DOC Nile River Gunboats 1882–1918 (New Vanguard) by Angus Konstam in History

Review

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful. Gunboats in the attack...By HMS WarspiteA young Winston Churchill's "The River War" helped immortalize the British military thrust up the Nile River into Sudan; there to retake the city of Khartoum from Mahdi rebels. The part played by British gunboats on the Nile campaign has been rather underpublicized. That fault is remedied in this Osprey New Vanguard Series book; "Nile River Gunboats 1882-1918"; by Angus Konstam; with illustrations by Peter Dennis.The first British gunboats on the upper Nile were actually improvised by General Gordon during the Siege of Khartoum in 1882. They were underpowered river steamers; outfitted with weapons and wooden timbers for protection. General Kitchener's deliberate campaign into the Sudan in 1896 drew on purpose-built and much more capable vessels. The narrative sets the strategic situation in the Sudan and spends the bulk of the book describing the gunboats and how they were modified and operated. The concluding chapters cover their actual combat operations.This is a fascinating book; a concise but very interesting look at the gunboats and their multi-national crews. The author provides some nice first person accounts to add detail to the photographs; illustrations; and diagrams which describe the various classes of gunboats. Well done; and highly recommended to students of the conflict and the era of British colonialism in northeast Africa.2 of 2 people found the following review helpful. Lovely little bookBy wjcAn excellent survey; great illustrations. Despite its small size (which can't be helped with Osprey books and most readers should know what to expect); Konstam goes above and beyond to thoroughly research the topic and write as complete a book as most of us will need.0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Five StarsBy RAYMOND C. CLAYthank you