Description
Book SynopsisIn this ground-breaking new book, Alan Ogden brings to life Lt Gen sir Adrian Carton de Wiart, soldier, statesman and an often-overlooked figure in British Military and Diplomatic History. Framed through the life of Carton de Wiart this book also offers an exploration of important topics and developments in the first half of the 20th-century, including the Boer War, World War I, World War II and Anglo-Sino relations. This biography ranges from de Wiart's early life, his wartime experiences and role as Churchill's personal representative to Chiang Kai-shek. Ogden draws from an extensive array of primary sources including previously unseen private family papers to examine, in exquisite detail, the life and times of a man who experienced the horrors of war to rise up the ranks and become a personal representative of Winston Churchill and then Clement Attlee. This book will be of interest to undergraduate and postgraduate students, as well as scholars studying British Military and Diplom
Trade ReviewThis is a splendid biography of a quite extraordinary soldier and diplomat whose astonishing bravery in both world wars led to two VCs and not a few wounds. Readers will need to remind themselves that this is not a work of fiction! * General Sir Mike Jackson, Chief of the General Staff 2003-2006, UK *
Only one arm, only one eye and somewhat surprisingly only one VC, Ogden captures the spirit of one of the last great paladins. Written with seemingly effortless panache, he conjures up an heroic buccaneering figure from a different age; a model of chivalry and an inspiration to all beaux sabreurs of the future. * General Sir Mark Carleton-Smith KCB CBE ADC Gen, Chief of the General Staff, UK *
A masterly portrait of a military legend. Alan Ogden`s meticulously-researched account of the extraordinary life of Adrian Carton de Wiart makes fascinating reading and will appeal to a wide readership. * Lt Gen (retd) Sir John Kiszely, author of Anatomy of a Campaign. The British Fiasco in Norway, 1940, UK *
Alan Ogden fills a glaring biographical void with an extensively-researched and vivid biography of this much-wounded, astonishingly brave but intensely private warrior, described by Winston Churchill as `a model of chivalry and honour’, from his intriguing Belgian origins and the Boer War, through numerous international conflicts, to the atomic age. * Dr Donal Lowry, Fellow of the Royal Historical Society, Regent's Park College, University of Oxford, UK; Biographer of Lieutenant-General Sir Adrian Carton de Wiart VC DSO for the Nationaal Biografisch Woordenboek, Brussels, Belgium *
Alan Ogden has done a spectacular job in shedding light on the private persona behind the celebrity image of Britain's most admired World War soldier. He has conjured up a captivating image of courageous leadership, military diplomacy and the art of speaking truth to power. I commend it to you. * Lieutenant General Sir George Norton, Former UK Military Representative to NATO, UK *
Table of ContentsList of illustrations Acknowledgements Maps Introduction Part I Early life 1880–1913 1 Who was Adrian Carton de Wiart? 2 Peacetime soldiering and marriage 3 A-hunting we will go Part II Somaliland 1914 4 To war with the Mad Mullah Part III The First World War 1915–18 5 In Flanders fields 6 A lucky and not so lucky brigadier Part IV Poland 1919–23 7 A tall order: The Polish brief 8 A finger on the Polish pulse 9 Game, set and match to Pilsudski Part V Polesie 1923–39 10 The missing years: Self-exile to the Pripet marshes Part VI Poland 1939 11 Prelude to the Second World War: Blitzkreig in Poland Part VII Norway 1940 12 A gallant fiasco Part VIII Italy 1941–3 13 A reluctant guest of Mussolini Part IX China 1943–6 14 A dragon’s pool and a tiger’s den: The China brief 15 1944: The year of the monkey 16 Special operations and ‘secret society men’ 17 The Generalissimo wins the war but loses the peace Part X Retirement 18 A contented old age Notes Bibliography and Other Sources Index
