Wellington's Spies

Book excerpt: The gripping story of three intelligence officers whose dangerous work and sacrifice helped lead to victory over Napoleon’s forces. Intelligence was just as important in the Napoleonic Wars as it is today. But back then, there was only one way of obtaining it: through spies and informers. Here, Mary McGrigor uses firsthand accounts of three of Wellington’s most daring and successful intelligence officers to reveal the relationships they established and the risks they faced. The three men, all of Scottish descent, were very different in character, but all showed remarkable courage. Their stories are filled with danger, action, adventure, and even romance—as well as tragedy and narrow escape. Skillfully interwoven against the backdrop of the brutal Peninsula War, in which atrocities were commonplace, this book gives a fresh insight into Wellington’s remarkable triumph over Napoleon’s armies.