Rating: 
Summary: An interesting read...but lacking important information.
Review: As an introduction to the period, this is a superb piece of narrative non-fiction; despite being published originally in the early 1970s, the book is decidedly Victorian in style and execution, though very approachable in style
Nevertheless, individuals seeking a deeper understanding will doubtless leave feeling unfulfilled; the book lacks in certain information - dates of key battles, for example, are completely neglected, while details of said battles are sparse. The Ashanti and Maori Wars deserved more than "also ran" mentions. A good read, sadly falling flat of its potential.
Rating: 
Summary: Too short for the subject matter
Review: Let me start by saying Farwell is one of my favorite military historians. His modern writing style makes for an easy and enjoyable read and his books are full of interesting and often humorous anecdotes. But the subject of this book really deserves more space than this book offered. I will grant that the problem is partially due to lack of documentation, i.e. many of the Victorian conflicts were so small and so obscure that no official history has ever been written. Regimental histories offer the British point of view while their opponents often didn't have a written language let alone official historians for their side of the story. So primary sources are indeed lacking.Nevertheless, this is the first book I have found that goes into any sort of detail regarding the many wars on the Northwestern Fontier, the conflicts in Burma, the Ashanti rebellions, and the many wars of the British East India Company. At least two 600+ page volumes of Sir John Fortescue's monumental "History of the British Army" cover approximately this same period of time but they are nearly impossible to obtain. So those who are interested in Victorian military history will be pleased even though they are left wanting more. But in the limited space Farwell does a magnificent job. One begins to see the participants as real people with eccentric personalities, personal failings, heroic exploits, and depth of character. Battles I had never heard of (and aren't even mentioned in Chandler's Dictionary of Battles) come to life as Farwell describes the adventures on the fringes of the British Empire; Conflicts that were almost as unknown to contemporary Britons as they went about their mundane lives back in England as they are to us today. One major drawback of this edition is the editing. The index is often useless since the page numbers (I'm guessing) must reflect an earlier edition and were not updated. There are also some textual errors, such as the wrong date being given for the British attack on Jakarta, which a good editor should have caught. But I bought this book to read while sitting by the fireplace and drinking India Pale Ale, not as source material for a doctoral degree.
Rating:
Summary: Too short for the subject matter
Review: Let me start by saying Farwell is one of my favorite military historians. His modern writing style makes for an easy and enjoyable read and his books are full of interesting and often humorous anecdotes. But the subject of this book really deserves more space than this book offered. I will grant that the problem is partially due to lack of documentation, i.e. many of the Victorian conflicts were so small and so obscure that no official history has ever been written. Regimental histories offer the British point of view while their opponents often didn't have a written language let alone official historians for their side of the story. So primary sources are indeed lacking. Nevertheless, this is the first book I have found that goes into any sort of detail regarding the many wars on the Northwestern Fontier, the conflicts in Burma, the Ashanti rebellions, and the many wars of the British East India Company. At least two 600+ page volumes of Sir John Fortescue's monumental "History of the British Army" cover approximately this same period of time but they are nearly impossible to obtain. So those who are interested in Victorian military history will be pleased even though they are left wanting more. But in the limited space Farwell does a magnificent job. One begins to see the participants as real people with eccentric personalities, personal failings, heroic exploits, and depth of character. Battles I had never heard of (and aren't even mentioned in Chandler's Dictionary of Battles) come to life as Farwell describes the adventures on the fringes of the British Empire; Conflicts that were almost as unknown to contemporary Britons as they went about their mundane lives back in England as they are to us today. One major drawback of this edition is the editing. The index is often useless since the page numbers (I'm guessing) must reflect an earlier edition and were not updated. There are also some textual errors, such as the wrong date being given for the British attack on Jakarta, which a good editor should have caught. But I bought this book to read while sitting by the fireplace and drinking India Pale Ale, not as source material for a doctoral degree.
Rating: 
Summary: An interesting and useful work on the British colonial wars
Review: Magnificent job,describes the various military expeditions, little wars, rebellions, mutinies(well only one was the only big threat to the Queen Victoria Empire, the Indian Mutiny)and all the small affairs to repel a proboked attack, to save or to protect resident Britons, to avenge an insult or to stop any other Empire from extending it. A lively and compelling study of the Savage wars of peace and the eccentric personalities who fought them,from 1837 to 1901 continuos warfare to protect British Interest in Asia, Canada, Africa, Arabia, this is not a complete work but is one of the best, Mr. Farwell gave us a fascinating overview highly readable with many entertaining historical anecdotes of British colonial wars and bloody confrontations, well written. I know that there are other works that name all the battles or small campaigns(like the work of Philip J. Haythornthwaite "The Colonial Wars Source Book")but a fascinating and exciting story that was omitted was the Fashoda Incident,this was going to be one of the greatest collision of rival imperial ambitions, the French with their historic claims of the Nile try to take control of a small town call Fashoda and this was a big threat to the British control of the Suez Canal and Egypt so after the famous battle of Omdurman Kitchener was send to stop the young Colonel Marchand, at the end the Fashoda crisis was eventually resolved, the British gave the French a free hand on Morrocco and the French forget about Egypt. Even with out this the author made an exciting book and a valuable addition to military history, maps and pictures,well laid out, nice appendix, one on the British Regiment system essential to understand the British Military Mind and the other a easy to follow list of the Little wars from 1837 to 1901 this is a partial record of the conflicts for the "PAX BRITANNICA"
Rating:
Summary: information interesting, text boring
Review: Queen Victoria fought more wars in her time then any queen in english history. Under Victoria the british government was involved in countless wars in the colonies across the world. This was the era of the great british empire, that the sun never set on. THis book details these wars from the war against the SIhks to the wars in Sudan and the Boer war and many more. Churchill wrote anumber of books on this period as well including his book the 'River war'. Unfortuantly this read tries to compact all these fascinating events into a single volume, but the text is horribly boring and tedious. Its a great resource and one of the only books of its kind(that focus on the entire period and detail every small skirmish and battle). It should be updated by a writer who will help you live history rather then a writer who writes like sheep, like a plodding lawnmower.
Rating:
Summary: information interesting, text boring
Review: Queen Victoria fought more wars in her time then any queen in english history. Under Victoria the british government was involved in countless wars in the colonies across the world. This was the era of the great british empire, that the sun never set on. THis book details these wars from the war against the SIhks to the wars in Sudan and the Boer war and many more. Churchill wrote anumber of books on this period as well including his book the 'River war'. Unfortuantly this read tries to compact all these fascinating events into a single volume, but the text is horribly boring and tedious. Its a great resource and one of the only books of its kind(that focus on the entire period and detail every small skirmish and battle). It should be updated by a writer who will help you live history rather then a writer who writes like sheep, like a plodding lawnmower.
Rating:
Summary: Exciting Account of "the Savage Wars of Peace"
Review: The reign of Queen Victoria was the high water mark of the British Empire, and during her reign,dozens of little wars were fought throughout her empire. Mr. Farwell is able to take the highlights of these little wars and string them together into a fascinating and very readable story. Throughout, he gives little character sketches and interesting-and sometimes amusing asides-while not getting too far from the main flow of the narritive. A colorful look into an era when prestige and honor sometimes counted for more than expediency. My only criticism is that there was a lack of maps to go with the accounts of the various campaigns, the three maps included being of Northern India, Afganistan, and North-East Africa. While many of the campaigns did take place in these locals, a third of the wars in this book took place in South Africa, West Africa, China, the Crimea, and even Canada. Perhaps putting a map of the area of the campaign at the beginning of each chapter would have helped.
Rating:
Summary: A Great Read!
Review: This is a fascinating book, and will be enjoyed both by students of the Victorian era military, as well as casual readers of history in general. What binds the various mutinies/insurrections/battles/etc. that cover the sixty years of the widest span of British imperialism is the superb writing style of Mr. Farwell, who has a sense of humor and irony, and looks at each conflict from the standpoint of the British army and the government (and royal) policies that directed it, as well as that of its native protagonists, the vast majority of whom simply wanted to govern themselves without foreign influence. The bravery of both sides is noted, and although the British were outmanned in most of these theaters of conflict, the assets that saw them through time and time again was the esprit de corps of its troops and the leadership of its generals. Those generals that didn't quite make the grade are duly noted and criticized. Even if you are familiar with some of the events in this book, it is still recommended for the continuity of characters and British character that Mr. Farwell brings to each chapter. I couldn't put it down.
Rating: 
Summary: Anecdotal but not insightful
Review: This was a fascinating book on a subject I knew almost nothing about. The amount of information on nearly a century of warfare is well presented. A great book to learn about Britain's empire building.
Rating:
Summary: I thought I would hate this book, but ended loving it!
Review: When I first began reading this book, I was disappointed, thinking that it was little more that an account of the various military campaigns undertaken during the reign of Queen Victoria, with no attempt to connect these wars with events within Britain itself. However, very shortly indeed, I realized that this book was nothing short of a tour de force! The author uses wit and a thorough understanding of his subject to draw the reader in, both informing and entertaining!
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