Reminiscences of Captain Gronow, formerly of the Grenadier Guards Series

Captain Gronow, joined the Grenadier guards as a young subaltern in 1812, having completed his studies at Eton and was widely know in England and the Continent thereafter as a raconteur and a fine pistol shot. His “Reminiscences” span four volumes in their original edition, an edited version was produced around the turn of the 19th century, having varied titles but following a stream of collected anecdotes set in distinct eras. These memoirs have achieved a high degree of fame and are justly accorded much historical respect, especially in those incidents where Gronow was personally present to record the words and deeds of those around him. Although admitted to the highest society, Gronow is far from being a snob and his works bear the stamp of a high degree of moral probity, they could not be described as the handiwork of a gossip. The first volume concentrates, as the title suggests, around Gronow’s experiences between 1812 and 1816, initially his experiences were military; He fought under the Duke of Wellington in the last two years of the Peninsular war being present at the battle of the Nivelle. His memories of the 1815 campaign and the culminating battle of Waterloo are widely known and quoted, they are vivid, accurate and of especial interest. After the fall of Napoleon, Gronow recounts his adventures and encounters in society in London and Paris, in the clubs, soirées, the opera and the field of honour, tales of “six bottlemen” and duels abound, tales of fortunes won and lost at rouge et noir. The great and the good of the period appear in thumb sketches and anecdotes; men such as The Duke of Wellington, Blucher, Beau Brumell, Romeo Coates, General Ornano, Lord Byron, Lord Canning, Shelley, Kangaroo Cook, the Duke of York all feature. “Reading Gronow is like drinking champagne - effervescent and mildly addictive” Author - Captain Rees Howell Gronow - (1794–1865)

Captain Gronow, joined the Grenadier guards as a young subaltern in 1812, having completed his studies at Eton and was widely know in England and the Continent thereafter as a raconteur and a fine pistol shot. His “Reminiscences” span four volumes in their original edition, an edited version was produced around the turn of the 19th century, having varied titles but following a stream of collected anecdotes set in distinct eras. These memoirs have achieved a high degree of fame and are justly accorded much historical respect, especially in those incidents where Gronow was personally present to record the words and deeds of those around him. Although admitted to the highest society, Gronow is far from being a snob and his works bear the stamp of a high degree of moral probity, they could not be described as the handiwork of a gossip. In this the second volume, there is a more diverse range in the anecdotes, rather than focussing in on a particular period of his life, Gronow’s work is roughly divided into two parts; the first is more of eye-witness account the 1815 campaign and particularly the battle of Waterloo. He is critical of what has been published by some of the French historians who wrote somewhat biased views, and indeed what was reported as Napoleon’s view of the battle. The second part focuses on the Court and the Clubs, with further tales of famous figures of the era, their vices and their stories. The great and the good of the period appear in thumb sketches and anecdotes; men such as The Duke of Wellington, Napoleon’s family including Madame Mére, Hortense, Jérome et al, Beau Brumell, The Prince Regent, General Ornano, Lord Byron, Shelley, the Duke of York, Alexandre Dumas, Balzac all feature. “Reading Gronow is like drinking champagne - effervescent and mildly addictive” Author - Captain Rees Howell Gronow - (1794–1865)

Captain Gronow, joined the Grenadier guards as a young subaltern in 1812, having completed his studies at Eton and was widely know in England and the Continent thereafter as a raconteur and a fine pistol shot. His “Reminiscences” span four volumes in their original edition, an edited version was produced around the turn of the 19th century, having varied titles but following a stream of collected anecdotes set in distinct eras. These memoirs have achieved a high degree of fame and are justly accorded much historical respect, especially in those incidents where Gronow was personally present to record the words and deeds of those around him. Although admitted to the highest society, Gronow is far from being a snob and his works bear the stamp of a high degree of moral probity, they could not be described as the handiwork of a gossip. In this third volume of reminiscences, military matters are in the background of Gronow’s recollections, although they do appear occasionally, he mainly focuses on anecdotes on the celebrities of his time. The Duke of Wellington, Ouvrard, Louis Philippe, Marshal Soult, Sheridan, Shelley, Rossini, Guizot, Theirs, and Louis Napoleon are featured in varying descriptions of vivid detail. Gronow goes to some length in describing the events that led to the revolution of 1851 and the movements that led Louis Napoleon to become the last monarch of France. “Reading Gronow is like drinking champagne - effervescent and mildly addictive” Author - Captain Rees Howell Gronow - (1794–1865)

Captain Gronow, joined the Grenadier guards as a young subaltern in 1812, having completed his studies at Eton and was widely know in England and the Continent thereafter as a raconteur and a fine pistol shot. His “Reminiscences” span four volumes in their original edition, an edited version was produced around the turn of the 19th century, having varied titles but following a stream of collected anecdotes set in distinct eras. These memoirs have achieved a high degree of fame and are justly accorded much historical respect, especially in those incidents where Gronow was personally present to record the words and deeds of those around him. Although admitted to the highest society, Gronow is far from being a snob and his works bear the stamp of a high degree of moral probity, they could not be described as the handiwork of a gossip. In his last volume of recollections, Gronow recalls the many and varied encounters with the great and the good of European society with whom he mixed, added to which are a number of military anecdotes and sketches of the war in the Spanish Peninsular and some of the officers and men who fought there and at Waterloo. The Duke of Wellington, Prince Regent, Talleyrand feature prominently, Gronow’s eye for recording a witty turn of phrase of amusing event never wanes even in his last tome. “Reading Gronow is like drinking champagne - effervescent and mildly addictive” Author - Captain Rees Howell Gronow - (1794–1865)