Victoria'S Harvest: The Irish Soldier in the Zulu War of 1879

Description

The tradition of Irish soldiers in the British Army can be traced back many hundreds of years. Henry V at Agincourt faced a superior French army with his small band of brothers that included in their ranks a unit of Irish hoblairs. This force of light cavalry, some 1,500 strong, had left the port of Cork under the command of Thomas Butler, Prior of Kilmainham, and served with the King throughout his campaign in France. By the time of Agincourt the numbers remaining would have been much less, but contributed to an Irish presence nonetheless. The inclusion of Irish soldiers in the Army continued unabated into reign of Queen Victoria and the General Army Return of 1880 notes the following breakdown of soldiers by place of birth: English 69.7%, Scottish 8%, Irish 20.9% and 'others' as 1.3%. The Welsh would appear to be included in the English total. Again this is by place of birth and does not include men born outside Ireland or on foreign stations of Irish parents, nor can it include those who for various reasons lied about their place of birth, a not infrequent occurrence. This book tells the story of some of the Irish men who served as soldiers in Queen Victoria's Army, before, during and after the Zulu War of 1879. Men who fought not necessarily for a queen or a country, but most often for their regiment; a regiment that had seen numerous fellow Irishmen and often preceding family members serve in its ranks. This book is not about the Zulu War of 1879 per se, enough has already been written on that account. It is the story of some of those Irishmen who volunteered for service in Queen Victoria's Army and found themselves involved in not only the greatest defeat of the British soldier at the hands of a native enemy, but some remarkable victories. In his book`The Road To Kabul, The Second Afghan War, 1878-1881', Brian Robson writes, "Above all, it seemed curious to me that, while there are books in profusion on such relatively unimportant campaigns as the Zulu War, there is very little indeed on the very much more important subject of the Second Afghan War". In this he is correct, on the world stage the Zulu War contributed little if anything. However, for those who were there, careers were made and ruined, heroes were found and cowards unearthed.

John Young was born in London in 1956. He has Irish roots on both the maternal and paternal sides of his family. He was educated in Blackheath and north-west London. A visit to the cinema in 1964 sparked his passion in the Zulu War. A passion which he has maintained throughout his adult life. During that time he has contributed to a number of works on the Zulu War. His first experience of writing on the subject was in Soldiers of the Queen - the journal of the Victorian Military Society in which he served as an officer of the society, before being elected as the chairman of Anglo-Zulu War Research in 1991. The society was re-launched as the Anglo-Zulu War Royal Research Trust in which John is only officer of the trust who is not a member of the Zulu Royal House. His previous book on the Zulu War was They Fell Like Stones: the Battles and Casualties of the Zulu War, 1879, published in 1991. As well as this he has written a number of articles on the Zulu War which have been published in various journals and online. He is married with two adult sons. David Truesdale retired in 1998 and since then has produced seven books on military history as well as writing for films and television and producing battlefield guides. For relaxation he paints in watercolours following the Kelly and Moffett schools of innovation, photographs wildlife' listens to good music, drinks red wine and finds that Tommaso Albinoni (1671-17450) and his Oboe Concerto in D Minor, Op.9, No.2, has been an inspiration during difficult times in any manuscript. David Truesdale opted for early retirement in 1998 and since then has written for films and television and produced two battlefield guides on behalf of the Royal Irish Fusiliers Museum - "The First Eagle: the 87th Foot at the Battle of Barrosa" and "Regulars by God! The 89th Foot at the Battle of Lundy's Lane". He is the author of "Brotherhood of the Cauldron: Irishmen in the 1st Airborne Division at Arnhem", "Angels and Heroes, the story of a machine gunner with the Royal Irish Fusiliers August 1914 to April 1915" (with Amanda Moreno), "Irish Winners of the Victoria Cross" (with Richard Doherty), "Leading The Way To Arnhem, a history of the 21st Independent Parachute Company" (with Peter Gijbels), "Arnhem Their Final Battle, the 11th Parachute Battalion 1943/44" (with Gerrit Pijpers). With David Orr he has written "The Rifles are There: 1st & 2nd Battalions The Royal Ulster Rifles in the Second World War" and "A New Battlefield; The Royal Ulster Rifles in Korea". They are currently in collaboration on a history of the Ulster Volunteer Force and 36th Ulster Division, 1913-1919. For relaxation he paints in watercolours following the Kelly school of innovation, photographs wildlife, listens to good music, drinks red wine and finds that Tomaso Albinoni (1671-1751) and his Oboe Concerto in D Minor, Op.9, No2, has been an inspiration during difficult times in any manuscript.

Featured in MHM's round-up of the best military history titles for October 2016. * Military History Monthly *