First World War Books
Anness Publishing An Illustrated Encyclopedia of Uniforms of World
Book SynopsisExpert and stunning illustrations show in painstaking detail the uniforms and their developments for all the major nations involved in World War I.
£16.99
Schiffer Publishing Ltd Elgin Trench Watches of the Great War
Book SynopsisExplores the military wristwatches produced during WWI for the United States military use.
£51.19
Otago University Press Reconstructing Faces: The Art and Wartime Surgery
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£24.26
MP-OKL Uni of Oklahoma Blood in the Argonne
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£20.66
Schiffer Publishing Ltd The Imperial German Navy of World War I A
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£47.99
Faber & Faber Now All Roads Lead to France The Last Years of
Book SynopsisEdward Thomas was perhaps the most beguiling and influential of First World War poets. Now All Roads Lead to France is an account of his final five years, centred on his extraordinary friendship with Robert Frost and Thomas''s fatal decision to fight in the war.The book also evokes an astonishingly creative moment in English literature, when London was a battleground for new, ambitious kinds of writing. A generation that included W. B. Yeats, Ezra Pound, Robert Frost and Rupert Brooke were ''making it new'' - vehemently and pugnaciously. These larger-than-life characters surround a central figure, tormented by his work and his marriage. But as his friendship with Frost blossomed, Thomas wrote poem after poem, and his emotional affliction began to lift. In 1914 the two friends formed the ideas that would produce some of the most remarkable verse of the twentieth century. Their writing was far more than just war poetry, but it was World War I that put an ocean b
£11.69
Pen & Sword Books Ltd SS Panzer Divisions on the Eastern Front
Book SynopsisRare photographs from SS sources illustrating the armored formations which took part in this titanic struggle. Includes rare images of the Panther in action.
£13.49
The University of Alabama Press The Great War in the Air Military Aviation from
Book SynopsisTrade ReviewMorrow's encyclopedic examination of aviation's part in World War I concentrates on aircraft engine and airframe production, but the emotional content of contemporary accounts rises to the surface to put a human face on the brutal use of an infant technology.... a serious yet readable history of this vital part of the conflict, meant for any reader. - Library Journal ""A comprehensive study of the totality of the air war in its military, political, industrial, and cultural aspects distinguish this book from other treatments of military aviation during this period.... Morrow's efforts have yielded new insights into the evolution of military aviation and corrected previous oversights. The author's attention to developments in production and logistics, as well as events at the front, provide the most complete understanding of the development of air power and its role in the Great War."" - American Historical Review
£28.86
New York University Press The World War I Reader
Book SynopsisAlmost 100 years after the Treaty of Versailles was signed, World War I continues to be badly understood and greatly oversimplified. This work contains a selection of articles and book chapters written by major scholars of World War I, giving readers perspectives on the war that are both historical and contemporary.Trade ReviewThe Great War of 1914-1918 is increasingly understood as the defining event of the twentieth century. . . . Neiberg has done a remarkable job of covering all the appropriate bases and tipping his intellectual hat to the major schools of thought past and present. -- Dennis Showalter,author of Patton and Rommel: Men of War in the Twentieth CenturyThis first-rate collection of primary documents and excerpts from leading historical works on World War I allows students to enter directly into current debates surrounding the wars meaning and significance. These selections provide a window into the varied wartime experiences of statesmen, generals, women, and soldiers, challenging students to discard over-simplistic interpretations of the war. -- Jennifer D. Keene,author of Doughboys, the Great War, and the Remaking of America. . . [A] valuable text to introduce students to the broad parameters of World War I. Students whose intellectual appetites are whetted by this collection will appreciate the extensive list of books matched to each category at the end of the book. * The Journal of Military History *Neiberg offers an excellent primer for anyone studying the Great War. The book’s strength is its scope. As they proceed from & Part One: Causes to & Part Six: Peace (with most sections offering two primary and two secondary sources), readers will learn from both sides about major leaders, the home front, soldiers and officers in battle, and the politics of peace. * Library Journal *Table of ContentsAcknowledgmentsMaps Timeline of Major EventsBrief Biographies of Important Figures Mentioned in the Text Introduction Causes1.1 The Great Illusion1.2 Germany and the Next War 1.3 The "Willy-Nicky" Telegrams 1.4 The Circus Rider of Europe 1.5 The Army and the Nationalist Revival Soldiers2.1 The Good Soldier Schweik 2.2 Her Privates We 2.3 A Soldier's Notebook 2.4 O?cer-Man Relations: The Other Ranks' Perspective 2.5 "War Enthusiasm": Volunteers, Departing Soldiers, and Victory Celebrations2.6 Foch's General Countero?ensive, Part IArmageddon3.1 The Destruction of Louvain 3.2 The Historic First of July 3.3 Between Mutiny and Obedience 3.4 The Live and Let Live System Home Fronts4.1 Letters from a Lost Generation 4.2 An English Wife in Berlin 4.3 Home Fires Burning 4.4 The Politics of Race The End of the War5.1 The Fourteen Points5.2 Views on a Prospective Armistice 5.3 The Military Collapse of the German Empire 5.4 Diggers and Doughboys: Australian and American Troop Interaction on the Western FrontPeace6.1 Peacemaking6.2 British Diplomacy6.3 A Peace to End All Peace 6.4 The Kings Depart Further Reading Index About the Editor
£22.79
Imperial War Museum John Singer Sargent's Gassed
Book SynopsisJohn Singer Sargent's Gassed is one of IWM's most iconic and best-loved objects. Truly monumental in scale, it is also the largest painting in the museum's collection and has been on near-constant display since it was first exhibited in 1919. A favourite among visitors and the most requested image by researchers and publishers, the work endures as a lasting symbol of modern art in public service, and of the transformative conflict from which it came. In the following pages IWM's Head of Art Rebecca Newell traces the origins of this large and powerful painting in the final months of the First World War and celebrates the vibrancy and visual power of the work, revealed once again during recent conservation. John Singer Sargent's Gassed reflects on the challenges of creating and displaying a canvas of such size and the dramatic impact the work has had on generations of visitors to IWM. Finally, the book considers the painting's enduring legacy in the context of art inspired by conflict - a legacy now secured for future generations.
£21.25
Pen & Sword Books Ltd Surgeon with the Kaisers Army
Book SynopsisRare first hand account of German soldier and doctor.
£13.49
Headline Publishing Group Liverpool Angels A completely gripping saga of
Book SynopsisLyn Andrews'' tale of nursing in the field during World War I is haunting and unforgettable. If you enjoy the novels of Kate Thompson and Donna Douglas, you''ll love LIVERPOOL ANGELS. Born at the turn of the twentieth century, Mae Strickland is only a few days old when her mother suddenly dies. Her aunt Maggie brings Mae up together with her own children, Eddie and Alice, and the girls become like sisters. In spite of Mae''s unhappy start, life feels full of promise.Then, as the First World War looms, everything changes. While the local men - including young Eddie - leave to fight, Mae and Alice train as field nurses. As they travel to the front line in the wake of family tragedy, nothing can prepare them for the hardship that lies ahead.Yet there is solace to be found amid the wreckage of the war, and for both, romance is on the horizon. But it will take great courage for Mae and Alice to follow their hearts. Can love win out in the end?Trade ReviewHer mix of Irish and Liverpool backdrops have won this strong saga writer an assured place in theSunday Times top 10... she's great! - Sarah Broadhurst, Bookseller
£8.99
Fonthill Media LLc Hermann Goering in the First World War: The
Book SynopsisWhen modern readers think of Hermann Goring, what probably comes to mind is the overweight drug addict and convicted war criminal who cheated the hangman's noose at Nuremberg by committing suicide just hours before he was due to be hanged. Or perhaps there is the image of his powerful German air force in the Second World War---the Luftwaffe---bombing defenceless European cities and towns in the early part of the war, until it was defeated by the British Royal Air Force in the epic Battle of Britain in 1940. Perhaps the reader might think of Goring the debauched art collector who pirated captured collections all over Nazi Europe during the Occupation years. All of these images are correct, but here we see another Hermann Goring: the slim, dashing fighter pilot and combat ace of an earlier struggle, the Great War, or World War I of 1914-18, which he began as an infantry officer fighting the French Army in the 1914 Battle of the Frontiers. During a hospitalization, his friend Bruno Lorzer convinced him to become an aerial observer-photographer, photographing the mighty French fortress of Verdun. He did, and began these never-before-seen personal photo albums of men and aircraft at war: up close.
£25.00
Transworld Publishers Ltd Hidden History: a compelling and captivating
Book SynopsisThink you know about British history and the causes of the First World War? Think again. This fascinating and gripping study of events at the turn of the Twentieth Century is a remarkable insight into how political and social factors that we widely accept to be the causes of The Great War, were really just a construct put together by a very small, but powerful, political elite...'Thought-provoking . . . Docherty and Macgregor do not mince their words . . . their arguments are powerful' -- Britain at War'Simply astonishing' -- ***** Reader review'Very illuminating' -- ***** Reader review'You simply MUST read this book' -- ***** Reader review'This is a page-turner' -- ***** Reader review***********************************************************************************Hidden History uniquely exposes those responsible for the First World War. It reveals how accounts of the war's origins have been deliberately falsified to conceal the guilt of the secret cabal of very rich and powerful men in London responsible for the most heinous crime perpetrated on humanity. For ten years, they plotted the destruction of Germany as the first stage of their plan to take control of the world. The assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand was no chance happening. It lit a fuse that had been carefully set through a chain of command stretching from Sarajevo through Belgrade and St Petersburg to that cabal in London.Our understanding of these events has been firmly trapped in a web of falsehood and duplicity carefully constructed by the victors at Versailles in 1919 and maintained by compliant historians ever since. The official version is fatally flawed, warped by the volume of evidence they destroyed or concealed from public view.Hidden History poses a tantalising challenge. The authors ask only that you examine the evidence they lay before you . . .Trade ReviewThought-provoking . . . Docherty and Macgregor do not mince their words . . . their arguments are powerful * Britain at War *
£19.80
Orion Publishing Co The Somme
Book SynopsisA major new history of the most infamous battle of the First World War, as described by the men who fought it.
£12.34
Penguin Books Ltd The World Crisis 19111918
Book SynopsisWinston Churchill's superlative account of the prelude to and events of the First World War is a defining work of twentieth-century history. With dramatic narrative power Churchill reconstructs the action on the Western and Eastern Fronts, the wars at sea and in the air and the advent of tanks and U-boats. He vividly describes the Lusitania's sinking, the heroics of the Battle of Jutland, Verdun's soul-stirring frenzy', the bloodshed of Gallipoli, the Somme and Passchendaele, and the USA's entry into the conflict. Rich with personal insights, this magisterial book is testament to the author's role in the Great War's conduct and outcome and fully demonstrates his brilliance as a historian.
£18.00
The Crowood Press Ltd Machine Guns of World War I: Live Firing Classic
Book SynopsisAll the guns examined in this new paperback edition of Machine Guns of World War 1 belong to the class known as "automatic" and seven classic World War 1 weapons are illustrated in some 250 colour photographs. Detailed sequences shows them in close-up:during step-by-step field stripping, and during handling, loading and live firing trials with ball ammunition, by gunners wearing period uniforms to put these historic guns in their visual context.Trade Review"A very valuable contribution to the study of the Great War." * Tank Journal *"Robert Bruce has produced a fantastic combination of highly detailed text, constructional and background information, together with realist live firing sequences. This book is a must for anyone with an interest in the weapons, uniforms and equipment from this period." * The Armourer *
£17.09
Penguin Putnam Inc Storm of Steel
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£16.15
Penguin Putnam Inc To Hell and Back
Book SynopsisChilling... To Hell and Back should be required reading in every chancellery, every editorial cockpit and every place where peevish Euroskeptics do their thinking…. Kershaw documents each and every ‘ism’ of his analysis with extraordinary detail and passionate humanism.—The New York Times Book ReviewThe Penguin History of Europe series reaches the twentieth century with acclaimed scholar Ian Kershaw’s long-anticipated analysis of the pivotal years of World War I and World War II. The European catastrophe, the long continuous period from 1914 to 1949, was unprecedented in human history—an extraordinarily dramatic, often traumatic, and endlessly fascinating period of upheaval and transformation. This new volume in the Penguin History of Europe series offers comprehensive coverage of this tumultuous era. Beginning with the outbreak of World War I through the rise of Hitler and the aftermath of
£21.60
Canongate Books The Missing of the Somme
Book SynopsisThe Missing of the Somme has become a classic meditation upon war and remembrance. It weaves a network of myth and memory, photos and films, poetry and sculptures, graveyards and ceremonies that illuminate our understanding of, and relationship to, the Great War.Trade ReviewThe great Great War book of our time * * Observer * *Articulates a response to the Great War which many feel, but no one has analysed so scrupulously * * Spectator * *A penetrating meditation upon war and remembrance * * Daily Telegraph * *Dyer is excellent on the different ambitions and effects of municipal memorials, and on photographs and paintings -- Sebastian Faulks * * Mail on Sunday * *A gentle, patient, loving book. It is about mourning and memory, about how the Great War has been represented - and our sense of it shaped and defined - by different artistic media * * Guardian * *
£10.44
Head of Zeus Elegy: The First Day on the Somme
Book SynopsisOn 1 July 1916, after a five-day bombardment, 11 British and 5 French divisions launched their long-awaited 'Big Push' on German positions on high ground above the Rivers Ancre and Somme on the Western Front. Some ground was gained, but at a terrible cost. In killing-grounds whose names are indelibly imprinted on 20th-century memory, German machine-guns – manned by troops who had sat out the storm of shellfire in deep dugouts – inflicted terrible losses on the British infantry. The British Fourth Army lost 57,470 casualties, the French Sixth Army suffered 1,590 casualties and the German 2nd Army 10,000. And this was but the prelude to 141 days of slaughter that would witness the deaths of between 750,000 and 1 million troops. Andrew Roberts evokes the pity and the horror of the blackest day in the history of the British army – a summer's day-turned-hell-on-earth by modern military technology – in the words of casualties, survivors, and the bereaved. Trade Review'Always highly readable, gives a succinct and cohesive overview of the day, and is hearteningly even-handed' Spectator.'Let's be honest about Somme historiography; it either comes drenched in pitying tears or in posturing outrage, but both occlude. Roberts has played it straight with a clean and lucid overview so that one can actually see and understand what happened on that day' The Times.'The book's opening chapters on the strategy and tactics of the battle provide an excellent, succinct summary of the constraints within which it was planned. Roberts rightly stresses the subordination of British planning to that of the French, and sensibly eschews the British desire to say it was undertaken to save their allies at Verdun' Evening Standard.'The shattering story of the blackest day in the history of the British Army, the first day of the Somme Offensive, through the words of casualties, survivors, and the bereaved' Military History Monthly.'A well-written, clear, moving introduction to the slaughter on the Somme and its place in wider conflict' Sunday Times.'Blending deep scholarly skill with a real literary talent' Dan Jones, Evening Standard.'By dealing with just the first day of the battle, its strategic background, tactical thinking and significance, he has produced a most digestible narrative commentary' Country Life.'Roberts's vividly written, crisply authoritative account of the first day of the battle is full of details that stick stubbornly in the mind' Daily Mail.'The best thing about this excellent book is the depth of its detail. Once the battle proper starts, Roberts describes the fighting almost regiment by regiment' Literary Review.'A short, elegantly written and above all accessible book, solidly based on recent scholarship augmented by primary research ... this is a welcome, and often very moving, contribution to the debate on a battle that, a hundred years on, remains deeply controversial' Times Literary Supplement.'Roberts explains, with great judgement, why it happened and how it happened ... He helps us to remember' i newspaper.'Roberts's succinct treatment is confined to the battle's first day ... Tragedy, not melodrama, is Roberts' commemorative homage to the bravery of hundreds of thousands who did their duty, fought, died, or were maimed' The New Criterion.'A very objective book and Roberts does not get bogged down in blame as many books about the Somme do ... [He] evokes the horror of 1st July 1916 by deftly balancing the facts with personal accounts and experiences' Eleanor Baggley, Centenary News.'[A] limpid, sober account both of the battle and of the personalities involved in its conduct' The Tablet.'Highly emotive reading' History of War.
£8.09
Pen & Sword Books Ltd Great War Explained
Book SynopsisThis is much more than just another book to add to the thousands on The Great War. It sets out to fill a gap. Written for the layman by a layman (who is also an articulate and experienced battlefield guide) it summarises the key events and contributions of key individuals, some well, others unknown but with a story to tell. To get a true picture of this monumental event in history, it is necessary to grasp the fundamentals, be they military, political, social or simply human. The slaughters at Verdun, Somme and Passchendaele are no more than statistics without the stories of those that fought, drowned and died there. It is designed to capture the imagination and feed the mind of those ever increasing number of people who seek a better understanding of The Great War.
£11.56
Bodleian Library Secrets in a Dead Fish: The Spying Game in the
Book SynopsisHow did German intelligence agents in the First World War use dead fish to pass on vital information to their operatives? What did an advertisement for a dog in The Times have to do with the movement of British troops into Egypt? And why did British personnel become suspicious about the trousers hanging on a Belgian woman’s washing line? During the First World War, spymasters and their networks of secret agents developed many ingenious – and occasionally hilarious – methods of communication. Puffs of smoke from a chimney, stacks of bread in a bakery window, even knitted woollen jumpers were all used to convey secret messages decipherable only by well-trained eyes. Melanie King retells the astonishing story of these and many other tricks of the espionage trade, now long forgotten, through the memoirs of eight spies. Among them are British intelligence officers working undercover in France and Germany, including a former officer from the Metropolitan Police who once hunted Jack the Ripper. There is also the German Secret Service officer, codenamed Agricola, who spied on the Eastern Front, an American newspaperman and an Austrian agent who disguised himself as everything from a Jewish pedlar to a Russian officer. Drawing on the words of many of the spies themselves, Secrets in a Dead Fish is a fascinating compendium of clever and original ruses that casts new light into the murky world of espionage during the First World War.
£6.29
Grub Street Publishing Park
Book SynopsisAs commander of No. 11 Group, Fighter Command and responsible for the air defence of London and South-East England, Keith Park took charge of the day-to-day direction of the battle. In spotlighting his thoughts and actions during the crisis, Vincent Orange reveals a man whose unfailing energy, courage and cool resourcefulness won not only supreme praise from Churchill but the lasting respect and admiration of all who served under him. However, few officers in any of the services packed more action into their lives, and this book covers the whole of his career youth in New Zealand, success as an ace fighter pilot in World War I, postings to South America and Egypt, Battle of Britain, Command of the RAF in Malta 1942/43, and finally Allied Air Commander-in-Chief of SE Asia under Mountbatten in 1945. His contribution to victory and peace was immense and this biography does much to shed light on the Big Wing controversy of 1940 and give insight into the war in Burma, 1945, and how the huge problems remaining after the wars sudden end were dealt with. Drawn largely from unpublished sources and interviews with people who knew Park, and illustrated with maps and photographs, this is an authoritative biography of one of the worlds greatest unsung heroes.
£13.49
Schiffer Publishing Ltd RFC RAF RNAS Schiffer Military History
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£51.19
Schiffer Publishing Ltd German Flamethrower Pioneers of World War I
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£51.19
Orion Publishing Co Aces Falling
Book SynopsisHow the age of the great WWI aces came to an end in the skies over the Western FrontTrade ReviewCasts fresh light on the broader canvas of the war * Daily Telegraph *a fascinating account of the rise and fall of the men who pioneered aerial combat...first-hand recollections bring the subject to life * Northern Echo *A timely book...this is a requiem for the brave men involved * Big Issue in the North *casts fresh light on the broader canvas of the war * DAILY TELEGRAPH *a fascinating account of the rise and fall of the men who pioneered aerial combat...first-hand recollections bring the subject to life * NORTHERN ECHO *A timely book...this is a requiem for the brave men involved * BIG ISSUE IN THE NORTH *
£10.44
Penguin Books Ltd A Dictionary of RAF Slang
Book SynopsisThe perfect stocking filler for anyone who imagines themselves flying a spitfire . . . Drop your visiting cards, put aside your beer-lever, stop being a half-pint hero and discover the gloriously funny slang which was part of everyday life in two world wars. Passion-killers: Airwomen''s service knickers, whether twilights (the lighter, summer-weight variety) or black-outs (the navy-blue winter-weights). A wise directive has purposely made them as unromantic in colour and in design as a wise directive could imagine. Thanks to the work of Eric Partridge in 1945, the hilarious slang of the Royal Air Force during the first two World Wars has been preserved for generations to come. While some phrases like ''chocks away!'' have lasted to this day, others deserve to be rediscovered . . . Beer-lever: From pub-bars, meaning the ''Joystick'' of an aircraft. Canteen cowboy: A ladies'' Trade ReviewDrop your visiting cards, put aside your beer-lever, stop being a half-pint hero and discover the gloriously funny slang which was part of everyday life in the RAF during two world wars in this classic book. * from the publisher's description *
£9.49
Bloomsbury Publishing PLC French Battleships 191445
Book SynopsisOn September 1, 1910, France became the last great naval power to lay down a dreadnought battleship, the Courbet. The ensuing Courbet and Bretagne-class dreadnoughts had a relatively quiet World War I, spending most of it at anchor off the entrance to the Adriatic, keeping watch over the Austro-Hungarian fleet. The constraints of the Washington Naval Treaty prevented new battleships being built until the 1930s, with the innovative Dunkerque-class and excellent Richelieu-class of battleships designed to counter new German designs. After the fall of France in 1940, the dreadnoughts and fast battleships of the Marine Nationale had the unique experience of firing against German, Italian, British, and American targets during the war. This authoritative study examines these fascinating ships, using detailed colour plates and historical photographs, taking them from their inception before World War I, through their service in World War II including the scutt
£11.69
Amberley Publishing Great Writers on the Great War Revolt in the
Book SynopsisTE Lawrence focused the Arab revolt against the Turks in 1916 and helped ensure victory for the Allies in the Middle East. This is his story.
£19.79
Canongate Books If the War Goes On . . .: Reflections on War and
Book SynopsisHerman Hesse remained clear-sighted and consistent in his political views and his passionate espousal of pacifism and the bloody absurdity of war from the start of the First World War to the end of his life. He wrote the earliest essay in this book in September 1914, before he cemented his fame with the novels Steppenwolf and Siddhartha, and continued writing a stream of letters, essays and pamphlets throughout the war. In his native Germany his views earned him the labels 'traitor' and 'viper', but after World War II he was moved to reiterate his beliefs in another series of essays and letters.If the War Goes On . . . resonates as strongly today as it did when originally published and begs the question: have our politicians learnt nothing in the last seventy years?Trade ReviewJust as telling now as it must have been when it first appeared * * Guardian * *A writer of genius * * The Times * *A spectacular and deeply insightful read * * Brain Pickings * *
£9.49
Dover Publications Inc. War Poems
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£6.49
The History Press Ltd A Tangled Web Mata Hari
Book SynopsisIn this new biography, published to coincide with the 100th anniversary of her execution, Mata Hari is revealed in all of her flawed eccentricity; a woman whose adult life was a fantastical web of lies and half-truths.
£10.44
Penguin Books Ltd The Fall of the Ottomans The Great War in the
Book Synopsis*FULLY UPDATED WITH A NEW FOREWORD*THE SUNDAY TIMES TOP TEN BESTSELLERWINNER OF THE BRITISH ARMY MILITARY BOOK OF THE YEAR 2016''Truly essential'' Simon Sebag MontefioreThe final destruction of the Ottoman Empire - one of the great epics of the First World War, from bestselling historian Eugene RoganFor some four centuries the Ottoman Empire had been one of the most powerful states in Europe as well as ruler of the Middle East. By 1914 it had been drastically weakened and circled by numerous predators waiting to finish it off. Following the Ottoman decision to join the First World War on the side of the Central Powers the British, French and Russians hatched a plan to finish the Ottomans off: an ambitious and unprecedented invasion of Gallipoli...Eugene Rogan''s remarkable book recreates one of the most important but poorly understood fronts of the First World War. Despite fighting back with
£11.69
Pen & Sword Books Ltd Shell Shocked Britain
Book SynopsisThe book was inspired by the author's discovery that her great-uncle, a traumatised ex-soldier, committed a shocking murder in 1922. Suzie has examined the wider social history behind her great uncle's story and those of many others like him.
£11.69
Unicorn Publishing Group For Every Sailor Afloat, Every Soldier at the
Book SynopsisIn 1914, Princess Mary, the only daughter of King George V, was just 17. Yet with the world war two months old, the young princess was destined to make her mark. She would send a Christmas gift to all those serving in uniform, ‘afloat and at the front.’ With great determination, she set about her task to provide her gift to all those on active service. For Every Sailor Afloat, Every Soldier at the Front is the first time the full story of the princess’s gift has been told. Using original sources, texts and archives, and illustrating original surviving objects, this book unfolds the true story of the fund and its wider meaning, set, as it is, in the context of hope as provided by the unofficial Truce in No Man’s Land that has been so well documented. Princess Mary’s gift was extremely sophisticated; great pains were taken to ensure that the needs of its recipients were met, based on ethnicity, gender, religious observance and personal preference – the Gift Committee was way ahead of its time. By 1919, some 2.7 million people from across the British Empire had received the gift. Well-illustrated and fully sourced, this book will provide those interested in the first Christmas of the War a greater perspective of the achievements of its founder, of the meaning of the gift to the recipients, and of the nature of the gift itself, such that prevailing myths and misunderstandings of its constituents and recipients will be resolved.
£18.00
Sourcebooks Landmark The Mystery of Mrs. Christie
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£14.44
Amazon Publishing Sprinting Through No Man's Land: Endurance,
Book SynopsisThe inspiring, heart-pumping true story of soldiers turned cyclists and the historic 1919 Tour de France that helped to restore a war-torn country and its people. On June 29, 1919, one day after the Treaty of Versailles brought about the end of World War I, nearly seventy cyclists embarked on the thirteenth Tour de France. From Paris, the war-weary men rode down the western coast on a race that would trace the country's border, through seaside towns and mountains to the ghostly western front. Traversing a cratered postwar landscape, the cyclists faced near-impossible odds and the psychological scars of war. Most of the athletes had arrived straight from the front, where so many fellow countrymen had suffered or died. The cyclists' perseverance and tolerance for pain would be tested in a grueling, monthlong competition. An inspiring true story of human endurance, Sprinting Through No Man's Land explores how the cyclists united a country that had been torn apart by unprecedented desolation and tragedy. It shows how devastated countrymen and women can come together to celebrate the adventure of a lifetime and discover renewed fortitude, purpose, and national identity in the streets of their towns.'This is an evocatively written homage to the 1919 Tour… This inspirational sports story demonstrates the power of a race to unite a country suffering from the wounds of war and is immersed in wartime historical detail. Cycling fans will get more than an account of the race in this volume, which will also appeal to readers interested in WWI.' — Booklist
£11.81
Pen & Sword Books Ltd Nurses of Passchendaele: Tending the Wounded of
Book SynopsisThe Ypres Salient saw some of the bitterest fighting of the First World War. The once-fertile fields of Flanders were turned into a quagmire through which men fought for four years. In casualty clearing stations, on ambulance trains and barges, and at base hospitals near the French and Belgian coasts, nurses of many nations cared for these traumatised and damaged men. Drawing on letters, diaries and personal accounts from archives all over the world, The Nurses of Passchendaele tells their stories - faithfully recounting their experiences behind the Ypres Salient in one of the most intense and prolonged casualty evacuation processes in the history of modern warfare. Nurses themselves came under shellfire and were vulnerable to aerial bombardment, and some were killed or injured while on active service. Alongside an analysis of the intricacies of their practice, the book traces the personal stories of some of these extraordinary women, revealing the courage, resilience and compassion with which they did their work.
£13.49
Pen & Sword Books Ltd The Last Days of the High Seas Fleet: From Mutiny
Book SynopsisOn 21 June 1919 the ships of the German High Seas Fleet - interned at Scapa Flow since the Armistice - began to founder, taking their British custodians completely by surprise. In breach of agreed terms, the fleet dramatically scuttled itself, in a well-planned operation that consigned nearly half a million tons, and 54 of 72 ships, to the bottom of the sheltered anchorage in a gesture of Wagnerian proportions. This much is well-known, but even a century after the Grand Scuttle' many questions remain. Was von Reuter, the fleet's commander, acting under orders or was it his own initiative? Why was 21 June chosen? Did the British connive in, or even encourage the action? Could more have been done to save the ships? Was it legally justified? And what were the international ramifications? This new book analyses all these issues, beginning with the fleet mutiny in the last months of the War that precipitated a social revolution in Germany and the eventual collapse of the will to fight. The Armistice terms imposed the humiliation of virtual surrender on the High Seas Fleet, and the conditions under which it was interned are described in detail. Meanwhile the victorious Allies wrangled over the fate of the ships, an issue that threatened the whole peace process. Using much new material from German sources and a host of eye-witness testimonies, the circumstances of the scuttling itself are meticulously reconstructed, while the aftermath for all parties is clearly laid out. The story concludes with the biggest salvage operation in history' and a chapter on the significance of the scuttling to the post-war balance of naval power. Published to coincide with the centenary, this book is an important reassessment of the last great action of the First World War.
£21.25
Penguin Random House Grupo Editorial La octava vida (para Brilka) / The Eighth Life
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£28.63
Pen & Sword Books Ltd Caporetto and the Isonzo Campaign The Italian
Book SynopsisHighly illustrated history of the Italian Front during the Great War with over 130 rare archive photographs of the campaign and the battlefields.
£13.49
Pen & Sword Books Ltd Verdun (Map)
Book SynopsisFor many years the Holts have provided tourers to the battlefields with excellent mapping for the Ypres Salient and the Somme. This map of the Verdun/Meuse area fills one of the many gaps in the coverage of the Western Front. This map of the Verdun battlefield is in the same style, using a colour coded system to distinguish the different types of features. It includes some 300 locations of memorials, cemeteries, significant remnants of the battle terrain, remaining fortifications, trenches, the destroyed villages and other vestiges of the war. On the reverse there is a cut out and enlarged section of the Verdun battlefield in particular - the most visited part of the area, which provides greater detail. This section includes the Ossuary at Douamont, Forts Douamont, Vaux and Souville and many more features. The front line at key stages of the battle in 1916 is clearly indicated GPS references are given for the more signifiant sites. Roads and major tracks are shown, with restrictions in access as known at the date of publication. The map extends from the eastern fringes of the Argonne Forest to the west and encompasses the whole of the 1916 Verdun battlefield to the east. This means that several places of interest to the student of the American army's offensive in late 1918 are shown. The map is tri-lingual - in English, French and German - so far as is practicable given the constraints of space. The map is of a manageable size, both in a vehicle and when being used outside.
£6.94
Monash University Publishing Anzac Memories: Living with the Legend - New
Book Synopsis
£21.59
Cornerstone Staring at God: Britain in the Great War
Book Synopsis_______________________________'A brilliant history: The first serious and really wide-ranging history of the Home Front during the Great War for decades. Scholarly, objective and extremely well-written. Filled with surprising revelations and empathy. Heffer’s eye for the telling detail is evident on almost every page. A remarkable intellectual and literary achievement.' – ANDREW ROBERTS, TELEGRAPH_______________________________A major new work of history on the profound changes in British society during the First World WarThe Great War saw millions of men volunteer for or be recruited into the Army, their lives either cut short or overturned. Women were bereaved, enlisted to work in agriculture, government and engineering, yet still expected to hold together homes and families. But while the conflict caused social, economic and political devastation, it also provoked revolutionary change on the home front.Simon Heffer uses vivid portraits to present a nuanced picture of a pivotal era. While the Great War caused loss on an appalling scale, it also advanced the emancipation of women, brought notions of better health care and education, and pointed the way to a less deferential, more democratic future._____________________________'Staring at God is a vast compendium of atrocious political conduct. Refreshing. A trenchant history.' – GERARD DE GROOT, THE TIMES'A magisterial history' – MELANIE MCDONAGH, DAILY MAIL‘Gloriously rich and spirited […] it zips along, leavened by so many wonderful cultural and social details.’ – DOMINIC SOUTHBROOK, SUNDAY TIMES‘Ambitious in its scope, content and approach. Masterly.’ – CHARLES VYVYAN, STANDPOINT‘Fascinating stuff.’ – SPECTATOR‘Possibly the finest, most comprehensive analysis of the home front in the Great War ever produced.’ – LITERARY REVIEW‘Every bit as good as its two predecessors. Illuminating.’ – EXPRESS‘Absorbing’ – NEW STATESMANTrade ReviewA brilliant history: The first serious and really wide-ranging history of the Home Front during the Great War for decades. Scholarly, objective and extremely well-written. A masterclass . . . that ought to be taught in schools. It is filled with surprising revelations . . . and empathy. Heffer's eye for the telling detail is evident on almost every page. -- Professor Andrew Roberts, 5* * Telegraph *Gloriously rich and spirited . . . colourful, character-driven history . . . it zips along, leavened by so many wonderful cultural and social details. -- Dominic Sandbrook * The Sunday Times *Fresh insights, vast scope and caustic judgement. Possibly the finest, most comprehensive analysis of the home front in the Great War ever produced. Compelling reading. * Literary Review *Enlightening . . . Robust opinion, an eye for telling detail and a gift for bringing historical figures alive . . . An epic, ambitious book. -- History Books of the Year * Daily Mail *Staring at God is a vast compendium of atrocious political conduct. Refreshing . . . [The book]’s length is due to the author’s enormous enthusiasm. A trenchant history. * The Times *
£15.29
Simon & Schuster Ltd A Prayer for Gallipoli: The Great War Diaries of
Book SynopsisMany chaplains were not permitted to go near the Front in the First World War - others insisted on doing so, like Kenneth Best in the Gallipoli Campaign. Best had no military training before the war but he felt that he could only fulfil his pastoral role by getting close to the front line and working with the troops under fire. Best was attached to the 42nd East Lancastrians - the first Territorial Army Division to serve overseas in the conflict, so arguably the least experienced in the ways of war. In his diary we follow his progress through his initial training in Egypt and on to his arrival in Gallipoli in May 1915. Gallipoli has become notorious, even by the standards of the First World War. After a naval campaign to open up a supply route to Russia through Turkey failed, some 480,000 Allied troops were drawn into a land invasion in which hundreds of thousands were injured or killed. In his diary, Best records his efforts to encourage frightened men before they go over the top, to comfort the wounded and, when the fighting stops, to bury the dead. His empathy for the troops is matched by a forthright disgust for their leaders, few of whom share his insight into the horrific realities of trench warfare.
£7.19
Amazon Publishing The Girl with the Golden Scissors: A Novel
Book SynopsisFrom the bestselling author of The Lioness of Morocco and The Elephant Keeper’s Daughter, the story of an ambitious young woman discovering friendship, love, and her own identity on the eve of World War I. Christmas 1889. A baby is born in the early hours at Vienna General Hospital, only to be abandoned by her unwed mother and entrusted to a foundling home and its loving caretaker. Fanny Schindler grows from a precocious girl into a strong-willed young woman. Undeterred by the rules of her station, she’s determined to rise above her humble origins and pursue her dreams at all costs, becoming an apprentice to one of the most glamorous fashion houses in Austria-Hungary. All the while, as Fanny searches for a sense of belonging, her path crosses with those of three people who will change her future. To one, she is a cherished friend. To another, a confidant. And to a handsome career soldier, something more. When hostilities in Europe burst into flame as a brutal world war, the future of the dual monarchy is at stake, friendships are strained, loyalties are tested, and everything is at risk. And when long-buried secrets about Fanny’s past come to light, she must decide what truly matters—and what is worth fighting for in a new world of infinite possibilities.
£8.99
Birlinn General The Grand Scuttle: The Sinking of the German
Book SynopsisAt Scapa Flow on 21 June 1919, there occurred an event unique in naval history. The German High Seas Fleet, one of the most formidable ever built was deliberately sent to the bottom of the sea at the British Grand Fleet's principal anchorage at Orkney by its own officers and men.The Grand Scuttle became a folk legend in both Germany and Britain. However, few people are aware that Rear Admiral Ludwig von Reuter became the only man in history to sink his own navy because of a misleading report in a British newspaper; that the Royal Navy guessed his intention but could do nothing to thwart it; that the sinking produced the last casualties and the last prisoners of the war; and that fragments of the Kaiser's fleet are probably on the moon.This is the remarkable story of the scuttling of the German fleet in Scapa Flow. It contains previously unused German archive material, eye-witness accounts and the recollections of survivors, as well as many contemporary photos which capture the awesome spectacle of the finest ships of the time being deliberately sunk by their own crew.
£9.49
