Pages

Friday, 20 March 2026

Quintin Barry's history of the Russo-Turkish War

As a follow up to reading Quintin Barry's two-volume history of the Franco-Prussian War, I have been reading his history nof the Russo-Turkish War, WAR IN THE EAST: A MILITARY HISTORY OF THE RUSSO-TURKISH WAR 1877-78.

The book covers the fighting that took place in the Balkans and the Caucasus, and includes:

  • The Battle of Simnitza.
  • The Battles of Shipka Pass.
  • The Siege of Plevna and the battles around the city.
  • The Battle of Kızıl Tepe.
  • The Battle of Erzurum.
  • The Battle of Kars.
  • The Battle of Tashkessen.
  • The Battle of Sofia.
  • The Battle of Philippopolis.

I really enjoyed reading this book and I may well move on to re-read Boris Akunin's Erast Fandorin book set during the war, TURKISH GAMBIT.


WAR IN THE EAST: A MILITARY HISTORY OF THE RUSSO-TURKISH WAR 1877-78​ was written by Quintin Barry and published in paperback format in 2024 by Helion & Company (ISBN 978 1 8045 1730 7).

8 comments:

  1. I just recently finished reading this book. It is very good.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Mark Cordone,

      Reading it has certainly given me quite a few ideas for future campaigns.

      All the best,

      Bob

      Delete
    2. Ali Pasha is definitely a character I plan on using for inspiration.

      Delete
    3. Mark Cordone,

      The war certainly threw up some interesting characters on both sides.

      All the best,

      Bob

      Delete
  2. Hi Bob,

    It is a cracking book and gave me a really great game!

    All the best,

    DC

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. David Crook,

      Reading it has encouraged me to re-read Boris Akunin’s spy novel based on the war. I will also be watching the video of the book which has some excellent battle scenes.

      All the best,

      Bob

      Delete
  3. I first heard of Plevna / distantly remember reading a Donald Featherstone (?) article in Miniature Wargames (?) or Mil Mod (?) about Plevna, civilians in wargames and defenders throwing boulders down at attackers …

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Mark, Man of TIN,

      Now that you mention it, I seem to recall that article but not who wrote it or where it was published.

      All the best,

      Bob

      Delete

Thank you for leaving a comment. Please note that any comments that are spam or contain phishing messages or that come from Google Accounts that are 'Unknown' will be deleted.