As part of the Light Division created to act as the advance guard of Wellington's army, the 95th Rifles are the first into battle and the last out. Fighting, thieving and raping their way across Europe, they are clearly no ordinary troops. The 95th are in fact the first British soldiers to take aim at their targets, to take cover when being shot at, to move tactically by fire and manoeuvre. And by the end of a six-year campaign they have not only proved themselves the toughest fighters in the army, they have also - at huge personal cost - created the modern notion of the infantryman. Focusing mainly on 6 soldiers in the 1st battalion- Capt Peter O'Hare, 2nd Lt George Simmons, and privates Robeert Fairfrost, Joseph Almond, Edward Costello, and William Brotherwood the author tells the Rifle's story from May 25, 1809 when the men shipped out of Britain to join Wellington in Spain, through the Battle of waterloo. Draws on diaries, letters and other personal accounts. xiv + 351pp., col. & b/w photos., maps, bibliog., index,
