Category: Books

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Book Review: Waterloo by Alan Forrest.

Many books will come out this year and try to explain the tactics and strategy of the Battle 613nhzxJNMLof Waterloo. Others will try to tell the soldiers story, some might even concentrate on the political ramifications. However there will not be many that try to understand the significance of the battle from a historiographical perspective.

Alan Forrest sets out to put the Battle in perspective, to set it in the context of the immediate aftermath of Napoleon’s fall, and the collective memory of the nations involved. So many historians over the last 20 years have tried to lay claim to the battle, this book goes a long way to explaining why the debate is so complex.

It begins with a slightly bumpy but conventional description of the battle. In which we see a brief, mostly critical appreciation of all the commanders. Elementary passages of the well known fight, familiar to many enthusiasts account for much of the rest of the first part. Nevertheless there is a deal of interest to be found here, not last that Forrest appears to agree with Huw Davies’s theory that the battle as a needless occurrence, and a diplomatically driven gesture by Wellington, who sacrificed the lives of his troops for later political gain and that Napoleon was doomed from the beginning.
However as the author apologieticaly notes at the start, he is not an a military historian and the book is not strictly military history. I found there to be a few glitches which the author assures me will be ironed out in paperback and e-book editions. I will simply say here for the uninitiated that the Duke of Wellington and Blucher did not meet on the evening of the 17th of June at La Belle Alliance.

Nevertheless do not dismiss this book. Once the guns fall silent the road smooths out and the pace picks up. The main point of the book is to show the impact of the battle at the time, attempting to explain why we think about Waterloo the way we do today. In this sense it is the legacy of the Battle that is the driving force of this book. A subject, the waters of which, are darkly muddied by many national agendas, and which is excellently illuminated here
One of the biggest questions is why Britain remained the central figure in the play? As Forrest astutely notes, it is not so much that Britain hijacked the battle, but that the other countries let it fall from their memory so that by WW1, it was almost utterly obliterated from their national consciousness’ leaving only the British story intact. He shows how the battle was soon made the property of politicians, authors and others who had not fought there, and who can be principally blamed for the proliferation of the “British” myth. How in France defeat was built up into a giant monument to former glory, how Napoleon was not defeated by Wellington or Blucher but by God. This monument which promptly fell on them in 1871 and likewise ignored Much of the real record. How the Prussian and German States, ignored it in preference to Leipzig, the Dutch polarised its memory around the Prince of Orange and the Belgians were so busy staving off Dutch overlordship that first the Napoleonic regime seemed more attractive to remember.
In essence it is a book whose subject appeals to me as a small but valuable addition to a Waterloo library, a vital post script for those emerging from the avalanche of heavier tomes concentrating on the main battle and its political ramifications.

Josh.

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Book Review: Waterloo 1815 (2) Ligny by John Franklin.

Volume 2, Ligny.
Paperback: 96 pages
Publisher: Osprey Publishing (February 17, 2015)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1472803663
ISBN-13: 978-1472803665
http://www.amazon.com/Waterloo-1815-2-Ligny-Campaign/dp/1472803663/ref=pd_sim_b_1?ie=UTF8&refRID=0GQ0V46A1YKJXP7Q2SKH
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The Second of Osprey’s timely campaign series on Waterloo focuses on the Battle of Ligny. Another seesaw battle that raged about five miles away from Quatre Bras on the 16th of June. However because the two sides were already concentrated there and because the battle hinged on the possession of several fixed points, it presents a slightly more conventional action rather than the confused battle of encounter dealt with in volume 1.
Ligny has always been less of a challenge to write about than Quatre Bras, yet the details of the fight and the participants are much less known and just as fascinating. In my opinion this volume runs smoother than the first one, and nimbly follows the vicious struggle for the hamlets along the Ligne Stream, with the same detailed analysis that has already been shown. Beginning with Napoleon’s return from exile and ending with the beginning of the Prussian retreat to Wavre, this book excellently outlines how Napoleon won his last battlefield victory with brilliant tactical acumen, and indeed economy given the circumstances, against superior numbers but failed to land his much needed decisive blow because of decisions made early in the campaign. It compliments the first volume very well and actually surpasses it in terms of narrative.

The Artwork here is again done by the excellent Gerry Embleton and like volume 1 it also contains some rare and interesting images besides the excellent treatment of the charge of the Grenadiers à Cheval of the Garde Impériale. In both books the maps are positional, (IE no arrows to indicate movement) and rely on the boxes of text to indicate what is happening, they are comprehensive and detailed, which is very helpful.

As far as I am aware there are only two seminal works on the two battles so far covered. Therefore they are a welcome addition to a very select catalogue of books. They are easy and accessible to pick up for reference and detailed enough to satisfy close study and make a great basis for further investigation. As a historical read they are well written and convincingly described, not exceptionally controversial as far as I’m concerned and even handed, which I like in general when it comes to history.

Josh.

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Book Review: Waterloo 1815 (1) Quatre Bras by John Franklin.

Waterloo 1815 (1) Quatre Bras.

Paperback: 96 pages
Publisher: Osprey Publishing (November 18, 2014)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1472803639
ISBN-13: 978-1472803634
http://www.amazon.com/Waterloo-1815-1-Quatre-Bras/dp/1472803639
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Osprey’s multi volume contribution to the 200th anniversary of Waterloo kicks of with the Battle of Quatre Bras. Fought on the 16th of June 1815, it is good to bear in mind that this battle two has reached its bicentenary.
A barrel straight narrative dominates this account of a very confusing battle. This precursor to Waterloo has always defied an easy analysis because it has no real form and eludes clear definition like the shape of water. Therefore the more focused histories that are published the better. However it has been continuously overshadowed by the main battle on the 18th.

I was very pleased with this book, it’s not showy, it’s a nuts and bolts sort of account and supremely detailed, with an emphasis on the Dutch and Brunswick participants as one would expect from Franklin, especially their commanders, The Prince of Orange and the Duke of Brunswick. However all the main points are covered The initial French advance that caught the allies so off guard while the Duchess of Richmond held her ball, and the early fighting between the French and Prussian’s, not to mention the famous stand of the 42nd that adorns the cover is also included.
In an effort to keep a sense of atmosphere the author has resorted to an interesting style of referring to the participants. Instead of just rendering their names and ranks in English, each officer gets his rank and name spelled in the language of his parent nation. Even to Waterloo aficionados some of the spellings will be refreshingly unfamiliar.
One of the reasons the battle is hard to narrate is the ebb and flow of the seesaw struggle that tipped back and forth until late in the day. This theme of constant instability and brilliant split decision, is captured well here as the initial French advantage is squandered, and the pressure on Wellington’s position is relieved over and over again by nick of time reinforcements.

The art alone is worth half the price of the books. Osprey wisely gave this commission to veteran illustrator Gerry Embleton who has exerted himself to find new and overlooked parts of the story to paint. Embleton comes from the old corps d’élite of Osprey illustrators, his mostly watercolour scenes are full of character atmosphere and historical detail. The “Deployment of the artillery battery under Captain Cleeves” is particularly good. They brilliantly compliment the text and are usually my favourite part of Osprey books.

With so few histories focusing solely on the leadup to Waterloo, a series like this is very welcome indeed!

Below you will find some excellent articles by the author on aspects of the battle which for reason’s of space were unable to be included in the main book.

http://www.ospreypublishing.com/blog/Waterloo_Quatre_Bras_Osprey/

http://www.ospreypublishing.com/blog/Waterloo_Quatre_Bras_Nassau/

http://www.ospreypublishing.com/blog/waterloo_dutch_belgians_quatre_bras/

http://www.ospreypublishing.com/blog/Waterloo_French_Quatre_Bras/

Josh.

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Book Review: Deus Vult by Jem Duducu.

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A concise history of the Crusades.
By Jem Duducu

Paperback: 224 pages
Publisher: Amberley Publishing (6 Nov. 2014)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1445640554
ISBN-13: 978-1445640556
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Deus-Vult-Concise-History-Crusades/dp/1445640554

A concise history of the Crusades is as an ambitious a venture as the 1st Crusade itself. Doing it in 223 pages is shooting for the moon. Nevertheless the author is undaunted and daintily skips over the first 1,000 years of history from the birth of Christ to Pope Urban’s preaching campaign in 1095 with barely a pause and goes on dealing with roughly one Crusade per chapter.
The production of the book I received is respectable, of the type one would often find in a tourist shop, the type that feels made to take punishment and is light and able to be slipped into a coat pocket. The my edition shows a sombre looking 15th Century Knight adorning a typically dark medieval cover, holding a giant two handed broadsword. A red “Deus Vult” is emblazoned above him in front of a stormy sky. However the Amazon page, as you can see, shows a different image, which I rather like.
There is one simple map of Europe and Palestine in the front but otherwise it is unadorned by either the usual reproductions of illuminated texts, or travellers photographs of mosques, churches and castles that usually spring from the centre pages of crusader histories. A drawback is the fact that the book has no end guides. Notes, Bibliography and Index are not present here, and while I’m certainly not bothered about the lack of notes explaining more controversial opinions in any book, or indeed lists of sources, I am aware that others feel lost with an unfamiliar author unless the above is included and personally I do think reference books should have index sections.
The book sets out to answer questions, redress misconceptions and to thread together a cohesive story of a large subject in a very short space of time. It begins by pointing briefly to Constantine as the real start to it all, and the spread of Christianity through his successors before going on to the the rise of Islam and the natural challenge this brought about to the old Roman Empire and following the trail straight into the First Crusade. It’s interesting that the story begins so early, and it often gives food for thought, for instance, there were campaigns that looked like allot like crusades prior to the Latin capture of Jerusalem before Crusading ever began. In general I was pleased to see that the focus was on the “True” Crusades in the Middle East and does not indulge in going into the expansion of the Ottoman Turkish empire and the wars which I consider to be a separate issue. Ending at the Siege of Acre and the fall of the Crusader States, with a sort of symbolic post script/epilogue on the downfall of the Templar Knights; the style is fast paced and snappy which is paramount for a concise narrative, full of little euphemisms and imageries, and not a little banter allowed by the light of hindsight.
The story continues through the high points and little known areas alike, with a wit and a reason. On the whole there is a discernible flavour, and is nothing if not confident in its assertions. I feel sure many Crusade enthusiasts will enjoy this fast and light read, that gallops through this complex subject with the nimbleness of a Saracen horse archer, an achievement the author should be proud of.

Josh.

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Book Review: White Mughals by William Dalrymple.

White Mughals.

Paperback: 640 pages41F2TQJ604L
Publisher: Harper Perennial; New Ed edition (19 April 2004)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0006550967
ISBN-13: 978-0006550969
http://www.amazon.co.uk/White-Mughals-Betrayal-18th-century-Eighteenth-century/dp/0006550967
http://www.williamdalrymple.uk.com/

The appearance of the hardback that I picked up second hand, is dark and mysterious. The celebrated portrait of the Palmer family on the cover, which though admirable, does not quite suit the actual story, more fitting is the latest paperback production of the book that shows the lovely portrait of  Khair un Nissen on a white background. Credit is due to the publishers for using the gilt lettering but without embossing the text, thus you can read it without taking off the dust jacket for fear of rubbing off the gilt.
Amusingly this used book showed the usual signs of a volume well read, at least twice. The usually crisp white block of pages striped with muddy grey lines deriving from a close hold and much finger flicking, the deepest stain indicated that the previous owner, whose dedication adorns the primary pages, often turned for help to glossary, when the many Indian terms became too much.
Here you are dealing with about 501 reading pages, so its a hefty number, with three sections of very fascinating pictures and beautiful, with between 1-4 pictures per page

This is now a famous book, there is a fan club and an intense almost cult following of Dalrymple’s works and it has taken a great deal of time for me to find out why. The author has all the ingredients a successful writer of History needs to attain international acclaim, and White Mughal’s succinctly encompasses them all.
An unknown subject, built upon by utterly new and fresh personal research that brings not only new light but compleltey new evidence and sources to a given field. This is indeed rare.
A solid and lucid narrative style inspired not so much by the subject but by the author’s personal experience of living in the country the work is set.
A deep knowledge of the literature and culture aside from the work at hand that props up the narrative and adds depth.
And last but not least the author is utterly sympathetic with to his subject and admiring and perhaps enamoured, as many writers often become when dealing with personal discoveries, of the characters involved.

The book purports to tell the story of a romance, or an affair, whichever, between British resident in Hyderabad James Kirkpatrick and the highborn “Begum” Khair un Nissen.
However due to the fact that “Khair’s” voice in the relationship is largely missing, it actually tells a much wider and richly embroidered story of a once cosmopolitan and cross cultural 18th century British India, full of open exchanges of ideas, religion and culture, changing into the Imperial, racially superior model it became reviled for.
It is the failing of new evidence that it usually needs an awful lot of beefing out to make a half decent book, and this is partially true here, but in this case the new evidence beefs out the already written record, usually dominated by Governor General Lord Mornington and his younger brother Arthur Wellesley.
Those like me, familiar with the Duke of Wellington’s India time, will own that it is entirely one dimensional, and largely concentrates on his service in carrying out his brother’s expansionist aims, and sheds only fragmentary light on the India either was dealing with. Little did I know when I picked up this book that this provides exactly that.
Here, through the story of William and James Kirkpatrick, Khair un Nissen and the Court of the Nizam of Hyderabad, we see the decaying grandeur of Mughal India, the politics concerning this vital princely state, usually relegated to a paragraph or two in most history books not specifically academic, the power struggle of Mornington’s uncompromising imperialism against the still proud yet pressured State of Mysore ultimately doomed to destruction. Similarly the last of Mornington’s achievements, the breaking of the Maratha Confederacy and the change in direction of British India.
Not only does it weave these rich threads, Dalrymple’s loom creates a vignette of Anglo Indian relationships during the early Raj, the motives an Indian woman would have to becoming a White Mughal’s wife, the trials of a bibi, or the longer term harem mistress and the bleak fate that ultimately faced the vast majority. One of the many interesting background stories I found was the French interest in India, represented by several mercenary officers, who seemed to carry over their royalist and revolutionary ideals to India, this is just one of the fascinating sidelines this book investigates.

Even though I find it a little amusing that any cavalry regiment of the line at this time should be compared to the SAS, this is without doubt a vital piece of reading for students of British Indian History and one I heartily recommend.

Josh.

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Book Review: Peace on Earth by David Boyle.

Peace on Earth: The Christmas Truce of 1914.

  • Format: Kindle Editionxmastruce
  • File Size: 511 KB
  • Print Length: 71 pages
  • Publisher: Endeavour Press (30 Nov 2014)
  • Sold by: Amazon Media EU S.à r.l.
  • Language: English
  • ASIN: B00QFN18Z2

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Peace-Earth-Christmas-Truce-1914-ebook/dp/B00QFN18Z2

Most people seem to have some opinion about the “Christmas Truce”, from conspiracy theorists to idealists, it’s not a subject that has gone unnoticed in the 100 years since it happened.
In fact for those of us with only a basic knowledge of the “Great War” this event has attained such an, almost mythical status that many of us must have wondered “So what’s the deal with that then?”.
David Boyle has written a delightful little “Kindle Single” about the Christmas Truce of 1914. It is short, I read it easily within one day in two sittings, but it’s good stuff and if you’ve been mulling over what your opinion is on those controversial centenary TV ads then I think I’ve found a good Wikipedia alternate.
Boyle presents us with a fluid narrative heavily salted with good first hand account backup that is necessary for the telling of this story. Yet the author isn’t trying to put a spin on the legendary tale, or framing a personal opinion, he’s presenting what is generally known about the truce basically in the way people saw it back then. He doesn’t question sources, he doesn’t dig too deeply beyond what they say, it’s certainly not a myth busting job, once or twice he hints at odd coincidences but never over indulges in deep analysis.
The truce is shown here coming not out of a mad spontaneous rush of goodwill all along the line, but as an sporadic, semi predictable series of random events over the period from 24th to about the 30th and the New Year, that were something of a natural progression of the behaviour of many front line units on both sides during the winter of 1914.
In a short space of time Boyle gives us the “Deal” about what happened, what it meant to people, from rank and file to the high command and, what effect the spirit that sparked it affected the next few years of the war.
Don’t get the impression that it’s a syrupy waffle of sentiment, the poignancy of the thing is that for the men in many sectors it was business and usual, it is a brief attempt to show the truce in the way people saw it, leaving the reader to achieve their own opinion about it and about how to proceed from here. For those interested in finding out more there’s a helpful sources page at the back.

I found this one of the best E-reads I’ve ever read, well researched, thoughtfully written and convincingly told. It’s a great light Christmas read for military history fans, and would make an equally nice gift, and I highly recommend it for people wanting a little background and perspective.

Merry Christmas.
Josh.

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Book Review: The Battle of Trafalgar by Geoffrey Bennett.

The Battle of Trafalgar by Geoffrey Bennett

http://amzn.to/1DSWASG710j2eF2D9L._SL1000_
File Size: 809 KB
Print Length: 256 pages
Publisher: Endeavour Press (September 30, 2014)
Sold by: Amazon Digital Services, Inc.
Language: English
ASIN: B00O2Y2FW6

When looking for an exciting, dramatic and tragic book, history or fiction you can’t go wrong with Nelson and Trafalgar.
In this book Geoffrey Bennett give a good clear cut account of the most famous naval battle in British history. Filled with solid background information that traces the prior history of the Navy, anecdotal facts and a serving sea officer’s prejudice for all things nautical over things terrestrial, not least the obvious affection a British sailor holds for the Royal Navy and Nelson in comparison to the enemy. Though as always never denying the threat of defeat.
Bennett is very thorough, giving great detail in the first part of the book, everything is covered, from origins, construction of ships, makeup of crews, armament, sailing capabilities, and tactics. The lions share goes to describing the British, but he doesn’t ignore the French, or for that matter the Spanish. So by the time the campaign narrative starts the reader has a good picture in their head as to the nuts and bolts of the matter.
The nautical conduct of the Revolutionary War is given, and the actions of the Navy in thwarting the Republic’s attempts to gain the seas, expand outside of Europe and invade Britain , while at the same time giving us some highlights of Nelson’s career, including the Hamilton affair and the dramatic chase across the ocean and seas that led up to Trafalgar. I was also pleased to see an abridged version of one of his memoranda included.
The narrative of the battle is well done, full of first and accounts and is clear and concise. Conveying well the thumping mechanical grind of a sea battle at this time and the courage and bravery of the men involved that contributed to the glory of the day.
This is a great book for someone looking to start reading about the battle and indeed the Navy. It’s short, authoritative and well written. And for this week also free, so what are you waiting for. Engage the enemy more closely!

Happy reading

Josh.

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Book Review: Three Italian Wars titles from Osprey

Osprey publishing breaks down its books into small high quality illustrated volumes, each focusing of a specific subject within a specific series. None are over 100 pages which allows their authors to really get to grips with the minutiae of a given military unit, piece of hardware or fortification. The nice thing about this is that you can create little compound collections of the different series’ (Historical combo meals if you will) which can give a shocking level of detail to your given area of study.

I’ll give an example with three mini book reviews, each of three different Osprey Series titles.

Campaign: Fornovo 1494.51PFTCDQV4L
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Fornovo-1495-Osprey-Military-Campaign/dp/1855325225
Paperback: 96 pages
Publisher: Osprey Publishing (15 Sep 1996)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1855325225
ISBN-13: 978-1855325227
Campaign books give overview, scope, maps and full colour illustrations of battle scenes. They are perfect places to build up a picture from. Osprey’s own Medieval expert David Nicolle is at the helm of this relatively little known but highly significant Renaissance battle between France and the League of Venice. Nicolle takes a professionally even handed approach to this campaign, the format of these books makes it easy to do this, however Fornovo has always been a battle in which the French have been given the better end of the stick, and the author therefore is often at pains to fully clarify and explain the Italian side. The art inside is a special thing. The late Richard Hook showed consummate skill in packing this volume full of stunning full colour images.

Men At Arms: Italian Armies 1300 1500.51KG8T18HJL
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Italian-Medieval-Armies-1300-1500-Men-at-arms/dp/0850454778/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1414426038&sr=8-1&keywords=italian+medieval+armies
Paperback: 48 pages
Publisher: Osprey Publishing; First Edition edition (24 Mar 1983)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0850454778
ISBN-13: 978-0850454772
Having gotten a setting in mind, you might be more curious about that confusing array of Italian city states and their armies. Here again Nicolle gets into the nitty gritty. Men at Arms books discusses the nuts and bolts of armies and units. In this case, the progression of Italian armies from 1300 to 1500. Tactics, weaponry and a selection of choice battles (most of which will be new names to you) are included that beef out the “Opposing armies” section of the Campaign book. The excellent f

Warrior: Condottieri 1300 1500.51IeglLhQaL
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Condottiere-1300-1500-Infamous-Medieval-Mercenaries/dp/1846030773
Paperback: 64 pages
Publisher: Osprey Publishing (4 July 2007)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1846030773
ISBN-13: 978-1846030772
But what if you want more? While reading the other two you might have puzzled about the Condottieri, and how they fit into the Italian military system. This title goes deeper than the MAA, focusing on a specific type of soldier, the infamous Italian mercenary who dominated warfare on the Peninsula during the height of the renaissance, and of whom you’ll have heard allot about from the other two,. Hitting all the high points, contracts, recruitment, tactics, and life on campaign beefed up by ground already covered in Nicolle’s work, it includes a list of famous Condottieri as well.

So there’s a very short demonstration of how you can build up compounds of composite series in the Osprey line to build up a comprehensive picture of an event. You can do with three or as many as four or five. This flexibility in resources is one of the reasons (the other is the pictures) why I have always loved Osprey.

Happy reading
Josh.

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Book Review: The Bitter Trade by Piers Alexander.

The Bitter Trade “A scurrilous tale, one which warns rather than elevates, of title without value and no noblesse”


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Paperback: 432 pages

Publisher: Tenderfoot (12 Jun 2014)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 099286450X
ISBN-13: 978-0992864507
http://www.amazon.co.uk/The-Bitter-Trade-Piers-Alexander/dp/099286450X/ref=tmm_pap_title_0

Calumny Spinks. A crass, grimy unholy no-good, who by all rights should have ended up in a red coat or at the end of a noose, but by stint of his unfortunate luck, unfortunate breeding and unfortunate parentage ends up saddled as the hero of Piers Alexander’s debut novel Bitter Trade.

To say the hero is an anti-hero is to achieve high levels of understatement, if his life had not so far been a succession of cruel disappointments and calamities, so much so that he must be pitied, he would be the sort of guttersnipe true villains are made of. However I was pleased to see that the hero is accurately portrayed with some religious belief and prejudice common to the time, he’s not going to please many Catholic readers but I doubt Protestants are overjoyed with Perez Reverte’s brilliant Alatriste novels.

But as it is, his predicament is not his own doing, and it is because of this that one identifies with, him by commiserating with him. He inherits the sins of his father, whose secrets trap him as a nobody with no future, and so, angry at the world and eager to use anyone he can to become someone, he uses his smart mouth and striking looks (yes he’s irresistible to women) to cheat debt, death and ignominy. Alexander paints this likeable and unlikeable boy well, at war with the world and a mass of contradictions, he is a character well created.

The story is set against the “Glorious Revolution of 1688” and anyone who decides to set a novel in these usually overlooked times deserves a clap. Calumny and his associates are entangled in a mysterious web of intrigue and treason, the heart of which is artfully concealed, allowing for many twists and turns to keep you wondering what will happen next.

The book is a pseudo memoir, giving it immediacy, thus the language is deliberately archaic, but it is un-honeyed, threatening and hard in tone, and you shouldn’t get lost, and there are also modern plot devices to act as direction markers if you do. Coffee as you’d expect plays a central role, but its more the people who sell the bean rather than the drink itself that the book centres on.

It’s very well paced, flowing with the smoothness of java, even when things get complicated. It’s slow at first, then picks up speed and clarity, its chapter structure made it able for me to slice through chapters at a fast rate. It’s got a solid niche story, mostly rooted in history with bags of plot,  (enough to fill a coffee warehouse), lots of intrigue, grime and general sordid doings, vivid characters, and minute detail.

I think I could give a very precise guess at where one would look to find Calumny in 15 years, but I shall follow the example of so many of the shadowy characters in this book and keep it to myself. I shall look at you over my shoulder with a knowing smile and tap my nose secretively, then disappear into the shadows.

Happy reading.

Josh.