A Formidable Frontier is the ninth book in the Peninsular War Saga. Major-General Paul van Daan, his wife Anne and the rest of the brigade are about to cross the border and establish Wellington’s army on French soil for the first time. Needless to say this is not as easy as it sounds.
October, 1813.
With the town of San Sebastian successfully stormed and the siege of Pamplona finally taking effect, Lord Wellington’s army is ready to invade France. Ahead of them is the wide estuary of the Bidassoa River and the mountain of La Rhune, heavily fortified by Marshal Soult’s army.
After the horrors of Vitoria and San Sebastian, Major-General Paul van Daan’s brigade of the Light Division is coming together again. Officers and men are returning from sick leave and the arrival of Wellington’s new ADC reunites Paul with an old friend. Meanwhile, Paul’s wife Anne faces new challenges as a chaotic French retreat leaves their wounded behind.
Captain Giles Fenwick, struggling to recover from the wound received at San Sebastian, has to find a way to work with a new Spanish protégé, Captain Don Angel Cortez: a man with a difficult past which is about to catch up with him.
Captain Simon Carlyon has discovered a new sympathy for his most awkward junior officer, but Ensign Fox’s attempts to integrate into the brigade are proving difficult.
Lieutenant Evan Powell has to make a choice between personal loyalty and career prospects as the army advances beyond the Bidassoa towards the Nivelle and into France, while as the French defences begin to crumble Colonel Gabriel Bonnet is faced with a difficult choice.
As Wellington’s army crosses the formidable frontier to establish itself in France for the first time, new friendships become entangled with old enmities, creating a bigger headache for Paul than the retreating French army.
The settings and history behind A Formidable Frontier
As we head towards the end of the Peninsular War there is very little down time for Wellington’s army. The previous book, An Unattainable Stronghold, took place over a period of about two months. This one is even less and there is plenty of fighting during that period. Wellington was on a mission. At the same time, he was trying to tread lightly while waiting for news from the powers of the Sixth Coalition who were fighting Bonaparte in Germany and Scandinavia. Nobody could be sure whether there would be a negotiated peace or whether Bonaparte would fight to the bitter end.
I found the fighting in this book far easier to write about than in the previous one. The difficulty of crossing rivers and mountains meant that Wellington’s forces were more frequently split into different corps under trusted generals like Hill and Beresford. On the other hand the role of the Light Division is very clear; they’re fighting as a unit again and there was plenty of action for my fictional brigade.
The first battle in this book is the crossing of the Bidassoa in October 1813. As with so many of the battles of this part of the war, Wellington’s forces made coordinated attacks over a wide area. While much of the army crossed near the mouth of the river, apparently taking the French completely by surprise. The area is very built up now, so it’s difficult to get a photo that gives any idea of the terrain. Sometimes I have to rely on historic drawings and paintings. This work by Captain Robert Batty captures the descriptions of men who were there.
It was the job of the Light Division to storm the heights of La Rhune at the same time. In contrast, it is really easy to imagine how appallingly difficult it must have been to scale this mountain in full uniform with knapsacks and rifles or muskets. The view over the mountains from the top is beautiful, especially on a sunny day which it was when we went up. I’m not sure that the men of the Light Division had breath to admire the view and it was October when they made their ascent. Just in case you’re impressed by the way, don’t be. This was before my hip replacement and I didn’t climb it, I took the little train.
This is the first book that we properly meet Colonel John Colborne of the 52nd who is temporarily in charge of the second brigade of the Light Division. Colborne is an interesting character. His memoirs are an excellent source for this part of the war and widely quoted but I can’t help being amused by the fact that in his account, all the best decisions are made by him and he is at the centre of everything. I suspect hindsight was a wonderful thing. Still, it makes him fun to write.
For these later books I’ve had to do some research into the Spanish army. I was a bit taken aback to realise that my difficult Spanish officer would have worn a white jacket. I’m trying to imagine what that must have looked like at the end of a battle.
Spanish infantry uniforms (from Wikimedia Commons)
A month after the crossing of the Bidassoa, the army is in action again, this time in the battle of the Nivelle. It seems that most of the battles at this stage of the war are centred around river crossings. During this one, Colonel Andrew Barnard finally reaped the reward of going into every battle like a lunatic and was badly wounded. It’s not that much of a spoiler if I tell you that a) Paul is furious with him and b) He survives to be a lunatic all over again.
There are probably two more books to go before the end of the Peninsular War. That won’t be the end of the series of course; I’ve always said I intend to take the 110th through Waterloo as well.
My next project is book ten of the Peninsular War Saga. It’s called An Inexorable Invasion which sees Wellington’s army fully established on French soil. It will also include Colonel Barnard going back to work too soon, Colonel Colborne being even more enthusiastic and an unfortunate moment on a pontoon bridge. Watch this space.
