★★★★★ 5
Glorious book on Man's (unfortunate) wars with himself
Format: Hardcover
If you have any interest in the subject matter, buy this book, it is fantastic.
Many beautiful paintings and maps, some on full pages.
One comment. In various parts of this book it has something called "Directory," which is just paragraphs on events that the writer did not see deserving a full page in the book.
On page 42 we have "Directory: Before 1000 CE," and included is a paragraph on "Teutoburg Forest, Roman-Germanic Wars, 9 CE" The paragraph ends with: "Although there were subsequent expeditions to Germany, the Roman frontier became fixed at the Rhine (River)."
Surely, this is one of the greatest battles and results in European history and should have had a full two pages in this book instead of just a short paragraph. See the Battle of the Teutoburg Forest, 9 CE.
Another short fall of this book is no mention of Boudica, who in AD 60 0r 61, was defeated by the Romans (commander- Suetonius Paullinus), who went on to "rule" England and Wales to about AD 410. This is my review of Graham Webster's book "Boudica: The British revolt against Rome in AD 60:
Lucid, well written on Boudica, queen of the East Anglian kingdom of the Iceni tribe, and much more. Sixteen pages of black and white photographs.
Contents (all of these Chapter headings have sub-headings)1. Sources
2. The Opposing Forces and the State of Britain 54 B.C.
3. Britain between the Invasions 54 B.C.-A.D. 43
4. The Conquest of A.D. 43
5. The Storm Breaks A.D. 60
6. The Evidence from the Ground
7. The Trail of Destruction
Epilogue
References
Bibliography
Glossary of Latin Terms and Words
Index
24 Plates
8 Maps and Diagrams
The Epilogue, a timeless piece of writing, should be read by everyone, young and old. The last sentence of the book in the Epilogue reads:
"They may help us to see more clearly what is happening in the world today, and even help us prevent some of the worst excesses of human folly and greed for power, which brings incalculable misery and suffering to the innocent majority."
Re: Boudica and the final battle with Suetonius Paullinus and the approximately 12,000 men under his command and Boudica's warriors, which could have been as great as 100,000, page 99, (but could be less);
we apply
"O2S4 MEC:"
Objective (Simplicity);
Offensive, Sprit of;
Superiority at Point of Contact (Economy of Force);
Surprise (Security);
Security (Surprise);
Simplicity (Objective);
Movement (Mobility);
Economy of Force (Superiority at Point of Contact);
Cooperation (Unity of Command)
On pages 98-99 in the book we have Fig. 5-, (if this is indeed the place of the final battle took place) "The battle between Boudica and Paullinus in its possible Mancetter context," it is clear that Paullinus had chosen the place of the battle and his position to force Boudica's warriors to a frontal attack and thereby creating "Superiority at Point of Contact." And this is probably what happened, as Boudica's warriors attacked and were funneled into the Roman Legion "buzz saw" due to their "simple" frontal attack.
From Fig. 5 again, it is clear that there was forest behind Paullinus and his men and the River Anker in front of them. I do not know if it would have possible to attack Paullinus from the rear by going through the forest. However, again from Fig. 5, it is apparent that Boudica's warriors probably could have attacked Paullinus from the right and left flanks (even though the Roman cavalry was on both flanks), creating a three pronged attack, negating some of the Roman's "Superiority at Point of Contact." It is clear that Boudica lost "Cooperation (Unity of Command)," or never had it in the first place, leading to the rout by Paullinus' much smaller force over a much larger force and the fate of Britain for about the next 400 years.
The Roman brutality that caused this uprising and Boudica's, and her warriors response, are part of history. Paullius' (whatever you think of him), choice of the battlefield was tactically brilliant, and no one, including Boudica, could match it on the field of battle that day.
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Reviewed in the United States on April 15, 2019
