John Scurr was born in Edinburgh in 1931. He was called for National Service from 1941-51, when he served in Malaya with the Kings Own Yorkshire Light Infantry. In 1964 he settled into local government in London, from which he took early retirement in 1992. John Scurr has written a host of books, including three for Osprey Publishing.Richard Hook was one of the world's greatest military illustrators and has contributed to more than 30 Osprey titles. He is also an authority on the native peoples of North America, a subject for which he has had a life-long passion. He died in 2010.