Featured battle : Kimberly, The Relief of

Part of The 2nd Boer War (or Three Years War)

Date : 10 February 1900 - 15 February 1900

Lord Roberts, forced by Cecil Rhodes to relieve Kimberly as soon as possible, sent Lieutenant-General John French and his cavalry on a wide flanking march at great speed. They brushed aside any attempt by the Boers to prevent them approaching, and broke through the besieging troops to reach the town but Roberts' cavalry were spent by the effort. Many horses collapsed with exhaustion and of the 5,000 French began the march with, only 1,500 were fit for further duty 2 days after the relief.

Arras Counter-Attack 1940

Tim Saunders
By late May 1940 the German Panzer spearhead had reached the coast of France. This effectively cut off the British and French armies fighting in Belgium from the main body of France. The German extended lines of communication necessitated by the nature of Blitzkrieg were ripe for counter attack. Tim Saunders’s book is an account of the major attempt to cut the German lines of communication which took place around Arras.
The counter attack was hastily put together. A serious lack of command and control leading to a lack of coordination between infantry, armour and artillery resulted in chaos and failure. The German effective response was largely due to their superior communications net and Rommel’s grip in command. Within two days the Germans out numbered the British to the point where three British infantry brigades faced four Panzer divisions.
When the author first looked at this event writing it up in any coherent fashion must have seemed a daunting task. In making sense, for the reader, of chaos and confusion he has succeeded brilliantly. All through the book there many first-hand accounts and a large number of maps and photographs. The final chapter is an up to the minute guide to the battlefield.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book and recommend it highly.

Pen & Sword Military, 2018