Paul Dawson

On the morning of 3 July 1815, the French General Rémi Joseph Isidore Exelmans, at the head of a brigade of dragoons, fired the last shots in the defense of Paris until the Franco-Prussian War sixty-five years later. Why did he do so? Traditional stories of 1815 end with Waterloo, that fateful day of 18 June, when Napoleon Bonaparte fought and lost his last battle, abdicating his throne on 22 June. But, Waterloo was not the end; it was the beginning...

During October 2016 Paul Dawson visited French archives in Paris to continue his research surrounding the events of the Napoleonic Wars. Some of the material he examined had never been accessed by researchers or historians before, the files involved having been sealed in 1816. These seals remained unbroken until Paul was given permission to break them to read the contents. Forget what you have read about the battle on the Mont St Jean on 18 June...

From its origins as the Consular Guard of the French Republic, and as Napoleon's personal bodyguard, the Imperial Guard developed into a force of all arms numbering almost 100,000 men. Used by Napoleon as his principal tactical reserve, the Guard was engaged only sparingly, being deployed at the crucial moment of battle to turn the tide of victory in favor of the Emperor of the French. Naturally, the Imperial Guard has been the subject of numerous...

As the columns of French infantry marched up the slopes of the Mont St Jean at Waterloo, the British heavy cavalry, the Royal Scots Greys to the fore, crashed into the packed ranks of the enemy. This was not the first time the Greys had drawn their swords during the Napoleonic Wars – but it was their first against Napoleon's troops. Three years earlier they had attacked workers in Halifax protesting at the introduction of machinery in the wool trade. Taking...

One of the enduring controversies of the Waterloo campaign is the conduct of Marshal Grouchy. Given command of a third of Napoleons army and told to keep the Prussians from joining forces with Wellington, he failed to keep Wellington and Blcher apart with the result that Napoleon was overwhelmed at Waterloo. Grouchy, though, was not defeated. He kept his force together and retreated in good order back to France. Many have accused Grouchy of intentionally...

On 13 December 1776, the Rev. William Turner preached the first avowedly anti-slavery sermon in the North of England. Copies of his sermon were distributed far and wide—in so doing, he had fired the first shot in the battle to end slavery had begun. Four years later, Rev. Turner, members of his congregation and the Rev. Christopher Wyvill founded 'The Yorkshire Association' to agitate for political and social reform. The Association sought universal...

"A rollicking yet rigorous inquiry that follows the science of germs into the kitchen, restaurant, and everywhere else you eat and drink. Have you ever dropped a chip on the ground, picked it up after five seconds--then eaten it? Or debated which spreads fewer germs, paper towels or electric hand dryers? What about backwash? These are perennial questions when it comes to food and germs, and Did You Just Eat That? provides the answers. Food scientists...

An exploration into the lives of several characters living in New York City as they navigate the comic and tragic intersections between love and sex. Male and female, straight and gay, they find one another -- and eventually themselves -- when they all converge at a weekly underground salon called "Shortbus," a mad collision of art, music, politics, and carnality.