The value of learning our history

I have been reading a fascinating account of the action in Waziristan, (North West Pakistan to those who didn’t do geography) from which this passage comes:

"These tribesmen, it should be remembered, are all Muhammadans and fanatical in their faith and hatred of the infidel. Excepting in Baluchistan our government has never succeeded in taming them and to-day they are almost as irreconcilable as when we first mixed in frontier matters."

And another delightful snippet:

"The Mamunds ... had been left alone by our troops ... although they did much to merit severe punishment, and they simply joined in the present disturbances from that pure love of a fight which is second nature to the Pathan and becomes additionally attractive when the feringhee or infidel foe is the objective."

Errrrr…..you don’t say!!

The account is by H Woosnam Mills, and he is referring to the Pathan revolt in north-west India, 1897. I’ve always been a fan of British military history mainly thanks to (my grammar school education and other) life experiences but you do wonder why our own political masters cannot read a bit of history. They might actually learn something!

you can buy it from Amazon books well worth the effort

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Waziristan