Barrack Room Ballads, circa early 1900s, Rudyard Kipling, Published by Barse & Hopkins New York, Softcover, leather 7” x 4-1/2”, 159 pages A series of songs and poems by Rudyard Kiplin, dealing with the late-Victorian British Army and mostly written in a vernacular dialect. The series contains some of Kipling’s best known works, including the poems “Gunga Din, “Tommy”, “Mandalay”, and “Danny Deever”, helping consolidate his early fame as a poet. Very good condition, slight creasing on spine, beautiful mottled end papers, deckled pagination, embossed front cover, very clean. Lovely antiquarian book for the collector. Ships USPS Media Mail, thank you.

The Battle of Maiwand part of the Second Afghan War took place on 27th July 1880 in the West of Kandahar in Southern Afghanistan between Brigadier General Burrows and Ayub Khan.

Hello all Just thought I'd keep the interest boiling with the imminent arrival (hopefully in a few months and b4 the snow falls) of the new Zulu War/colonial figures from HaT and now also Newline in May; more on those lads later... Here are a few images from my collection to assist in some uniform planning... Enjoy Keeping the interest going for the 17th too Newline have also (thanks to Steve the wargamer) announced the launch of some new figures to their 20mm colonial range too... All packs of 4 figures at £1.90 Sudan War British Infantry SUD01 British Command SUD02 British Foot Standing at Ready SUD03 British Foot Standing Loading SUD04 British Foot Standing Firing SUD05 British Foot Advancing SUD06 British Foot Kneeling SUD07 British Foot Kneeling Firing Gurkhas GUR01 Gurkha Command GUR02 Gurkhas Advancing GUR03 Gurkhas Skirmishing I GUR04 Gurkhas Skirmishing II GUR05 Gurkhas Standing at Ready Colonial Indians IND01 Sikh Sepoy Command IND02 Sikh Sepoys Advancing IND03 Sikh Sepoys Skirmishing IND04 Sikh Sepoys Standing at Ready Generic colonials GC01 Infantry in Shirtsleeves, Pith Helmet Skirmishing GC02 Infantry in Shirtsleeves, Pith Helmet Advancing Zulu War British ZW54 Artillery Horse Team – 6 horses and 3 riders £4.20 ZW55 Limber – 1 piece £1.90 ZW57 British Lancers – 3 cavalry £3.30 Looks like HaT could learn from Newline...get your products out to the market first...once I have spent my few £/$/€ I can't go back and spend them again...first in the market is first with the profits... Anyway, I've also added a few more links to the right...showing some of great painting and conversions around. Back to the grind! Duncan

The British Empire was an astonishingly complex and varied phenomenon, not to be reduced to any of the simple generalisations or theories that are often taken to characterise it. One way of illustrating this, and so conveying some of the subtle flavour of the thing itself, is to descend from the over-arching to the particular, and describe and discuss aspects of it in detail. This book, by the well-known imperial historian Bernard Porter, ranges among a wide range of the events and personalities that shaped or were shaped by British imperialism, or by its decline in the post-war years. These include chapters on science, drugs, battles, proconsuls, an odd assortment of imperialists including Kipling, Lady Hester Stanhope and TE Lawrence, architecture, music, the role of MI6 and the reputation of the Empire since its demise. Together the chapters inform, explain, provoke, and occasionally amuse; but above all they demonstrate the kaleidoscopic variety and ambivalence of Britain s imperial history."

During the Second Anglo-Afghan War, Afghan women would use an execution method against the British where they would prop the soldier's mouth open to prevent swallowing and then take turns urinating into his mouth to drown him.