John Curry

Phil Dunn

Paddy Griffith

Phil Dunn, author of the classic naval wargaming book, Sea Battles, has written a new book on rapid naval wargames. Chapters include fast play rules that allow even the largest battles to be fought to a satisfying conclusion in a single session. In 1916, Jutland was a 'no-hoper' for the Germans. This was not true earlier in the war. The scenario is for a classic war-deciding encounter set in 1915. During the late 1920's, the USA made plans for war with Britain. The rules and scenario allow this classic 'what if' scenario of the Royal Navy to be set against the United States Navy. The outcome would have changed the political map of the world and the course of the 20th century. Also included are memories of a lifetime of naval wargaming, The book is supplemented by Paddy Griffith's One-eyed Napoleonic Naval Rules as used by the Royal Military Academy's Wargaming Club. Also included is an example of Paddy Griffith's naval wargaming scenario for the Battle of the Nile in 1798.

Phil Dunn's Fury at Sea Rapid Naval Wargaming Including Paddy Griffith's One-Eyed Napoleonic Naval Rules

33 maps and diagrams & 40 illustrations & 26 tables & 6 x 9 & Comprehensive study of a crucial military period & New information on the generals of Revolutionary France Between the Fall of the Bastille and the Peace of Amiens, French revolutionary armies scored resounding victories over the armies of Austria, Prussia, Britain, and Spain. Paddy Griffith captures the verve and excitement of these campaigns, which together demonstrated that French armies were the most powerful in the world, even before Napoleon's legendary Grande Arme. The period was, in fact, a major turning point in the history of warfare. This wide-ranging volume covers army organization, operations in the various theaters of war, the navy, Representatives on Mission, the government's relationship with the armies, and armies in battle. Also examined are the important figures of the time, including Dumouriez, Jourdan, Hoche, and Carnot. Paddy Griffith was a senior lecturer in war studies at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst for 16 years. He is the author of numerous articles and books on the history of warfare, including Battle Tactics of the Western Front, 1916-18 and The Viking Art of War.

The Art of War of Revolutionary France, 1789-1802

Part of their strategic problem was the scarcity and even unreliability of their shipping. They had an essentially coastal rather than oceanic navy, and their manpower was limited. For most of the high Viking era they could field only one 'Great Army' at a time, and had to be content with relatively minor raiding operations elsewhere. Nevertheless, the appearance of even few highly-motivated Vikings in an area without good coastal defence could often spread.

The Viking Art of War

Historians have portrayed British participation in World War I as a series of tragic debacles, with lines of men mown down by machine guns, with untried new military technology, and incompetent generals who threw their troops into improvised and unsuccessful attacks. In this book a renowned military historian studies the evolution of British infantry tactics during the war and challenges this interpretation, showing that while the British army's plans and technologies failed persistently during the improvised first half of the war, the army gradually improved its technique, technology, and, eventually, its' self-assurance. By the time of its successful sustained offensive in the fall of 1918, says Paddy Griffith, the British army was demonstrating a battlefield skill and mobility that would rarely be surpassed even during World War II. Evaluating the great gap that exists between theory and practice, between textbook and bullet-swept mudfield, Griffith argues that many battles were carefully planned to exploit advanced tactics and to avoid casualties, but that breakthrough was simply impossible under the conditions of the time. According to Griffith, the British were already masters of "storm troop tactics" by the end of 1916, and in several important respects were further ahead than the Germans would be even in 1918. In fields such as the timing and orchestration of all-arms assaults, predicted artillery fire, "Commando-style" trench raiding, the use of light machine guns, or the barrage fire of heavy machine guns, the British led the world. Although British generals were not military geniuses, says Griffith, they should at least be credited for effectively inventing much of the twentieth-century's art of war.

Paddy Griffith

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