Osprey Roundup

Reviewed by John Prigent

Campaign 143, Caen 1944 Montgomery’s breakout attempt, by Ken Ford, illustrated by Peter Dennis,
ISBN 1-84176-625-9, 96 pages

The city of Caen was the British 3rd Infantry Division’s objective for D-Day, but this was over-optimistic and in fact the German resistance delayed its capture for over a month. Montgomery has often been criticised for the slow progress of the repeated attempts to take the city, but Ken Ford shows here just how difficult the terrain was for an attacker – long open slopes and steep hills make for a stiff defence. The text is very clear and readable, and the maps and bird’s-eye views make it easy to follow the course of the fighting. A good selection of wartime photographs are backed up by good colour plates, and modern photographs show just how open the ground was with little cover for the attackers. I certainly wouldn’t like to have been advancing against stiff opposition over that ground, and it’s not surprising when you see it that the attacks were beaten back so often. Recommended!

Warrior 85, American Colonial Ranger, The Northern Colonies 1724-64, by Gary Zaboly, illustrated by the author, ISBN 1-84176-949-6, 64 pages.

This is a very good book for anyone interested in the war between Britain and France in North America. The Rangers are legendary, particularly Roger’s Rangers, and here is how they were recruited and trained, how they lived and how they fought. The descriptions of their combats are particularly interesting. The author’s drawings and colour plates are accompanied by contemporary illustrations, and the whole ensemble gives a great impression of their appearance and weapons. Figure modellers will find a lot of inspiration – highly recommended.

Elite 115, Napoleon’s Imperial Headquarters (1) Organisation & Personnel, by Ronald Pawly, illustrated by Patrice Courcelle, ISBN 1-84176-793-X, 64 pages.

Napoleon’s staff wore a very colourful selection of uniforms that make popular modelling subjects, but if you’re anything like me you’ve sometimes wondered exactly what they all did. Wonder no more, it’s all set out here and so is how the Imperial Headquarters functioned both at base and on the move. The plates and illustrations show those fancy uniforms very well, so even if your interest is purely on the modelling side this book will be a worthwhile addition to your shelves. Recommended

Men-at-Arms 416, German Armies 1870-71 (1) Prussia, by Michael Solka, illustrated by Darko Pavlovic, ISBN 1-84176-754-9, 48 pages.

The Franco-Prussian War was one the less glorious chapters in France’s history, with only 8 months between France’s declaration of war and Prussia’s victory. This led to Prussian domination in Germany, and arguably contributed to the follies that led to World War I. Here you will find all the Prussian uniforms described and illustrated, making a very comprehensive reference for figure modellers and wargamers. Recommended to fans of 19th century wars.

Campaign 133, Seven Days Battles 1862, Lee’s Defense of Richmond, by Angus Konstam, illustrated by Stephen Walsh, ISBN 1-84176-682-8, 96 pages.

This is a great book for anyone interested in the War Between the States. If you’ve ever wondered why it wasn’t over much more quickly after First Bull Run and Shiloh, here are the reasons. Lee’s and McLellan’s tactics are compared and contrasted in this excellent text, with the whole course of the fighting described very clearly. Maps and bird’s-eye views show everything you could ask for about the progress of the battles, and the photographs, plates and old drawings give a very good impression of the ground and of the soldiers. Highly recommended.

New Vanguard 103, Confederate Submarine and Torpedo Vessels 1861-65, by Angus Konstam, illustrated by Tony Bryan, ISBN 1-84176-720-4, 48 pages.

Submarines? Torpedo boats? In 1861? Yes! Of course, the submarines didn’t always preserve their crews’ lives and “torpedo” meant something quite different from the high-speed, wire-guided underwater missiles we think of nowadays, but the machines did work successfully in combat even if not always. This is a fascinating read, and very well illustrated too. Very highly recommended even if you don’t usually bother with naval books.

Warrior 9, US Cavalryman 1891-1920, by Alexander M Bielakowski, illustrated by Raffaele Ruggeri, ISBN 1-84176- 677-1, 64 pages.

This is the era of the Roosevelt’s Rough Riders and the siege of Pekin rather than the Indian Wars, and the cavalry’s service uniforms had changed considerably from those of the mid-19th century. This book sets out the recruitment, training and service life of the troopers as well as their campaigns in the Spanish-American War, the Boxer Rebellion, The Philippines Insurrection, the Mexico Expedition and World War I. Clothing and equipment are well shown in photographs and the colour plates. Any former or serving cavalryman will find this record of his predecessors fascinating. Recommended!

Men-at-arms 415, The Waffen-SS (3) 11. to 23. Divisions, by Gordon Williamson, illustrated by Stephen Andrew, ISBN 1-84176-591-0, 48 pages.

Here we have the stories of the mid- and late-WW2-raised SS Divisions, including the foreign volunteers. Nordland and Hitler Jugend are included together with lesser-known units like Skanderbeg and Maria Theresa. Brief campaign histories are given for each, and despite the atrocities of Handschar (which are not glossed over) most of the others did have good fighting records without war crimes. Most of them did have panzers, StuGs and/or Hetzers and their uniforms and badges are shown by photographs as well as in the colour plates, so if you want to give your crews a slightly different appearance this will be a handy book to consult.

John Prigent