BOOK REVIEW UNDER TWO FLAGS Reviewed by Garth R. Hentzschel Kingsley Sampson, (ed.) with Harold Hill, Phil Lascelles, and Garry Mellsop, Under two flags. The New Zealand Salvation Army’s response to the First World War, (Wellington, New Zealand: Flag Publications, The Salvation Army, New Zealand, Fiji, Tonga and Samoa Territory, & The Salvation Army Heritage Centre & Archives, 2018), 388 pp., ISBN. 978 0 473 45725 9.1
Cover of Under two flags
The collective approach and depth of research could see Under two flags become a template for future publications of regional Salvation Army history. The book was a collection of chapters, each written by different authors who investigated a topic connecting The Salvation Army in New Zealand with the context of World War One. The chapters were generally ordered to lead the reader from the march to war, through the Army’s ministry to the troops and the home front, concluding with the war’s lasting impact on The Salvation Army. The authors are well known for their work in Salvation Army or war history. The contributors included: Major Dr. Harold Hill, author of several history books on The Salvation Army and contributor to Salvation Army theological and historical journals; Major Garry Mellsop, former Territorial Archivist at the New Zealand Heritage Centre & Archives and currently serving on the management committee for the Centre; Phill Lascelles, an award-winning professional historian who worked with Auckland War Memorial Museum, Pou Maunahara Memorial Discovery Centre, and the Australian War Memorial, and; Major Kingsley Sampson, with qualifications in teaching and history as well as publishing experience in Salvation Army history. Part one of Under two flags set the scene for the international conflict, introduced Salvationists who were to take part in the war, and investigated the early battles of World War One. The first chapters in this part not only noted the Salvationists who enlisted but also gave some evaluation of sources from which information was derived. There was a clear discussion on the difficulties Reference citation of this review: Garth R. Hentzschel, “Book review, Under two flags”, The Australasian journal of Salvation Army history, 6, 1, 2021, 86 – 88. 1 At the time of publication of the AJSAH, the book was available from Salvationist Resources New Zealand at https://shop.sarmy.net.nz/product?openform&pid=SBUS-BAKVBE.
The Australasian Journal of Salvation Army History, Volume 6, Issue 1, 2021. Page 86
