I first saw this book reviewed - very favourably - in the journal of the Indian Military History Society, so when Tom Donovan of Turner Donovan e-maild his customers to inform that he was selling this book, I took the plunge.

IZZAT: Historical Records and Iconography of Indian Cavalry Regiments, 1750 - 2007, by Captain Ashok Nath, IA (Ret'd), published by the Centre for Armed Forces Historical Research, United Service Institution of India, ISBN 978-81-902097 - 7-9, available from Tom Donovan £100 (inc p&p).

To quote from TD's e-mail:

"This important and immense volume - it weighs 3 Kilos - contains the lineage and outline history of every known cavalry regiment that has existed in the armed forces of India and Pakistan, together with illustrations of over 2000 badges and insignia. This includes many long-disbanded units and also the post-independence services of the regiments of the old British Indian Army that were retained by India and Pakistan.



The information took Captain Ashok Nath (who served with the Indian Army Armoured Corps) many years of in-depth research and much of the information is made available for the first time.



In a wholly private capacity I have agreed to help Ashok distribute his book outside India. I have no hesitation in helping Ashok in this and also no hesitation in recommending the scholarly contents of "Izzat." However, I have to be entirely open in my writing to Turner Donovan customers by making clear that this volume was printed and bound in India and the quality of the binding and paper I consider to be inadequate. There is significant 'show through' as the text paper is not good quality and the binding will I feel pretty sure struggle to cope with the weight of a book that is going to receive frequent use. Furthermore, the book is issued with an unfortunate list of around 50 Errata which the publishers should have spotted before going to press. You have been warned and any complaints cannot be addressed to Tom Donovan, Brian Turner or Turner Donovan Military Books.



The cost including postage is £100.00 per copy. You can order by replying to this e-mail and I will send the book from here, but cheques will be payable to Captain A. Nath and although I am glad to help Ashok publicise his book I stress again that any quality issues are not my responsibility."

The caveats aside, the review in the IMHS Journal which took my eye used phrases such as "definitive work," "well organised (and) reads easily," "descriptions of many hitherto obscure units," finishing: "Strongly recommended for the serious student of the Sub-continent's military history."

If you wish to know more, TD's e-mail is tom@turnerdonovan.com

My copy is in the post, so I will post further when I get it. Having said that, Mrs B doesn't know yet - it is possible my next post on the subject will be from the garage ...

Look forward to your opinions when the mighty tome thumps it's way in to your possesion.

Thanks for the heads up on this. Any premonitions about where the garage will have been relocated to?

Robert

Probably about 5 nautical miles SSW of the Isle of Wight, I suspect.

At £100, I anticipate your occupation of a garage for some time.

If it would help, I'll clear mine out for you....put in a heater, ready for the winter....



Bruce

Well, it's arrived

First impressions: it's big ... very big. I agree with the caveats regarding the binding: certainly will need careful handling and storage (probably laid flat). The quality of the print and paper seems acceptable. I've certainly not noticed any major concerns. True, the paper isn't glossy (it looks a bit like a party political newsletter, actually), but the ghosting and so on is negligible, so far as I have seen. Certainly nothing to make me doubt my purchase.

And the content is, frankly, brilliant. It is, by its nature, a broad brush, but the detail on each individual regiment ties in nicely with Major Donovan Jackson's little India's Army of the 1940's (I checked, and there is little repetition).

What sells the book to me is the odd stuff: class and religious compositions listed; badges identified; battle honours; odd insights into the regimental story. Recipients of VC and IOM (1st Class) are lsted (and, post-Independence, of the corresponding Indian and Pakistani awards), as are regimental marches.

The titles and consequent changes for each regiment are listed in full - for example, the 2nd Lancers (Gardner's Horse) underwent 14 changes from being raised in 1809 as Lieutenant Colonel Gardner's Corps of Irregular Horse to 1950's 2nd Lancers (Gardner's Horse). A potted biography of Linaeus Gardner adds to the colour (the detail of James Skinner, founder of the eponymous Yellowboys, is superb!). Obviously the destinations of the regiments at Partition are noted, as are post-Partition regiments raised by each country.

The Great War historian will probably find little of interest, but anyone with an interest in the Indian Army will find it fascinating and probably unmissable. tables of disbanded regiments, details of States Forces, short essays on subjects such as mechanisation, or Partition (including the transfer of classes between regiments, such as Sikhs transferred from regiments destined for Pakistan, and Muslims in return) - all add to the mix.

Honest opinion - is it worth £100? If you're interested in the Indian Army ... most certainly. If you collect Indian badges... yes again. If you're interested solely in the Great War ... no. For me, though, it's a book I feel I'll return to again and again.

On the domestic front, Mrs B took it like a trouper (as ever). It arrived this morning, and Harriet took it in; Mrs B guessed what had happened when she arrived home and saw the imprint on the address plate. Harriet's only comment (apart from a few repetitions of "A hundred pounds!") was that she'd sell it when I died. Bless.

Yes - worth every penny. Thanks to Ashok Nath for such a monumental work, and thanks to Tom Donovan for importing it. And thanks, again, to Mrs B for being such a star.

Glad that all turned out to be sweetness and light for you as well as such fulfilling purchase.
Does it have anything on British Officers serving with the Indian Army in WW2?

No, sadly not. As I say, it's very broad brush, and largely concerned with lineage and what could be termed "regimental highlights".

Happy to look anything up for anyone, but scanning is out of the question.

Incidentally, for anyone wondering about the binding, it puts me in mind of Stacke's History of the Worcestershire Regiment in terms of size and binding style; as my copy of that must be 80 years old and has held up OK, I suspect Harriet will get her inheritance in one piece

I am glad that Mrs. B has taken your purchase in such good heart. I was wondering if you would be out of intensive care in time for the GWF meet next March.
However......do bear in mind the addage that retaliation is a dish best served cold!



Bruce

Steven,

I agree, if IA is your interest it is a must have. The content is far too good to worry about the binding. My crib with Ashok is that it is too heavy at 3 kgms!

I hope he completes the next volume on the Infantry.

Sushil

Thanks for the reply - sorry that it took me so long to see it!

Interesting.Do you know how it compares with The Indian Cavalry by Major General Gurcharn Singh Sandhu PVSM (rtd)? which was published in 1981? This appears to cover the same ground. I picked up my copy in Dehli so don't know if it ever appeared in Britain.

I e-mailed the author and asked: his reply was affirmative, but plural ... I suspect my good lady wife will have to accept the unavoidable.

Centurion: no idea, I'm afraid, not having seen the book you refer to. This volume does take it up to 2007, so even if it repeats some, there is 26 years-worth of extra. Also well worth the space given is a very interesting essay on class recruitment, with a most useful explanation of the various 'types' of Muslim, Sikh and Hindu recruited, with reasons and times when they came into, or fell out of, favour.

The two books are not comparable. The General's book is the history of the IAC where as Ashok's book is really the iconography of the IAC with a few extra details thrown in.

Sushil

The book Waging War in Waziristan: The British Struggle in the Land of Bin Laden, 1849-1947 by Andrew M. Roe, a British officer, is discussed in a blog available by clicking here. The book is discussed in four installments in the blog--the others can be found by clicking on "The Best Defense" logo at the top of the screen and scrolling within the blog.