Napoleonic Era

Gronow’s Reminiscences

John Raymond offers the picturesque records of an amiable spendthrift who lived through the greater part of one of the most eventful centuries of English history.

The Tragedy of Success

In the cynical atmosphere of the Congress of Vienna, Consalvi imposed himself on his fellow statesmen and fought a successful battle for the restoration of the Papal States. E.E.Y. Hales describes a master of European diplomacy.

Henry Dundas: Harry the Ninth

A manager of men and a master of contemporary politics, writes Esmond Wright, Dundas was Pitt's energetic colleague “during the most critical years in British history except for 1940”—not a hero, but a vigorous man of affairs who “rendered some service to both his countries.”

Collingwood and Nelson

These two great English naval commanders became close friends during the seventeen-seventies; Oliver Warner describes how it was Collingwood who took over Nelson’s command when, in 1805, he died at Trafalgar.

Charles James Fox

Charles James Fox has been presented as the prototype of the nineteenth-century Liberal. Certainly his gifts were extraordinary. But did he put them to a worthy use? Ian R. Christie critically re-examines his record of public service.

A Diary of 1803

In the month after the Napoleonic Wars resumed, writes R.M. Anthony, a middle-aged widow and three of her young daughters made an extensive sight-seeing tour of England and Scotland.

American Opinion on Napoleon’s Downfall

The news of Waterloo shocked American readers, writes Donald D. Horward, and most writers and editors refused to believe Wellington’s famous dispatch of June 19th, 1815.