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SHARPES' FIRST COMMAND
Date of Review: May 8, 2000
The Bottom Line: GOOD READ
Winter 1809, the battered remnants of the British Army retreat through the snow swept mountains of Northern Spain, desperately hoping to reach the sea before their French pursuers. Cut off from the rest of the army a rag tag rabble of English Riflemen find themselves with only one option surrender or die.
All but one of their officers are dead. The one remaining is an over aged promoted from the ranks Lieutenant Quartermaster. He lacks confidence and is hated and distrusted by his men.
However with no hope of succeeding he decides to do the impossible. He refuses to surrender and instead will march and fight his way through hundreds of miles of hostile terrain to friendly territory in Portugal. First he has to convince his men that this is the best option. They'd rather kill him and then surrender.
When he finally gets their obedience if not respect with his fists, he is presented with another obstacle. A band of Spanish partisans on a secret mission led by an enigmatic nobleman. The noble is an officer in the Spanish Army who is everything the Lieutenant is not.
When the secret mission is revealed and the orphan Riflemen convinced to join in things really pick up. The mission is nothing short of the storming and capture of a fortified city by a pathetic band to inspire and rally a beaten nation. Along the way the Quartermaster rediscovers what he once was, and a hero is born, Richard Sharpe.
When Bernard Cromwell first introduced his hero of the Napoleonic Wars in "Sharpe's Eagle" there were several unanswered questions. How did Sharpe come to command this rabble of Rifleman and why are they so loyal to their rough but ready commander? Why are they in Spain when the rest of their Regiment is back in England? How did the unlikely friendship between the quiet Irish giant Sergeant Harper and Sharpe the Officer but not a Gentleman come about? Why does a British Officer wear French Cavalry trousers?
Finally in this novel he answers those questions, and sets the stage for greater exploits of this legendary hero.
