Description

Published between 1828 and 1840, Napier's History of the War in the Peninsula was a tremendously influential, if controversial, work. Napier had been actively involved in the campaigns, turning to history in peacetime, in part to refute Southey's account of Sir John Moore. The first volume had a mixed reception, getting both high praise and bitter criticism from participants in the wars. He published several works rebutting his critics while producing the later volumes. Because of his obvious lack of impartiality, modern military historians treat the work with caution, but it remains widely read in the many editions and abridgements subsequently produced. Volume 4 covers the period from 1810 to the capture of Ciudad Rodrigo and the siege of Badajoz in 1812. Napier believed that Badajoz marked a turning point, and while greatly admiring Wellington, attributes the Allied victory in part to Napoleon's involvement in Russia.