New Worlds, Old Wars The Anglo-American Indian Wars 1607-1678

 

I'm quite a fan of Helion books and the latest title to join my shelves is from their Century of the Soldier (1618-1721) series and is titled New Worlds, Old Wars, The Anglo-American Indian Wars 1607-1678 by David Childs. The book covers the wars that blighted the early relationships between settlers and Amerindians.

One thing that struck me when reading this book is that this subject matter is one which is very close to the heart of the author. If you have an interest in the early Anglo settlements in America and their clashes with the indigenous peoples, termed Amerindians by the author then I would suggest that this book is essential reading. 

I found the book insightful into the relationships between the English settlers and the native Amerindians. The contents providing plenty of inspiration for wargames scenarios, ranging from native ambuscades to settler treachery, something I kept in mind while reading as I'm due to receive the Kickstarter rulebook Flint and Feather Contact this year. If you have an interest in colonial warfare and history you can clearly see the attitudes of the early English settlers towards indigenous people, attitudes which were carried forward into future generations as the British Empire was established. There are some particularly unpleasant individuals on the settler side, and it is worth mentioning that settler brutality was not isolated to the indigenous people alone, but was meted out to their own, this is after all within the timeframe of the Salem witch trials.