Into the Jaws of Death: British Military Blunders, 1879–1900

by Mike Snook

Between the Crimean War and the dawn of the 20th century, the British Army was almost continuously engaged in one corner of the globe or another. Here, the author looks at the most dramatic campaigns fought by the Victorian army, focusing closely on defeat and disaster.

Genres: History, Military History, Nonfiction, Military Fiction

680 pages, Kindle Edition

First published October 7, 2007

Reviews

[JD · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a very well researched and written book. It describes the biggest military blunders the British had at the end of the 19th century from Afghanistan to the deserts and veld of Africa. Whether the blunders were made by officials in London or senior commanders on the ground, the troops of the British army always fought valiantly and to the bitter end with that spirit the Tommies possess. The book can become overly detailed sometimes, but all background is covered and the description of the actions are very descriptive and the author really takes you to the battlefield with his writing. I had good knowledge about the battle that were fought in South Africa against the Boers and the Zulu, but really enjoyed the chapters about the Northwest Frontier and the Sudan. Highly recommended for anyone interested in this part of history.

[Jill H. · Rating 4 out of 5]

The British Empire, in the latter part of the 19th century, seemed to be constantly in those "little wars" that were common in an empire that stretched around the world; but colonies and their people were beginning to realize that they did not want to be governed by an entity that was there to "educate and civilize" them and wars broke out which tested the British armed forces. The British forces and their leadership were unprepared, for the most part, as the complexion of war was rapidly changing, especially in the area of weaponry. The losses that they suffered, either by outdated strategies or poor leadership, alerted the government that it needed to rethink and overhaul the system.

This book takes a close look at seven "little wars" which mostly took place in Africa and India where the British presence was the strongest. It is so detailed that the reader needs to be familiar with military terms, strategies, weaponry and officer hierarchy. This is not a book for an initial study of this British military era and can be extremely slow and often confusing.

The author, who is a military professional, gives special credit to the tactics, bravery, and determination of the Boers and the Zulus which confounded the British and were responsible for some of the great blunders of the British. He also recognizes the bravery of the British Tommies since his criticism is directed at the government/military leadership.

As I stated earlier in this review, this is not a "starter" book for those interested in this period of military history but will be of interest to those that have some knowledge of the era. I enjoyed it even though there were parts that were rather dry.

[Ricardo · Rating 3 out of 5]

A well researched and entertaining narrative of a series of battlefield disasters suffered by the British Imperial Army in the late Victorian Period.

Lieutenant Colonel Mike Snook does a great job of explaining the transition in battlefield tactics of the mid to late 19th Century and the impact it had on the Imperial Army, going on to describe in detail a number of campaigns and engagements where everything that could go wrong did go wrong. He provides great insight into the personalities of the commanding officers, their mistakes, and the impact they had on the operations and the men fighting alongside them.

I was stuck between 3 stars and 4 stars, but ended up going for the 3 due to a number of instances where I felt a bit bogged down in the writing style (3.5 would be fair). This said it is an amazing military history book that sheds light on an interesting era that in someways anticipated the changes in the world that would later on lead to decolonization.

[Bill Harper · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent book, telling the story of poor British Generalship during the last half of the 19th Century. Majority of the battles are small in nature but still showed how British Commanders were less than competent during this time frame. It goes from Afghanistan to Sudan and then South Africa. Most of the commanders came from "Wolseley Cabal", who were arrogant, demeaning and believed they needed no help or advice on how to campaign even if it was coming from other British experts who had been in the regions longer. Understand this book does not degrade the British soldiers (they fought well but lead very poorly) and not all Commanders such as Hamilton, Roberts, French and Haig)I highly recommend this book it fills in an area that is many times overlooked.

[Erik · Rating 4 out of 5]

Be warned that this is not for the new-to-the-subject reader. It is at times dense and seems to assume the reader already knows at least a bit about these battles. Ultimately, it seems to be a research project that explores why these disasters happened, therefore is thick with detail at times. However, it's an excellent read and with alot of new and insightful information. I certainly view the victorian army differently than I did before

[Stefan Hosko · Rating 5 out of 5]

very informative. love the perspective given by a military man on history. found it a challenging read as I had to frequently Google words I didn't understand

[Simon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Some rather dry early chapters give way to some well written historical recounts of little known late victorian imperial battles.

[Casey · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good book, attempting to combine both a narrative of several infamous British Army defeats in the Victorian era with an analysis of their common threads. The book partially suffers from wanting to provide a detailed analysis for why these defeats occurred, but gets too consumed with in depth set-ups of the background to the battles and very specific descriptions of the fighting itself. The author should be commended for his detailed research and modern day commentary on the fighting, but the overall effect is to draw away from his analysis and conclusions. He tries to make a case for an army that very slowly evolved, learning how to become the efficient (if outnumbered) "Old Contemptibles" of 1914 in the heat of Afghanistan, Sudan, and South Africa; but the argument is lost in the blow by blow account of battles. All that being said, for a very readable and well researched book on the Late Victorian Army and its leaders certainly put this on your list.

[George · Rating 4 out of 5]

Once you get past the opening chapters analyizing the organization of the British army through the end of the Victorian era and the evolution of its officer corps, this is a very fun read. for most readers, the battles themselves are the thing, and there's plenty to sink your teeth into. The Brits managed to get themselves into a variety of predicaments in the second half of the 19th century, often of their own making, and sometimes things went horribly wrong. This book takes a good look at what happened on those occasions and gives you solid reasons as to why. But if you're looking for the Zulu War, pick up Snook's other books on the subject. For anyone interested in the period in general or any of the pariticular campaigns in Afghanistan, South Africa or the Sudan, or in general military history, this is an excellent read.

[Anthony]

To be honest I have not finished this book, in fact out of the 336 pages I only got to page 124. But of what I have read I consider this one of the better books on British military structure and operations. I will re-check this book and finish. So far cudos to Mike Snook.

[Aaron Kendal · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent and in-depth look at the notable failures in the field of the British Victorian army.

The British Army have often been disparagingly referred to as "Lions led by Donkeys", and after reading the multitude of tactical and strategic failures in this book you begin to see why.

Well-written, with an excellent recounting of battles and those who fought them, it's a darn good read of the history of the disasters faced by the British Army as it fought its way through the Victorian era.