Private Journal of F.S. Larpent - Vol. I

Wellington added a Judge-Advocate-General to his staff in 1812 "e;to ensure that courts-martial were conducted with proper forms and due appreciation of the validity of evidence - in which the commander-in-chief considered that they had often failed . . . Larpent, who has left an interesting diary of his duties and his personal adventures [he was captured briefly in 1813 but immediately exchanged], discharged the function of this office . . . down to the end of the war"e; (Oman, Wellington's Army pp. 159-160). "e;When in the Peninsula, Larpent wrote descriptive letters to his stepmother, Anna Margaretta Larpent. Publication of this important first-hand account of Wellington's headquarters was deferred until after Wellington's death. The letters were edited, with a biographical preface by Larpent's half-brother, Sir George Larpent, first baronet (1786 1855), in 1853 and passed through three editions in the same year"e; (Oxford DNB). Author Larpent, F. Seymour 1776-1845. Editor Larpent, George, Sir, 1786-1855. Text taken, whole and complete, from the edition published in London: R. Bentley, 1853. Original Page Count 296 pages.