SOUTH AFRICAN WAR HONOURS AND AWARDS 1899-1902 (10" x 7") 140 pages. Arms and Armour Press £ 3.25). This is a reprint of a book first published in 1902. The fact that Hayward and Hall are associated with this venture indicates that it is primarily aimed at those who are interested in medals and decorations. There is considerable satisfaction in finding a mention which confirms a decoration in which one is interested. Interest in the Boer War is growing and there is much in this book which throws light on the Units and men who took part - Units such as the South Australian Bushmen, Strathconals Horse, Umvoti Mounted Rifles and the County Regiments the actions which gained decorations for individuals. A table at the end of the book gives the casualties suffered by Units and the battles and operations in which the Units took part although these numbers do not agree with some of the regimental histories probably because of men serving away from their parent units in such units as the Mounted Infantry. Some advertisements are included and one tells us that sherry could be bought for 35s. per dozen bottles. A book to be bought by the numismatist who specialises in medals and decorations, and used as a reference book by the general reader in military history. HITLER AS MILITARY COMMANDER by John Strawson. (8 3/4" x 5 1/2") 256 Pages: 33 photographs: 7 maps. B.T.Batsford Ltd., 1971. £ 2.60. When first I received this book I could not arouse a great deal of interest in it because, having served in the British Army in World War II, I am of the school who rather regarded Hitler's military activities as a great joke. Then I read the admirable review of this book by Michael Howard in the Sunday Times which ends by saying "On the whole it must be admitted that Hitler did not do too badly. It did after all take the combined efforts of the three strongest powers in the world nearly four years to bring about his ultimate defeat." I also realised that John Strawson is a Major-General and was recently appointed Chief of Staff to SHAEF so he ought to know his military stuff. So I got down to reading it and found it very pleasant and rewarding. General Strawson takes the reader along from the earliest days of the Nazi party and outlines Hitler's incredible rise to power. He describes with the greatest detail the manner in which he, by sheer force of personality, overawed his generals until he was in supreme command of the German war machine. Like Winston Churchill, Hitler probably knew a bit too much about military matters for his own good but it did enable him to have an extraordinary grasp of operations, from the highest strategical viewpoint down to the siting of a machine-gun. Unhampered by orthodox military staff training so that the possibilities of defeat were not so apparent to him as they were to his more conventional commanders, Hitler chanced his arm, gambled and shrewdly assessed and weighed up the opposition so that the Wehrmacht, with its peerless combination of Panzer and Stuka, trampled over every opposition. Perhaps they lost because of Hitler's lack of military judgment, perhaps it was because of superior numbers or failing to take the fullest advantage of early successes -- read this book and find out for yourselves. NAPOLEON SURRENDERS by Gilbert Martineau - translated from the French by Frances Partridge. (8 3/4 x 5 1/2") 224 pages. John Murray, 1971. (Price not known). As opposed to most of the military books reviewed in the Newsletter, this one has not got a battle in it and finishes on the evening of June 18th 1815 with Napoleon fleeing from his last defeat at Waterloo. Nevertheless, it holds a great deal of compelling interest to the military collector and wargamer. In the minutest detail it tells of the events that followed Napoleon's last defeat, his surrender to the British, the way in which he was treated, the impressions of those who met him described by extracts from letters and diaries until on August 8th, 1815, the British warship "Northumberland" started on his last journey to St. Helena. One would think there was nothing left to be written about Napoleon but this a well written book on an interesting and hitherto rather neglected period of his life. REGULATIONS 1846 (8 3/4 X 5 1/2") 160 pages: 36 full page plates. Arms and Armour Press. £ 3.25). This new book is the second in the series of Arms and Armour Press reprints of the official Dress regulations and it is based upon the official Dress Regulations for Officers 1846 to which has been added a valuable commentary by W.Y. Carman F.S., F.R.Hist.S. Its illustrations are contemporary Ackerman prints which are from the collection of MIr. Carman. In the years that followed the Napoleonic wars the resplendent uniforms of the British Army underwent major changes and in a period when action was seen by the British Army in India, South Africa and New Zealand, this book portrays the uniform of the British Army at the beginning of the Crimean War. Its prints encompass Guard and Line cavalry and infantry of the period while its text details the dress, down to the smallest button, of them all. Not only a vital book for the man who wishes to paint 54mm figures accurately but also a mine of information for the writer, student of military history and indeed a source of interest to us all. INDIAN CAVALRY REGIMENTS 1880-1914 by A.H.Bowling. (8 1/4 x 6"), 72 pages. 114 uniforms shown in colour, two other colour plates, 24 groups of line drawings, detail views and many contemporary photographs. Almark Publications. (£ 1.25 - paper cover: £ 1.75 - hard cover with dust jacket.) There is perhaps no more colourful set of uniforms since Napoleonic times than those of the Indian Cavalry Regiments and with the aid of this book no one has any excuse for not having units of them in all their glory as part of his wargames army. The author has gathered together a very interesting collection of old photographs which, together with the numerous line drawings and the 114 little men -- all on parade in their correct uniforms, make this book extremely good value for the money. SOVIET COMBAT TANKS 1939-1945 by Peter Chamberlain and Chris Ellis. (8 1/4 x 6") 74 pages with 4 pages of colour illustrations, more than 120 photographs and line drawings. Almark Publications. (£ 1.00 - paper cover: £ 1.50 - hard cover.) The tank battles that took place in Russia in WWII far surpass any battles between armoured formations in the past or probably in the future. Together with the rest of the world, the Germans sadly underestimated the Soviet tanks (just as they did the Soviet military spirit) and for the modernist wargamer who, like the inimitable Lionel Tarr of Bristol, wishes to fight these much neglected battles in the snows or dust of the Russian Steppes, then this book will provide you with all the information for the Soviet armour just as other volumes by this prolific pair will tell you all about the German armour that faces it. SARATOGA 1777 by John Sweetman. (8 1/4, x 5 1/2"), 67 pages, 6 maps. Charles Knight and Co., Ltd. 90p. This and the book that follows are the first two of a series "Knight's Battles for Wargamers" introduced by Brigadier Peter Young, D.S.C., M.C., who writes a foreword to each book explaining how to reproduce actual battles on the wargames table. Other than that introduction there is nothing else in the book that mention$ wargaming although the book itself is a very clear and concise description of Burgoyne's disastrous expedition against the American Colonies. Undoubtedly this series (which is going to include Minden 1759 and First Bull Run 1861 among others) will be of interest to wargamers and will give them a very clear idea of the battle they are trying to reproduce. I would like to have seen more about wargaming inserted in the actual text of the book as each event or series of events is unfolded. BORODINO 1812 by E.R. Holmes. (8 1/4 x 5 1/2") 69 pages, 4 maps. Charles Knight and Co., Ltd. 90p. Identical in its style and format to the book reviewed above and including the same introduction by Brigadier Peter Young, this very reasonably priced little book describes in the greatest detail the great battle that rocked Napoleon on his heels during his Russian campaign of 1812. It also includes a very useful Order of Battle of La Grande Armee and also the Russian Army. On reading it one cannot help but feel what a wonderful conflict this would make on a huge wargames table with thousands of figures and about ten men aside manipulating them! Back to Table of Contents -- Wargamer's Newsletter # 112 To Wargamer's Newsletter List of Issues To MagWeb Master Magazine List © Copyright 1971 by Donald Featherstone. This article appears in MagWeb.com (Magazine Web) on the Internet World Wide Web. Other articles from military history and related magazines are available at http://www.magweb.com