Osprey Elite 65 : Redcaps : Britain's Military Police

To be effective an army must be well-disciplined. From the days of the Roman empire to the Gulf War, it has been axiomatic that a well-disciplined force will invariably defeat one with poor discipline. Good military discipline is therefore highly desirable; it can forge an army from the most unpromising human material, or turn the forces of a warrior race into an élite. The story of Britain's provost forces necessarily focuses attention on some of the less glorious episodes of British Army history. Had every British soldier over the centuries been an obedient and dutiful soul, there would have been no need for provost of military police. Sadly, armies - particularly in time of war - have always been home for the criminal, and the British Army has had its share of thieves and cut-throats, as well as its drunken and licentious element. Their excesses have not always been effectively dealt with by their own officers, which has resulted from time to time in breakdowns of discipline ranging from minor offences to serious crime. How these were contained, or dealt with, is the main subject of this book. The men who tamed the lawless are its subject. Text and illustrations by Mike Chappell.

Contents

• Introduction
• Discipline in the British Army
• Provost Marshals and Staff Corps
• Victorian Military Discipline
• The Early 20th Century
• 1914-1918 The Great War
• 1918-1939 The Inter-War Years
• 1939-1945 The Second World War
• The Post-War Years
• Recommended Reading
• The Plates