- Paperback: 288 pages
- Publisher: Penguin Books Ltd; New edition edition (26 Oct 2000)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 014139031X
- ISBN-13: 978-0141390314
- Product Dimensions: 21.4 x 13.2 x 2.4 cm
- Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 669,421 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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Product Description
Product Description
Nothing in British campaign history has ever equalled the tragic farce that was the Charge of the Light Brigade. In this fascinating study, Cecil Woodham-Smith shows that responsibility for the fatal mismanagement of the affair rested with the Earls of Cardigan and Lucan, brothers-in-law and sworn enemies for more than thirty years. In revealing the combination of pride and obstinacy that was to prove so fatal, the author gives us a picture of a vanished world, in which heroism and military glory guaranteed an immortality impossible in a more cynical age.
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
7 of 7 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
This is THE definitive work on this fascinating and tragic subject. The author has researched the subject matter meticulously and it shows! The characters,the period and the long ranging result of the Charge start with a 'walk' through the main characters involved i.e. Lord Cardigan, Lord Lucan and Captain Louis Nolan, their backgrounds and what has made them the people they are. We then move to the 'march' when the Brigade arrives in the Crimea and is subject to the realities and horrors of war not only with the enemy but with disease and Victorian beaurocracy whilst still being kept 'in a bandbox' by Lord Lucan. The book moves on to the 'trot' when the Charge actually takes place and this is simply breathtaking due to the wealth of information and detail that Woodham-Smith has placed before the reader. A definite must - after reading this book the aroma of cordite, human bravery and and the stupidity of 'the upper classes' will remain with the reader as long as this action has remained an outstanding example of military incompetence in the annals of British history. If you read only one book on this subject then tome will cover all aspects of this subject.
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Well written account of the events leading up to the charge of the Light Brigade. One of the few history books that combines not only great historical insight into the pride and social quagmire of Victorian England but also exciting and entertaining reading for someone that knows nothing about that period of history. I would very much like other suggestions of well written history books (Others suggested so far are CV Wedgewood's "The King's Peace" and Runciman's "The First Crusade")
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
This is THE definitive work on this fascinating and tragic subject. The author has researched the subject matter meticulously and it shows! The characters,the period and the long ranging result of the Charge start with a 'walk' through the main characters involved i.e. Lord Cardigan, Lord Lucan and Captain Louis Nolan, their backgrounds and what has made them the people they are. We then move to the 'march' when the Brigade arrives in the Crimea and is subject to the realities and horrors of the best cavalry unit in the world at war with the enemy, disease and Victorian beaurocracy whilst still being kept 'in a bandbox' by Lord Lucan. The book moves swiftly on to the 'trot' when the Charge actually takes place and this is simply breathtaking due to the wealth of information that Woodham-Smith has placed before the reader. A definite must - after reading this book the aroma of cordite, human bravery and and the stupidity of 'the upper classes' will remain with the reader as long as this action has remained an outstanding example of military incompetence in the annals of British history.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
Infomation over-load
This book is very well-researched and provides a wholly-believable explanation for the Charge of the Light Brigade.
BUT I found it a difficult read. Read more
BUT I found it a difficult read. Read more
Published 3 months ago by Donald Hughes
Good narrative, but where's the analysis??
The book reads more like a novel than a work of military history. As my old lecturer used to comment, ' Well done, a good narrative, but where's the analysis?'. Read more
Published 10 months ago by R. G. Anders
An easy read, but a little outdated
I brought this book with on a trip to the Crimea in 2009 and to read while on holiday in the Ukraine. Read more
Published 13 months ago by Andrew G
The Reason Why by Cecil Woodham Smith
An excellent account of the backgound of the Crimean War and the various military "fools" who were involved. Read more
Published 19 months ago by eric kelk
not so incompetant
This is without doubt an excellant review of the charge of the Light Brigade and the main charaters involved. Read more
Published on 3 May 2010 by James Wells
Good read, but not academically brilliant
As a student of War Studies, I bought this book to aid me with a project involving the Charge of the Light Brigade. Read more
Published on 21 Jun 2005 by Thomas Black
Still the best account of the Charge of the Light Brigade
The Reason Why remains the classic study of the intriguing and sadly ludicrous episode in military history known as the Charge of the Light Brigade. Read more
Published on 30 Nov 2002 by Daniel Jolley
A character-driven account of events leading to the charge.
Woodham-Smith adopts an original approach to her account of the events which culminated in the charge of the Light Brigade in the Crimea. Read more
Published on 26 Jun 2001
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