Whilst best known for her timeless stories and memorable female lead characters, Jane Austen lived in a period of great political upheaval and near constant warfare as Britain and her allies fought a succession of wars to stop the spread of French revolutionary ideology in Europe. Whilst the fighting itself is rarely mentioned, hints at the social effects of the wars can be seen in her works.

This is best reflected in her 1817 novel Persuasion, wherein the heroine Anne’s former fiancée, Captain Wentworth, a Royal Naval officer previously without a fortune, returns from the Napoleonic Wars in 1814 with both promotion and great wealth. This wealth was gained through the prize money awarded to him for the capturing of French ships in battle. The taking of an enemy warship could be extremely lucrative for an officer. For example, when Captain Peter Rainier’s ship HMS Caroline captured the Spanish ship San Rafael in 1807, he was awarded £52,000 (around £2,300,000 today).

At the novel’s end Anne and Captain Wentworth rekindle their love and marry, and Austen notes that the only potential cloud on their horizon is the prospect of future war. This is perhaps a knowing nod to the fact that a year after the novel is set, Napoleon would return from exile and bring war to Europe once more.

Other soldiers and officers also feature in her novels, including the villainous George Wickham who is an officer with a regiment of militia.

Militia and Fencible Regiments, the equivalent of the modern Army Reserves, were raised throughout the country in response to the threat of French invasion. This fear was well founded as France had unsuccessfully landed troops in Wales in 1797. The ensuing Battle of Fishguard saw both the Militia and the Pembroke Yeomanry (who are today a part of the Royal Logistic Corps) deploy to face, and ultimately defeat, the invasion force.

As such many aristocratic young men joined the militias as officers, sometimes out of a sense of duty or, in Wickham’s case, for the social benefits that came with the wearing of an officer’s uniform.

These two military characters were inspired, or at least informed, by members of Austen’s own family who saw service during this period. Two of her brothers, Francis and Charles, served in the Royal Navy and both eventually rose to Admiral rank. At the same time another brother, Henry, served as an officer with the Oxfordshire Militia. Her siblings gave Jane an insight into the life of a serviceman during the Napoleonic and Revolutionary Wars.

Another officer who takes a prominent role is Colonel Brandon in Sense and Sensibility (1811) who had built a successful life as a career officer, only stepping away from active service when his brother dies, leaving him to inherit his family estate. This reflects the societal norms of the time where the ‘spare’ son of a wealthy family, who was not in line to inherit, could afford to leave home to serve in the military where he could gain his own renown. Like Captain Wentworth’s story, Brandon’s illustrates how military success could be the key to social advancement.

On display within the RLC Museum is a portrait miniature of an unnamed officer of the Royal Waggon Train, the RLC’s forebear corps during Jane’s lifetime. Whilst these portraits were popular amongst civilians during the Regency Period, they were often commissioned by officers who were about to leave for long overseas deployments and were given as keepsakes to loved ones. In Persuasion, the giving of such a portrait by the character Captain Benwick to his new fiancée, and the controversy that ensues, proves a catalyst that eventually leads to the reconciliation between Anne and Captain Wentworth.

And whilst officers of the Royal Waggon Train sadly do not feature within Jane’s novels, they would have moved in the same social circles as Jane’s characters, attending the social events and balls that defined both the Regency Period and the lives of Austen’s heroines. Indeed, perhaps the most famous ball thrown during this period was the Duchess of Richmond’s Ball, held the night before the Battle of Quatre Bras in 1815 in the run up to the eventual showdown between Wellington, Blücher and Napoleon at Waterloo.

To learn more about the roles and lives of soldiers during Austen’s lifetime and to see examples of their uniforms, visit the RLC Museum.

Alexd Crisp – Curator