The generation of young men and women who joined the British Army during the mid to late 1980s would serve their country during an unprecedented period of history. Unlike the two world war generations, they would never face total war – there was never any declaration of war and there was no one single country to defeat. In fact, it was supposed to have been the end of a war, a time of peace and stability. Politicians started to use the term, Peace Dividend, with government officials even planning on how and where it should be spent. But for those in the military, the two decades following the end of the Cold War would not be a time of peace. Government spending and the size of the military was reduced but the Army's commitments increased exponentially. Those serving not only faced continuous deployment in overseas operations, they would also be involved in immense upheavals that took place within the army. When the Berlin Wall came down, the British Army had not changed for decades. The ending of the Cold War, combined with a technological revolution, a changing society at home, and new global threats mean that the Army of the second decade of the twentieth-first century – the army this generation of soldiers is now retiring from – is unrecognizable from the one they joined in the late 1980s. This is the story of the soldiers who served in the British Army in those tumultuous decades.

...a powerful, brutally honest, soldier’s account of the operational, societal and morale challenges faced by the British Army from the moment the Berlin Wall fell. * Military Historical Society Bulletin 11/05/2021 *
…an enjoyable and well researched history. […] It is a must read for anyone with an interest in how the army has continued beyond 1991, and probably should be read by many of ARRSE's old and bold who are still stuck in the cold war. * Army Rumour Service 16/08/2021 *
This is an absorbing analysis of what it was like to serve during the most intense series of operations since the Second World War. […] It is an insightful review fo the cultural shifts, the impact of almost continuous overseas deployment and the disruption created by ever-changing policies. * Soldier Magazine 11/05/2021 *
Andrew Richards provides a thoroughly absorbing account made all the more interesting due to the wide-ranging contributions of men and women who were there, did the jobs, experienced the changes and often have the scars to prove it. An excellent read. * Love Reading 02/08/2021 *

Andrew Richards served 22 years with the Household Cavalry. During his last years of service, he graduated from the Open University with a Bachelor of Arts degree with Honours in Humanities with History and Classical Studies. Since retiring from the Army, he has written both fiction and non-fiction titles. His first non-fiction book, The Flag, was published by Casemate in 2016.