Book News

From Dave Watson comes word that the publication of the new book "Ottoman Warfare" by Rhoads Murphy, UCL Press (1-85728-389-9 PB) has been delayed, but should still be out by this Fall. He says from the advanced proofs that he's seen he expects it to become the definitive work on the subject. He has promised to do a review for us when it arrives.

In the meantime, he sends us this review of "Ottoman Military Administration in 18th C. Bosnia" by Michael Hickok (Brill 1997, ISBN 9004-10689-8,190p). This book covers the relationship between the Ottoman government in Istanbul, the Bosnian governors, local troops and the Bosnian population. Two chapters cover the frontier defences and structure of the 'militia.' By this period they were mainly used to garrison fortifications and the 1737 siege of Banja Luka is highlighted. The second chapter shows how the troops were organised and financed and the degree of central control over appointments and promotions. The final chapter tells 'Three Stories' which illustrate the role of Ottoman govemors. There is a heavy reliance on primary Ottoman sources which provide a welcome counter to the usual nationalist historical bias. Unfortunately, the extraordinary cost for a book of this size ($82.50) will put it beyond the reach of the general reader.

New Color Plates

Robert Burke sends word that Uniformology has just added a line of Ottoman color plates. They now offer the entire set of 32 color plates from McLean's 18l5 booklet on the Ottoman Army. They have one sample plate on their web page and a listing of the entire set. The complete set is $69.95 plus $3 postage in the US. Check them out at their web site (www.uniformology.com) or email them at uniformolo@aol.com).

Robert writes, "I haven't seen any plates yet, but the guy I talked to on the phone said that they were of the highest quality. The plate they have on their web site looks pretty good to me."