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stevebrownauthor.bsky.social
Author of eight books on British Army topics for the period 1793 to 1815. Family historian. Sometime muso. Builder of small WW2 planes. Touchstones: Zappa. XTC. Richard Thompson. King Crimson. Morale commensurate with the fortunes of the Baggy Greens.
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Latest acquisitions. Normally an army guy, but it’s important to know what the senior service were up to.

submitted 7 hours ago • 2 comments

If we were smart, we’d be shipping boatloads of Australian whisky, wine, rum and beer to Canada like yesterday.

submitted 3 days ago • 27 comments

stoptrump.org.uk/petition-can... As a dual citizen of the UK, adding my support.

submitted 8 days ago • 0 comments

I travel 3000km to the other side of the country, and gadzooks, whilst out browsing, come across something a bit familiar.

submitted 10 days ago • 1 comment

Secondhand bookshop find this morning. The owner has promised to keep an eye out for the missing instalments. #patrickobrianfans #aubreyandmaturin

submitted 12 days ago • 0 comments

Latest acquisition.

submitted 18 days ago • 0 comments

So the real victor of Waterloo was Rothschild, after all…

submitted 23 days ago • 0 comments

Last night: An insane amount of rain. This morning: Our neighbour, with his head over the fence, saying “erm… have you seen our umbrella, by any chance?” Me: “Now that you mention it….”

submitted 34 days ago • 0 comments

The other week I posted about British army officers who were commissioned literally from the cradle. Well, here is a list of officers under Wellington who served well into their geriatric years! BTW: Field Marshal was an appointment, not an automatic promotion. #NapoleonicHistory #britisharmy

submitted 49 days ago • 0 comments

Next talk for Friends of the Lines of Torres Vedras will be by historian Steve Brown on 21 Jan. Title: The command structure, dispositions and strengths of the Allied forces in the Lines. Register interest by emailing: [email protected]. NOTE. Talk starts 8pm UK time due to time differences.

submitted 55 days ago • 0 comments

Doing some final edits for my Friends of the Lines of Torres Vedras podcast on 21 January. Tech rehearsal tonight!

submitted 57 days ago • 1 comment

I get the impression that my last roundup of 18th century British army officer names gave folks inspiration for character names. So here are some more. Most still sound like brands of real ale / west country villages / secondary characters in Harry Potter. #NapoleonicHistory #writing #britisharmy

submitted 59 days ago • 3 comments

Every Wednesday, at about this time: Mrs B: It’s bin night. Me: I don’t care what it’s bin. I want to know what it is now!

submitted 60 days ago • 0 comments

The purchase system for officer commissions in the British army might seem unfair to us now; but it did allow a general upward mobility in the Army. But the RA used strict seniority - hence poor old Edward Whitmore, a brevet LtCol at age 68, and still doing duty aged nearly 80 . #NapoleonicHistory

submitted 61 days ago • 1 comment

Australia 3 India 1. Great to win but that scoreline does not do justice to India. It was tight most of the time. Boom boom Bumrah Boland Beau! #AUSvIND #CricketSky

submitted 63 days ago • 0 comments

I recently watched Who Do You Think You Are where the guest expressed surprise that an ancestor was in the RN at the age of 10 - something that was quite common. Before the Duke of York's reforms on officer ages in 1795, officers could be commissioned far younger... #NapoleonicHistory #britisharmy

submitted 65 days ago • 2 comments

Having pored over 18th/19th century Army Lists these last couple of years, I have kept a running list of some of the more interesting names of British army officers of that era. Here is just a selection. Yes, there was an actual Lt Johnny Rotten (47th Foot). #NapoleonicHistory #writing #britisharmy

submitted 66 days ago • 37 comments

Thanks to Helion for sending me my author’s copies of British Regiments and the Men Who Led Them Vol 3. It’s a chunky tome! Vol 4, which covers the 61st-104th Foot, is already well advanced. You can buy all these online from Helion. #NapoleonicHistory #writers #britisharmy #military #history #helion

submitted 71 days ago • 0 comments

A hot Boxing Day here in Geelong has been replaced by a cool change. Strong winds carry the smell of smoke from bushfires about 200km away. Quite a nasty Boxing Day experience for the folks in the Grampians, I hope they are evacuating in plenty of time.

submitted 73 days ago • 0 comments

Welly well well. Look what my dearest found for me as a Christmas present. Read by me on kindle when first published of course, but lovely to have physical copies.

submitted 74 days ago • 2 comments

The diet is going to have to take a break, at least until after Boxing Day! Just settling in to the standard Australian Christmas Eve ritual of oysters, prawns, and Carols By Candlelight on the teev. Washed down by a stellar bottle of Swan Valley chenin blanc.

submitted 75 days ago • 0 comments

Found in a local vintage market, going for a song. Looking forward to digesting this over the Christmas break.

submitted 78 days ago • 1 comment

The effects of attrition on campaign - part of the monthly return for Leeward Islands in Sept 1794. All of these units arrived in the islands 6 months earlier 450-550 strong. No doubt the 23 men left standing in the 43rd Foot received plenty of attention from their 15 officers and 14 serjeants!

submitted 81 days ago • 0 comments