A Couple of Welcome Additions

It has been a very busy weekend for a number of reasons, mostly associated with the usual domestic round. I was able to make a fleeting visit to the Works in Basildon. I was very glad I did as I picked up a couple of very welcome additions to the library. These are both hardback editions and cost a mere £3.99 each which is a positive steal and no mistake!

The first - A Tidy Little War by William Wright covered the British invasion of Egypt in 1882 and includes the bombardment of Alexandria and the battle of Tel El Kebir together with all the associated background covering the invasion etc. The campaign was not nearly as 'tidy' as the title might suggest and certainly the Egyptian gunners earned universal praise during the bombardment of Alexandria. Of course, given my interest in anything remotely exotic and Middle Eastern this is a campaign I will study with relish - especially from the Egyptian perspective!

The second is no less than the memoirs of Lord Jellicoe of Scapa - he of Jutland fame and 'the only man could lose the war in an afternoon'. These were first published in 1919 and are called, appropriately, The Grand Fleet 1914 to 1916 during which time the Grand Fleet was under his command. I have a number of gaps in my WW1 naval library but this is one that I am really pleased to have acquired. I have a hankering to tackle the Jutland campaign using models at some point in my war games career and who knows? If my rules work out OK and if I get the fleets then it would make a great project to undertake.