Journal of a Soldier of the Seventy-First, or Glasgow Regiment, Highland Light Infantry, from 1806-1815

The narrator, a privately educated lad from modest Edinburgh roots, enlists in the 71st Highland Light Infantry with a mix of ambition and familial duty. His early service carries him from a failed stage‑venture to the cramped decks bound for the Isle of Wight, then across the Atlantic to the bustling ports of Madeira and the Cape of Good Hope. There he witnesses the first clash at Monte Video, a chaotic encounter that reveals both the brutal reality of war and the strange kindness of a Spanish priest.

Written in the soldier’s own clear, unvarnished voice, the journal offers vivid snapshots of distant cities, hurried marches, and the uneasy camaraderie among troops and locals alike. Listeners will feel the weight of damp uniforms, the taste of foreign rations, and the anxiety of sudden capture, all filtered through a mind trained more for books than for battle. The account stops short of the great campaigns that follow, leaving an honest, intimate portrait of a young man grappling with duty, danger, and the stark contrast between his genteel upbringing and the harsh frontiers he now traverses.