8vo. (iv) + ii + (vi) + 204pp, 13 double-page engraved plates (1 folding). Contemporary full, diced calf, gilt. Skempton No. 395. Douglas’ book is the first British work on military bridging. It is largely based on the experiences learned in some major European campaigns, notably the War of the Spanish Succession, the Napoleonic wars and the Peninsula Campaign of the early 19th century, where Douglas himself had been present at the battle of Corunna under Sir John Moore. The book opens with a section on hydraulics largely based on Du Buat before describing every conceivable type of structure: pontoons, bridges of boats, flying bridges, bridges floating on rafts, casks, or inflated skins, carriage bridges, rope bridges, trestle and pile bridges and timber truss bridges. The book, which is highly practical, describes the siting and hydraulic conditions suitable for each type. Actual examples include such achievements as the passages of the Limmat and the Rhine in 1799 and 1800 with bridges of boats and Napoleon’s passage of the Po in 1796 with rafts and flying bridges. The book was originally issued in manuscript form as early as 1808 to serve as a textbook for the newly-formed Royal Military College and was sufficiently influential to warrant two further editions, each one nearly 20 years apart and each substantially updated in the light of new information and developments in bridge design.
GBP 380.00
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