The Man Who Broke Napoleon's Codes: The Story of George Scovell - Hardcover

Urban, Mark L.

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0571205135 ISBN 13: 9780571205134

Publisher: Faber & Faber, 2001

Synopsis

This work gives a compelling account of the officer who waged the intelligence battle against Napoleon's army, a forerunner to the great code-breakers of the 20th century. The French army, during the Peninsular War, used a code of unrivalled complexity - the "Great Paris Cipher". Major George Scovell used a network of Spanish guerillas to capture coded French messages, and then set to work decrypting them.

About this title

Review

Mark Urban's The Man who Broke Napoleon's Codes is, strictly speaking, something of a misnomer as the book is actually as much a detailed and engaging history of Wellington's campaign in the Peninsular War between 1809 and 1813, as the story of George Scovell, the junior officer who was entrusted with handling all communications. The book is firmly rooted in the modern historical genre of the "small, previously un-regarded, footnote that made a difference", but where other authors have fleshed out the lives of their characters by imputing thoughts and imagining events, Urban has restricted himself to relying purely on documented evidence. This has the benefit of historical rigour, but it does sometimes mean that Scovell is a slightly shadowy character at times, someone whom the reader has to work hard to get to know. The portrait that emerges here is of an army riven by class warfare, in which the rich and the aristocratic bought commissions and dictated orders, while the lowborn and the un-moneyed made up the also-rans. Scovell fell firmly into the latter category. Beginning the Peninsular campaign as a lowly deputy assistant quarter-master general, through hard work and an intelligence superior to many of his seniors, he soon drew himself to Wellington's attention and was appointed head of communications. As the campaign progressed, Napoleon became aware that many of his messages were being intercepted, giving the British vital intelligence, so over time he devised a series of ever more complicated ciphers to escape detection. Urban is at his best during this particular narrative: unlike the story of the breaking of Enigma during World War Two which is still really only intelligible to post-graduate mathematicians despite the best efforts of popular historians to render it accessible, the Napoleonic ciphers do lend themselves to explanation, and it is to the author's credit that he makes the process so compelling. What's more, his conclusion that it was the information obtained from the broken ciphers, rather than astute command, that was critical to the campaign's success, and that Wellington's suppression of the truth was based in class, professional jealousy and self-aggrandisement is powerfully convincing. Plus ca change, as Napoleon might have said. --John Crace

Review

...Mark Urban rescues Scovell from almost complete obscurity and puts him in his proper place -- The Times, August 29, 2001

...he has uncovered an answer to that most perplexing riddle: What book shall we give Dad for Christmas? -- Daily Telegraph, 1 September, 2001

He has a riveting story to tell. -- Daily Mail, 14 September 2001

Mark Urban certainly establishes the importance of a talented individual, whose usefulness enabled him to overcome a modest background. -- Times Literary Supplement, 14 September 2001

Meticulously researched and superbly written, this is an excellent and exciting look at a hero who no longer remains unsung -- Waterstones Books Quarterly, September 2001

Scovell's story is fascinating and Mark Urban... tells it brilliantly... and apart from being fun, the book actually breaks new ground. -- Observer, 16 September 2001

Urban has produced an excellent corrective to the myth that the Peninsular campaign was won by Wellington's generalship alone. -- Sunday Telegraph, 16 September 2001

Edition details

• Publisher: Faber & Faber
• Publication date: 2001
• ISBN 10: 0571205135
• ISBN 13: 9780571205134
• Binding: Hardcover
• Language: English
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 354