On the Formation of British Lancers. Submitted to His Royal Highness The Duke of York, Commander in Chief, On the Fifth of November 1811

Drouville, Captain J.B.

Edité par J.J.Stockdale, London, 1813

A propos de cet article

London, printed for J.J.Stockdale, 1813. Quarto. New edition . 15pp, [1]. Illustrated with six full page hand coloured plates. A rare pamphlet proposing the formation of a Corps of Lancers in the British army at a time when only a few European nations, notably the French, had such regiments. Written towards the conclusion of the Napoleonic Wars, the author first makes the case for the superiority of the lance as a weapon over the cavalry sword or sabre. He then goes on to argue that large numbers of Poles, Russians and Germans, many of whom were skilled horsemen, had deserted from forced service in the French army in Spain and Portugal and that rather than incarcerating these men, they should be formed into a Corps of Lancers. He asserts that having been poorly treated by the French, they would be happy to fight for Britain if well fed, clothed and essentially, treated with respect. Having made the case, the author goes on to set out the formation of his proposed unit listing the number of companies he deems necessary, the amount of officers they would require, how they should be attired, armed and equipped and the type of horses they should be issued with. Though it is not clear whether the author s argument for the raising of lancer regiments manned by foreigners received much of a positive reception, it is certainly the case that some British cavalry regiments were converted to lancer regiments in the years after the conclusion of the Napoleonic Wars. The origins of the author are obscure. He describes himself as a Captain of Horse and a later commentator has proposed that he may well have been a disaffected foreign officer formerly in the service of the French army. Though described as a new edition on the title page, there is no record of an earlier edition, so presumed to be the first and only edition of this work. This is a rare publication. The only copy noted as having been sold at auction was sold in 1925. Worldcat locates only 4 copies in institutional libraries worldwide (King s College London, Brown University, Biblioteque Nationale de France and Libris in Stockholm). Bound in 19th century half roan with cloth sides. Loss of covering material to around a quarter of the length of the spine, not affecting the integrity of the binding. Light offsetting from the frontispiece onto the title page. Occasional light finger-soiling. Otherwise, a clean copy of a rare work with the text block sound and the binding in good condition. NB The price of this item is variable dependent on your chosen payment method. Please feel free to make contact for further information and to request additional photographs of this item or to discuss payment options. Size: 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall.

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Détails bibliographiques

• Titre: On the Formation of British Lancers. Submitted to His Royal Highness The Duke of York, Commander in Chief, On the Fifth of November 1811
• Éditeur: J.J.Stockdale, London
• Date de parution: 1813
• Reliure: Cloth
• Édition: First Thus.
• État de l'article: Good
• Catalogues du vendeur:
  • Military