Private Tucker's Boer War Diary 1899-1902

Publisher's black boards with gilt titles on spine and pictorial dust jacket.

192pp. Illustrations in profusion. Book and jacket in fine condition.

'The Anglo-Boer war of 1899-1902, "The Last of the Gentleman's Wars", was fought at the height of British Imperialism yet it took the vast force of the British Army three years of fighting, three monumental sieges, and myriad battles with considerable loss of life, to overwhelm the Boers and achieve victory.

The story of this war, its battles, its personalities, its tragedies, the strengths and deficiencies of both sides, is presented in this book in a uniquely vivid way, seen through the eyes of a soldier at the front, writing in his diary in the trenches at night, while a parallel commentary supported by hundreds of photographs, cartoons, maps, poetry and ephemera records the history of the war as it was being fought elsewhere.

Frederick Tucker was born in 1875. The son of a lifeboatman, he was deserted by his mother during infancy. His childhood, spent with an aged grandmother was harsh, his schooling was scarce and, by the time he was fourteen, he had enlisted in the army. His diary of the Boer War serves a dual purpose. Not only does it record the daily life of a private soldier at the front - the journey to South Africa, the hardship of marching, the monotony of the food, the men's growing and disquieting disillusionment in their superiors, admiration for comrades and, grudgingly, for Boers - it also provides a valuable insight into the activities, prejudices and attitudes of the late Victorian era.

As the diary chronicles one man's isolated war so the parallel commentary supplies the reader with a more comprehensive guide to the war. Designed to correspond accurately with what is happening in Private Tucker's world, the annotations provide a wealth of intelligent, researched facts, observations and asides.

Illustrated with rare, fascinating and varied material this is an entertaining, informative and original approach to an often cumbersome subject, offering the reader a unique opportunity to appreciate the many diverse facets of warfare.'