From Many Angles: An Autobiography

by Frederick Sykes

4.0 of 5 stars 4.00 · rating details · 2 ratings · 1 review

PRE-ISBN

Chapters:
1. Early years (1877 – 1901).
2. India and West Africa (1901 – 1907).
3. Rumblings Before The Storm (1907 – 1912).
4. The Birth Of the Royal Flying Corps (October 1910 – October 1912).
5. Preparing For War (November 1912 – August 1914).
6. France (August 1914 – May 1915).
7. The Dardanelles Campaign (May 1915 – February 1916).
8. At the War Office And Supreme War ...more

Hardcover , First edition , 592 pages

Published 1942 by George G. Harrap & Co.

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Jan 27, 2015 ^ rated it 4 of 5 stars

Recommends it for: Those interested in British & Indian history of the first half of the C20th

Shelves: war , tech , reminiscences , pre-isbn , politics , non-fiction , military , history , first-edition , review-liked , books-with-2-to-10-ratings , author-male , y-1941-1950

What an amazing career, from working on a tea estate in Ceylon (Sri Lanka) aged 17 in 1898, seeing service in the Boer War (‘At first I had an empty pigsty to myself as my quarters.’) and undergoing a forced march as a POW, commissioned into Lord Roberts’ Bodyguard in 1900 … and that’s only the beginning.

This is not an easy book to summarise; which is why I listed the chapter headings (with dates) within this publication, in an admittedly feeble attempt to provide an adequate ‘Description’ of th What an amazing career, from working on a tea estate in Ceylon (Sri Lanka) aged 17 in 1898, seeing service in the Boer War (‘At first I had an empty pigsty to myself as my quarters.’) and undergoing a forced march as a POW, commissioned into Lord Roberts’ Bodyguard in 1900 … and that’s only the beginning.

This is not an easy book to summarise; which is why I listed the chapter headings (with dates) within this publication, in an admittedly feeble attempt to provide an adequate ‘Description’ of the contents of this book.

Like a pressed butterfly, history is caught, wriggling, in these pages. Sykes describes the Proclamation Durbar in 1903; visually marking the accession of King Edward VII, as Emperor of India. But it is the mention of the entry of the veterans of the Mutiny of 1857, just the thought of which causes the heart to skip a beat, which captured my attention. In 2012, 1857 seems unimaginably long ago (155 years ago to be precise); but the simple description of the sight of men who had fought through that appalling revolt brings an immediacy to the politics behind the Durbar.

Sykes was the man who saw the warfare-changing potential of that new invention called the aeroplane, and argued at the highest level for the successful formation of the Royal Flying Corps in 1912, before the outbreak of the Great War. That alone makes this book a fascinating read. Continuing into peacetime, the development of civil aviation, air routes throughout the British Empire, airships and flying-boats, airmail, all is described first-hand.

After a brief period as Member of Parliament for Sheffield (Hallam), experiencing three General Elections within two years (!), and the death of his father-in-law, Bonar Law, leader of the Conservative Party. In 1923 Sykes was appointed to chair the nascent (British) Broadcasting Company. I do not wish to sound flippant, but there really is never a dull page in this book.

In 1928, after leaving Parliament, Sykes, his wife, and their five year old son set sail from India, via Aden, for Sykes to take up the position of Governor of Bombay (Mumbai). The remainder of this book concerns itself with the politics of British India, and in particular those of Gandhi’s Congress Party, during what we now know were the concluding years of Imperial India. Here one gets a fascinating glimpse into the political differences and difficulties of that period, which ultimately led to that country’s independence five years after the publication of this book. That’s what I love about books such as this; there’s no significant historical hindsight spouted in these pages to say whether or not Indian independence was a Good Thing or a Bad Thing (to appropriate WC Sellars & RJ Yeatman) because it hadn’t yet happened. Mind you, the outcome of the Second World War hadn’t been settled yet either!
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Ross Mahoney rated it 4 of 5 stars
Aug 11, 2013

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