Title: "The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Uniforms of World War I: An expert guide to the uniforms of Britain, France, Russia, America, Germany and Austro-Hungary with over 450 colour illustrations" written by Jonathan North.
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I just received my copy of this book. While a lot of this information can be found in multiple Osprey volumes and assorted other out-of-print titles, it is nice to see it placed in a single, reasonably priced volume. I'm guessing that with the 100th anniversary of WW1 coming soon, we can expect more books like this one in the next few years designed for the mass market.
As an avid World War I wargamer always in search of information on uniforms/equipment, here's my take on the book …
Positives:
* The major powers get pretty thorough coverage in this book. The breakdown is as follows: Britain (33 pages + 7 more pages on Commonwealth troops), France (31 pages + 6 on foreign and colonial troops), Russia (30 pages on WW1, and 7 pages on the Civil War armies), Germany (35 pages that includes 2 pages on colonial troops), Austria-Hungary (17 pages), and the USA (16 pages). For each of these countries, you get a synopsis of the evolution of uniforms (fully illustrated), as well as write-ups on the uniforms of officers, line infantry, guards and other elite formations (like chasseurs and stormtroopers), cavalry, artillery, aviation, and a mixed bag of engineers, bicyclists, medical staff, etc. called "technical troops." Where necessary, there are tables included indicating minor variations in uniforms among different regiments evident at the beginning of the war (for example, Germany and Austria-Hungary).
* A lot of the color illustrations depict their subject from the rear so that details about canteens, backpacks, etc. can be seen. This is a HUGE problem with Osprey Men-at-Arms titles that only ever show the front side in their illustrations. I was very happy to see (for the first time ever) Russian WW1 canteens depicted in full, living color!
Negatives:
* The "Introduction" is nicely done, but suited for neophytes who know nothing about WW1. For those of us more interested in all the finer details of uniforms and equipment, this is a waste of space.
* The "lesser powers" are covered only superficially in this volume. This is a real disappointment given the dearth of information in print on many of these powers. I find it truly appalling that major powers like Italy and the Ottomans get only 4 pages each. Both Serbia & Montenegro are grouped together for just 2 pages, while Romania, Bulgaria, Greece and Japan only merit 2 pages each as well. On the other hand, little Belgium gets a pretty solid 4 pages, and Portugal earned a more-than-adequate 2 pages.
* The illustrations are a mixed bag. Some are very nicely done, while others appear to have had bits and pieces photo-shopped together (the worst are the Austro-Hungarian cavalry). In my opinion, the illustrations are on a par with the average Osprey artwork.
My final take? Even if you have all of the Osprey WW1-related volumes, you might still enjoy having this on your shelf.
