Sharpe's Eagle
Published: 9 February 1981
ISBN 0-00-221997-2 (hardcover edition)
ISBN 0-00-617313-6 (paperback edition)
- Storming stuff a must read.
Sharpe's Eagle was the first of the Sharpe books to be written and serves to introduce the characters wonderfully. By chance it was also the first I happened to read and I was gripped from the open lines. I have memories of being sat on stone wall on a Greek island, and receiving a tongue lashing from my then wife, as my attention had been drawn into the world of Sharpe, Harper, Josefina and the South Essex, and away from our Holiday excursion.
I remember loving the characters from the very first moments, warming to Sharpe and Harper and there easy style in an instant. I remember a wry smile that I gave when I 'got' the character of Hogan very quickly. I still get the same irritation when I think of Simmerson and comparing him to the many of the bosses I have had to endure over the years.
Not only did the characters resonate with me, but the plot gripped me. Its well paced with space for nice character work, and humorous turn, but moving through struggle building towards the fast paced climax in the Battle of Talavera.
What also stood out when I read Sharpe's Eagle for the first time was the historical accuracy found within it. I may just be built that way, but it was with fascination I learned about the difference uses of the line, the column and the square, I understood the difference between the rifle and musket, and the advantages of each one.
This book is what turned the passing interest of the Sharpe TV series into a hungry passion for the Sharpe novels and the writing of Bernard Cornwell. It grabbed me back then and is still a firm favorite, having been reread countless times as my battered copy demonstrates. For me this still one of the outstanding books in the Sharpe series along with Sharpe's Waterloo, Sharpe's Sword, Sharpe's Revenge and Sharpe's Battle.
Even though it is written out of sequence I would still suggest that people start there Sharpe reading with Sharpe's Eagle.
Synopsis
Sharpe and his company of rifleman are attached to the new South Essex Battalion, led by the pompous and incompetent Colonel Henry Simmerson. Sharpe quickly falls out with the Colonel and when the Colonels stupidity costs the regiment its Colours and a large number of its men sharpe becomes an appropriate scapegoat.
Sharpe is then forced into a situation of needing to do the impossible and capture a french eagle to fulfill a promise to a dying friend, and protect himself from Simmersons contacts at horseguards. The plot also becomes interesting personal as Sharpe comes into conflict with the Colonels nephew over the Lady Josefina.
Sharpe's Eagle - Main Characters
Lieutenant Richard Sharpe
Sergeant Patrick Harper
Rifleman Daniel Hagman
Michael Hogan
Lt Colonel Henry Simmerson
Josefina Lacosta
Lieutenant Berry
Lieutenant Gibbons
Mayor Forest
Caption Lennox
Captain Leroy
Sharpe Books
Wise Words
"On no Hamlett was no Irishman, he was a fool"
- Captain Hogan
