In 1882, the British invaded Egypt in an audacious war that gave them control of the country, and the Suez Canal, for more than seventy years. In 'A Tidy Little War', William Wright gives the first full account of that hard-fought and hitherto neglected campaign, which was not nearly as 'tidy' as the British commander would later claim. Using unpublished documents and forgotten books, including the discovery of General Sir Garnet Wolseley's diaries, Wright highlights how the Egyptian War, climaxing in the dawn battle of Tel-el-Kebir, was altogether a close-run thing. These documents offer an intriguing perspective of the General's handling of the war and his relationship with his war staff. The war was the major combined services operation of the late Victorian era, it saw the Royal Navy sail into battle for the last time in its old glory and the book has the first full account of the Bombardment of Alexandria.

In 1882 the British invaded Egypt in an audacious war that gave them control of the country, and the Suez Canal, for more than seventy years. William Wright gives the first full account of that hard-fought and hitherto neglected campaign, which was not nearly as 'tidy' as the British commander would later claim. Using unpublished documents and forgotten books, including the discovery of General Sir Garnet Wolseley's diaries, Wright highlights how the Egyptian War, climaxing in the dawn battle of Tel-el-Kebir was altogether a close-run thing. The major combined services operation of the late Victorian era also saw the Royal Navy sail into battle for the last time in its old glory and the book has the first full account of the Bombardment of Alexandria.

Field Marshal Lord Wolseley was an eminent Victorian, one of a handful of late nineteenth-century military men whose reputation transcends his age. He served the British empire in Burma, India, China, the Crimea, Canada, Asante, Egypt, South Africa and the Sudan. He excelled as a regimental soldier, staff officer, army commander and reformer and eventually commander-in-chief. Yet there has been no substantial work on Wolseley for a generation and a reassessment based upon a fresh look at the man and his achievements is long overdue. That is why Stephen Manning’s perceptive military biography, which sets Wolseley firmly in the context of his period and seeks to strip away the legend that developed during his lifetime, is so timely and important. Each of Wolseley’s campaigns is examined in vivid detail and there are graphic descriptions of the major battles in which he took part, either as an officer or a general. His performance as a commander, from his great success during the expedition against the Asante to his failure to rescue Gordon from Khartoum, is critically assessed to see if he deserves his brilliant reputation. His efforts as an army reformer are examined too, in particular whether he could have done more to prepare Britain for war against the Boers. Stephen Manning’s incisive account of Wolseley’s career will be fascinating reading for anyone who is interested in the British army in the nineteenth century, in colonial warfare and in the exploits of one of Queen Victoria’s most admired generals.

The regular Mounted Infantry was one of the most important innovations of the late Victorian and Edwardian British Army. Rather than fight on horseback in the traditional manner of cavalry, they used horses primarily to move swiftly about the battlefield, where they would then dismount and fight on foot, thus anticipating the development of mechanised infantry tactics during the twentieth century. Yet despite this apparent foresight, the mounted infantry concept was abandoned by the British Army in 1913, just at the point when it may have made the transition from a colonial to a continental force as part of the British Expeditionary Force. Exploring the historical background to the Mounted Infantry, this book untangles the debates that raged in the army, Parliament and the press between its advocates and the supporters of the established cavalry. With its origins in the extemporised mounted detachments raised during times of crisis from infantry battalions on overseas imperial garrison duties, Dr Winrow reveals how the Mounted Infantry model, unique among European armies, evolved into a formalised and apparently highly successful organisation of non-cavalry mounted troops. He then analyses why the Mounted Infantry concept fell out of favour just eleven years after its apogee during the South African Anglo-Boer War of 1899-1902. As such the book will be of interest not only to historians of the nineteenth-century British army, but also those tracing the development of modern military doctrine and tactics, to which the Mounted Infantry provided successful - if short lived - inspiration.

“Eric Wiberg's ability, to unearth obscure historical facts, keeps me in a constant state of surprise. I commend his relentless determination to verify every detail, with local sources in Nassau's historical community, for corroboration of his findings.”—Capt. Paul C. Aranha, author, THE ISLAND AIRMAN . . . AND HIS BAHAMA ISLANDS HOME. “Eric Wiberg has made a significant contribution to the bibliography of World War II history.” —J. Revell Carr, Santa Fe, N.M. This his book tells one more key part of the big story and is one more piece in the giant puzzle of the history of World War II. Its value for historians cannot be underestimated. Throughout the stories of the attacks by German and Italian submarines on Allied shipping in the water around the Bahamas and the Turks and Caicos, several consistent themes emerge in Wiberg’s thorough accounts. Prime among them is the heroism of the merchant mariners who time and again put themselves in danger as they performed the critical task of moving supplies, military and civilian, which were vital to ultimate victory. We read of numerous instances of sailors having their ships shot out from under them and then continuously going back to sea and having additional ships torpedoed and sunk. We can also recognize what we know today as Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), which was seldom recognized 75 years ago.

“SIEGE is a welcome find, the characters cleverly drawn . . . It is cynical, humorous, violent, and Byzantine. In other words., it admirably reflects the current world state of affairs.” —Baltimore Sun A PIECE OF THE ROCK Gibraltar-there's no way it can be taken, it's impregnable. Until a group of terrorists infiltrate the stronghold and take the 20,000 British subjects hostage. Freeing them becomes the job of the CIA's James Burlane and Ella Nidech. They get a lot of help they don't need and some they may not be able to do without: After all, as long as the apes remain on Gibraltar, the English will rule.... "Wonderfully entertaining" —St. Louis Post-Dispatch "Smooth and fast . . . Accomplished juggler that he is, Hoyt keeps everything in the air and in suspense to a slam-dunk finish!” —Seattle Times-Post-Intelligencer "Well written, delightful . . . shouldn't be missed. Enthusiastically recommended" —Library Journal "Pure fun from beginning to end!” —United Press International

The battle took place at Kerreri, 11km north of Omdurman in the Sudan. Kitchener commanded a force of 8,000 British regulars and a mixed force of 17,000 Sudanese and Egyptian soldiers. He arrayed his force in an arc around the village of Egeiga close to the bank of the Nile, where a gunboat flotilla waited in support, facing a wide, flat plain with hills rising to the left and right. The British and Egyptian cavalry were placed on either flank. Al-Taashi's followers, known as Ansar and sometimes referred to as Dervishes, numbered around 50,000, including some 3,000 cavalry. In a few hours and at a loss of less than 400 officers and men killed and wounded, the Anglo-Egyptian army defeated the 50,000 brave tribesmen who charged their enemy, regardless of the hail of Maxim bullets, many of them armed only with spears, swords and ancient chainmail armour.In concise detail, with orders of battle, maps and over fifty images, the author shows how Omdurman was a superb example of tactics in warfare. First-hand accounts from both sides help the reader to understand all the horrors and glory of that day including the famous charge of the 21st Lancers, often called the last great cavalry charge of the British Army. This was arguably the height of British Empire military dominance.