W Whittall

With Botha and Smuts in Africa: No 1 Squadron of the Royal Naval Armoured Car Division W Whittall

Armoured cars in the African bush

The subject of this book will need little by way of explanation to recommend it to interested readers. First, it concerns the First World War in Africa as it was fought between the respective British and German colonies in the west and east of the continent. While the focus of the Great War was on the Western Front, these 'sideshow' campaigns have an irresistible allure for students of the period due to the exotic nature of their terrain and circumstances. Second, the book was written by the commander of a distinctive and unusual unit, No 1 Squadron of the Royal Naval Armoured Car Division. The activities of early armoured car squadrons, which saw good service in those theatres where fluidity of manoeuvre was still possible, has remained of particular interest to military history students of the period in part because many of the vehicles were the magnificent Rolls-Royce armoured cars which have become iconic. This is an invaluable first hand account by an eyewitness-connected to those who directed pivotal events-who was in a position to understand the broader picture. Recommended in every way.
Leonaur editions are newly typeset and are not facsimiles; each title is available in softcover and hardback with dustjacket; our hardbacks are cloth bound and feature gold foil lettering on their spines and fabric head and tail bands.