| The Irish Guards in the Great War: The Second Battalion Contributor(s): Kipling, Rudyard (Author) |
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ISBN: 1862274258 ISBN-13: 9781862274259 Publisher: Spellmount Publishers OUR PRICE: $31.46 Product Type: Paperback - Other Formats Published: September 2008 Annotation: Originally published in 1923, this is Rudyard Kiplings little-known masterpiece, an utterly individual contribution to the art of regimental history writing, and possibly the best ever written for its economy of style and empathy with the fighting man. In August 1914, Kiplings son, John, was killed at the battle of Loos whilst serving with the Irish Guards and he instantly took up the regiments request to write their history in the First World War. |
| Additional Information |
| BISAC Categories: - History | Military - World War I - History | Europe - Ireland |
| Dewey: 940.4 |
| Physical Information: 0.5" H x 6.7" W x 9.6" (1.25 lbs) 224 pages |
| Themes: - Chronological Period - 1900-1919 - Cultural Region - Ireland - Cultural Region - British Isles |
| Descriptions, Reviews, Etc. |
| Publisher Description: This is the forgotten masterpiece of Nobel laureate Rudyard Kipling. It is the result of five and a half years' detailed research. It was out of print for many years. "This will be my great work . . . It is done with agony and bloody sweat." First published in 1923, Kipling's little-known masterpiece is an utterly individual contribution to the art of regimental history. In August 1914 Kipling's son John, not yet 17, volunteered for a commission in the army, but being underage and with poor sight, was initially refused. His father's friendship with Lord Roberts was used to gain him a commission in the Irish Guards. John Kipling's battalion, the 2nd, was at once deployed in the costly battle of Loos, where he was among the earliest casualties. Kipling was devastated, and set about writing a regimental history as a monument to his son's service. The result of five years of laborious research, it is both a military and a literary masterpiece. Kipling employed his exceptional descriptive powers, his empathy with fighting men, and his habitual passion for detail to wonderful effect. Long out of print, the two volumes of The Irish Guards in the Great War, of which this is volume two, are republished in lavish, illustrated editions complete with the original maps and appendices. |
