Pre-modern battle - command it, or fight in it?
If I were to describe Waterloo from Napoleon's point of view, it would be very different from that same battle from the point of view of a soldier, or even a cavalry lieutenant in the front ranks. Napoleon's fate is decided on that battlefield as much as the lieutenant's. Napoleon has a better understanding of what's going on all around the field, and he's the one making the large-scale decisions. But Napoleon is not performing feats of personal courage, he is not charging the enemy, he is not meeting the enemy's sword with his own. That's what the lieutenant does.
If Napoleon were to lead the charge, as King Theoden does in The Lord of the Rings, that would be inspiring for his troops, but he would no longer be commanding the battle. Runners from other parts of the battlefield wouldn't know where to find him, wouldn't be able to report to him. And he himself wouldn't be able to transmit orders to the varied divisions of his force.
Is there any way I can have the cake and eat it too? Writing about a pre-modern battlefield, is there any way I can give the reader both the thrill of following the cavalry lieutenant, and the weight of command and tactical understanding that come with following Napoleon?
1 answer
Generals are where they are needed most
Disclaimer: Historical fiction isn't my area of expertise, most of this is drawn from fantasy works instead. I think some of it is useful though.
The best way to get this balance is too remember that often generals or leaders are exceptionally talented fighters as well. They will always be in the place where the are most useful to the battle.
In the lead up and early stages of a battle, commanders are needed in tactical discussion. You can set the scene for the fight with the viewpoint of a command tent. Organise your troops, assess the terrain, make clever plans, all that can be best done from the more detached viewpoint.
When the heat of battle arrives and plans begin to come undone the best way to show the frantic struggle and gore-y detail is with a solider on the front-line. If you want to follow a single character throughout you can have them move from the command tent to the thick of the battle. When the battle heats up there is little the command can do to turn the tide from the backlines. A seasoned veteran with his elite bodyguards charging in can turn a fight however.
A book that did this well is Ranger's Apprentice: Oakleaf Bearers. It's a children's fantasy series but the characters are all elite soliders and leaders. Example under the spoiler below.
During a war they take command positions and are involved in setting up the tactics. Initially the battle is described from a commanders viewpoint, we get an overview of the entire battlefield as plans are enacted.
However as the war beings to turn against them the fighting moves to a closer perspective. Now the characters are leading smaller units, rushing about the field to where the fighting is heaviest. We get some high level description of the battle as they move from one place to another and some hand to hand fighting when they are engaged.
In the final stages of the battle everything is POV focused. Combat is purely hand to hand fighting for survival and we have no perception of how the rest of the battle is going.
Using this technique of closing in the perspective shows the increased desperation of the battle. It also gives the opportunity to make the outcome of the battle uncertain in the moment. By moving the POV with our character we can choose whatever perspective we like to create the greatest impact on the reader.
Alternatively if a general actually fighting hand to hand is too unrealistic you can have multiple POV characters and switch between them throughout the battle.
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