Michael Crumplin Book order

The Battle of Waterloo was one of the most horrific actions fought during the Napoleonic Wars. There have been several studies of battlefield injuries and the field care that casualties received during the campaign of June 1815. However, what happened to the many thousands of injured men left behind as the armies marched away is rarely discussed. In June 1815, around 62,000 Allied and French wounded flooded into Brussels, Antwerp, and other towns and cities of the Kingdom of the Netherlands and swamped the medical services. These casualties were eventually cared for by a wide mix of medical personnel including hundreds of 'Belgian' surgeons, most of whom had trained in the French Service de Santé and who assisted in the dispersal, treatment, and rehabilitation of thousands of casualties after the battle. New data concerning the fate of the thousands of Allied and some French casualties has emerged from the library of the University of Edinburgh. This has revealed a collection of over 170 wound sketches, detailed case reports, and the surgical results from five Brussels Hospitals. The sketches were carried out by Professor John Thomson, who held the first Regius Chair in Military Surgery appointed by the University of Edinburgh. Most accounts are of Allied wounded, but certainly not all. The accounts, drawings and surgical results dramatically alter our understanding of the management of military wounded in the Georgian army.

Focusing on the practice of surgery during the Napoleonic Wars, this account highlights the challenges faced by surgeons before the advent of anaesthetics and antiseptics. The author, a retired surgeon, delves into the backgrounds of patients, the realities of wounds, and the rigorous training of surgeons. Despite operating under dire conditions and battling issues like contagion and infection, some surgical outcomes were surprisingly successful, showcasing the resilience and skill of medical practitioners of that era.

This book, using material from Belgian sources, describes the evolution of the Dutch/Belgian medical services and their hospitals in the newly-formed Kingdom of the Netherlands.

With a foreword by Sir Bernard Ribeiro, President of the Royal College of Surgeons of England this is a graphic study of pioneering military surgeon of the Peninsular War with a fascinating insight into the treatment of sickness and wounds in Wellington's army. * Establishes George Guthrie as one of the great innovators and reformers of militar