Real War Horses (Book) Review

Released: 20th October 2016
RRP: £25.00
Publisher: Pen and Sword Military
Author: Anthony Dawson
Type: Hardback
ISBN: 9781473847071
Pages: 256

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Anthony Dawson's The Real War Horses provides a contemporary, readable and updated account of the role that horses have played in warfare. Many books have been written about wider campaigns of the British Army, whilst others have been written with a specialised focus on the Cavalry structure, uniforms and equipment.

Anthony Dawson's The Real War Horses provides a contemporary, readable and updated account of the role that horses have played in war fare. Many books have been written about wider campaigns of the British Army, whilst others have been written with a specialised focus on the Cavalry structure, uniforms and equipment.

This book has been thoroughly researched, based upon letters and diaries written by British soldiers serving in different campaigns, and printed in contemporary newspapers. In turn, they provide us with in depth personal thoughts and feelings of the men who wrote them, demonstrating the humanity of them. A crucial part of this is demonstrated by the Crimean War in the sense that it was possibly the first media war with intense scrutiny from domestic press. The author makes clear from outset his research approach for accessing these letters thus making the reader aware of their historical importance and usefulness as being a direct record from the period covered,  but also how to be cautious of them given their oral nature.

Dawson gets the readers straight into the guts of what the cavalry was; an important direction for someone reading this area of military history for the first time. This detail includes important facets such as the description of the type of man required for heavy and light cavalry, horse breeding, purchasing,  uniform and appearance...

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