THE BATTLES FOR CASSINO by E.D.Smith. (84" x 61"; 192 pages; 21 pictures, 9 maps. Ian Allan Ltd - £3.50p). The noted British military historian General Fuller wrote of the Italian campaign - "Strategically it was the most senseless campaign in the War". This I am inclined to agree with but as a proud member of the 8th Army who slogged their way up that remorseless Peninsular, I am conscious that every soldier who fought in Italy, be he British, German, Austrian, American, Canadian, Polish, Indian or French, Gurkha, etc., etc., - could not have tried harder had it been the most vital of World War II's campaigns. Cassino was an anachronism in that it was a battle of the First World War fought with the weapons of the Second. A naturally strong position defended by resolute and battlehardened troops, Cassino held up the Allied armies for nearly six months and yet it is arguable that the Cassino defences could have been out-flanked and made it all unnecessary. Brigadier E.D.Smith (who took part in the battles as a young officer in the Gurkhas)discusses thi and many other vital points in a lucid and highly readable manner. His "personality" assessments of the commanders of both sides show great discernment and go a long way towards establishing comprehension of what went on and why. The book begins with the Allies coming up to Cassino in late 1943 and ends in May 1944 when the road was open to Rome. On one map I was delighted to see my own Regiment, the 51st Royal Tanks, marked ::'as. in: support of the 3rd Canadian Infantry Brigade in breaking through the Hitler Line, the last of the Cassino defences. They were memorable days made bearable by the gooc humour and comradeship of those around one - it has been most pleasurable to read this book and, in a small way, recapture something of that far off time when a sense of duty was the norm and universal sacrifices a daily occurrence. There are many occasions and instances in the Battle for Cassino that lend themselves to wargaming particularly individual skirmishes as patrols creep through the shattered streets of the town. In fact, just such a patrol action at Cassino has been described in my book SKIRMISH WARGAMING to be shortly published by Patrick Stephens. First read this very excellent book by Brigadier Smith to get the feel of things and then set up your table-top terrain! AIRFIX MAGAZINE ANNUAL No. 5 For Modellers edited by Bruce Quarrie. (94" x 72"; 96 pages, 118 photographs and 91 drawings. Patrick Stephens Ltd £ 1.95p). Time goes so quickly that we have yet another Airfix Annual with us and, as always, it is well pt together and contains a great deal of interest to modellers. The wargamer does not come off quite so well and has to be content with instructions for modelling in 1:76 scale of the Russian T28 tank the "land battleship". Also by Gerald Scarborough are illustrated details of making an interesting vintage World War I Vickers Gun-Bus and Daimler lorry which would embellish any World War I wargames set up. From the wargaming point of view, perhaps the most interesting thing in the book is Terry Wise's "Fortified Harbour Complex" for Second World War wargames" - well illustrated, this is a very attractive piece of terrain suitable for amphibious operations, made from readily available plastic items without much scratch-building. Taking up a whole table-top this model is very stimulating and indicat a whole host of other similar table-top terrains. WORLD WAR TWO FACT FILES (102" x 8"; 64 pages; 2 or 3 photographs on each page. Macdonald and Janes - £ 1.20p). This is a new series of highly detailed information files on various weapons of World War II, written by that ubiquitous and knowledgeable pair Peter Chamberlain and Terry Gander. The first four are as follows - INFANTRY, MOUNTAIN AND AIRBORNE GUNS. Packed with photographs of some little known weapons which will delight the World War II wargamer looking for unusual equipment as this Fact File contains a full listing of many little known infantry guns and howitzers. The Germans, Italians, Japanese and Russian favoured infantry guns and used them extensively. Mountain guns are always interesting compact, light weight little weapons while airborne guns are very much a product of World War II. LIGHT AND MEDIUM FIELD ARTILLERY. Containing innumerable photographs of the many types of light and medium artillery pieces used by the major combatants, with calibres ranging from 75mm to 105mm besides many elderly relics of World War I. The main offensive and defensive power of any army is invested in its light and medium artillery which are the backbone of any modern force and the wargamer MUST give considerable attention to the range of weapons described in this File if his armies are to be accurate. ANTI-AIRCRAFT GUNS. Perhaps the most interesting aspect of this book so far as the wargamer is concerned is the information given on the German 88mm anti-aircraft gun, used so effectively in a ground role during World War II. However, the File is packed with interesting details and photographs of the anti-aircraft guns of all nations used in World War II. MORTARS AND ROCKETS. World War II saw the re-emergence.of the rocket as a weapon of war and soldiers of many nations will recall the devastating effects of the German Nebelwerfer, the Russian Katyuscha and the various American and Japanese rockets. Again, if your armies are to be accurate then they should be equipped with this particular type of armament. From Squadron/Signal Publications (English agents Hersants Bookshop, London) come two more of their AIRCRAFT SERIES No. 21 the B.24 Liberator in Action and No. 22 the A.7 Corsair II in Action. acked as usual with fascinating and hitherto unpublished photographs, both of these books make compelling reading for the aircraft enthusiast and even if, like me, you know nothing about it, then hey still are compelling viewing. The London Publishers Charles Knight and Company Limited are discontinuing to publish and stock their range of military books, their remaining stocks being offered at reduced prices to readers of WARGAMER'S NEWSLETTER. Everything they have put out has been lively and of great value to the waramer and readers are urged to take advantage of this offer. Among their titles are a series by Lt. Colonel Frank Wilson with a descriptive text by Arthur Kipling on Uniforms of the British Army such is the colourful "UNIFORMS WORN DURING 1740-1760" which is a 60 page book packed with coloured paintngs and black and white line drawings plus the fullest details of uniforms of the combatants during he War of the Austrian Succession and the Seven Years' War. In similar style is "UNIFORMS OF IARLBOROUGH'S WARS" and "UNIFORMS OF THE PENINSULAR WAR". Knight's "BATTLES FOR WARGAMERS" is a aeries well known to us and have proved very valuable to the wargamer. Each title provides a detailed iccount of a famous battle, a description of the events leading up to it, the stages of the battle, letails of the terrain, the troops and the commanders besides being well illustrated by maps. The series covers the following - Poitiers 1356; Oudenarde 1708; Dettingen 1743; Minden 1759, Saratoga 1777; Borodino 1812; Vitoria 1813; The Alma 1854; First Bull Run 1861 and Chancellorsville 1863. Publishers Macdonald and Jane's who put out the Fact Files mentioned above have a fine new list if Naval, Aviation and Military books and the reader is recommended to send for it. The military section includes some fine new titles such as "Guderian Panzer General" by Kenneth Macksey; "Assaultin Norway" by Thomas Gallagher; "Gunboats on the Great River" by Gregory Haines;."The Siege of LadySmith" edited by Gerald Sharp, etc., etc. Blandford Press Limited of Link House, West Street, Poole, Dorset BH15 ILL, have put out an interesting Autumn List which includes the following - "Army Badges of World War II, Book 2"(Rosignoli); 'Uniforms of the American Civil War" (Haythornthwaite); "Fighters in Service" (Munson) (revised edition); "Bombers in Service" (Munson) (revised edition); "Tanks and Other Armoured Fighting Vehicles 1942-45" (White) and "Naval, Marine and Air Force Uniforms of World War II" (Mollo). These books will to reviewed in Wargamer's Newsletter in due course. Back to Table of Contents -- Wargamer's Newsletter # 163 To Wargamer's Newsletter List of Issues To MagWeb Master Magazine List © Copyright 1975 by Donald Featherstone. 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