Description
When James Humphreys, a businessman from Birmingham, arrived in Brussels in March 1815, he could not have foreseen the momentous events which would unfold a few miles south of the city just three months later. His letters home to a friend and to a family member provide a civilian’s perspective of Waterloo, of the panic which spread through the streets of Brussels as the battle raged and of its horrific aftermath, described in grisly detail as Humphreys wandered the blood-stained battlefield.
This important collection, published here for the first time, includes a letter from a young Scottish sergeant, Alex Cummings, who lodged with Humphreys prior to the battle during which he received a serious facial wound.
Interlaced with dramatic accounts of the battle, Humphrey’s letters also address more prosaic matters: his business activities; his concern for his wife and children at home in England and the peculiarities of life as an Englishman abroad. In addition, they convey his strident opinions on European politics and on the punishment he felt should be meted out to Napoleon upon his eventual defeat.
Foreword by Dr. Louise Carter and introduction by Dr. Clive Hodges.
