Cardigan: Hero of Balaclava

by Donald Serrell Thomas

Book by DONALD THOMAS

384 pages, Paperback

First published July 1, 1987

About the author

aka Francis Selwyn

Donald Serrell Thomas is an English author of (primarily) Victorian-era historical, crime and detective fiction, as well as books on factual crime and criminals, in particular several academic books on the history of crime in London. He has written a number of biographies, two volumes of poetry, and has also edited volumes of poetry by John Dryden and the Pre-Raphaelites.

Reviews

[Christopher Saunders · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another sympathetic biography of the Light Brigade's commander. Even more than Saul David, Thomas strains to put his subject in a good light, highlighting his courage, chivalry, concern for his enlisted men and capacity for friendship. All this I'm happy to concede. But this doesn't eradicate his pettiness, brutal discipline and promiscuity. Thomas takes the childish expedient of blaming the media for Cardigan's reputation, not that he poked petty fights with his subordinates or seduced countless women. And what on Earth is the non sequitur about the bloodiness of later Empire builders about? Well-written but not very convincing.