Monthly Archives: April 2010

Patrick Bishop. Bomber Boys: Fighting Back 1940-1945. London: Harper Perennial, 2008. I liked his Fighter Boys and have been meaning to pick this up; Martin Francis in The Flyer (which is also v.g.) gave them both big props and so that was a sufficient reminder.

H. G. Hartnett. Over the Top: A Digger's Story of the Western Front. Crows Nest: Allen & Unwin, 2009. Hartnett was an enlisted soldier of the 2nd Battalion AIF who fought from Pozières until the end of the First World War. He's also my first cousin, thrice removed, as it turns out. This is his memoir of the war, which was written in the early 1920s based on the diary he kept at the time.

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Ourselves and Germany

In the later 1930s, the 7th Marquess of Londonderry acquired the somewhat unkind nickname of the 'Londonderry Herr', a pun on the Londonderry Air (the tune to which 'Danny Boy' is usually set). This came about because he was thought to be rather too enthusiastic about the prospect of Anglo-German reconciliation. My impression is that he was a sincere but misguided philo-German, rather than a genuine fellow traveller of the right (although he was definitely too eager to excuse German anti-semitism).

But if Londonderry was somewhat misunderstood, he certainly didn't do himself any favours. Above is the cover of his defence of his activities and plea for appeasement of Nazi Germany, Ourselves and Germany (London: Robert Hale, 1938). Yes, that is the Nazi eagle dotted all over the cover, alongside the British lion:
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[Cross-posted at Cliopatria.]

460 Squadron RAAF, 8 December 1944

It's Anzac Day once again. On Anzac Day, Australia remembers some things but forgets others. We remember the sacrifices of the original Anzacs at Gallipoli, but forget that it wasn't only Australians who suffered. We remember the many thousands of young Australians who have fought in foreign wars since then, but forget to ask why they were there. We remember that war can bring out the best in people, but forget that it can also bring out the worst.

One thing we tend to forget is Australia's part in the bombing of Europe in the Second World War. There are a few memorials and exhibits, but when we think of Anzacs we usually think of slouch hats, not flying helmets.
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This is a BBC interview with Group Captain Robert Lister, recorded in 1980, about his experiences as a junior officer in 20 Squadron on the North-West Frontier. He transferred there in 1935, and flew Audaxes in air control operations against Waziri tribespeople, sometimes in support of the Army, sometimes independently. He candidly notes that the 250-lb bombs were the ones which would be used against villages, but also that leaflets were invariably dropped beforehand, warning of an imminent attack.

But the clip isn't just Lister talking; it's Lister talking over his own cinefilm footage from 1935! Both from the ground and from the air, bombing and strafing Waziri villages. Also to be seen are the detonation of an improvised explosive device planted in the landing strip by the rebels, and one of the goolie chits affixed to the side of every Audax, to be used in the event of a forced landing. Fascinating stuff.

Thanks to Marc Wiggam for the lead.

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Roberts' men crossing the Zand

The Boer War of 1899-1902 doesn't often appear in airpower history. This may have something to do with the fact that it took place before the invention of the aeroplane, which I suppose is reasonable. But there are still interesting and even important connections and influences to be traced. Here are a baker's half-dozen.
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Military History Carnival #23 has been posted at The Edge of the American West and H-War. My eye was immediately drawn to a post (more of an article, really) on the Greco-Bactrian Kingdom at Sparta: Journal of Ancient Spartan and Greek History. This was a remnant of Alexander the Great's conquests in central Asia in the 3rd and 2nd centuries BC, which was mostly Hellenistic in culture but also incorporated local influences. I've always found the Greco-Bactrians fascinating; one day I'll have to learn more about them.

I neglected to take note of last month's Military History Carnival 22 at Thompson-Werk. I recommend The Edge of the American West's own post on the wit and wisdom of Richard M. Nixon (though for genuine wit and and perhaps wisdom, he's not a patch on Australia's own Paul J. Keating).

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Garry Campion. The Good Fight: Battle of Britain Propaganda and the Few. Basingstoke and New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2009. Looking forward to reading this book, which looks at looks at how the Battle of Britain and The Few were portrayed in the press, in official propaganda, plays, film, overseas, from the ground, etc. It even discusses the novelty of contrails!

Martin Francis. The Flyer: British Culture and the Royal Air Force, 1939-1945. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2008. I've been hearing good things about this. The glamour of the airman and how it interacted with class, gender and race.