On Afghanistan's Plains
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Product Description
Britain's military involvement in Afghanistan is a contentious subject, yet it is often forgotten that the current conflict is in fact the fourth in a string of such wars dating back as far as the early nineteenth century. Aiming to protect the British territories in India from the expanding Russian empire, the British fought a series of conflicts on Afghan territory between 1838 and 1919. The Anglo-Afghan wars of the 19th and early 20th centuries were ill-conceived and led to some of the worst military disasters ever sustained by British forces in this part of the world, with poor strategy in the First Afghan War resulting in the annihilation of 16,000 soldiers and civilians in a single week. In his new book, Jules Stewart explores the potential danger of replaying Britain's military catastrophes and considers what can be learnt from revisiting the story of these earlier Afghan wars.
About the Author
Jules Stewart is the author of Crimson Snow: Britain's First Disaster in Afghanistan (2008); The Savage Border: The Story of the North-West Frontier (2007) and The Khyber Rifles: From the British Raj to Al Qaeda (2006).
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase
As a Military historian and veteren of the current conflict in Afghanistan. I could'nt wait to read this book. Very well written book account of the past British wars in Afghanistan up to todays conflict. It covers both the Political and Military backgrounds to these wars. I would definately recommend.
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
History Not Learned Is History To Be Repeated
30 Oct 2011
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase
This is an excellent and scholarly study of Britain's three Afghan Wars in 1838, 1878 and 1919 (the latter was more of an uprising than a real war). The first two of Britain's forays into this unforgiving country were motivated by a phobia about keeping Russia from invading or influencing the region, the Victorian mentality being that any such intervention by Russia would threaten the Crown Jewel of British India. Viewed historically, this viewpoint was probably not substantiated and resulted in two expensive and casualty-ridden forays by British and Indian forces into a place that they had no business being and which resulted in two of the worst reversals for the British Army in its colonial period. The first reversal was the retreat from Kabul in the First Afghan War, which saw some 16,000 British and Indian soldiers and their camp followers massacred by Afghan tribesmen as they attempted to beat a hasty retreat from Kabul back to India. The second reversal was the Battle of Maiwan in the Second Aghan War in 1878, which saw 1000 British and Indian regulars annihilated in a set piece battle against a numerically superior Afghan field army backed up by irregulars and which probably could have been avoided (or even won) if the British hadn't picked the wrong ground on which to give fight and had brought their supply lines closer. After each of the Afghan Wars, and which the British technically won (at great cost), they would then leave the country and things would return back to what they were before each invasion. What's the lesson? The forward to the book by a NATO general is that this history should teach us that we cannot prevail in the current contemporary conflict in Afghanistan unless we win "hearts and minds". My conclusion is that the tribalism and Islamic fervor of Afghanistan's people means that their hearts and minds are not for sale and they will continue to do what they have always done, the course and direction of the outside world notwithstanding. The bleeding won't stop until you leave them alone. This book is highly recommended for anyone interested in Victorian military history and/or in trying to make sense of the current coalition struggles in this unique and dangerous sector of the world.
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