Ever since watching Ralph Astley's excellent YouTube playlist for his Crimean War 18mm wargaming project, I have had this bug for a "thin red streak, tipped with steel". I then discovered Paul Ward's fantastic collection via his "Matakishi's Tea House" channel on YouTube, and then the website that goes along with it. I then made the mistake of watching the 1968 film "The Charge of the Light Brigade", and I was utterly undone.
My brain went into overdrive trying to put together a project of my own, which is now underway. I was immediately captivated by the utter disaster (from a command & control standpoint) of the Crimean War and of course the visual splendour of a war, that at least for Britain, was the last gasp of the Napoleonic uniform aesthetic, and for all sides, the last pretense that the technology of war had not changed since Waterloo.
Besides a general survey of the Crimean War, I have focused my reading on individual battles as well. My first focus being The Alma, which I believe offers the wargamer many options as a scenario. It can be tweaked here and there, tinkered with, and so has much to recommend it to the wargamer.
Below is my reading list for the Crimean War, with some notes as appropriate. The links lead to Amazon where you can purchase the books.
Note that this page will be updated as I read more.
General
- The Russian Army of the Crimean War 1854-56 (Men-at-Arms) by Robert Thomas & Richard Scollins (1991) -
- The Russian Army of the Crimea (Men-at-Arms) by Albert Seaton & Michael Roffe (1973) -
- British Army On Campaign (2) 1854-56 : The Crimea (Men at Arms Series) by Michael Barthorp & Pierre Turner (1987) -
- The Crimean War: 1854–1856 (Essential Histories) by J Sweetman (2001) -
Battle of the Alma
- The Battle of the Alma by Peter Gibbs (1963) - This book contains some interesting maps of the battle, specifically how British divisions went from march to line. The narrative is heavy on little details and moves along at a clip, without getting bogged down in minutiae. A quick and easy read. Highly recommended. Note that it is very Anglocentric and very much a product of its time.
- The Alma, 1854, (Knight's battles for wargamers) by Henry Harris (1971) - A slender volume written with the wargamer in mind. The author provides a very thorough survey of the topology the battle was fought on, which is most useful to the wargamer in terms of designing a scenario. The maps are top notch and the book manages to be succinct and provide everything a wargamer will need to put on the battle.
- The Battle of Alma and Its Incidents: By an Officer - Another slender volume. This is a essentially a poem that was written in honour of Emperor Napoleon III after the Battle of the Alma. Interesting as a historical artifact, but limited as a source for the Crimean War or Battle of the Alma, except that it provides an insight into the contemporary Victorian jingoism of the day. One would recommend reading this, but not purchasing it, unless one is a collector.