by James P. Lawford. (8 3/4" x 5 1/2"; 402 pages; 50 black/white illustration l3 maps and plans. Geo. Allan and Unwin - £8.95p). Colonel Lawford is an old friend of mine, a wargamer and a subscriber to this magazine - even if he was not all those things I would still give this book the fine review it deserves! There can be little that is more colourful, stimulating and glorious in the pages of British history than the manner in which this small country took over and ruled the vast sprawling sub-Continent of India. The majority of wargamers and militarist tend to get into the act when we were established or, at worst, in 1857 when our hold became slightly tenuous. But what went before is perhaps even more stimulating - the early days of the 19th century when Wellesley was building the foundations of a great career at Assaye and Seringapatam and before that, when such larger-than-life figures as Robert Clive and Warren Hastings were laying foundations for what was to be the brightest jewel in the Queen Empress's Crown. This book is a well written, carefully considered and very full account of a period sadly neglected by wargamers and yet which, in its blend of Colonial and 18th century style warfare involving the British, the French and Native troops has as much to offer as almost any other period. Indeed, one of my greatest ambitions is to re-fight the Battle of Plassey - surely one of those actions which no standard set of wargames rules would allow to end as it did! My ideas on the subject are more than a little advanced and it may not be long before the means of authentically re-fighting such unbalanced actions are burst upon the wargames world! At infrequent intervals, History throws up men like Robert Clive and it may not be entirely chauvinistic to claim that frequently they are British! Displaying a curious blend of the indomitable, the confident and with a supreme belief in himself, Clive possessed many fascinating nuances and quirks of character which obstinately refused to fit into a pattern - suffice to say that his courageous resourcefulness made him the man for the hour. This book is a very erudite and authoritive history work and must, surely be the definitive work on Clive - but it does seem a little expensive! More Book Reviews German Uniforms of WWII Medieval Warfare Clive: Proconsul of India Osprey: Zulu, Landsknechts, Napoleon's Dragoons and Lancers, and Mexican American War 1846-48 Back to Table of Contents -- Wargamer's Newsletter # 171 To Wargamer's Newsletter List of Issues To MagWeb Master Magazine List © Copyright 1976 by Donald Featherstone. This article appears in MagWeb (Magazine Web) on the Internet World Wide Web. Other articles from military history and related magazines are available at http://www.magweb.com