Sir Garnet Wolseley

"No Victorian was a greater hero for a longer period than Sir Garnet Wolseley. The leading British general of the second half of the nineteenth century, he personally took part in or significantly influenced almost every major campaign between the Crimea and the Boer War. To Disraeli he was 'Our Only General', while to many soldiers and to the public at large he epitomised the virtues they most admired. The phrase 'All Sir Garnet' was a guarantee that everything was under control." "Seen from another angle, Wolseley's career reflects a number of weaknesses. To control a global empire, ruled by a tiny number of officials, Britain had a powerful navy but only a small army. Its ability to deploy a force of limited size throughout the world, almost always against untrained and underequipped native armies, gave the illusion that Britain was as formidable by land as it was by sea. This illusion was necessary to British self-esteem and to securing support at home for the ever-increasing spread of the empire. Such complacency had been shaken by the disasters of the Crimea War at the beginning of Wolseley's career and was shattered by the heavy going made of the Boer War at its end, when British troops had to fight other Europeans." "Halik Kochanski follows Wolseley's rise from his roots (like Wellington's) in Ireland to his becoming a field-marshal and a viscount."--BOOK JACKET.

Year

2001

Language

English

Publisher

Hambledon & London

Editions

1

Pages

204

ISBN

9781852851880

Data source: Wikidata