The Medal of Brigadier Gerard

Name: The Medal of Brigadier Gerard
Author: Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

Brigadier Gerard, summoned with Major Charpentier before Napoleon at Rheims on the 14th of March, is entrusted with a letter for the Emperor's brother, the King of Spain, in Paris, announcing that Napoleon will advance on Paris within forty-eight hours. Gerard and Charpentier ride together to Bazoches, where their routes diverge, Charpentier questioning why the Emperor would reveal his plans to them at all; Gerard dismisses the doubt and rides on alone toward Soissons on his mare Violette. Learning from a wayside innkeeper and a woman near a bridge over the Crise that Prussians under Blucher hold the country ahead, Gerard presses on regardless, resolved to obey his orders exactly. He gallops through a knot of Uhlans at Soissons, cutting his way clear, then rests and feeds Violette in a wood. Further on he is spotted by German dragoons at a bivouac fire and flees, outdistancing a young mounted officer by wounding his horse rather than killing him, then eluding two pursuing troopers. Finding a body of hussars ahead who prove to be French, he rejoins old Bouvet, a comrade he once saved at Leipzig, and a squadron of Polish lancers. Learning from a peasant that Senlis holds only a squadron of Cossacks guarding the Mayor's house, with Prussian infantry camped nearby, the combined French and Polish force storms the house, slaughtering the Cossacks. Gerard dismounts to join the fight, tends Violette, then goes with Bouvet to find wine in the cellar. Prussian infantry suddenly recaptures the house above; Bouvet rushes up to die fighting while Gerard, mindful of his letter, retreats into an inner cellar. There he discovers a hidden Russian officer, Count Boutkine of the Don Cossacks, who surrenders on promise of quarter. Gerard convinces Boutkine that French and Polish troops would tear a Cossack apart on sight, persuades him to exchange uniforms, binds him to a barrel, and walks out disguised as a Cossack, leading Violette alongside a shaggy Cossack pony. He bluffs past Prussian soldiers in the street using a nonsense phrase learned from a girl in Wilna, passes the lancer vedettes, then kills a genuine Cossack officer who challenges him before switching back onto Violette and escaping French sentries who nearly cut him down, not recognizing him in Russian dress. Reaching Paris in triumph through cheering crowds, Gerard delivers the letter to Joseph Bonaparte and Talleyrand, who react with curious restraint and reveal that Charpentier has not arrived. After resting with his friend Chaubert and Lisette, Gerard rides back to Rheims to report to Napoleon. There he learns that Charpentier has been captured by a single Cossack without resistance and is to receive the medal of honour, while Napoleon furiously berates Gerard, revealing the despatch was deliberately false information meant to be captured by the enemy, and that Gerard's zeal in protecting it nearly wrecked the ruse. Gerard protests that he acted honourably on the orders as given, recounting his full ordeal. Moved by the account, Napoleon relents, pinches his ear in forgiveness, and orders that Brigadier Gerard, too, be awarded the medal of honour, declaring him the stoutest-hearted officer in his army.

By Sir Arthur Conan Doyle · First published 1894 · Genre: Adventure, Military Fiction, Historical Fiction · 11,573 words

First lines

The Duke of Tarentum, or McDonald, as his old comrades prefer to call him, was, as I could perceive, in the vilest of tempers. His grim Scotch face was like one of those grotesque doorknockers which one sees in the Faubourg St. Germain. We heard afterwards that the Emperor had said in jest that he would have sent him against Wellington in the South, but that he was afraid to trust him within the sound of the pipes. Major Charpentier and I could plainly see that he was smouldering with anger.

"Brigadier Gerard of the Hussars," said he, with the air of the corporal with the recruit.

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Genres

Adventure — The plot centers on a dangerous mission through enemy territory with multiple obstacles, chases, and narrow escapes that drive the narrative.
Military Fiction — Heavily focused on military hierarchy, cavalry operations, tactics, and procedures with detailed descriptions of military life and protocol.
Historical Fiction — Set during the Napoleonic Wars (1814) with real historical figures (Napoleon, Blucher, Schwarzenberg, Marmont) and actual battle locations.
Action — Contains numerous combat sequences, sword fights, cavalry chases, and confrontations with enemy forces throughout the narrative.

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The Medal of Brigadier Gerard is listed on Textopian as a short story by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, dated 1894 CE.

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Work type: Short story
Author: Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
Date: 1894 CE
Language: English
Genres: Adventure, Military Fiction, Historical Fiction, Action, Satire
Length: 11,573 words
Structure: 1 section, 155 paragraphs
Reading fit: Fairly Easy (7th Grade)

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