The Afghan Wars

[SWL]

Can anyone reccomend books that cover the First,Second and Third Afghan Wars.

Thank you in advance.

Regards.

[Ulsterman]

There was a nice paperback that came out @ 5 years ago entitled "Afghan Wars" that was good.

The complete HM Publishing reprint on the 1919 Afghan campaign was done @ 8 years ago and can be found cheap sometimes.

Helion publishing also has some good stuff.

Of course, there is also Flashman, which is also very good.

[helen]

Not what you're looking for, but Rudyard Kipling's poem, 'Arithmetic on the Frontier' is worth including in any reading of the Anglo-Afghan wars.

[paul wood]

Not what you're looking for, but Rudyard Kipling's poem, 'Arithmetic on the Frontier' is worth including in any reading of the Anglo-Afghan wars.

Brian Robson's book Crisis on the Frontier is a superb book for the 3rd Afghan and is also very good read as is his book on the 2nd which at the moment the title escapes me. For the 1st Flashman without doubt.

All the best,

Paul

[Mervyn Mitton]

The books listed are great for the historical perspective and for the political background - for the 'Blood and Thunder' ask your library to bring out of the archives, copies of the Illustrated London News for the dates of the different campaigns. The drawings are superb - shown as seen by the artist at the time and the write-ups always quite detailed.

The 2nd. Afghan War was taking place at the same time as the Zulu War and I have a number of copies of the ILN for 1879. This action scene of a cavalry charge was on the front page. I have another article and drawings of a terrible drowning incident involving the 10th. Hussars, where, I think it was 48 men died. Let me know if anyone would like it added ?

The caption is not very clear - it reads :

The Afghan War : Conflict of 1 st. Punjab Cavalry and the 15 th. Hussars with Afghan cavalry.

The British seem to be in the background, charging. I wondered how the man in the foreground came to be unseated - however, you can see a British 7 pounder firing on the hill and I think the shell has just gone off.

Edited November 16, 2009 by Mervyn Mitton

[SWL]

Many thanks Ulsterman Helion publishing have a fine selction of books on the Afghan wars. Helen is the poem that you refer to by Kipling, the one that cotains the lines "When you lay dying on Afghans plains and the women come to cut up your remains.......".I would have checked for myself but I have mislaid my copy of Barrack Room Ballads.

Paul I will try and get the book you suggested.

Many thaks to everyone.

[helen]

hi,

No, I don't think so - that must be another one!

'Arithmetic...' talks about how the expensive training and education bestowed upon British troops amounts to little when faced with guerilla warfare they can do little to cope with:

"A scrimmage in a Border Station --

A canter down some dark defile --

Two thousand pounds of education

Drops to a ten-rupee jezail --

The Crammer's boast, the Squadron's pride,

Shot like a rabbit in a hide!"

Helen

Edited November 18, 2009 by helen

[peter monahan]

Helen

The verse quoted is from "Arithmetic on the Frontier", by Rudyard Kipling. A very interesting poem in that, like a very few of his short stories and other poems, it suggests he had an opinion on the British in India that wasn't pure Jingoism. I used to know his stuff well and while much of it is 'fluff' and 'good yarns', some few works shows deeper sesibilities. A much underrated story tellers these days, largely because of his political views I believe.

"Tangent Alert": Monahan maundering agin!

The story "The Man Who Was" tells of a British officer, captured in the Crimea and more than half mad, who makes his way back to his regiment's post on the Nrth West Frontier. At one point Kipling describes how the regiment had formerly drunk the Queen's health "in broken glass", that is by hurling the glasses into the fire after the toast so they could not be sullied by use for anything post-toast. Does that make sense? Anyway, Kipling says something like - don't have my book in front of me either - "these days the only things broken are British promises". Surprisingly cynical for the man often touted as the bard of the Empire. Some of his Boer War poetry is surprisingly insightful on the topic of the waste in war too. And of course, he was a prime mover in the creation of the Commonwealth War graves Commission after his son was killed with the Irish Guards in WWI :off topic:

[peter monahan]

Mervyn Mitton wrote:

"for the 'Blood and Thunder' ask your library to bring out of the archives, copies of the Illustrated London News for the dates of the different campaigns. The drawings are superb - shown as seen by the artist at the time and the write-ups always quite detailed."

One of the few survivals from my collecting days is a lovely framed illustrationfrom the London Illustrated News of the death of Major Wigram Battaye - one of three brothers, all Indian Army officers, referred to as "the Fighting Battyes" - at the Battle of Futtehbad in April, 1879. The main illustration is a 'busy' scene like this one but accompanying it are the cameos, one of the original pencil sketch of Battye as he falls from his horse and the other a wonderful head and shoulders portrait of him in his dress uniform with turban. A lovely thing, which I 'stole' from a dealer beacuse no one else cared to buy it, and still cherish.

Edited November 18, 2009 by peter monahan

[Mervyn Mitton]

They say ' a picture is worth a thousand words ' - but no one wanted the 1oth Hussars tragedy, so I've wiped-it. However - since Peter understands the I.L.N. - this interesting funeral scene from the the 2nd. Afghan War, is for him....

Even in a war zone we did our ceremonial so well. The uniforms have good detail.