He is made an officer, an ensign, when he saves the life of his commanding officer, Arthur Wellesley (the future Duke of Wellington), during the Battle of Assaye. He has to flee the city after killing a man to protect Maggie.Įnlisting in the army, he is promoted to sergeant as a reward for completing a highly dangerous spying mission in India. He is eventually taken in by prostitute (and later bar owner) Maggie Joyce and becomes a thief. Orphaned at an early age, he grows up in poverty. Sharpe is born to a whore in the rookeries of London.
His military career ends with the final defeat of Napoleon, but he has more adventures as a civilian. He begins in Sharpe's Tiger as a private in the 33rd Regiment of Foot who is continually promoted, finally rising to lieutenant colonel in Sharpe's Waterloo. The stories formed the basis for an ITV television series featuring Sean Bean in the title role.Ĭornwell's series is composed of many novels and several short stories, and charts Sharpe's progress in the British Army during the Napoleonic Wars, though the novels were published in non-chronological order. Sharpe is a series of historical fiction stories by Bernard Cornwell centred on the character of British soldier Richard Sharpe. Dominique Lassan (with Lucille Castineau).Patrick-Henri Lassan (with Lucille Castineau).
Set against the background of dazzling wealth, ruinous poverty, gorgeous palaces, sudden cruelty and pitiless battles, 'Sharpe's Tiger' is his greatest adventure yet. Sharpe needs no invitation to get away from the tyrannical Sergeant Hakeswill, but once inside the dangerous world of the Tippoo he realises he will need all his wits just to stay alive, let alone save the British army from catastrophe. When a senior British officer is captured by the Tippoo's forces, Sharpe is offered a chance to attempt a rescue and infiltrate the Tippoo's forces. The British must remove this potentate from his Tiger Throne, but he has gone to great lengths to defend his city from attack. Sharpe, the rest of his battalion and rising star of the general staff Arthur Wellesley, are about to embark upon the siege of the island citadel of the Tippoo of Mysore, Seringapatam. With the same meticulous research and attention to detail that is found in the Peninsular War books, Bernard Cornwell has sumptuously recreated the 1799 campaign against Seringapatam which made the British masters of southern India, a campaign that pitted brutalized soldiers against an ancient and splendid civilization.
Throughout the series, there are references to Sharpe's early soldiering life in India. The prequel to the series, describing Sharpe's experiences in India, repackaged to tie in with the fantastic new Sharpe look.
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