The Iron Duke
A Military Biography of Wellington
by Lawrence James
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Pub Date Nov 14 2016 | Archive Date Jul 31 2017
Description
The Duke of Wellington was Britain’s greatest general.
Just before his famous victory at Waterloo, an ordinary soldier remarked: “Lord Wellington don’t how to lose battles.” This biography explains why. It describes his apprenticeship in arms in India, where his victories extended the power of the East India Company. Here, Wellington learnt the value of logistics and intelligence: his armies were regularly fed and, in his own words, he used spies and scouts to discover ‘what was on the other side of the hill’.
These lessons were applied in Portugal and Spain, where, between 1808 and 1814 he trounced Napoleon’s armies and showed the rest of Europe that the French were not invincible. He led by example, inspiring his men by his calmness, and demanding the highest standards from his officers; like him they were gentlemen, whose birth, outlook and sense of duty qualified them to lead. His army was a mirror of British society: obedience from those below and paternal obligation from those above. Wellington knew his duty and made sure his officers did theirs.
This biography, relying heavily on original sources, examines Wellington the leader, the men he followed, and shows how, together, they won battles. It also presents Wellington the man - a humane, highly intelligent and acerbic aristocrat who believed that men of his birth and breeding were destined to rule.
Advance Praise
“Excellent... Lawrence James paints the familiar picture with skill.”
The Times
“The description of the battle (Waterloo) is a stirring account of one of the most important in the history of Europe.”
Daily Telegraph
“A clear and concise account of the Duke’s military life.”
RUSI Journal
“A first-rate military biography which highlights Wellington’s appreciation of the whole business of war: intelligence, strategy, staff work, supply, tactics and, not least, morale.”
Education
Available Editions
| EDITION | Paperback |
| ISBN | 9781910670941 |
| PRICE | $17.99 (USD) |
Featured Reviews
John P, Media/Journalist
‘The Iron Duke’ by Lawrence James is subtitled ‘A Military Biography of Wellington’ and moves with great alacrity in the first chapter through his family and personal history prior to his being commissioned as an ensign, whilst the book’s last chapter serves to tell the entire story post-Waterloo. Roman Catholic Emancipation and the Great Reform Act together receive less space than commemorations of the final defeat of Napoleon and the 1828 Repeal of the Test and Corporation Acts (which paved the way for Catholic Emancipation) is not mentioned at all, although one can’t really complain in what is avowedly a military biography which concerns itself with Wellington’s political interests “only … when they were interwoven with his activities as a general."
James’s Bibliography is rather more puzzling. There is, of course, a very considerable literature on Wellington and particularly on Waterloo, but the absence of any reference to the work of Richard Holmes (‘Wellington: The Iron Duke’); Andrew Roberts (‘Napoleon and Wellington’ and ‘Waterloo: Napoleon’s Last Gamble’), R. E. Foster (‘Wellington and Waterloo’) and the various books by Rory Muir seems a little surprising, given that the bibliography is not described as a select one.
If these authors are not name-checked because too ‘popular’ or ‘slight’ how on earth does one account for the omission of any reference to John Keegan’s ‘The Face of Battle’ (where Waterloo features as one of the three battles studied) or his ‘The Mask of Command’ (where Wellington is one of the four commanders examined)?
Having said that, James does a very good job of presenting Wellington as a first-rate military commander who exhibited calmness of mind under pressure, communicated his orders to his subordinates with exemplary clarity, showed courage under fire and also commanded the respect of his troops by showing concern for their welfare, notwithstanding their comprising “the scum of the earth”.
What one has here then is a one-volume history of Wellington’s generalship which despite any shortcomings it may have clearly knocks Elizabeth Longford’s ‘Wellington; Years of the Sword’ into a bicorne hat.
Daniela K, Reviewer
The Iron Duke is called a military biography of Wellington, but it is much more. First of all it is very well written and highly entertaining, but secondly, although it is preoccupied with Wellingtons military carrer you also get a lot of information about social history, etc.
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