Supreme Courage: Heroic Stories from 150 Years of the Victoria Cross

Supreme Courage: Heroic Stories from 150 Years of the Victoria Cross. Peter de la Billiere. Little, Brown. [pounds sterling]20.00. viii + 387 pages. ISBN 0-316-72591-9. Of the various books published to celebrate 150 years of the Victoria Cross, this is the most comprehensive. Sir Peter has chapters on the history of the medal and, of great interest, on the nature of courage in battle.

There is also a chapter devoted to 'reflections' in which he uses his knowledge of the subject and his own long experience in HM's armed forces to discuss the nature and role of war, of soldiers and of bravery. The bulk of the text, however, is devoted to men awarded the VC and the circumstances which led to the award. There are eight chapters devoted to individual men and chapters centring on the 'Bradford boys', Gurkha and Indian VCs and the Canadian winners of the medal. As one would expect of a military man the text is clearly written, concise and dispassionate.

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