by Donald Featherstone. (8 3/4" x 5 1/4"; 240 pages; 8 pages of photographs; numerous charts. Stanley Paul - £ 5.50p). This is the fourth volume in the series that began with warfare in the year 3000 BC and has now fought its way up to 1945. Although not the most popular of wargaming periods, the years covered by this volume are most significant in that the shape of warfare, armies, tactics and equipment underwent radical and revolutionary changes. The book attempts to advise on the accurate reproduction and simulation of these changed methods of warfare which saw the comparative demise of cavalry and the introduction of armoured and aerial warfare. Beginning with sections on the Classification of Commanders and the Fighting Assessment of the Armies concerned, the book discusses the diminished role of cavalry and then proceeds to the complex subject of formulating rules to cover the highly diverse period from 1861 to 1945. During those years, the major conflicts that are described in the book, were the American Civil War; the struggle for Italian Unification; the Rise of Prussia; the Franco-Prussian War; the Russo-Turkish War; the Rise of Japan; the Spanish-American War; the Boer War; World War One; the Spanish Civil War and World War Two. The book in no way attempts to be a history of warfare but rather it is meant to inform and advise while stimulating interest in the tactical aspects of warfare and aiding in its authentic reconstruction on the wargames table. The period under review is too vast to allow historical descriptions of the battles themselves and rather than describing the progress of wars and campaigns the text restricts itself to discussing the simulation of tactical aspects by giving details down to unit level rather than providing vast and abstract strategical concepts. Oddly enough, as the author found whilst writing the book and it is hoped that the reader will detect, as lie proceeds through its pages, the tactical aspects of warfare from 1861 up to about 1915 bore remarkable basic similarities. The appendices include the availability of model soldiers and the bibliography not only lists major and in-print books for each of the conflicts considered but also relevant articles in magazines and journals. Now, all that remains to complete the series is a volume on sieges and another on Colonial wars! More Book Reviews Handbook for Colonial Wargamers The Cavalry The Battle of Blenheim Oared Fighting Ships Wargames Through the Ages Vol. 4 1861-1945 Before Endeavors Fade: A Guide to the Battlefields of the First World War With the Boers in the Transvaal and Orange Free State 1880-81 Back to Table of Contents -- Wargamer's Newsletter # 175 To Wargamer's Newsletter List of Issues To MagWeb Master Magazine List © Copyright 1976 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