Osprey Roundup

By John Prigent

Campaign 161, The Third Crusade 1191, Richard the Lionheart, Saladin and the struggle for Jerusalem, by David Nicolle, illustrated by Christa Hook, ISBN 1-84176-868-5, 96 pages

This is quite fascinating. It's a very full account of the origins of this crusade to relieve the beleaguered kingdoms of the Christian Middle East against renewed Moslem aggression, as well as of the campaign itself. The characters and motives of each side are analysed, and one has to admire the abilities of the Moslem troops who are sometimes wrongly dismissed as mere desert raiders who "somehow" managed to beat a "superior" Western army. The siege of Acre and the approach to and battle at Arsuf are very well described, together with that battle's aftermath. Excellent maps and birds'-eye-views make it easy to follow the narrative by checking "on the ground" what the opposing commanders might have seen of enemy movements. The colour plates are good too, and there's a great array of photographs of the terrain as well as of surviving items like wall paintings and artifacts.

Strongly recommended to anyone interested in the Crusades.

New Vanguard 117, Jeeps 1941-45,
by Steven J Zaloga, illustrated by Hugh Johnson, ISBN 1-84176-888-X, 48 pages

This is a very good brief account of the Jeep’s story. It begins with the US Army’s search for a lightweight motor vehicle in the early 1930s with some interesting prototypes and describes how in 1940, after the Bantam Company’s light passenger cars were tested as a possible solution the US Army opened competition for a light vehicle with 4X4 drive and military features. The first Jeep was the Bantam, but Willys and Ford also built prototypes that were tested beside the Bantam. The end result was a combination of desirable features from all three vehicles, though varying quite noticeably at first according to which maker built it. In fact it is quite surprising to discover how many Jeeps were built with early features such as the slatted grill. The differences are described here, so identification of the different early Jeeps in photographs is straightforward; later ones were much more uniform. All the variants are included, with as much detail as can be fitted into this short book: the amphibious Seep of course, and also the Jeeps with machine gun mounts or added armour, ultra-light Jeeps, rocket-firing Jeeps, tracked Jeeps, 6-wheeled Jeeps and even the flying Jeep or Rotabuggy with its autogyro rotor. The basics are here for all of them, and there’s an excellent bibliography for those wanting more detail. The selection of photographs even includes an ultralight Jeep with a motorcycle engine and no body shell. The colour plates are a bit disappointing, being rather “general” with only three of the nine vehicles shown displaying their markings for modellers’ benefit. Nevertheless this is a great introduction to the subject of Jeeps with as already mentioned a very good rundown on their genesis, development and variations.

Recommended.

Battle Orders 15, German Airborne Divisions: Mediterranean Theatre 1942-45, by Bruce Quarrie, ISBN 1-84176-828-6, 96 pages

This is Bruce Quarrie's last book, and a very good one. It deals not just with the German paratroop and air landing units but also with their Italian counterparts. The two fought together on many occasions so we get the full story of their campaigns. The Germans' combat mission, training, doctrine and command arrangements are revisited briefly since they were dealt with in the first volume of this set, only the changes being looked at in depth. Then there's a detailed look at 7 Flieger Division as it was reconstituted after the Crete casualties, with not only a very complete organisation table for it and its sub-units but also one for the famous Ramke Brigade that fought in North Africa. The text gives its full history, from the planned assault on Malta to the Ramke Brigade's air landing at Tobruk in August 1942 and subsequent adventures at El Alamein and in the ensuing retreat, and the Division's last combat drop in December 1942, aiming to attack communications and supplies behind Allied lines around Tebessa. All were quickly captured so the operation came to nothing. The next chapter deals with the Division after its reconstitution under the new title of 1 Fallschirmjaeger Division in May 1943 as well as with the newly-raised 2 and 4 Fallschirmjaeger Divisions. 1 Division fought on Sicily and Italy, 2 and 4 only in Italy. A full account of their actions at Cassino is here with the rest of their combat actions, and of course organisation tables. Then attention turns to the Italian units,185 Divisione Paracadutisti "Folgore", 194 "Nembo" and 183 "Ciclone". "Folgore" fought at El Alamein, and we get its full story, right from the beginnings of Italian airborne troops with an assault paratroop landing at the Piave River in October 1918 to the first "Folgore" Brigade in 1940, its increase to Divisional strength and all its combats. In November 1942 some parts of it formed the cadre for a new Division, "Nembo", and "Ciclone" was in process of formation at the Italian Armistice in September 1943. The sub-units that opted to fight with the Germans after the Armistice get their story is told too. There was also an SS airborne unit, SS-Fallschirmjaeger Battalion 500/600. It was formed in September 1943 and served on anti-partisan operations in the Balkans before moving to Germany for "special operations" such as Skorzeny's SS-Panzerbrigade 150 deceptions in the Ardennes. A short chapter on weapons and equipment includes interesting information about the special lightweight guns developed for airborne use. Finally there is a detailed analysis of German and Italian airborne unit actions at El Alamein, the Primosole Bridge in Sicily, Anzio, Cassino, and of course the Gran Sasso Raid to rescue Mussolini. Each is well described and shown by very good maps and the book has well-chosen photographs, even some rare colour shots of the preparations for the Gran Sasso Raid.

Highly recommended.

Elite 135, German Air Forces 1914-18, by Ian Sumner, illustrated by Graham Sumner, ISBN 1-84176-924-X, 64 pages

Here's a good read for WWI aircraft fans, covering the whole air service with reconnaissance, bomber, ground attack, balloon and Zeppelin crews as well as the fighter pilots of the Jastas. It also deals with anti-aircraft defences and naval aviation as well as with command arrangements. All their organisations are set out, as are training and tactics, so this is not a book only for figure or WWI aircraft modellers. The contemporary photographs are excellent, and the plates show a wide variety of air and ground crewmen. Yes, Manfred von Richthofen is among them, with a number of other identified individuals who are less well known, and all their clothing and uniforms are clearly described in the text and plate captions.

Highly recommended.