Soldiers of the English Civil War (1): Infantry (Elite)

I own over 60 Osprey military-themed books, and this volume is among the best in this genre. The narrative provides a very useful overview of the life and times of common soldiers who fought in the ranks of the armies of the first phase (1642-1645) of the English Civil Wars. But far better are the plates that show off the absolutely superb artwork of Angus McBride, along with some very entertaining accompanying text. Unlike so many other similar Osprey volumes, the descriptive text for the plates actually sets the scene for each page, which feature 3 or 4 figures engaged in some kind of shared activity that is associated with the historical unit being featured. The text then adds specific notes about the uniforms and equipment. For each unit, there is typically a musketeer, a pikeman, and possibly an officer or NCO, demonstrating the full gamut of variations. I wish other Osprey volumes provided this kind of entertaining narrative.

Very informative. Great artwork.

Ospreys are good value for the money.

a ok

This is the first volume of the two-volume set on the English Armies in the English Civil War. This first volume in the set deals with the Infantry and the second volume deals with the cavalry. This set of books was published in the "Elite" series which is published by the Osprey Publishing Company.

This is a wonderful book detailing English Civil War infantry...a typical Osprey offering. Color plates are nice but far from thorough. Those looking for detailed regimental uniform histories will be disappointed - this is an overview and gives you the flavor of the era not the specifics. That being said it is interesting and a fascinating basic look at the period. The drawings for my taste fall below the typical Osprey standard but are adequate. Please note: campaigns, battles and detailed tactics are not covered - primarily a uniform guide.

I own both this volume and volume 2 which covers English Civil War Cavalry. They are both part of the Osprey Men-At-Arms series. These books are not history books per say as they are not accounts of persons, places and events, but rather they detail the clothing, weapons and equipment of the Royalist and Parliamentarian infantry during the English Civil War as well as providing details on troop training, recruitment, and regimental and company structure. The illustrations are very detailed and by themselves are a wonderful resource especially for re-enactors.

Keith Roberts approach to explaining about the soldiers of the Civil War is an interesting one. Simply put:Pros:+He explains the tactics of the time well+He brings across a good idea of the difficulties of hastily forming an army+He attempts to explain colours (flags)+ The Colour plates are fantastic, of which there are many+The explanations of the plates are also very detailed.+ He describes well the problems of maintaining an armyCons:- He spends a little too much text on describing tactics and their influences, to the extent of the reader having to read lines twice.- Some equipment he explains well, most he does not. Pikes are explained with a few lines in the whole book, the damage they can cause and problems fighting with them are not greatly covered.- He spends too much time writing about military theories of what could be or pass-times before the war. I bought the book to hear about soldiers of the civil war, not about the rich gentry "fannying about" in "soldiers clubs" before the war.-The illustrations needed to have the tactics explained not using pictures of the time, but actual modern diagrams, it would have made for far easier explanation.- Focuses on London regiments too much (great if you're interested in that. Not so great if you wanted to learn about soldiers from elsewhere)At the end of the day it's your call to buy the book. 11.99 for 60 odd pages I found was a little too steep in honesty when for 3 pounds more you could have another osprey with 100 pages which would actually have more details on the bits you're looking for. More a book to round off a collection or to help you understand tactics more as opposed to what it's like to get a face full of bloody great big pike, or watch you're mates leg ripped off by matchlock shotte.

Well presented and packed. Arrived in good order. Thank you.

Excellent read.

A really excellent book

excellent book