Sharpe's Eagle - This Sunday's Episode on Sharpe Sundays

Sharpe’s Eagle


The army is now in Spain.  Arriving in camp is a new regiment, the South Essex and in command is Sir Henry Simmerson, joined by his nephew Lt. Gibbons and mysterious Countess Josefina. Sir Arthur Wellesley has no faith in Simmerson who he knows is there because of his political connections. Wellesley assigns Richard Sharpe and the Chosen Men to the South Essex to see that the mission to blow up a bridge at Valdelacasa is a success.  Things go terribly wrong and due to Simmerson’s incompetence the French make off with the British colours.  What will Sharpe do to preserve the Army’s honor?

Antoine-Denis CHAUDET (designer)

French 1763-1810

Pierre-Philippe THOMIRE

French 1751-1843

French Imperial Eagle of the 6th Regiment of the Light Cavalry. Hundred Days model (Aigle de drapeau du 6e régiment des Chasseurs à cheval. Modèle des Cent Jours) 1815

Fondation Napoléon, Paris

Please join new and longtime Sharpe fans for the Global Sharpe Watch this Sunday, June 30, 3:00pm EST/US, 8:00pm UK, 9:00pm Continent on Tweet Chat.  For all the details and "How To's" go to  Sharpe Lives Movie Club Facebook Page:

http://www.facebook.com/SharpeLivesMovieClub?sk=notes

Or to Distracted Musings of One Reality at the link below:

http://distractedinreality.wordpress.com/2012/06/11/sharpe-lives-or-sharpe-sundays/

southessex.co.uk

In last week's episode we met Major Michael Hogan (played by Brian Cox) who is one of Wellington's Exploring Officers.  Exploring Officers were intelligence officers in Wellington's personal staff who often went behind enemy lines or headed special operations to see what the enemy was up to. 

One of Wellington's real life Exploring Officers was  Lt Col Colquhoun Grant.

National Portrait Gallery (UK) Colquhoun Grant 

by George Jones (1815-1820) 

Grant didn't consider himself a spy as we would today, but an officer and a gentleman. He started out as an artillery officer in the Army  and in 1808 followed Wellington to Portugal and Spain to fight against Napoleon's forces. 

Wellington soon realised that the French outnumbered his forces. He therefore needed to have as much advance information as possible and he developed a network of intelligence officers and local spies. He valued both strategic information, gathered by the interception of enemy letters, and tactical intelligence, gathered by men in the field such as ‘exploring officers’. www.nationalarchives.co.uk

See you on Sunday!