A new book in my library.

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Nothing to do with WW2 or aviation but this new addition to my library might interest some on the forum:



Frederick Robinson came from well-bred stock in colonial America. His father, Beverly Robinson, was friends with John Jay and George Washington, the latter even courting Mary Philipse, sister of Beverly's wife, Susanna. The Robinson family were loyalists during the Revolutionary War/War of American Independence, with young Frederick serving as an Ensign (and later Lieutenant) in a loyalist regiment at the ripe old age of 14. At the end of the war, the Robinson family scattered, some to Canada while Beverly and Frederick went to England.

Frederick remained in the Army, serving under Wellington in Spain. He was my Great x3 Grandfather's brigade commander at the Battle of Vitoria and during the Siege of San Sebastian. As the subtitle to the book indicates, Robinson became the oldest soldier in the British Army, and appears to have still been serving into the 1840s. He died in 1852 at the age of 88.

At first glance, the book is very well researched, with multiple quotes from contemporaneous sources, including Frederick's own journals. The author also makes use of other records, including a notable transcript of a discussion between John Jay and Frederick's father, Beverly, on whether the latter would join the revolution. The first chapter paints a much more nuanced picture of the civil war nature of the Revolutionary War/War of American Independence than is often portrayed. I'm looking forward to the chapters covering the fighting in Spain, particularly the battles and Wellington's advance to Vitoria where, when crossing the Bidasoa River, Robinson's infantry soldiers had to cling onto the stirrups of cavalry horses because the river was swollen with rain.
 
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This one arrived today. 80 pages in a landscape format, A4 page size, good quality paper with around 120 very well printed photographs, supporting narrative text and photo captions plus colour aircraft profiles all by "Mr Typhoon" Chris Thomas. A number of the photos have key features shown in the photos with arrows and letters to indicate to the reader what is depicted, especially for some lesser known and understood features of the early Hawker Typhoon and in service modifications. This volume covers the early Typhoons, from prototype in 1940 and most of the early 'car door' variants up until Spring 1943. Includes description and examples of early distinctive recognition markings for the Typhoon as well as Exercise markings for Exercise Spartan. Future editions in this series will cover later variants and sub-variants of the Typhoon. Price is reasonable, however the additional cost of overseas postage by purchasers outside the UK make it a more expensive purchase.

 
Yes, I have both of those, as well as the Part 1 D&S.

Disappointing thing about the At War series is that the photographic reproduction is not always that great, usually inferior to that of a magazine.
 
Yes, I have both of those, as well as the Part 1 D&S.

Disappointing thing about the At War series is that the photographic reproduction is not always that great, usually inferior to that of a magazine.
Yeah I have the D&S part 1 in book & the P-38 @ war as a pdf. I wanted the book as I don't read on the computer screen as well.
 

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