FUSILIER COOPER. Private to Sergeant through seven campaigns. John Cooper enlisted as a soldier and was from a family of soldiers. In the Peninsular he often met his brother, who served in another regiment. John was clearly a good soldier, because he rose steadily in rank throughout his seven years of service. His story is told simply and directly and yet, in the manner of the best writers, he conveys to his readers a spectrum of detail, action and atmosphere that really bring the Peninsular and South of France campaigns to life from the perspective of an ordinary man serving in the ranks. At the First Restoration Cooper was dispatched to America, where he fought at the ill-fated Battle of New Orleans. Unlike most memoirists of the period Cooper thought to leave future generations excellent descriptions of uniform, kit, camp and other details of the British soldiers and regiments of the Napoleonic Wars.