The British Army 1939-45 (2) Middle East & Mediterranean

Men-At-Arms #368
By Martin J. Brayley
Color plates by Mike Chappell
Osprey Publishing, 2002
ISBN 1-84176-237-7
48 Pages, Softbound

Reviewed by John Prigent

This is the second of three volumes covering the British Army of World War 2. The first was MAA 354 dealing with North-West Europe, and the third will presumably cover the Far East and other theatres. Only British troops are mentioned in any detail, though of course there’s a good deal of similarity with the uniforms of Commonwealth forces so the book is a good reference for them too. MAA 354 gives details of the standard Service Dress, Battledress and Denim uniforms and the personal equipment worn with them, so this one concentrates on the specifically "warm climate" items worn in North Africa, the Middle East, Malta, Greece, Italy and Southern France. This concentration on the differences from the uniforms described n the previous title means that the uniform section is relatively short, so here we get a lot of condensed information on the campaigns around the shores of the Mediterranean as well as details of Artillery organisation and weapons.

That "short" uniform section may sound off-putting, but don’t be dismayed. It gives a great deal of information in its smaller space, and the extended captions to Mike Chappell’s superb plates give even more. Highly recommended!