Osprey's US Armed Forces in China 1856-1941
Author/Artists: John Langellier, illustrated by Mike Chappell

Publisher/Distributor

Osprey Publishing

Price

$17.95 MSRP

Reviewer:

Scott Van Aken

Notes: 48 pages, 7¼ x 9¼ inches, softcover
ISBN: 978-1-84603-493-0

This latest edition of Osprey's Men-at-Arms series concentrates on the US military involvement in China up to the start of WWII. That period of time was one of great turmoil inside China with constantly changing political situations and a few time of outright hostilities. This is particularly true of the US involvement in the Boxer Rebellion of 1900. Europeans had managed to inculcate themselves into Chinese life by pretty much taking over settlement areas in many of China's cities, especially where it involved trade in and out of the country. Naturally, there was seen a need to protect these enclaves and that is where the major powers, including the United States, sent their troops.

This was also a time when the need to protect the flow of traffic on the major waterways was important so the US, along with other countries, sent gunboats to patrol the rivers and fend off attacks from marauders and pirates. This time period is probably where the term 'gunboat diplomacy' got its start.

In this book the author tells the story of these turbulent times and the units, Army, Navy and Marine, that took part in the various operations. A good portion of the book concentrates on the Boxer Rebellion as that was the major military event of this period, though there were other smaller conflicts. Men-at-Arms is basically a book on uniforms and the superlative illustrations of Mike Chappell show the various uniforms and equipment of the men of this period. These were pretty much the standard issue for troops of the time, but with a few additions for the theater of operations. The book also includes a number of quite rare photographs that should prove to be quite interesting to the enthusiast. For movie buffs, there are two older films 55 Days at Peking and Sand Pebbles, that are about this time period and well done.

In all, one of Osprey's more interesting titles and one that I know you will enjoy reading as much as did I.

July 2009

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