1812 - The Great Retreat - Softcover

Britten Austin, Paul

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1848326955 ISBN 13: 9781848326958

Publisher: Frontline Books, 2013

Synopsis

1812: The Great Retreat – the third and final volume in Austin’s magisterial trilogy – concludes the story of one of history’s most disastrous campaigns. The author's previous books brought the Grand Army to the head-on battle at Malo-Jaroslavetz after withdrawing sixty miles from the burnt down capital, and for the first time in his meteoric career Napoleon had to order a retreat.

This volume follows the army's withdrawal through 800 miles of devastated countryside, crossing the horrific relics of the Borodino battlefield, fighting its way through the Russian General Kutusov's successive attempts to cut it off, and winning, against overwhelming odds, the three-day battle of the Berezina crossing. First-hand narratives, many published in English for the first time, describe Marshal Ney's astounding achievement in holding together the rear-guard until he himself, musket in hand, was the last man to re-cross the Niemen into Poland.

Using the words of the participants themselves, Paul Britten Austin brings unparalleled authenticity and immediacy to his unique account of the closing stages of Napoleon's dramatic and tragic 1812 campaign.

About this title

About the Author:

PAUL BRITTEN AUSTIN was born in Dawlish, South Devon. His parents were the writers Frederick B. A. King and Mildred King. He was educated at Winchester College. In 1951, he married novelist Margareta Bergman, sister of film director Ingmar Bergman. They lived in Stockholm, where he worked for Radio Sweden as head of English-language broadcasting. Paul Britten Austin spent twenty-five years researching and writing his vast study of Napoleon’s invasion of Russia in 1812. His 1815 book follows the same principle of ‘stitching together’ eyewitness accounts to create an exciting narrative.

Review:

' ... Already heralded as a classic ... The text is enriched with first-hand accounts which bring the whole narrative to life with an air of stark realism ... Britten Austin's trilogy truly ranks as a masterpiece, representing all that is to be admired in a research-based work' - Waterloo Journal

About this edition

• Publisher: Frontline Books
• Publication date: 2013
• ISBN 10: 1848326955
• ISBN 13: 9781848326958
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 464