Paperback: 48 pages
Publisher: Osprey Publishing (24 Aug. 2017)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1472819497
Gabriele Esposito might well be considered Osprey’s Grand Master of the Men at Arms series. His books cover a range of subjects in this series are as varied as uniforms and equipment of Roman infantry, to 19th century revolutionary armies in Southern Europe and South America.
Italian history in Britain is dominated only by a couple of things. The Renaissance is the biggest presence on shelves, and then surveys of cities and now and then an art book, and within all that you tend to find mostly books about Medici’s and Borgia’s, Venice, Florence, the Popes and Rome.
Personally I’ve never understood why the Risorgimento is so ignored in English. It’s just as confusing as the tangled story of 15th and 16th century Italy. It’s got just about as much colour, and yet mostly we have only heard about Garibaldi in Britain and nowadays I doubt many would know what he did beyond getting a biscuit named after him, least of all how the modern state of Italy came into being.
I’m not writing this because this book tells that story, I’m writing it because books on this subject are thin on the ground and military histories of the Wars of Unification are even harder to find. So already I was looking forward to this book and I am happy to report that within the confines of its scope it is a very successful one.
Although many claim that after 1815 there was a great period of peace in Europe, this is far from the truth, with Wars of revolution and succession sparking in Spain, Italy and even an abortive attempt to oust the Tsar in the 1820’s. It was a time of revolutions that turned Europe on its head and by and large created the 20th century European continent.
This book offers and detailed overview of organisation (for the standing forces from battalion up to brigade level) and equipment and a decent coverage of uniforms, which given the varied subject at hand, that being of the Army of the Kingdom of Sardinia (Piedmont) and Naples (Kingdom of the Two Sicilies) in a conflict that stretched over the better part of 20 years, is impressive, but that’s where the talented brush of Rava takes over in a bright and vivid series of plates that display his mastery of atmosphere and characterisation, as well as his eye for historical detail.
There are excellent studies of the famous Bersaglieri and Carabinieri, I love the painting of the Neapolitan troops sitting in the shade, drinking coffee out of little China cups. The photos inside include rare studio portraits of soldiers and well as period illustrations, a neat little book on a very interesting subject.
Josh.