Page 14 - Chiron 2024

A book review of ‘The History of the Royal Army Veterinary Corps 1962-2021’
by Dr Graham Winton
In the words of the Corps’ Colonel in Chief, “Wow.” This hardback book, of excellent quality, an
enormous 554 pages in A4 format, is an accomplished and balanced tour de force of which any Regiment/ Corps would be justifiably proud.
It is very much a “family” history but with invaluable background information on the politico-military background for British Army
and RAVC activities in peace and theatres of conflict/war from the 1960s period of the Cold War (1945- 1991) into the 21st Century. The author, Christopher Ham, served
as a Regular soldier with the RAVC from 1977 to 2014 rising from Private (Dog Trainer) to Lieutenant Colonel; on retirement he joined the Army Reserve commanding 101 Military Working Dog Reserve Squadron 1st MWD Regiment RAVC until retiring again in 2022. His knowledge, understanding and Service experiences during the much of the period covered, gives this book an added dimension. Chris places the Corps’ history within a socio-military and global context, the demands and frustrations of continuous change and restructuring to meet current and future challenges, including threats to the Corps’ very existence.
This is the story of the Corps continually adapting to prove
its relevance and value; striving
to achieve and maintain its core functions to the highest standards, to ensure the best possible veterinary care and treatment of all Service animals, and to devise and guide
the user in the most advantageous employment and management of those Service animals. Training Military Working Animals that save the lives of fellow soldiers, and civilians, and helping those same animals to retire well. The unknown, extensive, and multi-role, military and civilian work of the Corps is at last revealed.
Structurally the book is divided into thirty chapters of varying length, each broken down with subheadings, making the book easy to dip in and out of. There is a comprehensive Index and valuable eleven pages of Glossary especially useful for the non-military professional. Chris states he has endeavoured to capture the period covered by the book
in a logical order, always through
the prism of respective theatres, countries, bases, campaigns and significant cultural and employment changes the Corps has navigated. This he has achieved.
Chris has not shied away from contentious issues such as financial cuts, government/MOD Reviews and even Higher Command decisions that have threatened the very existence of the Corps. One strength of the book is the glimpses into the experiences, personal accounts, and anecdotes of Corps personnel of all ranks and trades, at work, at play and through the “Grimness of combat and monotony of long campaigns.” We are brought up to date with
the development of the RAVC as a career outlining military and civilian training opportunities and formal qualifications.
Chapter One provides a valuable concise summary of the Corps’ history, outlining a change in
focus, with the steady path of mechanisation, from working
with equines to Military Working Dogs [MWDs]. Paradoxically the British Army in the 21st Century
has more horses than it has tanks. Embedded throughout the book are examples of the continued military use of equines, for example, pack transport in Cyprus until 1995 and Hong Kong into the 1970s. Pack animals supported peace keeping patrols in Bosnia and with limited use in Afghanistan. Chapter 23 provides a fascinating discussion
of the potential future use of pack animals including trials on the Falklands (1983) to sites inaccessible to vehicles and helicopters or only reached with great difficulty. There are detailed accounts of the Corps’ collaboration with the Household Cavalry and King’s Troop RHA and
a most welcome Chapter 12 on farriery, one of the least understood trades, yet central to the health and performance of equines. With the Army School of Farriery providing one of best teaching facilities in Europe.
The main emphasis of the sixty years covered by the book is rightly on the extensive use of MWDs in
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Graham’s lifelong interest in and study of military, social and landscape history has given him an understanding of military horses and their supply. This was the focus of his Ph. D thesis, `Horsing the British Army 1875- 1923’. He has had a number of articles published on horses in the First World War, mechanisation, and army
transport system. His book is a culmination of many years of research and experiences. He has organised many study tours to the battlefields of the First World War, taking veterans back to France, often for their first time. As a result, he has been privileged to spend time with them and listen to their memories of horses, and the landscapes over which they operated. Having had experience of carriage driving, working with heavy horses and riding over a number of battlefields, Graham can combine a detailed knowledge of historical materials and sources, with a practical understanding of horses in the landscape.
12 / Chiron Calling