Modern warfare Books
Pen & Sword Books Ltd 8th SS Cavalry Division Florian Geyer
Book SynopsisCovers the operations of a leading SS Cavalry Regiment. Latest in the Author's popular SS Divisions/ Images of War series.
£13.49
Pen & Sword Books Ltd Operation Hoss
Book SynopsisRecords a truly shocking episode of WW2.
£13.49
Pen & Sword Books Ltd The Second World War Illustrated
Book SynopsisA quick, convenient visual history of the world's worst life-changing conflict.
£16.99
Pen & Sword Books Ltd Faces of the Few
Book SynopsisA unique collection of images relating to the airmen of the RAF and the Royal Navy's Fleet Air Arm who fought the Battle of Britain.
£21.25
Pen & Sword Books Ltd The Meon Hill Murder 1945
Book SynopsisThe first stand alone book on the Meon Hill murder. Detailed factual analysis debunking the irrelevant (and later) witchcraft angle. A study of how 'the madness of crowds' subverts justice.
£17.00
Pen & Sword Books Ltd March Past
Book SynopsisThe autobiography of one of the most famous Commandos of the Second World War.
£21.25
Pen & Sword Books Ltd Save the Last Bullet
Book SynopsisAn exceptionally rare memoir of a boy soldier in Hitler's army.
£17.00
Pen & Sword Books Ltd The Steep Atlantick Stream
Book SynopsisA vivid and very human account of action on an Atlantic escort.
£13.49
Pen & Sword Books Ltd The History of 30 Assault Unit
Book SynopsisThe author has trawled archives and interviewed veterans in order to piece together the history and record of this elusive special forces unit who fought with great distinction and achieved results disproportionate to their size.
£13.49
Pen & Sword Books Ltd Last Stand at Le Paradis
Book SynopsisIn early September 1939, the 2nd Battalion Royal Norfolk Regiment were one of the first complete infantry units of the BEF to land in France. The first months of World War Two were relatively quiet but after deploying to the Maginot Line sector during January 1940 they came into contact with those Germans manning the West Wall or Seigfried Line. A patrol led by Captain Peter Barclay entered German territory and was attacked. As a result, the first decorations of the war were awarded. Barclay received the Military Cross and Lance-Corporal Davis the Military Medal while the remaining members of the patrol were mentioned in despatches. Two days later, the battalion suffered a tragic first when Lieutenant Patrick Everitt was mortally wounded while leading a daylight patrol. Everitt was the first British officer to be killed in action in the Second World War. When the Germans launched their offensive on 10 May, the BEF advanced to the River Dyle in Belgium. Within days the Allied Armies had
£13.49
Pen & Sword Books Ltd The Strike Wings
Book SynopsisClassic account of the RAFs Strike Wings in action against German shipping in the Second World War.
£13.49
Pen & Sword Books Ltd The Desert Air Force in World War II
Book SynopsisDocuments the first time that the RAF struck back at Hitlers Reich.
£15.29
Pen & Sword Books Ltd Fighting with the Long Range Desert Group
Book SynopsisResearched and written by much published author and leading LRDG expert.
£21.25
Pen & Sword Books Ltd WaffenSS Armour on the Eastern Front 1941 1945
Book SynopsisCovers the bitter fighting on the Eastern Front.
£13.49
Pen & Sword Books Ltd Red Army Weapons of the Second World War
Book SynopsisComprehensive and authoritative work on the whole range of Second World War Red Army weaponry.
£21.25
Pen & Sword Books Ltd The Band That Went to War
Book SynopsisAn unusual and never before published account of the War.
£21.25
Pen & Sword Books Ltd The Allied Air Campaign Against Hitlers Uboats
Book SynopsisA detailed study of the Allied air campaign against Hitler's U-boats in the Second World War.
£21.25
Pen & Sword Books Ltd Heydrich Butcher of Prague
Book SynopsisHeydrich's shocking and leading role in the Nazi regime is graphically portrayed in this Images of War book.
£13.49
Bloomsbury Publishing PLC Between Giants
Book SynopsisFrom an expert on the Eastern Front of World War II, this book chronicles the cataclysmic experience of the region that includes modern-day Lithuania, Estonia and Latvia.The Baltic States suffered more than almost any other territory during World War II, caught on the front-line of some of the war's most vicious battles and squeezed between the vast military might of the German Wehrmacht and the Soviet Red Army. Combining new archival research and numerous first-hand accounts, this is a magisterial description of conquest and exploitation, of death and deportation and the fight for survival both by countries and individuals.Trade Review'A powerful pick... It comes packed with action shots and photos, first-hand accounts from soldiers on both sides - most of which have never appeared in English... No military collection strong in World War II should be without this specific, in-depth analysis.' The Midwest Book Review Praise for Prit Buttar 'a marvelously written and illustrated new work with excellent maps on a series of battles too long overlooked... [it[ deserves to be read by any true devotee of World War II.' Military AdvisorTable of ContentsList of Illustrations List of Maps Author’s Note Dramatis Personae Preface Introduction Chapter 1: Molotov, Ribbentrop and the First Soviet Occupation Chapter 2: Rosenberg, Generalplan Ost and Preparations for Barbarossa Chapter 3: The Wehrmacht in Full Flood Chapter 4: The Baltic Holocaust Chapter 5: Reluctant Allies Chapter 6: Narva, January to April 1944 Chapter 7: Breaking the Deadlock: Summer 1944 Chapter 8: From Doppelkopf to Cäsar Chapter 9: The Isolation of Army Group North Chapter 10: Courland, October to December 1944 Chapter 11: Endgame Chapter 12: Aftermath Appendix 1: Place Names Appendix 2: Ranks Appendix 3: Acronyms Appendix 4: Foreign terms Endnotes Bibliography Extract from Battleground Prussia Index
£15.29
Bloomsbury Publishing PLC British Commando 194045
Book SynopsisWith Hitler''s army rampaging across Europe, Winston Churchill ordered the creation of a special fighting force-- the Commandos. These valiant men were volunteers drawn from the ranks of the British Army, formed into a Special Service Brigade, and put through a rigorous but highly effective training program. Over the course of World War II they would see action in every major theater of operation, and are credited with numerous feats of gallantry during the D-Day landings. Although many units were disbanded after the war, the Royal Marine Commandos have maintained the standards of this elite fighting formation to the present day.Angus Konstam explores the history of the Commandos during their formative years, providing detailed descriptions of their training, weapons, and equipment. Battle reports are accompanied by specially commissioned Osprey artwork and historical photographs, offering readers an in-depth analysis of some of the most famous fighting units in the British Table of ContentsIntroduction /Chronology /Recruitment and Enlistment /Training /Appearance and Equipment /Belief and Belonging /Conditions of Service /Experience of Battle /After the Battle /Collections and Museums/Glossary
£14.24
Bloomsbury Publishing PLC BEB66 Destroyer Units in Combat
Book SynopsisA fascinating study of the EB-66, which from 1965 to 1967 was the US Air Force''s only platform for jamming and escort duties for its strike operations over heavily-defended areas. Without the bravery and skill of EB-66 operators, US losses would undoubtedly have been much higher during the Vietnam War, with large tactical strikes on North Vietnam and Arc Light B-52 raids only available when EB-66 support was possible.Studies of air combat in the Vietnam War inevitably focus on the MiG-killing fighter engagements, B-52 onslaughts or tactical strikes on the Hanoi region. However, underlying all these was the secretive ''electron war'' in which highly-skilled electronic warfare officers dueled with Soviet and North Vietnamese radar operators in the attempt to enable US strike forces to reach their targets with minimal losses. Orbiting at the edge of heavily-defended territory, the vulnerable EB-66s identified and jammed the enemy''s radar frequencies with electroTable of Contents1. Naval Origins 2. Cold War Bomber 3. Yokota and Shaw 4. Into the Fire 5. Thundering On 6. The Final Round 7. Still in Europe Appendices - Colour plates commentary - Index
£13.49
Bloomsbury Publishing PLC Sinking Force Z 1941
Book SynopsisA history and analysis of one of the most dramatic moments in both air power and naval history. With the sinking of HMS Prince of Wales and Repulse, no battleship was safe on the open ocean, and the aircraft took its crown as the most powerful maritime weaponIn late 1941, war was looming with Japan, and Britain''s empire in southeast Asia was at risk. The British government decided to send Force Z, which included the state-of-the-art battleship Prince of Wales and the battlecruiser Repulse, to bolster the naval defences of Singapore, and provide a mighty naval deterrent to Japanese aggression. These two powerful ships arrived in Singapore on 2 December - five days before the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. But crucially, they lacked air cover. On 9 December Japanese scout planes detected Force Z''s approach in the Gulf of Thailand. Unlike at Pearl Harbor, battleships at sea could manoeuvre, and their anti-aircraft defences were ready. But it did no gTable of ContentsINTRODUCTION CHRONOLOGY ATTACKER'S CAPABILITIES The new rulers of the sea DEFENDER'S CAPABILITIES The Royal Navy’s mission to Singapore CAMPAIGN OBJECTIVES The imperial rivals THE CAMPAIGN The last day of the big-gun battleship ANALYSIS FURTHER READING INDEX
£13.49
Pen & Sword Books Ltd Gunboat Command
Book SynopsisLt Cdr Robert Hichens became a legendary MGB commander and the most highly decorated RNVR officer in the Second World War. His biography provides thrilling first hand accounts of close naval action in the North Sea and English Channel.
£15.29
Pen & Sword Books Ltd Special Forces Pilot A Flying Memoir of the
Book SynopsisAn exceptional memoir describing operations by, and in support of, the SAS and SBS during the Falklands War.
£12.99
Pen & Sword Books Ltd Panther Tank Hitlers T34 Killer
Book SynopsisComprehensive illustrated history of the most effective German tank of the Second World War
£13.49
Pen & Sword Books Ltd Poland and the Second World War 19381948
Book SynopsisThe full story of Poland's part in WW2 from failure of pre-war diplomacy and planning, through to betrayal by Allies leading to civil war and Soviet occupation in immediate post-war years.
£21.25
Pen & Sword Books Ltd DDay Gunners
Book SynopsisStories of the men who served the guns on the D-Day beaches
£21.25
Pen & Sword Books Ltd Devon at War 1939 45
Book SynopsisCovers Devon in the Second World War, from the commencement of the conflict in September 1939, until its end in September 1945, featuring many forgotten news stories of the day.
£11.69
Pen & Sword Books Ltd Southampton at War 1939 1945
Book SynopsisCovers the events and happenings of the whole of Southampton during the Second World War.
£11.69
Pen & Sword Books Ltd Hitlers Forgotten Flotillas
Book SynopsisA important study of a previously neglected but crucial element of the Kriegsmarine which includes previously unpublished photographs and contains stirring first-hand accountsTrade Review'Naval Books of the Year'. "This book is an excellent treatment of a side of naval warfare that is rarely given the attention it deserves. It is thus heartily recommended." --Warship
£21.25
Pen & Sword Books Ltd Magnum The Wild Weasels in Desert Storm
Book SynopsisFirst-hand accounts of opening the air attack against dictator Saddam
£16.99
Orion Publishing Co Chanels Riviera
Book SynopsisFar from worrying about the onset of war, in the spring of 1938 the burning question on the French Riviera was whether one should curtsey to the Duchess of Windsor. Few of those who had settled there thought much about what was going on in the rest of Europe. It was a golden, glamorous life, far removed from politics or conflict.Featuring a sparkling cast of artists, writers and historical figures including Winston Churchill, Daisy Fellowes, Salvador Dalí, the Duke and Duchess of Windsor, Eileen Gray and Edith Wharton, with the enigmatic Coco Chanel at its heart, CHANEL''S RIVIERA is a captivating account of a period that saw some of the deepest extremes of luxury and terror in the whole of the twentieth century.From Chanel''s first summer at her Roquebrune villa La Pausa (in the later years with her German lover) amid the glamour of the pre-war parties and casinos in Antibes, Nice and Cannes to the horrors of evacuation and the displacement of thousands of families Trade ReviewProviding insight into the occupation of France and its terrifying impact on rich and poor alike, you'll come away from reading it both better informed and utterly transported -- Francesca Brown * STYLIST magazine *A riveting read about the best and very worst of times and at the heart of the story is the morally ambiguous (some may say morally bankrupt) Chanel herself. -- Sarra Manning * RED ONLINE *A well-researched and compelling story. Drawing on an immense volume of material, she has succeeded not only in constructing an intriguing portrait of Chanel herself but also in expertly conjuring the two very different worlds that then existed side by side -- Selina Hastings * LITERARY REVIEW *A highly amusing guide to the shenanigans, foibles and affairs of the rich and famous at a time when it seemed anyone who was anyone spent weeks at a time on the Riviera ... De Courcy has dug deep into a rich seam of stories about the coastal region of France -- Anne Sebba * HISTORY TODAY *Anne de Courcy's Chanel's Riviera gives us delicious gossip. France's leading designer was the epitome ofchic. When she acquired a magnificent villa on the Cote d'Azur, the rich and famous - among them Jean Cocteau, H. G. Wells, Salvador Dali (and, after the abdication, the Windsors) - followed. They created a gilded and hedonistic world, which continued until the fall of France in 1940. -- A.W. Purdue * THES *De Courcy is very powerful on the fall of France - the sorrow and the pity ... De Courcy, in this gripping, rousing study, sees Chanel as a Marie Antoinette figure, simultaneously shrewd and other-worldly, protected by an armour of absolute self-interest. -- Roger Lewis * DAILY TELEGRAPH *Fascinating ... By turns sunny and shady, this beautifully written book illuminates a harrowing and occasionally surreal episode in 20th-century French history -- Martin Williams * COUNTRY LIFE *Sparkling, anecdote-rich narrative -- Paula Byrne * THE TIMES *
£11.69
Pen & Sword Books Ltd The Desert Air War 1940-1943: Rare Photographs
Book SynopsisThe war in air over North Africa and the Mediterranean during the Second World War has long been overshadowed by the battle on the ground. Between 1940 and 1943 Italy's Regia Aeronautica and then Germany's Luftwaffe waged a concerted aerial campaign against the British, yet apart from the bitter fight for Malta, this aspect of the conflict is rarely given the attention it deserves. Anthony Tucker-Jones, in this vivid photographic history, provides a fascinating introduction to it. The wartime photographs, and the concise text, cover the entire course of the struggle in the air. The Regia Aeronautica at first met weak British opposition when Mussolini launched his ill-advised offensive against British-controlled Egypt, but the obsolete Italian aircraft proved to be no match for the Allied fighters once the strength of the Royal Air Force built up. Then, when Hitler stepped in to help his hapless ally, the aerial struggle intensified, and the air forces of both sides were locked in deadly combat in the skies over Egypt, Libya, the Mediterranean and Tunisia. The wide range of Italian, British, German and American aircraft involved, the air and ground crews from all sides, and the conditions in which they operated and fought are all shown in this varied selection of photographs.
£13.49
Pen & Sword Books Ltd Heinrich Himmler: The Sinister Life of the Head
Book Synopsis_There are no better biographies of Goering, Goebbels and Himmler in existence_. **New York Review of Books** Heinrich Himmler was the commander of the SS, and as founder and officer-in-charge of the Nazi concentration camps and the Einsatzgruppen death squads, he was responsible for implementing the extermination of millions of people. By the time he died he was the second-most powerful man in Germany and regarded himself as Hitler's natural successor, going so far as to attempt to negotiate independent peace with the Allies. Based on US documents handed over to the German Federal Archives and the testimonies of Himmler's family and staff, this book examines how a seemingly ordinary boy grew into an obsessive and superstitious man who ventured into herbalism and astrology before finally turning to the science of racial purity and the belief in the superiority of the Aryan race. Filled with insights into Himmler s private life, activities and beliefs, this is an important study of one of the most sinister figures of World War II.
£13.49
Pen & Sword Books Ltd A Cruel Captivity: Prisoners of the
Book SynopsisCarefully and sensitively researched, A Cruel Captivity describes the ordeals of, and lasting impact on, survivors of Japanese captivity. Differing in a number of respects from other moving POW accounts, this book covers the experiences of 22 servicemen from the Army, Royal Navy, RAF and volunteer forces who were held captive in numerous locations through South East Asia including Thailand, Burma, Hong Kong, the Spice Islands and Japan itself. Some had to endure the inhumane conditions during hazardous journeys on the 'hellships' and all suffered appalling cruelty, starvation, disease and prolonged degradation on an epic scale. Yet these were the fortunate ones-many thousands perished and their graves were unmarked. The book also examines the differing mental and physical effects that the prisoners' captors' cruel treatment had on them. The author's handling of the 'legacy' of their experiences during the post-war years makes this moving book particularly important. For a full understanding of this dreadful aspect of the Second World War, A Cruel Captivity is a must-read.
£16.99
Pen & Sword Books Ltd Joachim Peiper and the Nazi Atrocities of 1944
Book SynopsisJoachim Peiper held the rank of Obersturmbannfuhrer in Nazi Germany's fanatical Schutzstaffel, more commonly referred to as the SS. He spent the first two years of the war as an adjutant to the Reichsfuhrer of the Schutzstaffel, and leading member of the Nazi Party, Heinrich Himmler, where he would have witnessed at first hand the construction and implementation of numerous SS policies, many of which would have been in relation to ethnic cleansing and the Holocaust. In October 1941, having yearned for a chance at combat, he changed roles and became a commander in the Waffen-SS, although he still remained in regular contact with Himmler. As a member of the 1st SS Panzer Division Leibstandarte, he saw service in the Soviet Union, Italy and Belgium. On 19 September 1943, he and his men were responsible for the murder of twenty-four Italian civilians at the village of Boves. On 17 December 1944, men under his command were responsible for what became known as the Malmedy massacre, involving the murder of eighty-four unarmed American prisoners of war. Following this, between 17 and 20 December, Peiper and his men were involved in the murder of a number of other American soldiers, as well as Belgian civilians. Peiper was never charged with the atrocities at Boves, but in 1946 he faced an American military tribunal for the Malmedy masssacre. Although found guilty and sentenced to death, his sentence was reduced to life imprisonment but he was eventually released in 1956. In 1972, Peiper moved to the French village of Troves in north east France. On 14 July 1976, his home was attacked and set on fire. Overcome by smoke, he died in the flames.
£17.00
Pen & Sword Books Ltd The Fall of Berlin: Rare Photographs from Wartime
Book SynopsisBy March 1945, the Red Army had closed in on Berlin. Marshal Zhukov, with almost a million soldiers and 20,000 tanks and guns at his disposal, launched his assault of the Seelow Heights. While costly with 30,000 Russians killed, it brought the Russian Army to the gates of the capital. On 20 April, Hitler's 56th birthday, Soviet artillery began a massive bombardment of the doomed city. The Fuhrer ordered every soldier, Hitlerjugend and Volksstrum to fight to the death. The house-to-house fighting that followed was brutal and savage with heavy casualties for both military and civilians. Using superb Russian and German imagery this fine Images of War series book describes the Russian assault and Nazi last-ditch defence of Hitler's capital during the final days of the Third Reich.
£14.24
Pen & Sword Books Ltd Women of the Third Reich: From Camp Guards to
Book SynopsisThe women of the Third Reich were a vital part in a complex and vilified system. What was their role within its administration, the concentration camps, and the Luftwaffe and militia units and how did it evolve in the way it did? We hear from women who issued typewritten dictates from above through to those who operated telephones, radar systems, fought fires as the cities burned around them, drove concentration camp inmates to their deaths like cattle, fired Anti-Aircraft guns at Allied aircraft and entered the militias when faced with the impending destruction of what should have been a one thousand-year Reich. Every testimony is unique, each person a victim of circumstance entwined within the thorns of an ideological obligation. In an interview with Traudl Junge, Hitler's private secretary, she remembers: There was so much hatred within it's hard to understand how the state functioned I am convinced all this infighting and competition from the males in Hitler's circle was highly detrimental to its downfall'. _Women of the Third Reich_ provides an intriguing, humorous, brutal, shocking and unrelenting narrative journey into the half lights of the hell of human consciousness - sometimes at its worst.
£23.75
Pen & Sword Books Ltd Myths and Legends of the Eastern Front:
Book SynopsisThe memory of the Second World War on the Eastern Front - still referred to in modern Russia as the Great Patriotic War - is an essential element of Russian identity and history, as alive today as it was in Stalin's time. It is represented as a defining episode, a positive historical myth that sustains the Russian national idea and unites the majority of Russian citizens. As a result, as Boris Sokolov shows in this powerful and thought-provoking study, the heroic and tragic side of the war is highlighted while the dark side - the incompetent, negligent and even criminal way the war was run - is overlooked. Although almost eighty years have passed since the defeat of Nazi Germany, he demonstrates that many of the fabrications put forward during the war and immediately afterwards persist into the present day. In a sequence of incisive chapters he uncovers the truth about famous wartime episodes that have been consistently misrepresented. His bold reinterpretation should go some way towards dispelling the enduring myths about the Great Patriotic War. It is necessary reading for anyone who is keen to understand how it continues to be misrepresented in Russia today.
£21.25
Pen & Sword Books Ltd Hitler's Lost State: The Fall of Prussia and the
Book SynopsisSeen as an agricultural utopia within Hitler's Germany, it is often the view that both East and West Prussia had remained relatively untouched during the Second World War. Yet the violence, prejudice and murder associated with the National Socialist regime that brought most of Europe to ruin were widespread throughout Prussia during its brief existence. When the MV _Wilhelm Gustloff_ was sunk by a Russian submarine just after 9pm on 30 January 1945, 9,343 passengers - 5,000 of them children - would perish. It was the worst loss of life in maritime history, six times greater than the one of the RMS Titanic. Launched by Adolf Hitler on 5 May 1937 and the KdF (Kraft durch Freude = Strength through Joy) as a recreational and propaganda tool, the MV _Wilhelm Gustloff_ would suffer the same fate as the nation it once represented. Yet 75 years later, her tragic story is still unknown to many. Combining existing material and new findings, this book tells the story of Prussia's rise and fall as a military power, the attempts by brave civilians as well as military personnel determined to overturn the evil regime they had made an oath to serve and the desperate evacuation of refugees to the West in one of the greatest exodus ever seen, told by those who were there.
£16.99
Pen & Sword Books Ltd Stalag 383 Bavaria: A History of the Camp, the
Book SynopsisStalag 383 was somewhat unique as a Second World War prisoner of war camp. Located in a high valley surrounded by dense woodland and hills in Hofenfels, Bavaria, it began life in 1938 as a training ground for the German Army. At the outbreak of war it was commandeered by the German authorities for use as a prisoner of war camp for Allied non-commissioned officers, and given the name Oflag lllC. It was renamed Stalag 383 in November 1942. For most of its existence it comprised of some 400 huts, 30 feet long and 14 feet wide, with each typically being home to 14 men. Many of the British service men who found themselves incarcerated at the camp had been captured during the evacuations at Dunkirk, or when the Greek island of Crete fell to the Germans on 1 June 1941. Stalag 383 had somewhat of a holiday camp feel to it for many who found themselves prisoners there. There were numerous clubs formed by different regiments, or men from the same town or county. These clubs catered for interests such as education, sports, theatrical productions and debates, to name but a few. This book examines life in the camp, the escapes that were undertaken from there, and includes a selection of never before published photographs of the camp and the men who lived there, many for more than five years.
£16.99
Pen & Sword Books Ltd The Killing Fields of Provence: Occupation,
Book SynopsisIn the South of France, the most memorable event of the Second World War was the sea and airborne invasion of 15 August 1944. Perhaps because it went relatively smoothly, this “Second D-Day” was soon relegated to the back pages of history. Operation Dragoon and the liberation is however only a small part of the story. The arrival of the Allies was preceded by years of oppression and strife. Provençal people still struggle to come to terms with the painful past of split-allegiances and empty stomachs which epitomize les années noires (the dark years). The author’s blend of local and social history enables the English-language reader to discover the parallel universe which exists alongside these idyllic shores. In every corner of Provence, the mindful traveller will come across words, chipped into stone, which exhort: Passant, souviens-toi (passer-by, remember). These sacred places of memory tell a story of duplicity, defiance, and ultimately, deliverance. Whether the stuff of legends, or the everyday experiences of lesser mortals, humanity is used to explain the Franco-American experience of wartime Provence, as seen through an Anglo-Saxon prism.
£21.25
Pen & Sword Books Ltd Spitfire, Mustang and the 'Meredith Effect': How
Book SynopsisBy the mid-1930s the obstacles to high speed that aircraft designers faced included the question of cooling the engine. This was a big challenge that those working on the new fast aeroplanes entering service as the war clouds gathered over Europe had to consider, as the drag from the system increased as a square of the speed. Ducted systems were designed which lowered drag, but these were based on the assumption that the system was cold. This ignored the potential energy from the air, heated by the radiator, for liquid-cooled aircraft, and from the discharged engine exhaust gases. It took a profoundly lateral thinker to harness the possibilities of the paradox that heat could cut the cost of cooling. That thinker was the British engineer Frederick William Meredith. A researcher at the Royal Aircraft Establishment at Farnborough until 1938, F.W. Meredith a key player in the UK’s development of the autopilot and remote-controlled aircraft. His contribution to Allied success in the Second World War was enormous – but, incredibly, he was also a known a Soviet agent. Few would doubt that the Supermarine Spitfire was a pioneering aeroplane – not because it was an all metal, monoplane with retractable undercarriage and enclosed cockpit as these were not unique – but because it was the first to incorporate a Meredith designed ducted cooling system. This was intended from the beginning to use heat to create ‘negative drag’. In practice the Spitfire’s design was flawed, as Meredith himself pointed out, and did not fully use what became known as the ‘Meredith Effect’. Meredith also made entirely overlooked but extremely important contributions to resolving the problem of how to induce air smoothly into cooling ducts at high speeds without which, as the Spitfire demonstrated, ducted cooling systems worked sub-optimally. The first aeroplane properly to exploit the ‘Meredith Effect’ was the North American P-51 Mustang, this being a very significant factor as to why it was 30mph faster than the Spitfire when both had the same Rolls-Royce Merlin engine. This book by Peters Spring examines the life of the remarkable, and controversial, F.W. Meredith, an individual who has largely been forgotten by history despite the brilliant advances he made – advances which helped the Allies win the war against Hitler’s Third Reich.
£22.50
Pen & Sword Books Ltd The Battle for Burma, 1942-1945: Rare Photographs
Book SynopsisThe battle for Burma during the Second World War was of vital importance to the Allies and the Japanese. The Allies fought to protect British India and force the Japanese out of Burma; the Japanese fought to defend the north-west flank of their newly conquered empire and aimed to strike at India where anti-British feeling was growing stronger. Yet the massive military efforts mounted by both sides during four years of war are often overshadowed by the campaigns in Europe, North Africa, the Pacific and China. Philip Jowett, using over 200 wartime photographs, many of them not published before, retells the story of the war in Burma in vivid detail, illustrating each phase of the fighting and showing all the forces involved - British, American, Chinese, Indian, Burmese as well as Japanese. His book is a fascinating introduction to one of the most extreme, but least reported, struggles of the entire war. The narrative and the striking photographs carry the reader through each of the major phases of the conflict, from the humiliation of the initial British defeat in 1942 and retreat into India and their faltering attempts to recover the initiative from 1943, to the famous Chindit raids behind Japanese lines, the Japanese offensive of 1944 and their disastrous retreat and ultimate defeat.
£15.29
Pen & Sword Books Ltd Stalin's War on Japan: The Red Army's 'Manchurian
Book SynopsisDid Japan surrender in 1945 because of the death and devastation caused by the atomic bombs dropped by the Americans on Hiroshima and Nagasaki or because of the crushing defeat inflicted on their armies by the Soviet Union in Manchukuo, the puppet state they set up in north-east China? Indeed, the Red Army's rapid and total victory in Manchukuo has been relatively neglected by historians. Charles Stephenson, in this scholarly and highly readable new study, describes the political, diplomatic and military build-up to the Soviet offensive and its decisive outcome. He also considers to what extent Japan's capitulation is attributable to the atomic bomb or the stunningly successful entry of the Soviet Union into the conflict. The military side of the story is explored in fascinating detail - the invasion of Manchukuo itself where the Soviet 'Deep Battle' concept was employed with shattering results, and secondary actions in Korea, Sakhalin and the Kuril Islands. But equally absorbing is the account of the decision-making that gave rise to the offensive and the political and diplomatic background to it, and in particular the Yalta conference. There, Stalin allowed the Americans to persuade him to join the war in the east; a conflict he was determined on entering anyway. Charles Stephenson's engrossing narrative throws new light on the last act of the Second World War.
£21.25
Pen & Sword Books Ltd Vietnam and the Cold War 1945-1954: French
Book SynopsisA forensic study of war, imperial history and international relations, following the Second World War and leading into the Cold War and defeat of Western imperialism in Asia. And above all, the story of the pivotal battle and French defeat at Dien Bien Phu. It shows France's revanchist attempt to regain imperial 'glory' in her former Asian empire following humiliation in the Second World War - defeat and Vichy. The effort was spurred by de Galle's chauvinism and desire to recover France’s honour and reputation, after so many humiliations by friend and foe. The Communist led Vietminh, were guided to victory by ruthless revolutionary Ho Chi Min - far from the attractive 'Uncle Ho' who is revered as a communist saint in contrast to louche playboy emperor Bao Dai – and the very able General Giap. Communist strength in rural Vietnam society - the Vietminh represented a nation in arms – was backed by supplies from Communist China and the Soviet Union. It was an existential struggle on the French side - the end of cafe society, and the gravy train for planters, officials, the military, and politicians. Military matters including General Giap’s strategy and tactics are analysed in detail,l but it was a 'soldiers' war', told at ground-level, and readers will feel the heat and fear of battle, be shocked at war crimes, and intrigued by the tales of Graham Greene et al. The global importance was not lost on the powers following exhaustion from world war and in the shadow of the Cold War. All great leaders were involved, Roosevelt, Truman, Eisenhower, Churchill, Stalin, Khruschev, Chou En-Lai and Mao Zedong, Under the shadow of the A bomb, a negotiated peace and first detent of the Cold War would end in the sumptuous salons of Geneva.
£21.25
Pen & Sword Books Ltd Nazi Concentration Camp Overseers:
Book SynopsisThe Nazis' vast concentration camp network and, later, the 'Final Solution' programme made heavy demands on the SS whose responsibility it was. The use of 'overseers' minimised costs and enabled the camps to run with fewer SS personnel. As this well researched book describes, there were three principal groups of 'helpers': Sonderkommandos, Kapos and Trawniki. The Sonderkommandos' duties included unloading Jews from trains, collecting their possessions and allocating work details. Under SS supervision, they also ran the gas chambers and crematoria. The Kapos oversaw the Sonderkommandos. Many were originally prisoner functionaries recruited from violent criminal gangs and had a well-deserved reputation for brutality. The third group, known as Trawniki or Trawnikimanner, were Central and Eastern European collaborators recruited from Russian POW camps. While some served in a military capacity, others played an instrumental role in the Holocaust programme, rounding up and transporting Jews from the ghettos to the concentration camps. The graphic images and text of this Images of War series work demonstrate that the 'overseer' system was extensive and effective as its members competed without scruple to maintain the favour of their SS masters while pitting victim against victim.
£13.49
Quercus Publishing Battle of Britain: A day-to-day chronicle, 10
Book SynopsisFrom the bestselling author of Fighter Boys and Bomber Boys, this is a magisterial chronicle of a defining episode in British history: the epic struggle of the Royal Air Force with the Luftwaffe. Patrick Bishop's Battle of Britain is a compelling account of Britain's fight for national survival, from the shock defeat and evacuation from Dunkirk in May/June 1940 to fighter Command's assertion of superiority over the Luftwaffe in mid-September. Battle of Britain takes the reader through that summer day by day, revealing the ongoing battle's impact on flyers and civilians alike. By enhancing his narrative with eye-witness accounts, diary extracts and pilot profiles, Bishop brings the often horrific reality of air combat vividly to life. In Battle of Britain Patrick Bishop has written the definitive account of one of the pivotal moments in twentieth-century British history, and a nation's 'finest hour'.Trade Review'Compelling ... a fascinating insight into the emotions and actions of those who took part on both sides ... A worthy memorial to the 'Few' ' Daily Telegraph. * Daily Telegraph *
£12.34
