David Depierre

Poxes and Pikes David Depierre

While the valor of the individual soldier at Rorke's Drift or the brilliance of Marlborough at Blenheim are rightfully and duly celebrated in popular and historical literature. The role of "General Typhus" in the defeat of Napoleon is not. Likewise, while the Tomb of the Unknown Warrior is properly revered as an example of those who bravely died in combat during the Great War, little attention is paid to that greater number who succumbed to influenza or dysentery. Disease as a factor in history or war has been historically overlooked and underappreciated. With such a vast military history which has touched upon every continent, the story of the United Kingdom's own experiences with disease is both informative and exciting. To understand the rise and fall of the British Empire, one must read about the spread and conquest of disease.