by RNS | Oct 19, 2022 | Beating Tsundoku
Tim Saunders, Salamanca Campaign 1812 (Pen & Sword, 2022)
The Battle of Salamanca was without doubt one of the British Army’s greatest victories in the Napoleonic Wars, though not without Allied help. It was a real ‘come from behind’ win that completely changed the Peninsular War’s course and helped drive the French out of Spain. It was also a brilliant tactical victory and one that showcased Wellington’s offensive genius. Now we have a new book on it, by Tim Saunders, using the latest evidence and told from the perspective of the men who fought the great battle.
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Saunders sets us up on the Lines of the Torres Vedras and Wellington’s breakout that nearly failed. Considerable planning went into the Allied effort, including intelligence and logistics, before Wellington took the offensive. Saunders describes all that then gets into the opening moves of the campaign. This was a period of manoeuvring and skirmishing between two armies in close proximity with neither able to gain the upper hand. The French were undoubtedly gaining the upper hand, however, forcing the Allies into retreat. The cat-and mouse continued with Wellington running out of time to fight before French reinforcements arrived and he would have to retire to Portugal. Then came Marmont’s infamous error when he overextended his army so that his divisions could not support each other. Wellington attacked.
Saunders describes the ensuing battle, starting on the right wing where the French collapsed after an intense struggle. In the centre, things proved less clear cut, but the Allies eventually drove the French back there too. Saunders notes how only the night and Allied exhaustion saved the French, Salamanca was still a crushing defeat. Saunders then narrates the French strategic retreat, including the skirmishing and battles that continued across Spain. He closes with the Orders of Battle and Wellington’s dispatch for his great victory.
Salamanca Campaign is an excellent piece of battle history. Saunders writes well, keeping the narrative moving, but deftly steps back for the most part when required to allow the combatants to describe the action. That these are almost all English might be seen as a demerit, but that doesn’t detract from this account. The book is studded with clear maps, contemporary illustrations, and modern battlefield photographs. The numerous photographs of reenactors in Napoleonic uniforms are useful too, but the editorial decision to print them in monochrome is a severe disappointment. Nevertheless, this reviewer highly recommends this book for newcomers and those with a deeper interest in the Peninsular War campaigns.
by RNS | Oct 3, 2022 | Beating Tsundoku
Geoff Coughlin, McDonell Douglas F-4 Phantom (Pen & Sword, 2022)
‘You either love it, or you hate it’; so writes Geoff Coughlin about one of the most recognisable warplanes that ever saw combat. You can guess which side of the equation he is on in this lavishly illustrated guide to the F-4 Phantom.
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Coughlin works his way through the design and development of the Phantom, including weapons and propulsion. The Navy and Marines snapped them up as the Vietnam War escalated, with the Navy in particular adopting bright, distinctive colour schemes as if to flaunt the power of the plane. The Royal Navy and RAF soon adopted the Phantom with some alterations. Other air forces that bought or received Phantoms included: Australia, Egypt, Germany, Greece, Iran, Israel, Japan, South Korea, Spain, and Turkey – Coughlin has photos of Phantoms from all of them. A section of graphic illustrations, showing camouflage and markings add to the excellent visual content. But the highlight of this book is the extended section on modelling Phantom kits. Coughlin is a modeller and highlights the plethora of Phantom kits on the market. He embarks on a trip through those different models, their positives, and their foibles. He is joined in this enterprise by other first-rate modellers and their spectacular finished kits.
Overall, this is a very attractive and informative survey of the Phantom F-4, and a useful addition to the Pen & Sword’s Flight Craft series. As a wee boy, I lived next to an RAF airfield, and I vividly remember the Phantoms roaring overhead on their way to intercept Soviet ‘Bears’. So, like Coughlin, I love Phantoms too! After reading his book, I might have to go out and buy a kit to build – I’m not sure I can cope with all the decals though!
by RNS | Sep 29, 2022 | Beating Tsundoku
Robert K Liu, Naval Ship Models of World War II in 1/1250 and 1/1200 Scales (Pen & Sword)
In his introduction to this fascinating book, Robert Liu writes: ‘In the end, there is simply nothing like the satisfaction of having completed a difficult enhancement or a scratch-built model.’ His book demonstrates why that is and how you can follow in his wake when making your own models.
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Liu begins with the production methods used for creating models, from die-cast to 3D printing, then the tools and techniques to enhance them – this includes a photograph of his ‘busy’ workbench that will have many modellers nodding their heads in recognition and approval. For the rest of the book, Liu embarks on a voyage through many different types of model ships and how to model them into accurate replicas: anti-aircraft ships. landing craft, submarines, destroyers, cruisers, carriers, battleships, Liberty ships, transports and convoy rescue craft among many others, and he adds Allied and Axis aircraft. Liu concludes with an informative glossary and a perhaps surprisingly lengthy bibliography.
Liu’s book is about as niche as it gets when it comes to subject matter, but it is still an engrossing read for modellers even if you have only a modicum of interest in wee model ships. Liu’s passion for his hobby shines through, and he sprinkles his text with autobiographical notes of a full and sometimes astonishing life. The book is also lavishly illustrated with photographs of model ships in all stages of production. Overall, this is an excellent homage to Liu’s craft and the ships he replicates.
by RNS | Sep 1, 2022 | Beating Tsundoku
Gabriele Esposito, The Macedonian Army of Philip II and Alexander the Great, 359-323BC (Pen & Sword, 2022)
This ambitious book undertakes to describe the development of the Macedonian army and its organization and equipment, through the reigns of Philip II and his son Alexander the Great.
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Esposito begins with a survey of Macedonia and its warlike neighbours who retarded its progress. Then along came Philip II in 359, just 23 years old but keen to establish Macedonia as a power. To do that, he needed to reform his military, which he managed through studying Greek reforms and introducing his own elements. Philip succeeded but was assassinated before he could appreciate the fruits of his efforts. That brought his son Alexander to centre stage. Esposito narrates the familiar story of Alexander’s ascendancy before describing his army that carried him into Persia and beyond and established his greatness. Esposito also describes the armies Alexander faced on his journey. He concludes with a study of Macedonian weapons and equipment.
As an introduction to the military history of the great era of Macedonia, this book works well enough. The text is functional, based on a thin bibliography constructed of Osprey books, Ancient Warfare magazine articles, and a selection of primary sources, though none are referenced within the text. What makes Esposito’s growing list of books on uniforms and equipment different is his use of photographs of reenactors rather than artwork to illustrate his text. I don’t think this quite works because it looks like they are wearing costumes – too clean, too ‘modern’ – rather than men in battle, but the reproduction weapons look more authentic. Wargamers and beginner students will find this book a useful starting point.
by RNS | Aug 29, 2022 | Beating Tsundoku
Jon Diamond, Burma Victory 1944-1945 (Pen & Sword, 2022)
The Burma front provided some of the most vicious combat in the whole of World War II, and it was often fought in the most inexplicable terrain imaginable. Burma Victory surveys the Allied fightback in 1944 after being pushed to the border of India just two years previously. It is a story told in words and photographs in the latest Pen & Sword Images of War series.
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Diamond establishes the background to 1944’s Allied offensive with an overview of the Far East theatre and the different plans on either side. Along the way, we meet many of the major players in the fightback, including Stillwell, Slim, and Wingate. It is the latter’s command of Operation Thursday and Stillwell’s assault on Myitkyina that Diamond describes next. These involved the famous Chindits and Merrill’s Marauders, but also the local Kachin forces whose help for the Allies proved crucial. Diamond pauses his narrative to take a closer look at the commanders on both sides and their armies. We get back on track with the incredible Allied defence of Imphal and Kohima from March 1944, where the Japanese came within the width of a tennis court from breaching the Allied lines but fell back in disarray. From then on, the Japanese retreat gained momentum with the Allies in hot pursuit. Diamond returns to American operations south of Myitkyina and the building of the famous Ledo (Stillwell) Road, linking Burma to China, before signing off with poignant photographs of graves and Allied officers awaiting their Japanese counterparts to surrender their forces in Burma.
For an Images of War book to succeed, it must illuminate and inform visually and through its text. Burma Victory does that more than satisfactorily. Diamond’s text doesn’t set the heather on fire, but it is functional and tells the story well. The selection of photographs also does its job, highlighting the problems the Allies faced from the weather and terrain as much as the Japanese. We should also note the maps Diamond sprinkles throughout the text, which prove useful to follow what was quite often a complex campaign. The most significant aspect of this book, however, is Diamond’s willingness to emphasize the roles of the many different nations and cultures that fought the Japanese in Burma. Thus, we see photographs and read about Ghurkhas, Sikhs, Africans, and, of course, the Burmese in addition to the British and American soldiers. That alone makes this book stand out as a more than useful introduction to the latter half of the Burma campaign.
