Customer Reviews

The History Of Sniping And Sharpshooting

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In November 2007 I got an email from Greg Nichols at Paladin Press, asking whether I would be interested in reviewing Maj. John Plaster's latest book, "The History of Sniping and Sharpshooting", to come out early in 2008. Of course I would. What a question to ask of somebody from a site called Sniper Country.

Shortly before Christmas 2007 the book arrived, and I was immediately impressed. Due to their prices I don't have valuables such as the Chandlers' series (Death from Afar) on the US Marine Corps' sniping, nor Peter Senich's books on sniping in specific wars (WWI, WWII, Vietnam, etc.) - though I would love to still get them. Thus I don't have anything to compare this volume with, but then, quality shows and need not be compared to be appreciated. And this book shows quality from start to finish.

A large book, coffee-table quality, with lots of drawings, illustrations, photos and facsimiles of brochures - all black-and-white - it is an excellent read. Its 670-odd pages are crammed with information, and the bibliography alone is a veritable treasure trove.

It is divided into six parts, namely:
* Early Wars in the New World and on the Continent
* The American Civil War
* Sharpshooting in Transition
* The Two World Wars
* The Asian Wars
* Sniping into the 21st Century

Each of these parts is further divided into chapters covering specific periods of interest, for example The Asian Wars is divided into two chapters, one each on Korea and Vietnam.

The book starts at the beginning of it all, in essence the first rifled-barreled rifles appearing around 1450. And it ends with sniping in Afghanistan and Iraq as late as 2007.

And basically every page I said to myself "I have to remember this" only to repeat it later on the same page, or on the next page. The book does not go into all the technical detail of every firearm discussed, neither is that the intention. It discusses the different developments and how it evolved through the ages, and how these developments affected the wars they were used in, from being new in one and the standard in the next, leading to new innovations. And around every war or era it also goes into more details on specific inventors, shooters and shots, and their influences on it all.

An incredible revelation is that, after EVERY war, right from the start until after Vietnam, that which was just learned at the cost of much blood and many lives, were just discarded, and all training stopped. All the lessons learned regarding musketry, accurate shooting, sharpshooting, sniping - all just swept under the carpet. And after Vietnam it may have well happened again, had it not been for Major Jim Land, who bullied Marine HQ until the Marine Corps started a sniper school. Thus he ensured that with Desert Storm invasion of Iraq in the early 1990's, the US Armed Forces were for the first time ready in terms of their sniper capability when going into a war.

And that is my one beef with this book, albeit a small and understandable one - it is written very US-centric. Other countries are mentioned almost as a matter of fact, or merely because they are part of the same war as the US - most often on the other side. In those cases Plaster does not neglect them, not at all, but other than the US conflicts he barely touches anything else. Being a South African I would obviously have wanted to see more on the Anglo-Boer War, but that is only very briefly mentioned. But then, there's not necessarily all that comprehensive documentation available on specific shooters and techniques employed in all these other countries and conflicts.

This is almost a lifetime of work, being the result of Plaster's own research, originally just done in order to be able to better teach his sniper students, later to ensure that the information is not lost - in all the work of almost three decades. Drawing on his 36-month combat experience as a operative with the top-secret MACV-SOG in Vietnam and later 24 years as a sniper instructor, Plaster combines this with his writing skills to put together a very definitive work.

This book is a must on the shelves of anybody who is serious about precision shooting, or who is in any way interested in the development and influence of firearms over the centuries. At more than $90US it is not cheap, especially if one has to multiply that by eight or more to get it into South Africa, but it is well worth the money.

I first became familiar with John Plaster when I read SOG: The Secret Wars of America's Commandos in Vietnam about 10 years ago. As a historian, journalist, and Vietnam veteran, I already knew quite a bit about SOG, but I was blown away by Plaster's meticulous research, his in-depth knowledge of these forgotten heroes, and his ability to make these long-ago war stories come alive on the page. Since then, I have read all of Plaster's history books and have never been disappointed.

And that holds true for The History of Sniping and Sharpshooting. It is an excellent account of the role of snipers in warfare, from the early day of rifles to the very latest battles in Iraq and Afghanistan. Not being a shooter, I wasn't sure I wanted to spend $90 on a book about sniping. But this book is worth every penny! It contains all the qualities that I expect in a book by Plaster--the extensive research, his unparalleled knowledge of the subject, his appreciation for what really happens in, his tributes to the forgotten heroes of long-forgotten battles, and the fascinating little "tidbits" of history that rarely make it into other books. Plus he unearthed a wealth of photographs and illustrations, many of which I had never seen before. This is not one of those dry history books that you put down after a chapter or two. It will hold your interest from beginning to end.

I take pride in my knowledge of military history, but I learned a lot of things from Plaster's new book. My favorite chapters were those about the Civil War, where sharpshooting really came into its own as an essential element of "modern" warfare.

There is no way to describe how comprehensive and well-researched Major Plaster's work is. 16 crates of material and 20+ years of research went into this book, and it was worth every dime it cost me. Original training materials and rare photos share space with modern tests of vintage weapons ranging from the Pennsylvania/Kentucky rifles and the British Ferguson rifle of the Revolution to tests of the Soviet and German sniper scopes of WWII.

Vignettes that he used to illustrate tactics and techniques in "The Ultimate Sniper Manual", a book we used for unit training of 3/502 Infantry's scout-snipers here in the 101st, here are fleshed into full chapters. The marksmanship tests for Berdan's Sharpshooters, skirmishers of the Indian Wars, and other units are recorded.

Names that are touchstones and role models for those of us in the profession of hunting our fellow men with rifles are explored. Timothy Murphy, whose killing of British general Simon Fraser helped win the Battle of Saratoga. Finnish legend Simo "The White Death" Hayha. Carlos Hathcock. Patrick Ferguson, rifleman and gunsmith who could have ended the American Revolution with a shot he passed up out of chivalry. Russian sniper legend Vasili Zaitsev takes back seat to Captain Ivan Sidarenko's 500 kills. The problem of destroyed German records is analyzed in trying to decipher the truth beneath the Soviet propaganda about the Zaitsev/Konig-"Thorvald" duel. Captain Arthur Wermuth, the "Ghost of Bataan" who fought the Japanese and survived three and a half years of captivity, is documented.

In a review of this book in the most recent "American Rifleman", MAJ Jim Land, Hathcock's former commanding officer and officer in charge of the USMC's Pacific Theater sniper program before and during much of the Vietnam War, says that Plaster's description of the Marine sniper program is the most complete and accurate yet published. Having met MAJ Land, I am not prepared to dispute him. Certainly it meets or exceeds the amazing work in "Death From Afar".

From the first gunmaker who used a grooved barrel to impart a steadying spin to the lead slug to the sniper-countersniper duels playing out today in Ramallah and Baghdad, almost nothing is left untouched. Grenada, Panama, the roots of the Army's current sniper schools (Bragg's SOTIC and Benning's 29th Regiment course), and even the Chechens and the Irish Republican Army.

And Hugh, I'm speaking as a two-tour Iraq War vet. MAJ Plaster, having retired, is still involved as a civilian instructor training Iraq-bound troops. A lot of modern how-tos regarding to American military tactics, techniques, and procedures will not (and should not) be addressed due to operational security issues. Yes, I'm sorry some of the excellent Aussie snipers from Gallipoli to Afghanistan didn't get as much ink as you might have liked, but the World Wars go from page 291 to page 504. Then to go rate this book "one star" because you didn't like the typesetting is like turning down a date with Angelina Jolie because you think she's a lousy cook.

John L. Plaster's -The History of Sniping and Sharpshooting- could have been written only by an author who is passionate about the subject and has spent years studying and collecting data. Among firearms-related books, only Elmer Keith's -Sixguns- reaches this level of quality. It is comprehensive in scope while it gives all the detail that makes history so interesting. Its vignettes of people, sidebars, and many photographs hold even the well-versed reader transfixed, thinking repeatedly, "I didn't know that!"
I recommend this book not only to people interested in sniping but also to anyone interested in firearms or military history. It's a masterpiece.

This an outstanding history of this specialized aspect of combat. The author has done a magnificent job painting a sweeping but detail-rich picture of the development of sniping in warfare.

The book contains too many fascinating episodes and characters to list here. Some of my favorites include the elderly War of 1812 veteran sharpshooter who volunteered his services to Union forces at Gettysburg, the circumstances surrounding the farthest western advance (in the form of a sniper post) of Japanese forces during World War II, and the description of how modern-day U.S. military sniper training really took off only after sniper combat veterans of the Vietnam War battled institutional disinterest. The author's use of a laser rangefinder to analyze famous long-range shots (such as Billy Dixon's at the Battle of Adobe Walls between a group of hunters and Comanche Indians) and engagements (e.g., Devil's Den, Gettysburg) is also interesting.

Another reviewer did not appreciate the text spacing, but I found it to be one of the book's strengths. It allows the hundreds of outstanding graphics and photos to appear near their references in the text. Otherwise, you would end up reading about something, then seeing a graphic for it many pages later. That does not occur in this book--text and graphics are seamlessly woven together.

I am still reading it as there is a lot on the subject. The research must have been extensive as I am running across material I have not heard of before and I used to own many of the great classics on the subject. But concerning the non-American forces there is less material, the book has more of a USA slant in balance. The book uses stories and technical data to help explain the history of the equipment and the people involved. Overall, it is an excellent book to have in my collection.

There have been many books written on this subject pertaining to specific conflicts(British & German snipers in WW1 & WW2, US in Vietnam) but none span the period of time that Maj. Plaster's book does. By tying in technological developments in firearms, ammunition, optics and tactics Maj. Plaster is able to weave their impact into historical significance. A very good read. Thanks to Maj. Plaster and to the Quiet Professionals who shape history every day.

I got _The_History_of_Sniping_And_Sharpshooting for my father for Father's Day -- and wound up stealing it back for a month to read it myself. It's a wonderful & fascinating read.

The book is organized chronologically. There is a section about sharpshooting prior to the 1700s, but it is very brief. As Plaster explains, sharpshooting and sniping are not really possible without a rifled barrel, as smooth-bore barrels are not accurate much past 60 yards. The book is broken up into six parts:
- Early Wars in the New World and On the Continent
- The American Civil War
- Sharpshooting in Transition
- The Two World Wars
- The Asian Wars
- Sniping into the 21st Century

Plaster has struck a good balance between technical details of the firearms vs. personal details of the shooters and officers. This made for a very readable book (truthfully, far more readable than I was expecting for a book that's almost 700 pages long). There are also a lot of short one-, two- or three-page sections when he wants to highlight a particular weapon, person, battle, or other area of interest. So the book is not only readable & interesting, but it is also easy to read in short sections without having to spend 15 minutes remembering what was going on every time you pick up the book.

Plaster does not focus exclusively on American sharpshooters. For instance, he talks about British sharpshooters in the American Revolutionary War and the War of 1812, Russian and British sharpshooters in the Crimean War, Mexican sharpshooters in the War for Texan Independence, British and Boer sharpshooters in the Boer War, Canadian, British, French, German and Russian sharpshooters in World Wars I & II, and Vietnamese sharpshooters in the Vietnam War. However, he readily admits there are times when information is hard to come by. For instance, there is a dearth of information about Russian and German sharpshooters on the Eastern European front during World War II, but this is more likely due to the destruction of records and a reticence on the part of snipers and sharpshooters who survived the war than an actual lack of shooters; both Germany & Russia were running regular training classes for snipers and sharpshooters by the end of the war.

There are many things about history and historians that Plaster criticizes, one of them being the practice of the American military and many other nations' militaries of abandoning all research & training on sniping & sharpshooting almost as soon as any particular war was over. As he documents time & again, the same lessons about deploying snipers & sharpshooters effectively, training them, training all troops on how to accurately estimate distances, etc. had to be re-learned all over again during the next war. The only reason that pattern changed after the Vietnam War was because of the efforts of Major Jim Land who made it a personal mission to talk to anyone & everyone within the U.S. Marine Corps about re-establishing regular sniper schools, sniper designations, and continuing research on sniper weapons and optics. I say re-establish because all those programs had been mothballed the instant the Vietnam War was over.

The other thing Plaster is frequently (and justifiably, in my opinion) critical of is the re-writing of history by modern day "experts" who may not know what they are talking about. One example is a famous 7/8 mile shot taken by Billy Dixon in 1874. Plaster explains that a U.S. government physicist published an article saying his calculations showed such a shot would not have been possible given the powder & bullets of the day, only to have that promptly disproven by firearms industry writers & black powder enthusiasts who proved with actual shots that yes, it was possible to shoot that far accurately (just very very difficult, which is why the shot is so famous)(pgs. 258-260).

When Plaster does get into technical details -- which is often -- he doesn't numb the reader with endless recitations of numbers. He cites numbers and also explains what the numbers actually mean, such as why increased bullet velocity means snipers can shoot farther because an error in range estimation with faster bullets might result in a height error of a couple inches at far ranges, instead of 30 inches. I also learned a lot personally about sighting in rifles at a particular range & how that affects the hold-over & hold-under at closer & farther ranges by reading this book.

The only quibble I have (and it is a very minor one) is that the American Civil War section seemed to take a long time to get through. However, I can also understand why Plaster spends a lot of time on it, as it was one of the first wars where almost every soldier showed up with an actual rifled barrel, so theoretically all soldiers would be able to shoot better & it became a matter of unit training & the commanders actually understanding what aimed fire could do as opposed to older styles of warfare where everyone lined up and pointed their weapons in the same general direction. The American Civil War also saw advancements in bullet shapes and some of the first optics for firearms. Plaster also spends a lot of time on the American Civil War because he is of the opinion that while carefully aimed rifle fire from snipers & sharpshooters might have contributed to only 3% of the casualties, a large amount of those casualties were officers on both sides of the war as many officers in both the Union & Confederate armies had not fully grasped what advances in firearms technology meant for commanders who still wanted to lead from the front & stand on top of a hill to wave their soldiers on.

Also, the bibliography is limited to printed books. Plaster writes that he was able to find a large amount of information from other sources such as award citations andonline archives of newspapers & magazines, etc. So much information that it takes up 16 crates in his basement, so after discussing the matter with his publisher he decided to limit the bibliography to printed books, otherwise the book would have been half bibliography and twice as big.