An Cosantóir

www.military.ie the defence forces magazine | 37 author: Chris Goss Publisher: Crecy Publishing, (October 2017) www.crecy.co.uk isbn: 9781906535748 Pages: 288 Price: £50.00 HB Chris Goss is a well- known and respected aviation historian who specialises in the history of the Luftwaffe in WW2. His latest tome is a comprehensive and detailed history of this famous aircraft from its inception to its demise. The Condor was the most successful anti-shipping armed reconnaissance aircraft in the Luftwaffe inventory. Chris Goss covers this in a very readable and precise style. He explains how the Condor emerges as a potent war machine operating from such diverse locations from Norway to the South West Coast of France whilst utilising the airfields of the defeated Norwegian and French Forces. Operating from these bases the Condors often in co- operation with the U Boats inflicted devastating havoc on the Allied convoys in the Atlantic and was considered a serious threat to the continued supply of material from the United States, The Empire and Allied nations. The Condor was regularly observed by the lookout posts around the Irish Coast as they moved into the Atlantic from the base at Merignac. The three Condors to make landings in Neutral Ireland are recorded including the tragic one near Durrus, Co Cork in February 1941. Five of the six-man crew were killed. The demise of this Condor has been incorrectly reported in many publications. Unfortunately, this has been continued in this publication (P46) by claiming that it was damaged by the vessel 'SS Major C'. Many attempts have been made to identify this ship and all have been unsuccessful. However the author further on suggests an alternative cause for the loss of this Condor (P252) as more likely the result of an accident. It does little if anything to detract from the sheer quality of this important work, which has been eagerly awaited by historians and enthusiasts interested in this period. There is a comprehensive set of appendices which are of such interest alone would provoke a separate path for further research. This is the type of work compiled by this meticulous author. There are hundreds of photographs in 288 A4 pages, many not seen before and of great interest, in addition to the many colour illustrations of this famous aircraft. This is a must-have for the aviation historian and an essential part of the reference section for ready access. No less for the general military historian/enthusiast who will find an interest in its well-written narrative and detail of a dangerous period in World history. Highly recommended. APK FOcke-wulF Fw200, the cOnDOr at war 1939-1945 author: James O'Neill Publisher: Four Courts Press (May 2017) www.fourcourtspress.ie isbn: 9781846826368 Pages: 332 Price: €40.50 HB The Elizabethan government's attempt to end the power of the local Irish Lord's and traditional way of Gaelic life was met by fierce resistance by the Irish Lords. This resistance was known as the Nine Year's War (1593-1603). The Irish were led by the second Earl of Tyrone, Hugh O'Neill and Red Hugh O'Donnell from their Ulster redoubt the last bastion of Gaelic resistance in the Tudor period. In this seminal work on the conflict James O'Neill charts the military evolution of this key but curiously forgotten epic of Irish history; in not only Irish and Elizabethan terms but its effect on Geopolitics' on the European continent. It ended with the ultimate defeat of the Irish at the Battle of Kinsale in 1601, which saw the last bastion of Gaelic resistance to Tudor England fail in Ulster; thereafter leading to the Flight of the Earls in 1607 which allowed in turn to the ensuing Plantation of Ulster. Had the Irish prevailed at Kinsale the course of Irish history would have been irrevocably changed. This work superbly nests the conflict against the wider continental political backdrop and fundamentally reassesses previous interpretations of the period. The author convincingly argues that under the leadership of Hugh O'Neill as Earl of Tyrone, the Confederation that he coalesced around him presented an almost existential threat to Elizabethan England; almost as great as the Spanish threat. This work is the most forensically detailed account of the conflict to date shedding new light as to just how the Confederation prevailed as long as it did. The analysis of both the tactical and operational level is superb as is how O'Neill persistently used deception to mask his intentions and unhinge the English military effort. The effect of the campaign in England was both significant and traumatic. It is noteworthy as Prof. James Shapiro has pointed out that Shakespeare mentions 'Ireland' 31 times in his works and that the most striking thing about these allusions to 'Irish' or 'Irishman' is how concentrated they are within a very narrow time band of time, one that stretched from 1596 to 1599. England had no standing army at the time, so potential soldiers were rounded up across the land. Military service in Ireland was much feared, given the high casualty and mortality rates to the extent that unhappy soldiers often mutinied; and there was a proverb in Cheshire "better be hanged at home than die like dogs in Ireland." RF the nine year'S war 1593-1603

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