Recommended for anyone interested in the Prussian army of the era, and the Waterloo segment is an essential first-hand account of the ‘view from HQ’.

The Napoleon Series - November 2016 - reviewed by Steve Brown

This title was originally published in 1853, then again in 1997. This 2015 edition has been reproduced exactly as the original edition, complete and unabridged, with the addition of an introduction by Peter Hofschrőer. Written as they are by an officer on the Prussian general staff, these memoirs provide an interesting first-hand account/chronicle of the Napoleonic Wars. Baron Carl von Müffling was Marshal Blucher’s liaison officer to Wellington’s headquarters during the Waterloo campaign, but his military career involved much more than that, proving him to be an excellent staff officer. He made a major contribution to the development of the Prussian General Staff and was interested in military topography and maps. His memoirs cover the period from his early posts in 1805 through to Waterloo and the congress of Aix-la-Chappelle at the end of the Napoleonic Wars. Peter Hofschrőer’s introduction to this current edition provides biographical details for von Müffling and examines the accuracy of parts of the memoirs that have been challenged by historians. In this reviewer’s opinion, Peter’s introduction alone makes this book unmissable, let alone the wealth of detail provided by the main text. Well done Frontline Books/Pen & Sword for making this title available once more.

Stuart Asquith, Author