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British Military History for Dummies‰ 01_032138 ffirs.qxp 2/28/07 7:35 PM Page i British Military History FOR DUMmIES‰ by Bryan Perrett 01_032138 ffirs.qxp 2/28/07 7:35 PM Page i 01_032138 ffirs.qxp 2/28/07 7:35 PM Page i British Military History FOR DUMmIES‰ by Bryan Perrett 01_032138 ffirs.qxp 2/28/07 7:35 PM Page ii British Military History For Dummies® Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd The Atrium Southern Gate Chichester West Sussex PO19 8SQ England E-mail (for orders and customer service enquires): [email protected] Visit our Home Page on www.wiley.com Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd, Chichester, West Sussex, England Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd, Chichester, West Sussex All Rights Reserved. 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For general information on our other products and services, please contact our Customer Care Department within the U.S. at 800-762-2974, outside the U.S. at 317-572-3993, or fax 317-572-4002. For technical support, please visit www.wiley.com/techsupport. Wiley also publishes its books in a variety of electronic formats. Some content that appears in print may not be available in electronic books. British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data: A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library ISBN: 978-0-470-03213-8 Printed and bound in Great Britain by Bell & Bain Ltd, Glasgow 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 01_032138 ffirs.qxp 2/28/07 7:35 PM Page iii About the Author Bryan Perrett was educated at Liverpool College. He served for nineteen years in Regular and Territorial Regiments of the Royal Armoured Corps before deciding to take up the pen professionally. His numerous books include Seize and Hold, a study of the coup de main, and Iron Fist, containing case studies of classic armoured engagements, which was selected by the Royal United Services Institute for Defence Studies for its book option. His more recent works include The Real Hornblower, a biography of Admiral Sir James Gordon, believed to be the officer upon whom C.S. Forester based his immortal character Horatio Hornblower, and For Valour: Victoria Cross and Medal of Honor Battles. During the Falklands and First Gulf Wars he served as Defence Correspondent to the Liverpool Echo. Dedication To my wife Anne for her astonishing patience while I worked my way through 2000 years of military history. 01_032138 ffirs.qxp 2/28/07 7:35 PM Page iv Publisher’s Acknowledgements We’re proud of this book; please send us your comments through our Dummies online registration form located at www.dummies.com/register/. Some of the people who helped bring this book to market include the following: Acquisitions, Editorial, and Composition Services Media Development Project Coordinator: Jennifer Theriot Special Projects Coordinator: Daniel Mersey Layout and Graphics: Carl Byers, Project Editor: Simon Bell Brooke Graczyk, Stephanie Jumper, Content Editor: Steve Edwards Erin Zeltner Development Editors: Sally Lansdell, Special Art: Daniel Mersey Proofreader: Laura Albert, Dwight Ramsey Commissioning Editor: Alison Yates Indexer: Aptara Technical Editor: Michael Rayner Special Help Executive Editor: Jason Dunne Brand Reviewer: Rev Mengle Executive Project Editor: Martin Tribe Cover Photos: Cromwell: © Time Life Pictures/ Getty Images; Marlborough: © Getty Images; Wellington: © Mary Evans Picture Library; Roberts: © Getty Images; Victoria Cross: © Peter Russell/The Military Picture Library; Kitchener: © Time Life Pictures/Getty Images; Tank: © Mary Evans Picture Library; First World War soldiers: © Getty Images; Montgomery: © Getty Images; Second World War soldiers: © F4689/Imperial War Museum; Blues and Royals: © Grant Faint/ Getty Images; Iraq: © Getty Images Cartoons: Rich Tennant (www.the5thwave.com) Publishing and Editorial for Consumer Dummies Diane Graves Steele, Vice President and Publisher, Consumer Dummies Joyce Pepple, Acquisitions Director, Consumer Dummies Kristin A. Cocks, Product Development Director, Consumer Dummies Michael Spring, Vice President and Publisher, Travel Kelly Regan, Editorial Director, Travel Publishing for Technology Dummies Andy Cummings, Vice President and Publisher, Dummies Technology/General User Composition Services Gerry Fahey, Vice President of Production Services Debbie Stailey, Director of Composition Services 02_032138 ftoc.qxp 2/28/07 7:23 PM Page v Contents at a Glance Introduction .................................................................1 Part I: Ancient and Medieval Warfare............................7 Chapter 1: Small Islands with Lots of Clout ....................................................................9 Chapter 2: Swords, Sandals, and Geometry: The Romans..........................................15 Chapter 3: Arthur, Alfred, and Aethelstan: The Dark Ages .........................................29 Chapter 4: The Hard Knight’s Day: The Norman Conquest and Medieval Period ...39 Part II: The Arrival of Gunpowder ................................57 Chapter 5: With Pike and Shot: Renaissance Warfare..................................................59 Chapter 6: Hearties versus Gloomies: The Civil Wars .................................................69 Chapter 7: Founding a Regular Army: The Late Seventeenth Century......................81 Part III: Wars of Succession, Independence, and Revolution ...........................................................91 Chapter 8: O’er the Hills and Far Away: Marlborough Country and Beyond............93 Chapter 9: Risings and Rebellions: Jacobites and Americans ..................................117 Chapter 10: Revolting Frenchmen, The Grand Old Duke, and Boney: The French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars....................................................133 Chapter 11: Wellington Boots the French Out: The Peninsula to Waterloo............143 Part IV: Nineteenth-Century Wars..............................171 Chapter 12: Britain’s Little Wars: Imperial Expansion ...............................................173 Chapter 13: Helping Turkey Fight the Bear: The Crimean War.................................187 Chapter 14: Rebels, Rajahs, and a Rani: The Indian Mutiny .....................................203 Chapter 15: Home and Away: Reorganisation, Re-Equipment, and More Trouble in India ..........................................................................................223 Chapter 16: Boots, Boots, Boots, Boots: Marchin’ Over Africa ................................239 Part V: The First World War.......................................267 Chapter 17: ‘Hangin’ On the Old Barbed Wire’: The Western Front, 1914–1917.....269 Chapter 18: Storm Troopers and Tank Attacks: The Western Front, 1918..............287 Chapter 19: Turkey With All the Trimmings: The Middle East and Beyond, 1914–1918..................................................................297 02_032138 ftoc.qxp 2/28/07 7:23 PM Page vi Part VI: The Second World War (and Beyond)............319 Chapter 20: Phoney War, Panzers, and Miracles: The Outbreak of the Second World War ...................................................................321 Chapter 21: Sun, Sand, Sea, and
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