The Embattled General: Sir Richard Turner and the First World War
William F.
Stewart (October 2015) McGill-Queen’s University Press
ISBN 10: 0773546251 / ISBN 13: 9780773546257
While
not as packed with information as the Bill Steward’s excellent Somme book (1) I
found his first book on Sir Richard Turner VC was a more enjoyable read;
especially the last one-third – perhaps it was the consolidation of all the
presented research material and logical assumptions being woven from threads of
thought into a discernable a logical and balanced conclusion. An
oft-forgotten Canadian-born Great War general with very few quality
biographical works has finally received a quality re-examination. An important fundamental book which bridges
the gap between Sir Sam Hughes and the final quality fighting force the
Canadian Expeditionary Force became during the second half of its existence on
the Western Front.
The
dissection and deduction of information coupled with logical inferences, the
comparisons with and between Currie was delicate, measured, logical and
convincing. The chaos in recruiting and
training under Sir Sam Hughes and his political cronies was quickly corrected
by the military-experienced but business orientated General Turner.
One
begins to perhaps understand the politics of power in the post-war period where
the front-line generals were able to consolidate their place in history;
whereas the necessary background administrative efforts were less glamourous
and less inviting to documentation and publication. The “point
of the spear” requires a strong logistical and administrative base –
something that Turner was able to expedite in short order.
In
the publisher’s summary, this Bill Steward effort is “Based on exhaustive research from
over 1,200 volumes of material, including many previously untouched sources,
The Embattled General provides a balanced and just re-evaluation of Turner,
identifying his merits as well as his flaws.” Bill Stewart is skilled in the source
material research and then in presenting the facts-based findings into a
surgically detached and coherent document.
As a
testament, I have the Stewart material on my bookshelf next to the Dr. Tim Cook
material. The quality of research and
writing is on the same level. Strongly
recommended for a student of the Canadian Corps in the Great War.
[1] Canadians at the Somme - The Neglected Campaign (2017)
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