'The author has done a quite outstanding job of editing and footnoting this rare memoir . . . this will be of genuine interest to the Peninsular War historian or enthusiast.' Philip Haythornthwaite

John Vandeleur's letters home to his mother are a lively and engaging account of active service during the Napoleonic Wars, recounting everything from day-to-day life on campaign to the experience of pitched battle at Vitoria and Waterloo. 

As first a light infantryman and then a light cavalryman, Vandeleur was frequently on the outposts of Wellington's forces, in frequent contact with the French and often obliged to live a rough-and-ready lifestyle as a result. The conditions that he endured, and the camaraderie that sustained him, are vividly recounted in this fascinating collection – previously only available in an extremely rare private publication over a century ago. 

Expertly edited and enhanced with contemporary documents and commentary by Andrew Bamford, this is an outstanding contribution to our understanding of the Peninsular War and Waterloo campaign.

• Cover
• Title Page
• Copyright
• Contents
• List of Plates and Maps
• Preface
• Introduction
• Chapter 1: Defending Lisbon
• Chapter 2: Return to the Peninsula
• Chapter 3: From Portugal to the Pyrenees
• Chapter 4: Into France as an Aide de Camp
• Chapter 5: The Hundred Days
• Chapter 6: Two Courts Martial and a Coronation
• Appendices
  • Appendix I: Report on the 12th Light Dragoons after the Retreat from Burgos
  • Appendix II: Major Brotherton’s Account of his Capture
  • Appendix III: Orders and Instructions for Outpost Duty, 1815
  • Appendix IV: Lieutenant Colonel Ponsonby’s Account of the Waterloo Campaign
  • Appendix V: The Finding of the Court, and Approval and Confirmation Thereof by the Queen
  • Appendix VI: H.M. 10th Royal Regiment of Huzzars: Return of the Number Embarked at Gravesend
• Select Bibliography and Further Reading