In 1801, as Napoleon's Grande Armée faced an army of English volunteers across the Channel, a secret war of espionage and subversion was being fought by shadowy men with little-known names. New weapons—rockets, submarines, and torpedoes—were being developed in France by the American inventor Robert Fulton. Even during the lull of the Peace of Amiens, when English tourists flocked to Paris, the secret war continued.

Drawing on diaries, letters, and newspapers, Tom Pocock provides a wonderful picture of the years 1801-5, and of the people caught up in these unique events: Nelson blockading the French at sea for two years while his beloved Emma Hamilton waited at home; Jane Austen and her naval brothers; the admirals, generals, and politicians on both sides; and perhaps most interesting of all, those lesser-known men such as Congreve, Moreau, and Pichegru, who were responsible for a new kind of warfare. 16 pages of b/w illustrations.