Career
Educated at St. Columb's College, he has written more than twenty books about British and Irish military history ranging from the Williamite wars through to the Second World War. Doherty's father, J.J. Doherty, a native of County Tyrone and a British AA artillery gunner, served during the Second World War, as did four of Richard's uncles. J.J. Doherty died of cancer, a result of complications from wounds suffered during the war.
His mother Anna Coyle, who also died of cancer, came from a nationalist background. Richard Doherty was a Royal Ulster Constabulary reservist from 1972 to 1974 and also served in the Territorial Army. Doherty's most recent book, British Armoured Divisions and their Commanders, 1939-1945, is published by Pen and Sword Books.