This ebook first published in 2012
by Weidenfeld & Nicolson
© Adrian Goldsworthy 2012
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ISBN: 978 0 2978 6665 7
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