Rising Sun and Tumbling Bear: Russia's War with Japan

There are not a great number of modern histories of the 1904-1905 Russo-Japanese War, but Richard Connaughton's Rising Sun and Tumbling Bear is clearly the best. The author, with 30 year's experience in the British Army and access to British official records on the war, brings a richer and more detailed military account than Denis and Peggy Warner's The Tide at Sunrise (which is also very good, but less detailed). While the author leans toward admiration of the Japanese war effort - at one point, describing the Japanese army as "a well-oiled machine with high morale, confident, well practiced and undefeated" - he is more than fair to the Russian side as well. This book is marked by superb detail, superior organization and insight derived from sound military judgment and experience. Rising Sun and Tumbling Bear consists of 15 chapters, with a conventional chronological structure based upon major topics. The author also provides 15 sketch maps, which are a bit skimpy but adequate. Connaughton provides a succinct but excellent background chapter on events leading up to the war, followed by an even better chapter on opposing forces. In addition to excellent detail on both ground and naval forces, the author cites the main Russian weakness as an over-abundance of elderly, ineffective leaders. In the sections on early ground and naval actions, the author notes that a British correspondent reported the attack on Port Arthur as it was occurring- a first in journalism. Throughout the book, the author makes the point - and supports it with evidence - that Japanese operations were facilitated by a superb intelligence effort, while Russian efforts were hindered by awful intelligence support. Despite the fact that the Russians usually had numerical superiority on the ground and at sea, they continually thought they were out-numbered. Although many historians have been very harsh on the Russian war effort, Connaughton notes that Russian strategic plans were usually sound, but poorly executed. On the ground, the Russians were also hindered by commanders who adhered to outdated tactics, such as volley firing and attacks in mass formations across open ground. The Russians did enjoy some advantages, such as a superior logistic capability based upon the China Eastern Railway and new quick-firing artillery pieces. Russian infantry units were also quite good at building defensive positions integrating machineguns and barbed wire, intimating conditions that would soon appear in the First World War. The author also notes that the Japanese were unsuccessful in following up after their victories, with pursuits being hindered by inadequate cavalry and weaker logistics. I also noted from this account, that the Japanese made the mistake of using landmarks such as rail lines as boundary markers between their formations - which usually leads to no one really controlling the rail line. The sections on the siege of Port Arthur are particularly interesting since they

This is a very informative book on the Russo Japanese war! A very straight forward and fact filled book. A very well researched piece of work. I enjoyed it very much.

This is one of two serious-length books on the Russo-Japanese war available in English. There are two shorter books (the Osprey "Essential History" and an "Illustrated History). The other book, "The Tide at Sunrise" by Denis & Peggy Warner, is longer and from a less military point of view, Denis Warner being a journalist. The current book is written by a retired British soldier, and consists of a "substantial revision" of a book he wrote in the late 80s after winning a silent auction and becoming the proud owner of a large library on the subject from the staff college he taught at. The Russo-Japanese War is one of the stranger wars of history. The two opponents *looked* well-matched for one another, with the larger and more experienced Russian army handicapped by the length of their supply line along the trans-Siberian railroad. In actualy point of fact, however, the Japanese were pretty much universally aggressive and resourceful, while their opponents seemed to be able only to come up with excuses for failure, as opposed to ways to succeed. As a result, there were no major battles during the war that the Japanese actually lost or that the Russians were able to claim to have won. Russian soldiers were stolid and brave, and given some time skillful in battle, but the Japanese only rarely gave them a chance to learn anything and exploited every weakness they could find. This is a good military account of the campaign, with some flaws. The various battles are examined intelligently, the character and actions of the various commander dissected dispassionately, the course of events recounted clearly and concisely. There aren't any notes to the text, however, and at times this is maddening. It's my firm belief that any work or person quoted in the text of a book should be attributed *somewhere*. If you don't do it in the text itself (something like "a British observer says..." isn't enough) then it should be in a footnote or something. The maps are only adequate, and don't do much to convey the movement of the troops or their dispositions at various times. There's also a reference to Takano Isoroku, who later changed his name to Yamamoto and became Japan's senior admiral at the beginning of World War II, but since the author makes no mention of the name change, most won't recognize Takano-san as anyone other than Admiral Togo's aide. The index is useless, failing to list entries that should be listed, and not citing places where the subject does appear. While the text of this book is worthwhile, the finishing touches are rather shoddy. I enjoyed this book, and unless you can find a used copy of the Warner book this is the only account of the Russo-Japanese War available that I'm aware of. It also has the virtue of being shorter than the Warner book by a couple of hundred pages, if I remember right. So my recommendation, while qualified, is largely positive, because there are so few alternatives.

I am surprised at the shortage of really good works in English on the Russo-Japanese War which, far from being an obscure backwater event, was in actually one of the watershed conflicts of the 20th century around which much of subsequent world history pivoted. This is definitely one, if not the, best treatments of the war available. Connaughton gives excellent and through accounts of both the land and naval operations in a very readable narrative. The only reason I don't give it 5 stars is for an incomplete bibliography, the lack of footnotes/endnotes, the inadequacy of the maps (although there are 15 maps spread throughout the book, I found myself often having to flip around between several of them to find the location-occasionally in vain-of some obscure, previous unreferenced place name), and some sloppy editing (which intermittently led to disjointed transitions and the casual use without any introduction of previously unmentioned people). However, these problems were minor and certainly don't detract from the value of the book. At the end, Connaughton provides a fresh analysis of why the lessons of this war were not well absorbed into the tactics and strategy of the First World War and I especially liked how he closed with a poignant and heartrending reminder of the personal human tragedy of all war. When military history is often presented like a recount of a sporting event--sometimes with melodramatic or maudlin sops of dubious sincerity to war's human cost--I found the epilogue to this book to be refreshing. Overall, highly recommended.

The Russo-Japanese War proves to be one of the more interesting wars ever fought, since it proves to be forebringer of the future, World War I which will be fought nearly ten years later. Trench warfare, superiority of the machine guns on the battlegrounds and meaningless infantry charges were all shown in open light as the Russian and Japanese soldiers fought against each other.The book proves to be well written, nicely researched and revealed a good insight into this war which ironically speaking, isn't too well known in Western nations. A serious student of World War I could see here, that chaotic command structure of the Russian army, had their root initially when they fought against the Japanese. While rarely outnumbered, the Russians were continouesly out-professionalized by their Asian opponents.The war was the first time, a white European power have been brought low by a non-white power since the colonialism began in ernest. A good reading material that comes highly recommended by anyone who got an interest in this subject.