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Tuesday 11 August 2020

An Illustrated Encyclopedia of Uniforms of World War I

My wife and I recently celebrated our thirty-eighth wedding anniversary (it has no name as such, and is one where the traditional gift is an example of a Beryl gemstone), and (as usual) my wife was stumped as to what to buy me.

I had recently bought a copy of AN ILLUSTRATED ENCYCLOPEDIA OF UNIFORMS OF WORLD WAR II: AN EXPERT GUIDE TO THE UNIFORMS OF BRITAIN, AMERICA, GERMANY, USSR AND JAPAN, TOGETHER WITH OTHER AXIS AND ALLIED FORCES, and Amazon had recommended that I might like to buy some of the other books in the series. I mentioned this to my wife ... and low and behold, copies of AN ILLUSTRATED ENCYCLOPEDIA OF UNIFORMS OF WORLD WAR I: AN EXPERT GUIDE TO THE UNIFORMS OF BRITAIN, FRANCE, RUSSIA, AMERICA, GERMAN, AND AUSTRIA-HUNGARY, WITH ADDITIONAL DETAIL ON THE ARMIES OF PORTUGAL, BELGIUM, ITALY, SERBIA, THE OTTOMANS, JAPAN, AND MORE and AN ILLUSTRATED ENCYCLOPEDIA OF UNIFORMS OF THE NAPOLEONIC WARS: AN EXPERT, IN-DEPTH REFERENCE TO THE OFFICERS AND SOLDIERS OF THE REVOLUTIONARY AND NAPOLEONIC PERIOD, 1792-1815 were presented to me as my anniversary present. I will review the second book separately.


AN ILLUSTRATED ENCYCLOPEDIA OF UNIFORMS OF WORLD WAR I: AN EXPERT GUIDE TO THE UNIFORMS OF BRITAIN, FRANCE, RUSSIA, AMERICA, GERMAN, AND AUSTRIA-HUNGARY, WITH ADDITIONAL DETAIL ON THE ARMIES OF PORTUGAL, BELGIUM, ITALY, SERBIA, THE OTTOMANS, JAPAN, AND MORE is split into seven chapters, each of which is divided in several sections:
  • Introduction
    • The Political Arena of 1914
    • The War's Origins
    • The World Reacts
    • The Global View
    • Manpower and Conscription
    • Weapons and New Technology
    • The Uniforms
    • The Campaigns
    • Aftermath and Peace
  • Great Britain
    • The British Army
    • Generals and Staff
    • Guards
    • The Western Front
    • Infantry Other Theatres
    • Cavalry
    • Yeomanry
    • Aviation
    • Artillery
    • Technical Troops
    • Troops from Canada and Newfoundland
    • Troops from Australia and New Zealand
    • African Troops
    • The Indian Army
  • France
    • The French Army in 1914
    • Wartime Developments
    • Generals and Staff
    • Infantry
    • Chasseurs and Mountain Troops
    • Foreign Troops
    • Colonial Troops
    • Cavalry
    • Artillery
    • Technical Troops
    • Flying Troops
  • Russia
    • The Russian Empire in 1914
    • The Russian Army
    • Generals and Staff
    • Imperial Guard
    • Elite Infantry
    • Infantry
    • Cavalry
    • Cossacks and Native Cavalry
    • Artillery
    • Technical Troops
    • The Russian Civil War: Red Armies
    • The Russian Civil War: White Armies
  • America and Other Allies
    • The USA Enters the War
    • Allied Armies
    • US Infantry
    • US Marines
    • US Technical Troops
    • Portugal
    • Belgium
    • Italy
    • Serbia and Montenegro
    • Romania
    • Greece
    • Japan
  • Germany
    • A Military Staff
    • Prussia and the German States
    • Wartime Developments
    • Generals and Staff
    • Guards
    • Infantry
    • Colonial Uniforms
    • Jages and Mountain Troops
    • Stormtroopers
    • Landwehr
    • Cavalry
    • Artillery
    • Technical Troops
  • Austria-Hungary and Germany's Other Allies
    • The Hapsburg Monarchy
    • Austro-Hungarian Generals and Staff
    • Austro-Hungarian Infantry
    • Austro-Hungarian Cavalry
    • Austro-Hungarian Landwehr and Honved
    • Austro-Hungarian Technical Troops
    • The Ottoman Empire
    • Bulgaria
The book also contains a glossary and an index, and is 256 pages long. It is easy to forget that the uniforms worn by the belligerents were not all drab in colour, and that small amounts of colour were used by most armies to help identify particular units.

For anyone who might be interested, I gave my wife a Pandora bracelet and some charms that I knew that she wanted.

AN ILLUSTRATED ENCYCLOPEDIA OF UNIFORMS OF WORLD WAR I: AN EXPERT GUIDE TO THE UNIFORMS OF BRITAIN, FRANCE, RUSSIA, AMERICA, GERMAN, AND AUSTRIA-HUNGARY, WITH ADDITIONAL DETAIL ON THE ARMIES OF PORTUGAL, BELGIUM, ITALY, SERBIA, THE OTTOMANS, JAPAN, AND MORE was written by Jonathan North and published in 2017 by Lorenz Books (ISBN 978 0 7548 2340 7).

4 comments:

  1. Hi Bob,
    The WW1 Encyclopedia from Sue is a very appropriate present for you Bob- lots to absorb as your index list is rather extensive.
    Congratulations once again on your Anniversary. The 'Pandora Bracelet and Charms' sounds a perfect gift for Sue- well chosen Bob. Cheers. KEV.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Kev Robertson (Kev),

      It is an excellent reference book for the price ... and there is more to come!

      The bracelet was very well received, and has been added to Sue’s collection of Pandora jewellery.

      Thanks again for your best wishes.

      All the best,

      Bob

      Delete
  2. Good afternoon Bob,
    I am not sure if this message gets through to you - i have great difficulty computing - all very confusing. Anyway i am an ex-pat wargamer here in Munich of your generation-met all the oldies in the past Tony Bath, Don Featherstone, Charles Grant and others. I have just finished developing a set of rules for the mid 18th century for use on a gridded board. Took me over 10 years to develop-lthough they are only 4 pages. That was my aim - short, concise and playable. I would very
    much like to send you a copy and have your opinion. But do not have an your email address to do this. If you are interested i would welcome a reply. Kind regards Alister

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Alister Sharman,

      Thanks for getting in contact with me from Munich. The number of us who can say they actually met the wargaming ‘greats’ is dwindling year on year. In fact, not long ago, I met a wargamer in their 30s who had no idea who I was talking about when I mentioned some of the golden oldies!

      I’d love to see your rules, and I have attempted to send you my email address. If this does not work, please contact me at the following email address ... just miss out the * I have added: bob*the*temple*builder*@*gmail.com .

      All the best,

      Bob

      Delete

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