Prince Henry the Navigator

John Ure

Constable

The word "Cossack" conjures up different images to different people. To some, these ruthless riders from the steppes of Asia -- with their spectacular fur hats and flashing sabres -- are the romantic embodiment of dash and daring; to others, they are horsemen from hell -- alternately rebels against the Romanovs and vicious instruments of Tsarist repression. Both images are equally true.
Lavishly illustrated with 135 photographs, paintings, and lithographs, The Cossacks, by career diplomat and noted travel writer John Ure, traces the story of these great warriors from the time of Ivan the Terrible, through the uprisings of the Volga pirate Stenka Razin and the impostor Pugachev, to the harnessing of the Cossack Host to the Tsarist cause. He recounts their fearsome exploits in Napoleon's retreat from Moscow, in the conquest of the Caucasus and in the "Great Game" in Central Asia; how they split in the Russian Revolution between White interventionists and the Red Army; how Hitler lured many of them to turn against Russia during the Second World War, and how Stalin, in turn, persecuted them. And he explodes the long-held theory that the Cossacks are a purely historical phenomenon by detailing present-day activities of Cossacks in Bosnia, Chechnya, and elsewhere.
John Ure brings them vividly to life -- in dramatic words and pictures -- mining the most dramatic stories from the rich vein of Cossack legend and lore. The Cossacks emerge from this narrative in all their brilliant glory: dashing and cruel, unpredictable and immensely brave.

The Cossacks: An Illustrated History

Literature & Fiction

Humor & Satire

Overlook Books

No-one who wasn't mad as a hatter would try to take a horse across the Andes by one of the highest passes between Chile and the Argentine. That was what John Ure was told on his way to take up his diplomatic posting with the British Embassy in Santiago in the early 1970s. Disregarding the sceptics, the author prepared to ride across the hazardous mountains by studying accounts of those who had travelled in earlier centuries. An excellent example was the indomitable Lady Cochrane who was pursued across the Andes by Spanish troops in 1820. John Ure provides exciting passages from these historical tales. "Lady Cochrane rushed onto the bridge, but when in the centre the vibration became so great that she was compelled to lie down, pressing her child to her bosom, suspended over the foaming torrent below. In this perilous situation, Pedro begged of her to lie still, and as the vibration ceased, crept on hands and knees towards her ladyship, taking from her the child and imploring her to remain motionless... they happily succeeded in crossing, when the ropes being cut, the torrent was interposed between her and her pursuers." Armed with this historical knowledge, the Long Rider author and several comrades made their own remarkable journey. Although they did not encounter Lady Cochrane's trembling bridge, they had problems of their own - how many mules, for example, do you need to carry 540 eggs, a storm tent and hay for six horses? Fans of equestrian travel and Latin America will be enchanted by this delightful book .

Cucumber Sandwiches in the Andes

Long Riders' Guild Press

, xvi, 232 pages, illustrated with black & white photographic plates and maps, SIGNED by John Ure on the front free endpaper

In Search of the Nomads : An English Obsession from Hester Stanhope to Bruce Chatwin

Travel

'There are three things that can neither be recommended nor discouraged -- marriage, war and a voyage to the Holy Sepulchre - they may begin well and end very badly' - Medieval pilgrim, Eberhard, Count of Wurtemburg, on his return from Jerusalem in 1480. From his starting-point of travel and adventure, using contemporary accounts, John Ure relates the stories of medieval Christian pilgrimage during the 500 years of its peak between 1066 and 1536. Through the often forgotten contemporary records of Erasmus, John of Gaunt and Margery Kempe among others, he brings to life a colourful cast of characters. Embracing also military expeditions described as religious journeys, Ure recounts tales of armed expeditions such as the Albigensian Crusade and the Pilgrimage of Grace. And considers pilgrimage's literary and allegorical manifestations via Sir John Mandeville and John Bunyan. Ultimately, he uses his practised skills as a travel writer to give vignettes of these pilgrim routes today, some accessible and popular, others as remote and haunting as in medieval times.

Pilgrimage

Classics

Snow leopards and Cossacks can both be dangerous. But to young British officers in India in the nineteenth century there was only one thing more exciting than shooting wild game in the mountains and steppes of Central Asia, and that was spying out those uncharted lands and impeding the advance of Tsarist Russia towards the frontiers of the British Raj. When the two activities were combined - in what was euphemistically called 'shooting leave' - adventures followed thick and fast. "Shooting Leave" tells the thrilling story of the dashing cavalry officers who volunteered for these adventures. They were individuals of talent and courage, but also of disturbing prejudice, aristocratic arrogance, missionary zeal or trigger-happy temperament. But whatever their specific task, one factor remained common to all officers sent out on covert and exploratory missions: they were expendable. Here they are brought to life as characters in their own right, as well as players in the Great Game. Praise for Sir John Ure's previous books "Pilgrimage": 'Cheerful and engaging, rich in elegant prose and historical anecdote' - "Sunday Times". 'Delightful...charts the appeal of nomadic life for generations of European travellers' - "Daily Mail". 'An excellent collection of travel delicacies' - "Daily Telegraph". "In Search of Nomads": 'An excellent collection of travel delicacies' - "Sunday Telegraph". 'Ure's book deserves a place in many saddlebags' - "Sunday Times".

Shooting Leave: Spying out Central Asia in the Great Game

John Ure, whose Shooting Leave told the stories of Victorian heroes fighting on the North-West Frontier, turns his attention to the maverick and wayward Englishmen, Scotsmen and Irishmen who joined the fight against Russian expansionist ambitions, but whose daring exploits exceeded and sometimes disregarded their instructions. Among his roll call of soldiers, journalists and assorted troublemakers are the 'loose cannon' Alexander Gardner and William Moorcroft, the East India Company's stud manager who had his own agenda.

Sabres on the Steppes

History

Asia

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Books by John Ure