Between the late '60s and early '00s, British historian, newspaper man, and WWII veteran George Macdonald Fraser wrote and published a series of eleven novels and one short story anthology following the military exploits of Sir Harry Paget Flashman, the infamous bully from the 1857 English classic novel Tom Brown's School Days. It turned out that, after being expelled from Rugby School in the late 1830s, Flashman had joined the 11th Hussars and gone on to become one of England's most decorated war heroes. The Flashman Papers are his purported memoirs. Through Flashman's eyes Fraser explores all of Victorian military history, from the Kabul Retreat to the Boer War. Flashman was there for it all.
It is my belief that Fraser was one of the finest novelists of the 20th century. His books combine comedic genius with meticulously detailed historical drama in a much-plagiarized but seldom-replicated style that has made them endure splendidly over the last half-century. With Flashman, Fraser captured (in a readable modern style) the realities of British colonialism, not just in action, but in thought and speech. The lying, bullying, toadying, lecherous poltroon Harry Flashman who, by virtue of cowardice and good luck, emerges from each adventure looking like a hero, has inspired copycats all the way into the 41st Millennium.
Living Inside History
19th Century historical fiction has become incredibly popular online. Aubrey-Maturin, Sharpe, and Horatio Hornblower are fine series all, and I recommend them. But Flashman is different. Fraser’s slavish dedication to recreating historical narratives through the eyes of his anti-hero makes his novels less like dramatic narratives set in the past, like O’Brian’s Master and Commander or Cornwell’s Sharpe’s Eagle, and more like very funny history textbooks. The depiction of British colonialism is utterly unflinching. Fraser has no shame or hesitation reflecting 19th Century attitudes through Flashman’s speech. It has been said that, at the time of its initial publication, some critics mistook the first novel for a genuine memoir (see citation 3). Fraser, apparently, thought this was laughable, but I don’t think it’s that much of a surprise.
Harry Flashman, his wife Elspeth, his father-in-law John Morrison, and his archnemesis John Charity Spring are the only prominent fictional characters in the series. Nearly everyone else, from ally to antagonist, is a real, historical person, including the majority of the women Flashman beds (and sometimes weds). With the exception of Royal Flash, every moment is historical: every battle, every engagement, every mission and every sword fight is reconstructed from an attested event. When a scene isn't rooted in definite historical fact, it tends to instead be an adaptation of a general historical account--an attack on a stagecoach by Native Americans in the Old West, an encounter with sowars on the road in India.
Flashman gives little exposition. Footnotes and annotations help the reader keep up, but you’ll often need historical context to understand the novels fully. Reading an E-Book version with hyperlinks for names and terms can make the reading experience much improved for this reason.
What makes these novels most spectacular is Fraser's ability to animate the past. He gives voice to the long-dead, letting you empathize with a people who, today, can seem very alien. He is honest when he depicts the horrors of empire and colonialism, and he is honest when he depicts the horrors of its absence, too. It becomes harder for modern people to understand the past with each passing year. Victorian writing can be dense and indecipherable and very dry. Fraser’s isn’t.
When it comes to historical fiction, Flashy is the standard.
They’re Just Good Books
The Flashman Papers aren’t good because they’re historically accurate, though. They’re good because Fraser knew how to write. These twelve novels are filled with horrors that must be read to be imagined. Flashman witnessed every atrocity of the 19th Century, and they are depicted as they really happened.
But the books are comedies.
Fraser always sought out new ways to make his books engaging. He relentlessly satirizes the Victorian era; this is the driving engine of humor throughout the series. But he also endlessly reinvents himself. I enjoyed the Sharpe novels that I read, but Cornwell is a slave to formula. Not Fraser. Despite writing on war and atrocity, despite striving for accuracy, despite never making any meaningful historical errors, he never failed to make his books fun.
Sometimes Flashman renders his dialogue in stageplay format. Why not? It mixes things up. In the sixth book, a significant amount of the narrative is delivered through excerpts from the diary of Flashman’s wife Elspeth. Her prose Reflects the ways In Which a Lady of that Time Period most likely would have Written in Her Diary. It’s wonderful. Flashman, it seems, wrote his memoirs to be full of profanity, but one of his Puritanical Scottish in-laws got her mittens on the manuscripts before publication, censoring the profanity before it could reach our eyes. And the series is filled with footnotes written from the perspective of Fraser himself as the "editor" of the collection (to keep up the charade that Flashman was, in fact, a real person).
So the Flashman Papers are endlessly funny, and always historically accurate. They're also expertly written adventure novels. Fraser takes accounts of real military action and adapts them in Flashy's perspective without ever losing sight of the human stakes and real-world consequences of violence. As a veteran of Burma, Fraser understood what it felt like to fight for one's life. This shows in every book he wrote. Thus when he wants to pull back the comedy, when he wants you to take Flashman seriously during the death march from the Siege of Cawnpore or the butchering of British civilians by Indian mutineers, he will still be able to reduce you to tears.
Series Ranking and Review: A List
None of the Flashman novels are bad. Even the first title on this list is worth reading. The difference between Flashy’s best and worst book is very slim. These rankings are extremely subjective, and I would recommend simply reading them in publication order overall.
But if you're short on time and only want to pick out one or two, this is my take.
#12. Flashman and the Dragon (Book 8)
Flashman and the Dragon is often considered the worst book in the series by Fraser fanatics. This surprised me when I read it: it has an affair with a Chinese empress, lies and deceit and betrayal, high adventure, and a fascinating setting. What more could you want from Flashman?
Revisiting this series (and article) a decade later, this book left almost no impression on me. I can’t remember anything about it. The Empress-Dowager is a retread of much more interesting Oriental femme fatales like Lakshmibai and the Silk One, and the soldiering scenes are simpler and less imaginative than many others. Ultimately, Flashman and the Dragon lacks the bite of the other books; it has nothing exciting that makes it stand out as anything more than a decent historical comedy-adventure novel. It is the only book in the series that feels “by rote.”
#11. Flashman and the Tiger (Book 11)
A collection of short-ish stories and a novella, Flashman and the Tiger sees Flashy meet Sherlock Holmes, ties up a loose thread from Royal Flash, and depicts a sword fight that lasts for about two hundred pages.
Overall, I like the shorter, more plot-focused narratives found within this book. The characters are not Fraser's best, but there are memorable moments throughout--and, to be honest, I think Flashman x Holmes is a lot of fun. He doesn't overdo it.
But like Flashman and the Dragon, Flashman and the Tiger lacks the emotional heights of the earlier books. The best Flashman moments leap unflinchingly into historical tragedy, and there’s no space for that in the more personal narratives presented here. I want to see Flashman embroiled in political schemes, lost within an epic sea of war and action, forced to do great things despite his rotten heart. Here, he mostly just runs away from bad guys and whines a lot.
That can be funny. But it's not much more than that.
#10. Flashman on the March (Book 12)
The final Flashman book, Flashman on the March was written when Fraser was in his 80s. It has one of the series' most interesting settings: the British expedition to Abyssinia, which is a little-known but fascinating (and surreal) piece of Victorian history, handled with the deftness you would expect.
But Fraser's age shows through the pages. The beginning meanders, and his outrage at Bush & Co. for the invasion of Iraq seems to bleed through Flashman's usual irreverent narration. The climax is strong, but it took me more than a year to get to it. I would place Flashman on the March among the best in the series for its subject matter, but among the worst in action, plot, and pacing.
#9. Flash for Freedom (Book 3)
Flash for Freedom sees Flashy shipped off for his first American adventure. The front half of the story takes place onboard an illegal slaving vessel in the Atlantic in the 1840s; the back follows Flashman on land throughout the Antebellum South.
This book, along with the next in the list, is often regarded as Fraser’s finest, and for good reason. The beginning introduces Flashman’s unforgettable arch-nemesis John Charity Spring, and would rank near the top of this list taken on its own. The action is unending and the stakes never let up.
But when Flashman takes up work as a slavedriver on a plantation, has an affair with a villainous Southern aristocrat, and betrays some of the series' most sympathetic characters, we see him at his absolute worst. There is no glamorizing slavery here, and unlike in some later books, Flashman has no redeeming qualities at all. He is really just an awful, evil bastard.
Flash for Freedom is absolutely miserable to read. That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t read it. But maybe only once.
#8. Flashman and the Redskins (Book 7)
Flashman and the Redskins is the longest novel in the series by far, effectively containing both the sequel to Flash for Freedom and a self-contained sequel to that story within a single package. Many consider it Fraser's best novel: it is a beautifully researched adventure through the American West, spanning decades and incorporating just about every character you could hope for. It ties up every loose thread from Flash for Freedom, too.
But as an American, I find that it has very little of the mystery and awe that the Indian adventures (in particular) do. There’s nothing to learn from watching Indians attack a stagecoach through Flashman’s eyes. As a text on history, Flashman and the Redskins is interesting, and amusing, but I never found it instructive. This might be the reason why I prefer the European adventures to the American ones, despite the wider fanbase seeming to have the opposite opinion.
Do not mistake me. Flashman and the Redskins is a fantastic novel. But I think it lacks the magic that the best Flashman books have, that only Flashman can have, and that starts with the next title on this list.
#7. Flashman's Lady (Book 6)
It took me a year to get through the first third of Flashman's Lady and about four hours to get through the rest. This book has several of the series' best action sequences and many of its most interesting historical personas. Queen Ranavalona and the atrocities committed under her rule are unforgettable.
My favorite thing about Flashman’s Lady is that it’s the only novel in the series told in part from another character’s perspective—Flashman’s Lady, Elspeth. It’s also the only book in which Elspeth actually gets to do anything. After five books stuck in Flashman’s head, getting to see him and his world through someone else’s eyes was exactly what the series needed. We wouldn’t get that again until Mr. American.
#6. Flashman and the Mountain of Light (Book 9)
Flashman and the Mountain of Light is the most plot-driven Flashman story, and one of the two major Indian novels. While its flurry of characters can be hard to keep track of, it's a beautifully structured adventure that builds to the finest climax in all of the Flashman Papers. It does everything a Flashman book should, and does so very well.
#5. Flashman and the Angel of the Lord (Book 10)
Flashman and the Angel of the Lord follows Flashman’s participation in John Brown’s suicidal raid on Harper’s Ferry. Its first act also features the last appearance of John Charity Spring, and it’s better than could ever be hoped for.
This is by far my favorite of the American novels. Whereas Flash for Freedom and Flashman and the Redskins are more about time periods than specific events, anchoring Flashman to John Brown creates a pall over the book that the earlier two lacked, a sense of oncoming tragedy that many of the other books cultivate so splendidly. Although I could do without the numerous scenes involving the proto-KKK, Brown’s lunatic personality and the utter insanity of his scheme are rendered flawlessly.
No one will ever write a historical novel about Brown better than this.
#4. Royal Flash (Book 2)
Writing retrospectively, Royal Flash would probably have been ranked among my least favorite books in the series. This would have been a mistake. At the time of reading, it was actually my favorite, and it remained so for quite some time. The main plot sees Flashman abducted by Otto von Bismarck so that he can impersonate a princeling and help facilitate the unification of Germany. It is a total farce, and the only Flashman book set in a fictional country, during a fictional geopolitical affair. Bismarck's appearance more than compensates for that deficiency.
As with all of the remaining titles in this ranking, Royal Flash was impossible for me to put down. It consumed my every thought until I'd made it to the final page. There are very few books that do this to me.
#3. Flashman (Book 1)
The original, eponymous entry to the series. Flashman has it all: Indian intrigue, a Duke of Wellington cameo, Queen Victoria, Elspeth and her father, the horrors of war, obscene numbers of sex scenes, and the series' only rape. It's funny, sad, satirical, and haunting, often at the same time. Flashman is not peak Flashman, but it's pretty close. You should, obviously, start here.
#2. Flashman at the Charge (Book 4)
Flashman at the Charge is about the Crimean War and acts as a prelude for the "Great Game," the allegedly imaginary feud between the Russian Empire and the United Kingdom for the control of India.
The Crimean War sections of the book are standard Flashman, executed flawlessly. They're excellent, of course, and the intrigue between Flashy and Lord Cardigan is taken to comedic extremes. But what cements its place at the top (AKA the bottom) of my list is its second half, in which the series' most absurd femme fatale transforms Flashman into a selfless hero through the power of hashish.
But even without its ludicrous third act, Flashman at the Charge is simply the funniest book in the series. It's the Victorian military equivalent of Fargo: a relentless and unfailing pitch-black comedy, where tragedy and comedy never fall out of step. Unlike the final book on this list, Flashman at the Charge probably will not make you cry. But it'll certainly make you laugh.
#1. Flashman in the Great Game (Book 5)
Flashman in the Great Game is a direct sequel to At the Charge, picking up more or less where that book leaves off. Its focal point is the Indian Mutiny, and Fraser catalogues the atrocities committed by both sides in excruciating detail. There are flashes of this kind of writing in the other novels, but here, more than anywhere else in the Papers, we witness the horrors of war.
I will never forget the frank narration of the Siege of Cawnpore, or Flashman's harrowing escape from Lucknow. Only a man who had fought and killed in war could have written these scenes.
Flashman in the Great Game is still funny, sometimes. But it’s the least comedic book in the series. It took me several weeks of daily reading to get through it. It’s also harrowing, and gripping, and incredible.
But that isn’t why I love it. What makes this novel so exceptional is that it’s the only time Fraser attempted to expand Flashman’s psychology in a meaningful way. He is, necessarily, a static character, but he’s so much more interesting here than elsewhere. Unlike in Flash for Freedom, where he's a sociopathic monster, the Harry Flashman we see in Great Game is genuinely heroic. He performs selfless acts of valor and endures horrible pain for the sake of his fellow soldiers. He feels true empathy for the people around him.
Of course his style of narration doesn’t change. He stays convinced that he’s a villain. He constantly refers to his own cowardice. But true bravery lies not in failing to feel fear, but in conquering it. That is what Flashman does in this book, and it makes him a fascinating narrator. He possesses a villain complex: he is incapable of seeing himself in a positive light, even when he deserves to.
I don't know how much of that was intentional on Fraser's part. It doesn’t carry forward into the later novels. But I think it's at the core of why I love this book so much. Flashman feels realer and more nuanced here than anywhere else, and when he’s facing down rebellious sepoys, it makes him easy to get behind.
In other words, Flashman in the Great Game takes the anti- out of Flashman’s hero, without making him any less Flashman.
I love this book. I think it’s the best novel I’ve ever read. You should go read it, too.
A Flash of Lightning
Fraser wrote a number of other books. I highly recommend his memoir on the Burma campaign, Quartered Safe Out Here. His other memoir The Light’s On at Signpost is a reflection on his time spent as a screenwriter in Hollywood, mostly, and a screed against political correctness; it’s hard to believe he wrote it almost thirty years ago. His other major novel, Mr. American, is about a rich American cowboy who comes to England and becomes a minor aristocrat. It’s a charming story that’s stuck with me, and I think about it surprisingly often almost ten years later. But it’s also quite long and meandering, and I found it a little dull at the time.
I haven’t read the others. They’re not easy to find anymore. But I’ll get to them eventually, and I’ll update this article when I do.
Oh, and one more thing—the Malcolm McDowell adaptation of Royal Flash? Don't watch it.