SHARPE'S SECRET MISSION

Portugal August 1810. Sir Arthur Wellesley, now after his victory at Talavera the previous year, the Duke of Wellington, has a dilemma. His Anglo-Portuguese army is on the defensive again. Outnumbered by the French after the total collapse of the Spanish Armies, he has limited options for victory.

His plan is simple, to not fight the French. He will withdraw into Portugal forcing the French to follow him. As their supply lines become longer, his will become shorter.

The French will be forced to expend time, men and resources storming and capturing the fortresses like Almeida that Wellington has left behind his retiring armies. The numerous Spanish Guerrillas will also slow the French with their incessant harassment of supply lines.

Eventually the French will reach Wellingtons main line of defence. The lines of Torres Vedras, a series of forts, trenches and fortifications constructed just outside Lisbon. Safe behind these earthworks the British and Portuguese troops will meet and defeat an exhausted and spent French army. All that will remain then will be to chase them back across the border and eventually out of the Iberian Peninsula.

It is an audacious but simple plan. All that it requires to succeed is for the fortifications to be completed. There is the problem. To do that requires money, and Wellington has none. The Government back in England as usual is slow in sending all forms of supplies to it's army in the field, including Pounds Sterling. Wellington doesn't even have enough to pay his own men.

All is not lost however. Wellington has learned of a large shipment of gold across the border in Spain. It originally belonged to the Spanish Government and is now in the possession of a band of guerrillas. They have sent word to the British of the gold and request their help in ensuring that it is saved from the hands of the French and safely shipped to the Spanish Government in exile in Cadiz.

Wellington agrees to help the guerrillas, but does not mention any of this to Cadiz. He has other plans for this gold. He intends to steal it and use for his own needs.

This is a simple straight forward operation. All he needs to do is slip a force of British troops across the frontier, undetected. Then they must make their way through miles of enemy territory and locate an elusive band of guerrillas. Following that they must convince the guerrillas to part with the gold and then transport it back.

They must do all this in complete secrecy, not just from the French but the Spanish too, who understandably may resent the theft of their property. Finally Wellington must ensure that the troops he sends are not only resourceful enough to accomplish this but trustworthy enough to return as well. With backpacks full of golden guineas they may quite understandably not wish to return to the flogging and hard discipline of the British Army.

There is only one choice, one man who can accomplish this. Wellington sends for Captain Richard Sharpe of the South Essex Regiment. Sharpe, Sergeant Harper, and the men of the Light Company are once more sent marching. This time though one wonders if even they can succeed.

"Sharpe's Gold" is the second of the Sharpe novels written by Cornwell. Like the "first" of the series, "Sharpe's Eagle" it may seem to some fans of the series to be lacking a little. It is a slim volume compared to later efforts and some of the character development and other aspects that appear in later novels are again only hinted at here.

It is still a Sharpe novel, with a rich story and full of daring due. All of the infamous characters are here fictitious and real, Sharpe, Harper, Hogan and Wellington. They are joined by a new addition, Major Kearsey the very moral exploring officer , and Captain Lossow and his band of mounted rogues of the Kings German Legion. These light cavalry troopers are more than a match for the riflemen in fighting skill and getting into and out of trouble.

There is a villain of course, and one that is a fitting match for our hero. El Catolico a ruthless and ambitious man who soon becomes Sharpe's sworn enemy. He is the better of the two when it comes to skill with swords. Only by using a very desperate ploy is Sharpe able to defeat him.

This volume also introduces us to Theresa Moreno, the love of Richard Sharpe's life and future wife. She is no mere camp follower or lady in waiting though. Theresa and her family have suffered at the hands of the French and she thirsts for revenge. Commandate Moreno soon to be known as "the needle" fights the French with a passion, and skill to rival that of her lover.

Cornwell once more shows us his detailed knowledge of the period and extensive research. He also combines this with a little literary licence. No one knows for sure what caused the massive explosion that destroyed the fortress of Almeida August 27, 1810.

It was one of the largest and most powerful man made explosions in the pre nuclear age. The fortress fully garrisoned and well stocked should have held off French assaults for weeks as Wellington planned. After it was destroyed the French had an open road to Lisbon.

Cornwell offers a plausible explanation for the explosion of the magazine and makes it an integral part of the tale. Sharpes's ingenuity as always knows no bounds. It is a rather spectacular "deux ex machina" to say the least.

"Sharpes Gold" is a great read in and of itself and an excellent part of this series. As always Richard Sharpe wins through against all odds. This time he even gets the girl, and a little something else.