Mr. Cornwell, me again. Whilst visiting London recently, I came across a military memorabilia shop on Marlebone High Street. There, for sale in the window, was a penciled letter written onboard HMS Victory the day after the battle of Trafalger. It brought back to mind Sharpe’s Trafalgar which I read years ago . It made me reflect on that terrible battle, and the hardships that war brings to fighters and civilians alike. War, it seems is part of the human condition, no matter how much we yearn for a world of peace. It seems that the necessity of war, (sometimes) and the dream of peace, are themes that trandscend time and place. The misery and terror of war is the same today as it was thousands of years ago. Rob Goodhand