An Impossible War: The First Carlist War in the North, 1834 - 1838

by

Bellica 3rd Generation

 Much like the last review, but to any even greater extent, I needed to learn some history to get myself sufficiently grounded in the basics of the game. I assume you can play wargames without knowing anything about the history behind the game. However, that is something that is completely foreign to my way of thinking. So, here we have a game about the 1st Carlist War. This is a bit of history that is pretty far off the normal beaten path. They took place in the mid 19th century in Spain. The Bourbons, in 1700, brought the Salic Law with them to Spain. This was a French law that said that no woman could reign over France. You might remember it mostly from Shakespeare's play Henry V. It became the crux of the matter in this dynastic war. I will not get into the details, more on this later. You just need to know that it is a pretty much hidden part of European history. In actuality, more Spanish people died during these wars than in the years of the French attempted occupation of Spain known as Napoleon's Spanish Ulcer. I tried to read what I could find on this era of Spanish history, but English books about it are few and far between. However, the designer has given us an incredibly deep and expansive historical background as I have ever had the pleasure to read. So much for our beloved hobby being looked at as a complete waste of time and money. Take that, George Carlin and ponder on it (If you were not aware he did a whole skit on the insanity of our hobby, at least to him. It is a shame, for other than that I really liked him). Thank you, Bellica 3rd Generation and designer David Gómez Relloso for creating a game where I had to learn more history. I also have to apologize to both of them for the length of time it took me to create this look at their game. Below is what Bellica 3rd Generation has to say about the game:

"The First Carlist War was a civil war that ravaged Spain between 1833 and 1840. Upon the death of Ferdinand VII, using the succession conflict between his daughter Isabella and his brother Carlos as a pretext, supporters of liberalism clashed with defenders of tradition. Carlism gained its strongest foothold in Navarre, the Basque Provinces, and neighboring territories—the North—where the main campaigns, battles, and sieges took place.

Back of the Box

Tomás de Zumalacárregui organized the Carlist forces into an army capable of fighting the liberal government troops. Despite being outnumbered, he took advantage of his strengths and the enemy’s weaknesses to defeat them and consolidate his control over a region where the geography and popular support were in his favor.

The Carlist objective was to capture a city. They laid siege to several, but failed to take any, and Zumalacárregui died while besieging Bilbao in June 1835. Expeditions were sent to encourage uprisings in the rest of Spain, but the liberals relentlessly pursued them. Don Carlos himself led an expedition that reached the gates of Madrid in September 1837 but was unable to take the capital.

Some of each sides Stickers

At the end of 1836, Baldomero Espartero became commander-in-chief of the liberal army. Under his leadership, the troops improved their performance and carried out a relentless campaign to crush the enemy. Carlism was far from defeated, but its chances of winning the war had vanished, while internal divisions grew.

In August 1839, peace supporters laid down their arms with the Embrace of Vergara, while Don Carlos and those refusing to surrender crossed the border into France. In the Maestrazgo and Catalonia, the Carlists would not be defeated until July 1840.

An Impossible War is a game about the decisive years of the First Carlist War in the North. Infantry and cavalry are represented by blocks, which introduce fog of war into operations. There are also artillery counters (field and mountain artillery) and logistics units (supply trains and backpacks).

One of the Cards

The main map is a point-to-point board covering the northern theater of operations: Navarre, the Basque Country, and surrounding areas of La Rioja, Burgos, and Cantabria. In addition to provincial capitals, major towns and other localities are shown, along with primary and secondary routes of communication. There is also a smaller map of the rest of peninsular Spain, showing the regions affected by the Carlist uprising and allowing expeditions being launched from the North.

Each turn, players compete for initiative and carry out a variable number of actions. There is also a card deck for each side, including historical, operational, and tactical events. The cards add background and unpredictability to the game, helping make each session different. This is NOT a card-driven game, but one assisted by cards.

Northern piece of the Map

An Impossible War simulates the historical conflict, which featured numerous skirmishes, few major battles, and significant siege warfare. It is an asymmetric game in which each side has strengths and weaknesses. Players must exploit their advantages and mitigate their disadvantages to achieve victory.

The Carlist player must make use of superior mobility and unit quality to consolidate territory, wear down the enemy, and threaten cities. The Liberal player must contain and suppress the insurrection; they have more troops, but of lower quality and plagued by logistical nightmares. Additionally, they must quell uprisings and chase down Carlist expeditions across the rest of Spain.

Game Contents:

1 Main map (Northern map)

1 Regional map of the rest of Spain

1 Battlefield board

1 Rulebook

1 Playbook

2 Player aid sheets

73 wooden blocks (48 blue, 25 red)

1 sheet of 18 mm stickers

2 punchboards with 18 mm tokens

72 cards (36 Liberal, 36 Carlist)

10 artillery tokens (wooden)

4 six-sided dice

2 cloth bags

ALL GAME COMPONENTS ARE IN ENGLISH"

 As usual, I want to take a look at the game's components first. We will start with the map. It is a mounted map that uses point to point movement. The map is of Northern Spain, including a good amount of the Basque country. Wargamers who have read and/or played games about the 20th Century Spanish Civil War will be very familiar with the territory shown on the map. The map has a good number of the tables etc. that you will need for play. In a novel approach both sides of the map have the Sequence of Play listed. 

Battle Board

 The Rulebook is 31 pages long. It is in full color and is in a two-column format. The type is nice and large. It also has a liberal amount of play examples. The Playbook has 46 pages of excellent information and gaming goodness. It comes with 12 pages of different play examples! It starts with the scenario setups. Then it continues with Rules Clarifications (this is a nice touch that usually waits for the errata to be issued). Next up, we have the Card Clarifications, and then there is a section on Optional Rules. These are listed as either helping one side or the other. The section on all of the different Play Examples is next. These are of Combats, Skirmish, Battle, and Assault. There is a Historical Background and Historical Notes on the Cards. Next comes, the excellent history of the First Carlist War in the North. Then we have the Design Notes and even a section on Advice for New Players. 

Southern piece of the Map

 We have two nice thick cardstock player aids. The first is a map of all of Spain to show how the Carlist Uprising is playing out in the rest of the country. The second is the actual battlefield map or board. There are also two large three-page foldout player aids made of flexible cardstock. One is for the Liberal player and one for the Carlist. The type on these is the same large size that are in the Playbook and Rulebook. The cards come next. There is a deck for both players. These are the normal size and thickness of most other game cards. The backs of the deck both have a nice painting of cavalry on them. The front of the cards has a scene or picture of the personality mentioned. These are well done black and white drawings. The rest of the card has the information used in playing them. The type size is large enough to not need to read them with a squint. Even though it is a block game, it comes with a good number of counters. These come with pre-rounded corners. However, for those who care about such things, there are nibs on the side of the counters. The blocks are all the same with no 'flashing' on any of them like you used to find on some game blocks. The game I received had already been used, so I do not know how easy the blocks are to sticker or to release the counters from their sprue. I will say that whoever stickered the blocks was an artist and I have some games that I need their help with.

Strategic map

 The game components definitely pass muster. It states proudly that the game was produced in Spain. This game is an excellent example of Spanish craftmanship.

 This is one of those games where playing each side is completely different than playing the other. For most games the forces involved are pretty much complimentary on each side. This is one of the games where playing each side is a learning experience. If you have played a few games where one side looks to have all of the cards of the deck stacked on one side, then this game will be easier to learn and understand. This is for the most part a guerilla war and the Spanish have been practicing it since before Roman times. Napoleon should have read up on the Iberian history. 

 The Liberals are behind Isabella and the Carlists support, guess who, Carlos. Take the name Liberal with a grain of salt here. They are only named that compared to the Carlists and not other European Liberals. The Carlists are ensconced in a small part of northern Spain. Your job as the Carlist faction, if you choose to accept it, is to keep the Carlist movement alive. To do this you have a small territory and limited resources. Your greatest asset is the actual physical territory that you occupy. It is the perfect area for a guerilla war. The population is also firmly behind you and supplies you with much better recruits. The Liberals have more of everything compared to the Carlist meager resources. However, their forces are the ones that will have to both attack and defend themselves in a hostile environment. This is from the Playbook: "The Carlist player has the initiative for the first three years, and the ability to do double turns." Logistics play a major role when playing the Liberals. You will find out, just like the French, that a large army starves and a small army is defeated. You do start with a few fortresses in the Carlist stronghold, but the main issue is, can you keep control of them? Other European powers were also involved with the Carlist Wars. France and England sent troops to the conflict. The French Foreign Legion saw service in Spain.

 The game is not that hard to learn. This is in part to a very well-done English translation. The objectives and the rules themselves make sense. However, there are a lot of moving parts to the machine. Both sides have their advantages and disadvantages, and the cards only add to the tense play. I absolutely love wargames that try to be as historical as possible, even if that means that playability must take somewhat of a hit to achieve it. I was never able to find enough different sources to compare gameplay to the historical reality, at least in the amount that I like to look at before playing a game. To that extent I was able to, though the game seems to be a very good historical examination of the realities of the war. I believe that this is a great game for historical wargamers and especially for grognards who do not want to play the 150th take on Waterloo.

 Thank you, Bellica 3d Generation for allowing me to review this game. Thank you also for allowing me to use some pictures from your site. I must apologize once again for the amount of time it took to post this review.

Robert Peterson

An Impossible War: The First Carlist War in the North, 1834 - 1838

Bellica 3rd Generation

Freedom - the Underground Railroad gives 1-4 players the opportunity to become abolitionists in the fight against slavery in 19th century America.  Loosely, it is a cooperative, pick-up-and-deliver game that not only presents players with a satisfying movement puzzle during each round; it does so wrapped up in a surprisingly elegant ruleset that takes under 10 minutes to teach.

One of the enduring images in my brain from my childhood schooling was the famous Brooke's slave ship diagram. The horrors of such an Atlantic crossing are unimaginable and the slaves' subsequent lives in America, unbearable to consider. However, in this game, all players are working together to help your cubes/slaves escape into Canada and freedom.

You can watch my unboxing video below, apologies for the rambling discussion prior to opening the box. Skip to 2:43 to actually get to the box opening.

Gameplay

The games plays out over 8 rounds in which players have to move slave cubes along 'the railroad' of interconnected cities whilst avoiding the slave catchers.  Each round has five phases, three of which are purely mechanical with no decision points. In the other two, the Planning and Action Phases, players are deciding which tokens to purchase from the intentionally-very-limited supply (Planning Phase), and which slave cubes to move and where (Action Phase).

Players start with 8 money. The Conductor's ability is almost essential.

The Planning and Action Phase are bookended by a beginning Slave Catcher Phase which consists of rolling 2 unique d6 to determine slave catcher movement, and the final phases in a round of the Slave Market phase and Lantern Phase, The Slave Market Phase hopefully fill up the plantations with slaves. I say hopefully because if there is no space on the plantation then slaves in the market are lost.  Losing slaves is inevitable in this game and even though it is a game and the number of lost slaves is a primary victory condition, it didn't feel nice to move those cubes into the 'slave lost' box at all. I have, however, no objection to the mechanic and it very abstractly reflects the brutal reality of the slaves' existence.

Each player also has a role with once-per-round special power and one ability that can be used once per game. The roles are all anti-slavery abolitionists and reflect the history of the actual underground railroad's terminology. The historical aspect of many Academy Games' games keeps me coming back to them, and the treatment of slavery in this is a fun way to learn about important history that still has ripples in modern society.

Halfway through a solo game. Not many slaves escaped so far...

I lost.

The game is challenging no matter what player-count and victory is never guaranteed. In all my plays of this game, the first 2 or 3 rounds pass as just a satisfying yet achievable optimisation puzzle trying to avoid the slave catchers and you are able to lose few slaves. New players could be fooled into thinking this is an easy game.  The last few rounds, however, are anything but easy. You ruthlessly may have to knowingly sacrifice one slave to save 2 or more from the slave catchers and inevitably there is not enough room on the plantations after the slave market.

If I haven't lost the game before turn 8 (I'd like to think my win ratio has been about 30%, but it's probably lower) then it is always a neck and neck race to save the required number of slaves whilst avoiding the game-ending slave-lost number.  The required victory conditions are different for every player count and the gameplay, in terms of difficulty, feels similar at all player counts. The game is finely balanced, players never romp to victory and the game engine is especially threatening from the mid-game onwards.

4 Player endgame ... we lost

The most unique aspect of this game, for me, is the manner in which the slave catchers move. A random Slave Catcher movement will happen at the beginning of every turn and if they ever land on a space containing a run-away slave then the slave is returned to the slave market. However, as slaves move northwards they may cause certain slave catchers to move one space along a predetermined path. This mechanism is an elegant yet difficult puzzle and really makes this game stand out.  It doesn't sound difficult on paper but you are forced to consider multiple moves ahead (no easy feat) to see which and when slaves should move.

A beautiful yet fiendish puzzle. You're going to lose slaves.

Components

Any 'elegant' game should have few rules, right? Well, this is just 8 pages which includes setup. The rules are excellently written, and after one or two rounds of your first game (20 minutes or so) all players will have seen and understood all the gameplay mechanics. There was only one edge-case which wasn't immediately resolved by turning to the rule book - regarding Northern fundraising, if you're interested.

The graphic design is fairly simple yet sympathetic to the period and theme of the game. The icons are all intuitive and the components themselves, I would imagine, lend themselves well to any sight-impaired gamer.

The board, tokens and components are all of an excellent quality and I found absolutely nothing to criticise production of this game.

Criticisms

The history geek inside me would have liked to have seen more historical 'fluff' on the cards and the board. Most cards have two or three lines of fluff at the bottom which wasn't satisfying enough for me. However, I do appreciate the design of the components and adding more text would have been detrimental to the look of the game.  You do get 2 pages of history in the rule book but not many gamers at game night are going to be exposed to that. 

The only negative aspect of this game for me, and this is purely subjective, is that it is a fully co-operative game. Although I have had fun playing this with a group, (it does play a bit long with a full complement of players) I prefer competitive games when playing multiplayer. Hence, I prefer to play this game solo, for the head-space. As with most co-ops, the solo rules are no different from the standard game and you can either play multiple characters or play in true solo mode (which is, in my opinion, harder and more satisfying) where you only play with one abolitionist.

Did I say you want to  have the Conductor in your team?

Conclusion

Slavery is not an easy topic to make into a game but it has been done excellently here. I would go so far as to say that this is one of my favourite solo games at the moment. If I don't have the time or energy for Mage Knight or a solo wargame and no other players around, then this is currently my go-to game. I can complete a solo game in approximately 50 minutes and the slave-catcher movement puzzle is rewarding.

Clear and short rulebook

I wasn't expecting the game to be as light as it is, but this doesn't detract anything from the gameplay which is simple yet still satisfying. The side-effect of being exposed to important history, events and people of the 'railroad' is gratefully received, and will hopefully serve me in good stead for pub-quizzes. 

I would recommend this to any person, whether they're a gamer or not, as either:  a fun game, an introduction to unique mechanics, an educational tool, a first step into cooperative board games, a challenging optimisation puzzle, an simple exploration of the Trolley Problem (apt no?) or a great solo game. It ticks all of those boxes.

Thanks to Academy Games for sending this review copy.

Publisher: Academy Games
Website: https://www.academygames.com/pages/freedom
Players: 1-4
Designer: Brian Mayer
Playing time: 1-2 hours

At Any Cost

Metz 1870

by

GMT Games

 The Franco-Prussian War; not many besides historians and wargamers have even heard about it. The Franco-Prussian War is really the catalyst for the events of the next seventy-five years in European history. If France had not lost this war, and had Germany not taken Alsace-Lorraine from her as one of the spoils our world might be very different. France's burning desire for revenge and the return of those areas was one of the main reasons behind World War I. Had Germany not lost World War I there would have been no need for a second war with Germany looking for revenge. The Franco-Prussian War was the last act in Bismarck's successful attempt to unite Germany under Prussia. 

Full Map

 The next part about the Franco-Prussian War was not just how France lost, but how she lost so badly. There have been few wars where one side had weapons that were so technologically enhanced over the other side yet still lost (except for wars of liberation). The French rifle, the 'Chassepot', had a range twice that of the Prussian rifle. It also had a higher rate of fire. The French also had the Mitrailleuse that was the first well functioning machine gun used in large numbers on the battlefield. Time and again, the Prussians and their Allies stormed into the hail of lead that was thrown at them by the French forces. The Mitrailleuse was, unfortunately for the French, used as an artillery piece, and rarely made its presence felt as much as it should have. The war came down to a lop-sided game of chess between the efficient Prussian Generals, and the lax, and almost comatose French generals. The French High Command acted like prey transfixed by the eyes of a serpent. More than a few times, the Prussians and their Allies broke or almost broke under the weight of French fire while attacking. The French High Command could not overcome their malaise, and constantly pulled defeat from the jaws of victory.

First Counter Sheet

 At Any Cost is a simulation (I hate using the word 'game' for a wargame) of the French Army under Marshal Bazaine's attempt to escape from the environs of the fortress of Metz, and meet with another army under Napoleon III. The six scenarios of the game take place during August 15th to August 18th 1870. They run from small two corp battles on each side to two different campaign scenarios. 

Second Counter Sheet

 This 'game' uses the 'Blind Swords System' to play out the different battles. It is essentially a chit-pull system that emphasizes the three 'FOWs' of war: fog-of-war, friction-of-war, and fortunes-of-war. The Blind Swords System is meant to put the player on the horns of a dilemma and to keep him there during the entire game. The game itself is based upon infantry brigades, cavalry, and artillery. This was the last war where cavalry really made any useful contribution on the actual battlefield. The situation that the Prussians find themselves in is that they have lost the French Army. The Prussians outnumber the French, but due to fatigue and weather Bazaine's Army has escaped their grasp. The French forces are trying to go West, however their somnambulist state plays against them at every turn. The Prussians find the French, but assume that it is their rearguard. Unfortunately for them it is actually the slow moving French vanguard. 

Map Close up from the 'A Day Of Battle' scenario

 So what do you actually get with the game:

 RuleBook - With play examples

 Playbook - This contains the scenarios, and the historical notes

 Game Track Card

 Prussian Strategic movement Card

 4 - Player Aid Cards ( 2-Prussian, 2-French)

 4 - Ten-sided Die (1-Blue, 1-Red, 2-White)

 22" x 34" map

 Two Standard Size Counter Sheets

 The six scenarios are :

 The Afternoon Crisis (Small Battle Scenario)

 Twilight Of The Guards (Small Battle Scenario)

 A Day of Battle (Full Battle Scenario)

 Bloody Thursday (Full Battle Scenario)

 A Beckoning Victory (Campaign Scenario)

 It Will Cost What It Will (Campaign Scenario)

 The sequence of play is:

1. Planning Phase

2. Chit Draw Phase

3. Activation Phase

 A. HQ Command Step

 B. Fire Combat Step

 C. Movement Step

 D. Assault Combat Step

 E. Rally Step

 F. Out Of Command Step

4. End Turn Phase

 A. French Command Step

 B. Prussian Command Step

 C. Victory Determination Step

 D. Housekeeping Step

 The Rulebook is twenty-eight pages long. Both it and the Playbook are in color and well set up and easy to read. The counters and map are your typical GMT fare. Which means they are extremely well done with great artwork. On the map each hex represents 500 yards. 

 This is a few of the French Event Chit Descriptions:

 Beaten Zone: Play immediately of hold. Any one French Infantry or Mitrailleuse unit conducts an immediate fire combat following all normal procedures.

 Command Initiative: Hold. Play at the end of any enemy's HQ Command Step (after the opponent assigns an Order to the activated HQ units). Roll a die and apply the following.

 1-2 = Active HQ unit is given a different Order by the Prussian Player.
 3-4 = Active HQ unit is given a different Order by the French Player.

 5 = Active HQ unit must be given a March Order.

 6 = Active HQ unit must be given a Defend Order.

 7 = Active HQ unit must be given a Regroup Order.

 8 = Active HQ unit must be given an Attack Order.

 9-10 = National Doctrine: French HQ must be given a Defend Order. Prussian HQ must be given an Attack Order. 

 So, you can see by the chits how the Blind Swords System at times actually gives your opponent the chance to change your own forces' orders. This unique use of the chit pull system has now become the ultimate in fog-of-war. You,as the French Player, could give your HQ's defend orders only to see the Prussian Player able to change your orders to attack and vice versa. Remember that the chief goal of the French Player is to escape (in the campaign scenarios). So, not only is good play needed on the tactical level, you must also be ready to have all of your well thought out plans thrown to the winds. The system took an old grog like me a little bit of getting used to. Then I was able to embrace it, and see how artfully it depicts not only the fog-of-war, but also the friction, and fortunes-of-war. 

This is the setup for my favorite scenario 'Twilight Of The Guards'

 I have been a student of this war since I was a child. I have played out these battles in my mind and table for the last fifty years. I can say, unfortunately for me, this game is the best tactical representation of the conflict I have played. I said unfortunately because I have always wanted the French to win these battles. The smaller scenarios, including my favorite 'Twilight Of The Guards' are able to show how close the French came to victory, and can actually have the French winning them. The campaign scenarios are a bit tougher on the French side to win. The 'French Army Morning Deployment Rule' (they are essentially laying in their tents waiting for water to boil for their cafe) in the campaign scenarios really hamstring the French Army's retreat. This is not a bad thing, and is totally historic, but it is tough to overcome. I have liked the postings I have seen by the designer Hermann Luttmann, and his very prompt answers to game questions. He also does not treat the rules as if they were etched in stone, but encourages players to experiment with changes to them. That is the one thing that board games will always have over computer ones. If you find a rule that is non-historical or doesn't work, don't use it and make your own. It's your game.

 I can unequivocally recommend this game to anyone with an interest in the era. I can also recommend the Blind Sword System to grogs who are looking for a change of pace. The system is going to be used in a number of upcoming games from the 19th century.

 This is a link to the Rulebook:

https://s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com/gmtwebsiteassets/atanycostmetz/AtAnyCost-RULES.pdf

 This is a link to the Errata and FAQ:

https://s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com/gmtwebsiteassets/atanycostmetz/AAC_FAQ_final.pdf

 This is an excellent write up about the Battle of Gravelotte-St. Privat:

http://www.insidegmt.com/?p=2146

Robert

The Sirdar and The Khalifa

by

 

Mark Simner 

  'Khartoum', a big motion picture from Hollywood, was made in 1966. It starred Laurence Olivier as the 'Mahdi', and Charlton Heston as 'Chinese Gordon'. Like many movies, it plays with the actual history. However, unlike most it follows the historical narrative fairly closely. The movie deals with how England came to be entangled with Sudan. If you haven't seen it, take a gander. It is a perfect segue for this book.

 Like the movie, the author begins with the history of Sudan and the rise of Muhammad Ahmed as the 'Mahdi' the expected one of Islam. According to either Sunni or Shia beliefs and writings, the Mahdi will rule all of Islam before Jesus comes back for Judgement Day. The book takes us back to the early days of Muhammad Ahmed's life, and goes into the history of the Sudan, explaining that it was considered a part of Egypt at the time. Egypt was still considered a part of the Ottoman Empire in the late 19th century. Egypt was ruled by a 'Khedive', roughly a governor for the Ottoman Sultan. Egypt however, was only nominally under Turkish rule, and was greatly under English sway.

 The Khedive's armies were smashed by the Mahdist forces, so he asked England for help. The English prime minister refused to get involved other than to send General Gordon to supervise the removal of Egyptian citizens out of Sudan. Gordan had other ideas. He attempted to fight the Mahdists with the few troops on hand in Khartoum. Gordon and the troops were then besieged in Khartoum. At this time public opinion forced the English government to form a relief force to save him. The relief force was under Lord Wolsley. It was too little and too late. Gordon was killed with the relief force just days away. This was in 1885. This campaign was where Kipling came up with his poem 'Fuzzy Wuzzy'. This was an English term for the Sudanese warriors. Strangely, the poem praises the Sudanese warriors' valor and commends them on the fact that they 'broke a British square'.

 The above history takes up roughly the first third of the book, just so the reader can get a grasp of the history up to the main part of the book. British involvement continued to grow in Egypt, and in 1892 Lord Kitchener became the 'Sirdar' or Commander-in-chief of the Anglo-Egyptian army. 

 The Mahdi had died not too long after the fall of Khartoum to his forces. His Sudanese uprising continued under one of the three men he named as Khalipha (Caliph) Abdullahi Al-Taishi. The British press still campaigned for England to avenge Gordon. 

 The rest of the book covers the campaign of Kitchener to reconquer Sudan. The Anglo-Egyptian Army was now much better trained and armed. The battles of Omdurman and others are shown to the reader. These include some of the last successful cavalry charges in history, including none other than a young Winston Churchill with the 21st lancers at Omdurman. Omdurman was the last great battle between a European army and one of so called 'savages'. Although the Sudanese fought valiantly, the Anglo-Egyptian Army was even equipped with some early machine guns, so the issue was never really in doubt. 

 The author, Mark Simner, knows his history well, and writes engagingly about it. He even continues with the 'Fashoda Incident', which almost brought Britain and France to war in 1898.

 The book comes with five pages of maps. It also includes thirty-two pages of black and white photos of the campaign.


Robert


Book: The Sirdar And The Khalifa
Author: Mark Simner
Publisher: Fonthill Media
Distributor: Casemate Publishers