WELLINGTON IN INDIA by Jac Weller. (8 1/2 x 5 1/2", 338 pages; 49 photographs, 11 maps. London. £ 5.50 Any book by Jac Weller is an event and this one is particularly welcome as it rounds off the author's previous two masterpieces on Wellington by recounting in the most explicit detail his little known early military career in India. As with the two previous books, Mr. Weller has tramped around these Indian battlefields of nearly 180 years ago and his photographs of them greatly add to the value of the text. The appendices contain material that will be invaluable to the wargamer specialising in Colonial warfare, including Ordnance in India 1796-1805; Organisation and Tactics in India 1799-1308 (including infantry, cavalry, and both Regular and Irregular battalions in Native Armies. Perhaps because this period of Wellington's military career lacks the glamour of the Peninsula and the Waterloo campaign, I found this book not quite so appealing and enjoy to read as the previous pair. On the other hand, this might be due to the copious footnotes with which the author strives to encompass every fact, detail and possibility of the events under review. Though more eminent authorities such as Six Basil Liddell Hart, Brigadier Peter Young and David Chandler have all recorded their appreciation of Jac Weller as Wellington's military biographer, with some humility, I would like to add my own testimony to the effect that the world of military books would be a much less exciting place without those written by this intelligent, painstaking and enthusiastic American. BRITISH MILITARY LONGARMS 1815-1965. by D. W. Bailey. (8 3/4" x 5 3/4"; 79 pages; 79 photographs. Arms and Armour Press - £ 1.70. The fine photographs and detailed technical description of all the weapons under review make this a very valuable work of reference. But because there are no details of performences of the various muskets, rifles and carbines, it loses much of its value for the wargamer. Had this been done and reasons given for the supersession of each weapon as the years passed then what is a very fine technical book would have become extremely interesting reading matter for the non-specialist student of Victorian military affairs. RAILWAYS AND WAR BEFORE 1918 by D. Bishop and K. Davis. (7 1/2x 5 3/4"; 154 pages; 156 coloured illustrations. Blandford Press Limited - £ 1.50). Picturing and very fully describing engines and railway rolling-stock from the ACW to the end of World War I, this book bad the most stimulating effect on me. It set me thinking about armoured trains in Colonial warfare and such much neglected factors of war such as logistics -- in this case, the transport of guns and tanks by rail. This is well up to the standard of the Blandford colour series on mechonised warfare and railways of the world war, at the price, is a very good buy. FLYING WARTIME AIRCRAFT (8 x 5"; 193 pages; 16 illustrations and 10 line drawings in text. David and Charles £ 3.25). This is an unusual book and will be of particular interest to the air wargamer or students of military aviation. It consists of ATA Ferry pilots' handling notes for seven World War II aircraft - the Hawker Hurricane, the Bell Airacobra; the Hawker Typhoon, the de Havilland Mosquito, the Bristol Beaufighter, the Vickers Wellington and the Consolidated Liberator. As a non-mechanical minded man who finds the driving manual of his car to be almost incomprehensible, I found this book to be most impressive. if only because of the fascinating details of the ferrying of aircraft that was carried out during the war. NELSON THE COMMANDER by Geoffrey Bennett. (9" x 6"; 312 pages; 45 plates, Batsford - £ 3.90). The binding, layout and presentation is of the high standard expected from this publisher. When I first saw the book I was dismayed at the thought of yet another production dealing with Nelson when we have had so many recently. However, the auther has written an absorbing account of Nelson's standing in relation to his capabilities as a Commander of Men. The first part of the book gives a short account of his early life and an in~resting description of the ships, the weapons, the tactics and the non not only of the British fleet but also those of the other countries involved. Having drawn in ;he background the author then develops Nelson's life examining the events and people that would have affected his thinking and attitudes, and trying to find the secret of Nelson's hold over his fellow seamen and the public. Relevant information is used from other countries and his relations with those countries are brought out. The final chapter summarizes Nelson's standing as a Commander and shows how he has influenced the British Navy since his death. At the end of each chapter is a chronological summary of events covered by the chapter. These summaries help to relate the events of Nelson's life to those happening in other parts of the world. The illustrations are of high standard and the maps are adequate. This is a fine book, worthy for bookshelves of any Nelson fan. Back to Table of Contents -- Wargamer's Newsletter # 125 To Wargamer's Newsletter List of Issues To MagWeb Master Magazine List © Copyright 1972 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