What I am reading, and other thoughts

So I am still reading Townshend's My Campaign, and I am kicking myself that I didn't read it earlier. Every book I have read up to this point, with few exceptions, looks at the surrender of Kut from the position of the relieving forces, or from a micro-view of a combatant within Kut.  Townshend's view is unique, and I am really enjoying it (albeit he is somewhat of self-aggrandizer--if that is a word). More to follow.

What I am reading

While I am still waiting on a number of books to arrive in the mail, I picked up my copy of Maj General Townshend's My Campaign in Mesopotamia.  Not sure why I have never read it, despite having had it sitting on my shelves for the last five or so years.
Interesting so far, with Townshend already pointing the finger at Gen Nixon and others, and I think I have only gotten to the point where he is preparing for his first attack north of Basra.  Good details so far. Look forward to getting to the rest. 
Also received in the mail Glimpses of India, which is an annotated bibliography of memoirs written by Englishmen living in colonial India. More to follow!

New catalogue, random musings

Received my long-anticipated catalogue from Turner Donovan today, here is the link if you are interested:  http://www.turnerdonovan.com/currentCatalogue.aspx?mv=1&sn=5&bc=&subSection=0

Finished reading Rebecca West's Return of the Soldier last night.  Interesting perspective, and a lot different than a lot of the other post-war depictions of "what next" following wounded soldiers returning from the war. I suppose as read today, people might be more attuned to the "upstairs-downstairs" aspect of the book. Overall, not too overwhelmed by what is considered to be a classic. Just didn't grab me as much as I thought it would.

Still waiting for a number of books in the mail...will keep you posted!

New Acquisitions

Purchased a couple of books online this week. The first is an annotated bibliography of Englishmen in colonial India, entitled Glimpses of India. Am hoping to discover some obscure memoirs by British officers who served in Mesopotamia. The second book is Captured at Kut, Prisoner of the Turks: The Great War Diaries of Colonel W. C. Spackman.  Spackman served as a medical officer and was captured after Kut fell. Looking forward to receiving both in the mail shortly. Still havent received my 4-vol set by Moberly...maybe they will all show up this week!

Book Review: Out on a Wing by Sir Miles Thomas

I bought this book for the sole purpose of covering Thomas' experience in WWI, and I am glad that I did. Although brief, it gives some first hand accounting for some very lightly covered area as far as memoirs go. Thomas started out as a driver in an armored car squadron in East Africa, working with Rolls-Royce armored cars, Napier transport vehicles and Model T Fords. Aside from some anecdotal observations of living conditions, and more importantly, how these modern mechanized vehicles worked (or not) in the muddy conditions of East Africa, there is little more to glean from his service in East Africa. After a somewhat brief tour in East Africa, Thomas transferred to Egypt, where he received a commission in the Royal Flying Corps, and ultimately became an instructor pilot at Heliopolis on a variety of types of aircraft.
After his tour at Heliopolis, Thomas was assigned to No. 72 Squadron, then en route to Mesopotamia. Thomas arrived in Mesopotamia well after the fall and subsequent recapture of Kut. Having arrived before No. 72 Sq arrived, he was temporarily detailed to No. 63 Sq at Samara, where he served on 1 Apr 1918, the official formation date of the Royal Air Force. Thomas describes the typical activities associated with the squadrons at the time: scout detail for two-seat bombers, and his attempts (mostly unsuccessful) of trying to get the enemy to engage, as well as reconnaissance duty. Ultimately, Thomas was detailed as the personal pilot to Colonel (later Sir) A. T. Wilson, the Political Officer of Mesopotamia under Sir Percy Cox. Later he was detailed to support Dunsterforce. Before his departure after the conclusion of the armistice, Thomas was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross. Altogether a very anecdotal accounting, but some interesting details not found elsewhere

What I am reading

Well just finished Aubrey Herbert's book, and now am looking at Sir Miles Thomas' Out on a Wing.  I probably will not read the entire book, since only a couple of chapters deal with his WWI experience, the remainder covering his time in business. However, it should be interesting. He first served with a transportation unit (motorcycles, Rolls Royce armored vehicles) in East Africa, and at some point transitioned to the Royal Flying Corps, winding up in Mesopotamia. Will provide more details as I get to them.

Mons, Anzac and Kut: A Review

Aubrey Herbert's book is just one from my collection that I had not read for quite some time. Extraordinary accounting of his negotiations alongside T.E. Lawrence during the surrender of the British Division at Kut in 1916.

Herbert had a somewhat unique experience during WWI. First served at Mons where he was injured and sent out of theater. Following his recovery, he was sent to the Dardanelles where he served as an interpreter and de facto intelligence officer, based on his knowledge of Turkish. Lastly he served in Mesopotamia, arriving on the eve of the capitulation of Kut, where he (along with Lawrence and others) served in the negotiating party looking to secure the beleaguered British division's release.
The book is unique in many aspects. While the prose leaves something to be desired, his diary covers a lot of the horror(s) of each front, particularly with his coverage of the Dardanelles campaign, where his peers, and fellow soldiers were shot all around him, and he lived to tell the tale.
What I found most interesting, while others such as Lengel did not, was his albeit brief narrative of his time in Mesopotamia. He served along with T.E. Lawrence and Col Beach as the negotiators with the Turks over Gen Townshend's division, holed up at Kut. There is very little that has been written about the negotiations surrounding the ultimate unconditional surrender of British forces at Kut, and Herbert has given us a unique perspective.
Some of the people that Herbert ran across during his brief time in Mesopotamia read like a who's who of the campaign: aside from all of the senior military officers of that time, he met Lt Col Leachman and Gertrude Bell, both who played an important behind the scenes role in the Mesopotamian Campaign. Additionally, he spent a great deal of time with CAPT Nunn, who headed British Naval forces in Mesopotamia.
A great quick read; and like many of the other books written at the time in Mesopotamia, ending quite abruptly.

Would welcome anyone's thoughts on the subject.

Mesopotamian Bibliography

It is always exciting to come across something new after you have been looking at the same data for quite some time. Today I ran across a title I had not seen before, and never new about the Mesopotamian connection. The book is Christopher Summerhayes: Soldier, Levant Consul & Diplomat.  Summerhayes apparently served in France, then to Meso where he also supported Dunsterforce. So he essentially covered the gamut of the campaign. I dont know much more about him, and will try to obtain the book myself. Anyone know anything more about this individual with regards to his World War I service?

Mesopotamian Campaign bibliography

As I have mentioned before, I am still working on my annotated bibliography of the Mesopotamian Campaign. I have been working on this since at least 2003 (on again off again), but have put a reemphasis on getting it done. With that, I have been reviewing my reviews of some fairly obscure books, which I will post here shortly. So stay tuned....

Western Front, Gallipoli, then Mesopotamia

As I mentioned earlier, still reading Aubrey Herbert's Mons, Anzac and Kut.  Not exactly the best narrative, yet the story itself is somewhat intriguing. Wounded at Mons, then wounded again at Gallipoli...interested to see what happens next.

Still waiting for my package from the UK with Moberly's Campaign in Mesopotamia. Have been looking for a complete set for some time. Will keep the blog posted on its arrival. Will post some pictures soon of some of my postcards from the Mesopotamian Campaign...unusual to say the least.

Book Review: Operations in Persia, 1914-1918

I know I have been offering a link to my reviews via LibraryThing, but thought I would also include it within the blog so you know what I am/have been reading as of late. Having just finished this, am now reading Aubrey Herbert's Mons, Anzac and Kut.


When it comes to official histories, F. J. Moberly's coverage of some of the "forgotten fronts" stand out as some of the best, and Operations in Persia is no different. Moberly is more commonly associated with his Campaign in Mesopotamia (1923-1927, 4 vols). However the tangential operations in Persia were linked in many different ways to the campaign then being waged in Mesopotamia. This detailed volume is the most detailed accounting published on the campaign by far, surpassing those rare first hand accounts (see L.C. Dunsterville's The Adventure of Dunsterforce or Martin H. Donohoe's With the Persian Expedition accounting for a first-hand view of the operations). Originally printed in a limited run of 500 copies in 1929, most of which marked either secret or confidential, many of the originals were destroyed, so coming across an original would be quite the find, but this is the more commonly accessible copy printed in 1987.
Moberly does a great job of covering the disparate facets of the operations in Persia, since for the majority of the war, they were directed from various quarters, but under the overarching cognizance of London and India. Great details on Sir Percy Sykes' South Persia Rifles, Dunsterville's move towards the Causcasus, and some very good detais on the campaign in Eastern Persia under Dyer and Malleson.
Moberly also has good source documents covering the German's attempt to raise the banner of jihad in Persia, or at least at best rally the tribes to agitate against the English and the very weak governments that governed somewhat ineffectively from Tehran. His coverage of Wassmuss and Niedermayer's (et al) exploits is as good as it gets, albeit probably not as engaging a read as it has been recounted by Peter Hopkirk.
Not exactly bed-time reading due to the very detailed coverage of the campaign, but nonetheless a great recounting of a forgotten aspect of WWI

New acquisition

Just acquired F.J.Moberly's 4-volume set on the Campaign in Mesopotamia (the original H.M.S.O-published in the 1920s)...eagerly awaiting its arrival.  In case I haven't mentioned it yet, am currently working on an annotated bibliography of the Mesopotamian Campaign. Hope to publish soon. Any comments/suggestions welcome!

Not dead yet

As you can see, my other occupations have kept me from doing anything with the blog. Am looking to find a place where collectors of antiquarian military books might start a forum for themselves. Cant seem to find another on the web, so am offering this as an alternative. Any takers?