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Product Description
The book opens by setting the historic backdrop to The Troubles. In summer 1969 the annual Loyalist marching season sparked violence in Londonderry which spread rapidly. After three days of violence the British Government deployed troops in support of the Royal Ulster Constabulary. Initially the Catholic community welcomed the Army s presence but this was to change over the years. The first soldier was killed in 1971 and a further 48 died that year. January 30 1972 Bloody Sunday galvanised IRA recruitment and the British Embassy was burnt in Dublin. The Official IRA bombed Aldershot HQ of the Parachute Regiment and in August 1972 the Army launched Op MOTORMAN to clear No Go areas. Internment followed and the Province was firmly in the grip of sectarian violence. The next 30 years saw a remorseless counter-terrorist campaign which deeply affected the lives of all the people of Northern Ireland and several generation of the British Army. The Peace Process ground on for over ten years but the campaign formally ended in 2007 with the establishment of hitherto unimaginable power sharing.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
33 of 33 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
Truly awful.
Poorly researched, frequent use of discredited sources, flawed statistics, and a very limited (and outdated) bibliography.
I was there, at the sharp end, during the 70's. I was involved in some of the incidents described, and have detailed knowledge of others. I've also read about 150 books about the 'Troubles'.
Some mistakes will always be made, but in this offering they can be found on virtually every page, some minor, others unforgivable.
I don't know what the author was trying to prove here. Perhaps it was a bet of some kind - writing a book about the Troubles and Operation Banner using nothing more than a handful of other books, chosen at random while wearing a blindfold ?
Because that's what he seems to have done.
The facts, the research, and the good, reliable source material are all readily available, but none of it has been used here. His statistics and some other material comes from the 'Cain' website, a one-sided site with some very dodgy 'facts' statistics. Why not use 'Lost Lives' (McKittrick et al) ? Had he consulted 'Lost Lives', which offers a detailed account of every death, with comprehensive and accurate statistics, many of his mistakes could have been corrected.
He uses an outdated report on the Dublin and Monaghan bombs rather than the latest, comprehensive, and wide-reaching McEntee Enquiry (2007).
He gets units wrong, places wrong, and even turns two unrelated deaths into one and still manages to get the wrong locus (along with the deceased's regiment).
He has the murder of 3 Army sergeants happening in Lisburn, when it took place on the Antrim Road in Belfast. They had been drinking in a Lisburn hotel earlier, however, and the fact that he mixed things up so badly is a reflection of how much research he actually did - not very much, if any !
Apparently the author served as a SNCO in the Intelligence Corps. Is this why he cites the words of a completely discredited SIS officer as fact ? Is this why he so obviously cherrypicks his information - to support and vindicate some former 'Intelligence' colleague(s) ?
I've heard what some of my former colleagues who served in the Falklands have said about this authors book on that subject. They are less than complimentary, with some doubting he was ever there, and others saying that he must have slept through the campaign. I now see what they meant, and why.
I made a mistake when I bought this book. Don't do the same.
Poorly researched, frequent use of discredited sources, flawed statistics, and a very limited (and outdated) bibliography.
I was there, at the sharp end, during the 70's. I was involved in some of the incidents described, and have detailed knowledge of others. I've also read about 150 books about the 'Troubles'.
Some mistakes will always be made, but in this offering they can be found on virtually every page, some minor, others unforgivable.
I don't know what the author was trying to prove here. Perhaps it was a bet of some kind - writing a book about the Troubles and Operation Banner using nothing more than a handful of other books, chosen at random while wearing a blindfold ?
Because that's what he seems to have done.
The facts, the research, and the good, reliable source material are all readily available, but none of it has been used here. His statistics and some other material comes from the 'Cain' website, a one-sided site with some very dodgy 'facts' statistics. Why not use 'Lost Lives' (McKittrick et al) ? Had he consulted 'Lost Lives', which offers a detailed account of every death, with comprehensive and accurate statistics, many of his mistakes could have been corrected.
He uses an outdated report on the Dublin and Monaghan bombs rather than the latest, comprehensive, and wide-reaching McEntee Enquiry (2007).
He gets units wrong, places wrong, and even turns two unrelated deaths into one and still manages to get the wrong locus (along with the deceased's regiment).
He has the murder of 3 Army sergeants happening in Lisburn, when it took place on the Antrim Road in Belfast. They had been drinking in a Lisburn hotel earlier, however, and the fact that he mixed things up so badly is a reflection of how much research he actually did - not very much, if any !
Apparently the author served as a SNCO in the Intelligence Corps. Is this why he cites the words of a completely discredited SIS officer as fact ? Is this why he so obviously cherrypicks his information - to support and vindicate some former 'Intelligence' colleague(s) ?
I've heard what some of my former colleagues who served in the Falklands have said about this authors book on that subject. They are less than complimentary, with some doubting he was ever there, and others saying that he must have slept through the campaign. I now see what they meant, and why.
I made a mistake when I bought this book. Don't do the same.
13 of 14 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
I agree with all the points raised by the previous reviewers. One of the aspects of the book that really annoyed me was the author's errors concerning certain regiments.
He gives the title of the PWOs as the Prince of Wales Own Regiment of Yorkshire Light Infantry, when light infantry was never part of their title. Furthermore he states that the 1st Bn the Royal Regiment of Wales was an amalgamation of the Royal Welsh Fusiliers and the South Wales Borderers. The RRW were formed in 1969 by the amalgamation of the Welch Regiment and the SWB.
In 2007 the RRW did amalgamate with the RWF to form 1st and 2nd battalions of the Royal Welsh.
I would suggest the author checks his facts next time before putting pen to paper.
He gives the title of the PWOs as the Prince of Wales Own Regiment of Yorkshire Light Infantry, when light infantry was never part of their title. Furthermore he states that the 1st Bn the Royal Regiment of Wales was an amalgamation of the Royal Welsh Fusiliers and the South Wales Borderers. The RRW were formed in 1969 by the amalgamation of the Welch Regiment and the SWB.
In 2007 the RRW did amalgamate with the RWF to form 1st and 2nd battalions of the Royal Welsh.
I would suggest the author checks his facts next time before putting pen to paper.
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase
I also was there during some of the incidents related by the author and must confess to be somewhat bemused as to how and why he could get facts so badly wrong. Unit titles are incorrect, sometimes even the wroong Battalion in a Regt are incorrectly stated. A disappointing read. Ken Wharton does it better.
Listmania!
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