Balaclava 1854

Balaclava 1854 examines in detail the crucial battle of Balaclava during The Crimean War. The port of Balaclava was crucial in maintaining the supply lines for the Allied siege of Sevastapol. The Russian attack in October 1854 therefore posed a major threat to the survival of the Allied cause. This book includes: the attack on the redoubts; the action of 'the thin red line' in which an assortment of about 700 British troops, some invalids, were abandoned by their Turkish allies; the subsequent charge of the Heavy Brigade; and the most famous part of the battle: the infamous charge of the Light Brigade.

The Charge of the Light Brigade has passed into history as one of the most glorious - and costly - exploits in the annals of the horse soldier. The almost simultaneous victory of the Heavy Brigade has, therefore, been overshadowed by this event. This book describes the organization, tactical doctrine and exact strength of the British Cavalry in the Crimea, and the events of 25th October 1854.

In 1854 Britain and France were at war to save 'poor little Turkey', the crumbling Ottoman Empire, from the menace of Russian expansionism. On 25 October they were nine days into what would become an eleven-month siege, with little to show for it. Suddenly, from behind them came the unmistakeable sound of cannon. The Russians had arrived. Vastly outnumbered, the British gained an unlikely upper hand with the charge of the Heavy Brigade and the efforts of the Thin Red Line. But then, within two hours of achieving near victory, the British squandered it in dramatic style with the charge of the Light Brigade. Using eyewitness accounts, letters and diaries, acclaimed military historian Robert Kershaw presents a new, intimate look at the Battle of Balaclava, from the perspective of the men who 'saw little and knew even less'. Come down from the Heights and see the real story of one of the most ill-fated military expeditions in British history.

This book explores the reasons behind the UK army's successes and hardships from 1815-1854.

Lord Cardigan's cavalry charge on 25 October 1854 at the battle of Balaclava 'into the valley of death' is surely one of the most famous actions in military history. Is there anything new to say about it in print? Yes there is, because most publications have concentrated on commanding officers Lucan, Cardigan and the fatal actions of Nolan. But there were 670 men in the charge and by collating the evidence from the many eyewitnesses James Bancroft offers a new and more accurate appraisal of events. Cardigan's description of the action was quoted at length in the House of Commons: '...with the batteries vomiting forth upon us shells and shot, round and grape, with one battery on our right flank and another on the left... when we came to within a distance of fifty yards from the mouths of the artillery which had been hurling destruction upon us, we were, in fact, surrounded and encircled by a blaze of fire.' One question of course - which the author, who has been studying the subject for many years, addresses - is how anyone survived.

The Light Brigade lives again in the Mollos' expert text and Fosten's meticulously researched paintings; also covered is the more successful Charge of the Heavy Brigade, the subject of a lesser-known Tennyson poem.

This book revolves around an event known as 'Charge of the Light Brigade'. It was a failed military action involving the British light cavalry led by Lord Cardigan against Russian forces during the Battle of Balaclava on 25 October 1854 in the Crimean War. Lord Raglan had intended to send the Light Brigade to prevent the Russians from removing captured guns from overrun Turkish positions, a task for which the light cavalry were well-suited. However, there was miscommunication in the chain of command and the Light Brigade was instead sent on a frontal assault against a different artillery battery, one well-prepared with excellent fields of defensive fire. The Light Brigade reached the battery under withering direct fire and scattered some of the gunners, but they were forced to retreat immediately, and the assault ended with very high British casualties and no decisive gains.