Christopher D. Hall

Mr. Hall's clear prose aids his account of the naval contribution to the Peninsular from the British side. Many books on the Peninsula give a lop-sided account focussing on Wellington's army, for the many volumes of correspondence are a kind of trap for the researcher. The other operations on the coast are often slighted and the grasp of total strategic problems suffers. This book is a good corrective. He is often good on the ships available and their relative strengths during operations.