Book Review:

Camp Topographies
of the Campaign of 1757
in Westphalia

By Neil Cogswell


[Editor's Note: The subject book is an English translation by Jim Mitchell of the work written by the Sr. Du Bois. It is published by Old Battlefields Press of 5 E 600N., Valparaiso, Indiana 46383, USA.. The price per book is $25 plus $3 shipping and handling , $5 overseas surface mail]

Jim Mitchell is to be complimented on bringing back into print this valuable record of the operations of the French army in Westphalia during 1757. Spiral bound in card covers, the book includes 58 pages of text; 57 maps, and one order of battle. Jim has taken care to present the text in a pleasing 18th century print format to complement the style that he has adopted; this gives the work some of the aesthetic appeal of the original. The maps, including some folding, are clean photocopies of the original engravings and are easily readable.

The maps make this book an excellent buy. How often can you buy more than 50 high-quality reproductions for only $25? The great majorily of these maps depict encampment sites of the French army and its detachments. I was especially delighted to find so many maps detailing the operations that took place after Hastenbeck and into the winter; throuogh these, I have gained a much clearer appreciation of that stage of the campaign than is available from the standard histories.

The text is a splendid extra bonus. It appears that this is based largely on the journal kept by Du Bois. As such, it includes considerable detail of small actions and reconnaisances rather than the strategic picture, which is readily available in the standard texts. The inclemency of the weather and the problems of supply, and how these factors influenced operations can be easily followed.

First published in 1700 whilst the outcome of the war was still in doubt, this account lets us see the campaign from the perspective of one who was there. This record allows us to sense what really was important to the man on the ground at the time.


Back to Seven Years War Asso. Journal Vol. IX No. 2 Table of Contents
© Copyright 1996 by James E. Purky

This article appears in MagWeb (Magazine Web) on the Internet World Wide Web.
Other military history articles and gaming articles are available at http://www.magweb.com