"David Rooney has done Wingate's memory a signal service." The Spectator.
Major General Orde Wingate, DSO and two bars, who had created and personally led the Chindits, was killed in an air accident in 1944, at the height of the second Chindit campaign.
General Slim joined the world-wide tributes paid to Wingate: but by 1956, to the distress of the Chindits, in his book Defeat Into Victory, Slim was dismissive of Wingate. What had happened to change Slim's mind so completely?
David Rooney examines the life and achievements of a maverick soldier who inspired loyalty in some, hostility in others. Rooney's thoughtful and diligent research throws new light on Wingate's intriguing character, discovers why Slim changed his mind, and discloses details of the vendetta by which the military establishment, in the years after his death and following the viciously critical attack in the Official History, attempted to destroy Wingate's reputation.
Rooney draws a balanced portrait of a military mind of daring originality, deserving of a better letter.
This seminal work of military history is not only an insightful portrait of a unique British commander, but it is essential reading for anyone interested in the Second World War, special forces and the history of the British Army.
Praise for Wingate and the Chindits.
'His current book is, therefore, an exercise in setting the record straight... Rooney is presenting an unabashed case for the defense, and he does so with skill. Every student of the Burma campaign will want to examine this book carefully.' (Raymond Callahan, author of Churchill and His Generals and Burma 1942-45)
'David Rooney's Wingate and the Chindits: Redressing the Balance ... attempts to redress the balance in favour of Wingate and to counter the unfair reputation he has acquired, in Rooney's view, among the military establishment.' (History Today)