March of Death: Sir John Moore's Retreat to Corunna, 1808-1809

by Christopher Summerville

In the bitter winter of 1808, a small British force found itself outnumbered and outmaneuvered by a French army led by Emperor Napoleon. Faced with a crushing defeat, the British, commanded by Sir John Moore, turned and marched through the mountains of northern Spain.

Casting away baggage and supplies, the little army retreated through desolate mountain passes before reaching Corunna with the French at their heels. There they turned and fought, before embarking for Britain and safety. However, as in every epic, there was great loss. Sir John Moore, gallant, respected and honorable, fell at the moment of victory.

March of Death is the story of a terrible retreat through the eyes of those who were there and survived. Relating the horrific ordeal through excerpts from survivors diaries, letters, memoirs and reports, this narrative brings to life the heroism and glory of a real fight for survival. Without doubt, few episodes of British military history have been as dramatic as Sir John Moore s retreat to Corunna.

The author does a superb job describing the numerous skirmishes and combats between the British rear guard and the French advance guard The story rivals any medieval epic. Robert Burnham, Napoleonic Series

Genres: History

256 pages, Hardcover

First published February 19, 2003

Reviews

[Mick Scrimshaw]

Great book about the horrendous retreat of Sir John Moore’s forces at the beginning of the Peninsular War. It made harrowing reading in places and showed the cruelty of war and how cheap lives were back then but on occasion also showed examples of chivalry and kindness shown on both sides of the fighting. Well written and well researched and based on many diaries and accounts left over from the conflict. The Peninsular war was probably the first war where so many journals were kept and passed down enabling historians to give us a much better understanding of life for the men fighting and this book is a great reference for those interested in specifically knowing more about those days in December 1808/January 1809 and the death of Sir John Moore.

[Coates]

An excellent book which I tore through in just three days. The desperate story of the British retreat and the battle of Corunna is presented brilliantly with great writing and lots of primary accounts