Queen Victoria's Little Wars

From 1837 to 1901 in Asia China Canada Africa and elsewhere military expedition were constantly being undertaken to protect resident Britons or British interests to extend a frontier to repel an attack avenge an insult or suppress a mutiny or rebellion. Continuous warfare became an accepted way of life in the Victorian era and in the process the size of the British Empire quadrupled. But engrossing as these small wars are—and they bristle with bizarre tragic and often humorous incident—it is the officers and men who fought them that dominate this book. With their courage foolhardiness and eccentricities they are an unforgettable lot.