Wednesday 12 December 2012

Online Journal



So while looking on the internet for various conflict related articles I came across an interesting and relatively new online Journal. What is more is that the Journal is free to subscribe to.

Browsing the articles from the two issues the Journal is primarily based on current operational thinking. However there are a number of stand out articles that I plan on reading over the next week: “Vehicle Movement in High Threat Environments” by Mark Richards and “Whither Armor?” by Clint Ancker.
The Journal so far seems to have a good selection of backgrounds among the authors.

The title of the Journal is “The Journal of Military Operations” and can be accessed via the following link: https://www.tjomo.com/


Tuesday 4 December 2012

Shot at Dawn



Currently I am reading an interesting book on the subject of executions during the First World War by authority of the British Army Act.
This is previously a subject that I have not had a great deal of interest in. It has so far made for an interesting reading and provided me with some food for thought for further research. It is also going to be a very useful aid for further writing on the First World War and for tours to the various First World War cemeteries that contain graves of these men.

So far the book presents a fair account of the crimes and subsequent trials of the men sentenced to be shot. When discussing this subject with people the old stereotype of shell shocked soldiers being sentenced to death by officers who have never set foot in the trenches rears its ugly head. For me this is where the book excels in its detail, it offers a fair bit of information on the individual trials where this was available at the time it was written as well as the general procedures that were followed during the different types of Court Martial and confirmation of the sentence.

There will be more detail to follow regarding this book once I have had a chance to finish reading it and write a more detailed review of it.

The book is J. Putkowski & J. Sykes, Shot At Dawn: Executions In World War One By Authority of the British Army Act.