With his sharp eye and analytical mind, Clive Ponting explodes many of the romantic myths which grew up in the years following the Crimean War, while telling the true story of the heroism of ordinary men. Above all, he makes use of the testimony of eyewitness accounts, from William Russell of The Times, the first war correspondent, to Leo Tolstoy, who was caught up in the action while visiting his brother, to the memories of a variety of serving soldiers.