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Stopping Napoleon : War and Intrigue in the Mediterranean
After his defeat by Nelson at Trafalgar, Napoleon knew he could never invade England. Many thought he would try to take over the vast, crumbling Ottoman Empire, return to Egypt and even march on India. So the British concentrated on the Mediterranean: for a decade it became the scene of dangers - real or imagined - and of battles - both on land and at sea. All was dictated by a fierce determination to stop Napoleon. There were triumphs and disasters in remote and exotic places, and a Trafalgar in miniature was fought between frigate squadrons in the Adriatic. The Peninsular War might well have been fought in another peninsula: Italy. Bizarre rulers had to be flattered, or fought: the Bourbons in Palmero and Napoleon's dashing brother-in-law, Marshal Murat, King of Naples. The successors to Nelson and predecessors of Wellington fought there, amongst them Lord Collingwood, Sir Sidney Smith and Sir John Moore. Napoleon himself materialised at his most magnificent in Venice and in humiliating exile on Elba. Of course, Napoleon himself did not see it like that, and the outcome was startling for all...
288 pages, Hardcover
First published June 21, 2004
About the author
Tom Pocock
47 books4 followersTom Pocock was the author of 18 books (and editor of two more), mostly biographies but including two about his experiences as a newspaper war correspondent.
Born in London in 1925 - the son of the novelist and educationist Guy Pocock - he was educated at Westminster School and Cheltenham College, joining the Royal Navy in 1943. He was at sea during the invasion of Normandy and, having suffered from ill-health, returned to civilian life and in 1945 became a war correspondent at the age of 19, the youngest of the Second World War.
After four years wth the Hulton Press current affairs magazine group, he moved to the Daily Mail as feature-writer and then Naval Correspondent, becoming Naval Correspondent of The Times in 1952. In 1956, he was a foreign corresponent and special writer for the Daily Express and from 1959 was on the staff of the Evening Standard,as feature writer,Defence Correspondent and war correspondent. For the last decade of his time on the Standard he was Travel Editor.
He wrote his first book, NELSON AND HIS WORLD in 1967 on his return from reporting the violence in Aden and his interest in Nelson has continued. Indeed, eight of his books are about the admiral and his contemporaries; his HORATIO NELSON was runner-up for the Whitbread Biography Award of 1987.
Tom Pocock has contributed to many magazines and appeared on television documentaries about Nelson and the subject of another of his biographies,the novelist and imperialist Sir Rider Haggard.
Born in London in 1925 - the son of the novelist and educationist Guy Pocock - he was educated at Westminster School and Cheltenham College, joining the Royal Navy in 1943. He was at sea during the invasion of Normandy and, having suffered from ill-health, returned to civilian life and in 1945 became a war correspondent at the age of 19, the youngest of the Second World War.
After four years wth the Hulton Press current affairs magazine group, he moved to the Daily Mail as feature-writer and then Naval Correspondent, becoming Naval Correspondent of The Times in 1952. In 1956, he was a foreign corresponent and special writer for the Daily Express and from 1959 was on the staff of the Evening Standard,as feature writer,Defence Correspondent and war correspondent. For the last decade of his time on the Standard he was Travel Editor.
He wrote his first book, NELSON AND HIS WORLD in 1967 on his return from reporting the violence in Aden and his interest in Nelson has continued. Indeed, eight of his books are about the admiral and his contemporaries; his HORATIO NELSON was runner-up for the Whitbread Biography Award of 1987.
Tom Pocock has contributed to many magazines and appeared on television documentaries about Nelson and the subject of another of his biographies,the novelist and imperialist Sir Rider Haggard.
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
December 10, 2018
A look at the battles and machinations in the Mediterranean in the years following Trafalgar up to Napoleon's final defeat at Waterloo. I must admit this was an area that I knew little about, and names I was basically unfamiliar with. The two men who seem to dominate the narrative are Sir Sidney Smith and Captain William Hoste.
Sir Sidney was a talented man in many ways, striving to involve himself in everything, but his arrogance annoyed most of those under him. Even after leaving the Mediterranean, he managed to show up in Belgium, trying to once again take part in battle.
Captain Hoste ably took his ships where they needed to be, fighting in several siege operations at Cattaro and Ragusa. Unfortunately, these operations played havoc with his health, and he died at a fairly young age.
The partisans, who also took on the French in the Mediterranean, played an important role in keeping their enemies off balance. These fighters from Calabria, the Tyrol, Montenego, and other areas did not receive the recognition that the Spanish did, but they suffered for their freedom.
If you think the Royal Navy had to do little after Trafalgar, this book shows that to be an error.
Sir Sidney was a talented man in many ways, striving to involve himself in everything, but his arrogance annoyed most of those under him. Even after leaving the Mediterranean, he managed to show up in Belgium, trying to once again take part in battle.
Captain Hoste ably took his ships where they needed to be, fighting in several siege operations at Cattaro and Ragusa. Unfortunately, these operations played havoc with his health, and he died at a fairly young age.
The partisans, who also took on the French in the Mediterranean, played an important role in keeping their enemies off balance. These fighters from Calabria, the Tyrol, Montenego, and other areas did not receive the recognition that the Spanish did, but they suffered for their freedom.
If you think the Royal Navy had to do little after Trafalgar, this book shows that to be an error.
July 28, 2015
Brilliant evocation of the place and the period...
February 12, 2023
A cracking read. Some fascinating episodes from the Eastern Mediterranean theatre, during the Napoleonic wars. Some intriguing throw away lines, like the rescuing the pope, but he decided to stay in Rome and stop Napoleon invading the Papal States.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews