The
Battleground Europe series of guide books will
be familiar to many reading this review. One
can hardly fail to be aware of them, due to
their ready availability and the fact that
there are dozens of different titles. Written
in the main by individuals with a particular
interest in an area of the battlefields, the
series has also gone into guides to places
relating to airmen and poets. In recent times
two works looking at the ground from a German
perspective have been added to the series.
Each work follows a common
pattern. There is a general introduction to
touring a given battlefield, a set
of suggested routes and detailed commentary
on the actions that took place there. In my
experience the books in the series vary considerably
in the quality of information, but given the
broad range of authorship and that many of
the authors are not professional or even previously
published amateurs, this is perhaps to be expected.
The Affair
at Nery is similar in concept to all that have
gone before in the series. It is in the familiar
format and it appears to be the spearhead of
another tranche of such works as it is subcaptioned
"Early Battles 1914" .
The events at Nery on 1 September 1914 may not
be familiar to all and in the grand scheme of the
Great War it is a miniscule, untypical and rather
romantic affair. 1st Cavalry Brigade settled for
the night of 31 August / 1 September in and around
the ancient village during the retreat from Mons.
By dawn they had been discovered by the 4th German
Cavalry Division, which deployed to attack. Coming
under a surprise artillery bombardment and repeated
efforts to close on them, the cavalrymen managed
to organise a stout defence and eventually the
much larger German force withdrew. The actions
of L Battery of the Royal Horse Artillery were
such that three men were awarded the Victoria Cross
and the battery has been officially titled L (Nery)
Battery ever since.
Nery is a remote village and well worth a visit.
There is plenty to see, although it is perhaps
a visit of an hour or two rather than a full day
on its own unless you plan to walk the ground.
This guide book will be of considerable value in
helping understand the action when you are there
and is a good read even from your armchair. It
is well illustrated and has some excellent maps.
I have never heard of the author, Patrick Takle,
before and there are no notes to tell me who he
is. As far as I can tell this is his first published
work and well done to him.
One gripe. I have always believed the books in
this series to be on the expensive side. This is
the first one I have seen at a cover price of £12.99,
which pushes the boundary even further. The good
news is that you can almost always find them discounted
to a more reasonable price.
More
book reviews |
|