A Conscript for Empire: the Experiences of a Young German Conscript During the Napoleonic Wars

A young soldier thrown to the mercies of total war

This is remarkable story of a young Rhinelander caught up in the whirlwind of war that raged in Europe in the early 19th century. As one of the smaller Germanic states his homeland was always in an ambiguous position between the great powers. His brother was a proud Cuirassier in Napoleon's Army and Philippe himself became-in his turn-a conscript in the French infantry sent to Spain to fight the British and Spaniards. Captured, he suffered privations and dangers until incarcerated on the prison island of Cabrera where he was offered release if he would change his allegiances by joining the Kings German Legion. The end of war found him in service of a military man with whom he travelled to the East in a British East Indiaman which struck a reef, throwing him into a hair-raising experience of shipwreck and the battle for survival.