England, Summer 1814
The war is over, Napoleon is in exile on Elba, and Sharpe returns to England. He accepts a posting to Scarsdale, Yorkshire, the town where he grew up, to head the private militia raised by Sir Willoughby Parfitt, a self-made man. He is to protect Parfitt's mills from a 'rebellious' population. At the centre of the trouble is a man called Matt Truman, who Sharpe grew up with.
In London, Jane is finding life as a mistress difficult. She is shunned by society, including Lady Anne Carmoynes (once a mistress herself). In Yorkshire, Sharpe and Harper are met by the local yeomanry and their commander, Capt. Wickham. On their way to Parfitt's home, Sharpe and Harper realise they are being followed. Sharpe shoots one pursuer and corners the other whom he recognises as Matt Truman.
Parfitt blames Truman for the local unrest. At dinner, that evening, another mill owner, Sir Percy Stanwyck, is present. Stanwyck is soon to take delivery of a steam engine, something that will give Parfitt competition. Stanwyck has heard of Sharpe from his son, who died shortly after Talavera. Also in Scarsdale is Dan Hagman, out of the army and looking for work. He joins Truman. Rossendale and Jane are also there to view a property that Rossendale has inherited.
Part of Sharpe's job is to break up illegal meetings. When they are informed of one, Sharpe tells Wickham to arrest Truman without loss of life. Wickham disobeys, Truman escapes, but there is a massacre. Sharpe and Harper are appalled, even Hagman turns away from them. Later Sharpe believes there is a plot to put Stanwyck out of business and he and Harper thwart it. After an unpleasant meeting with Jane, Harper returns to Ireland but where can Sharpe find justice?

本剧改编自著名作家伯纳德.柯威尔，最畅销的同名系列小说《沙普》故事的背景，是发生在十九世纪初的欧洲，战火分飞、硝烟弥漫，强大的法国军团在拿破仑的统帅下，征战欧洲各国。英、德、苛、比等国结成同盟军，共同对抗法国。剧中主人公，一位来自英格兰约克郡的穷小子------沙普，迫于生计，为求谋生而加入军队“绿夹克军”，从此便开始了他的冒险生涯。本剧通过十四个独立的影片，来描述沙普从一名不经传的小兵到赫赫有名的少校，这一传奇的军旅人生。

France 1815
When Napoleon escapes from Elba, Sharpe is settled in Normandy with Lucille, but his sense of duty recalls him to the army, and he is promoted to Lt. Col. in the 5th (Belgian) Light Dragoons, under the command of William, Prince of Orange. Sharpe and Lucille head for Brussels where the Duke of Wellington is based, with Lord John Rossendale and Jane Sharpe nearby in the city.
Out on reconnaisance, Sharpe sees a mass of French soldiers. He and the Prince's chief of staff, Rebecque, try to discover if it is a feint prior to Napoleon attacking Mons. Sharpe believes the French are heading to Quatre Bras, to split the Allied and Prussian forces. With French forces gathering, Sharpe knows he must tell Wellington and interrupts him at the Duchess of Richmond's ball. After delivering his message, Sharpe heads for the front, rejoined by Sgt. Harper (retired) and riflemen Hagman.
After the battle at Quatre Bras, Sharpe and Harper are given their post, the farm at La Haie Sainte. Woefully undefended, the men there repulse attacks from the French in bloody combat. The Prince of Orange has made mistakes, ending in the senseless loss of life of good soldiers. Eventually, Sharpe has had enough of this.
Not only must Sharpe deal with incompetent orders from the Prince of Orange, that lead to slaughter, he confronts his wife's lover, Lord Rossendale, in the midst of battle. The film climaxes as Wellington's small army 'holds the line' against Napoleon's veteran Imperial Guard.

本卷记述从18世纪后期到19世纪中叶期间的战争史。这一时期的战争在技术上的进步很少。滑膛枪仍是步枪的标准装备，尽管来复枪因射程远、精度高而渐受推崇。在陆地，拿破仑·波拿巴控制着战争的进程。他最卓越的能力是他的战略眼光。他进攻的首选方式是通过军队的快速移动令敌人仓促应战。拿破仑经常面对数量上占优势的对手，但总能在他们集结之前将其各个击破。运动速度在他的战斗计划中是极为重要的。
在18世纪90年代，法国人修改了步兵师的编制，除了步兵，还将骑兵和炮兵包括进来，这些师可以凭借各种武器凌力兵种独立作战，拿破仑将3到4个师合并为约3万人的军团。这些军团实际上就是小型的部队。在战役中，这些军团独立行动，但是在需要时又能快速集结。在拿破仑众多的对手中，在军队的机动速度和独立军团的快速集结上，很少有人能够与他匹敌。拿破仑最惯用的战争策略之一是让他的军团在两支敌军之间集中，并在敌军会合之前对其中一支快速展开攻击。虽然敌军总的兵力要多过拿破仑军队，但在战场上，拿破仑的军队在数量上常常占有优势。

美国独立战争
法国革命战争
皇帝的首次战役
拿破仑的海上战争
拿破仑的“西班牙溃疡”
1812年俄国战争
拿破仑节节败退
百日战争
1812年战争
美国扩张主义战争
南美解放战争
美国——墨西哥战争

本书为拿破仑·波拿巴传记。系根据英国著名军事将领和军事作家詹姆斯·马歇尔-康沃尔所著《作为军事统帅的拿破仑》一书译出。