Mr Cornwell, firstly may I give thanks for the endless hours of enjoyment you have given to me over the years, starting with Sharpe’s Eagle back in 1991 I think, or thereabouts and then subsequently the rest before and after that book in chronological order, they are amazingly detailed and very well researched. I know this was your forte for the BBC but you actually transport me back to that time with your ability to set the scene, as a result you have given me a real sense that that these people even exsisted, not Sharpe I mean but the men on the battlefield. You see I had this quaint little view of these uneducated unsophisticated little people from history books before but now they have been firmly placed into my mind as real tangible people. My question really is how do you go about researching the everyday lives of these men, I don’t mean details of battles because this can be gotten from historical writings etc , no I mean the men and the way you seem to understand them enough to make your characters seem real. You are truly an artist in in the purest form and I applaude you sir. Tony Willetts Southampton UK