Second World War Books

Book SynopsisThe routing of the British and French Armies in May and June 1940 by the Wehrmacht's armoured divisions caused a major rethink by the US Army's senior leadership. The result was the formation of the two armoured divisions in July 1940; the first named 'Old Ironside' and second designated 'Hell on Wheels'. In 1941, a further three armoured divisions were created; the third (Spearhead), the fourth (remained unnamed) and the fifth called 'Victory'. The following year seven more were created, the sixth, seventh, eighth, ninth, tenth, eleventh and twelfth. The final two armoured divisions formed in 1943 numbered the sixteenth and twentieth. All but one of these powerful formations went on to see service in the European Theatre of Operation (ETO); the exception being the 1st Armoured Division that served in North Africa, Sicily and Italy. These fourteen divisions proved their effectiveness against the Axis forces. In this carefully researched book military historian and much published author Michael Green explains their operational and fighting doctrine. Equipment enthusiasts will appreciate the lavish images and informed captions of the armoured fighting vehicles and other equipment employed.

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Book SynopsisNearly four years of brutal Japanese occupation in WW2 has dimmed Manila's lustre. The Philippine capital, surrounding an old Spanish fortress, was once a glittering jewel among America's overseas possessions. And now a vast Allied army led by the indomitable MacArthur is ready to take it back from the Japanese. It is a necessary mission and an urgent one for trapped within the old University of Santo Tomas are thousands of ailing prisoners: men and women, young and old, at risk of torture and death by their captors. But the token Japanese garrison has other ideas as desperate units of the Japanese navy dig in to fight to the death against the advancing Americans. Caught in this cruel vice are thousands of Filipinos still trapped in the metropolis, with no hope of escape. From the closing days of January until early March 1945, Manila is to endure the most bitter fighting in the Pacific theatre, leaving it a charred wasteland littered with the bodies of the dead, soldier and civilian alike, the latter deliberately targeted by Japanese death squads. Such is the carnage and conquest of Manila.

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Book SynopsisGermany's defeat in the First World War and the Treaty of Versailles that followed were national disasters, with far-reaching consequences not just for the country but for the world itself. Weaving the stories of three German families from the beginning of Germany's territorial aspirations of the First World War to the shattered dream of a thousand-year Reich in the Second World War, Tim Heath's rich narrative explores a multitude of rare and untapped resources to explore the darkest recesses of German social and military history. Hitler's Germany presents a nation's journey not only through everyday life and war, but through its own conscience, pain and inevitable search for some form of absolution from its past. It is real, painful and incredibly human - an essential history to further understand the mind-set of Germany during the most tumultuous years of the nation's history.

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Book SynopsisThis is a book of two stories. The first is the sad tale of how at least 749 American servicemen lost their lives on a pre-D-Day landing exercise, code-named 'Operation Tiger', on the evening of 23/24 April 1943\. The second, was the unanswerable question of whether the attacking E-Boats of the German Kriegsmarine had fully grasped the importance of what they had stumbled across. Because of the time scale between the operation and the actual D-Day landings, secrecy surrounding the tragedy had to be stringently adhered to, and even after the invasion of Normandy, only scant information about the incident and those who were killed was ever released. The other factor which was of major concern, was if the Germans had understood the significance of the vessels they had attacked, then the intended Allied invasion of Europe was in grave danger of having to be postponed for an indefinite period of time. In late 1943, as part of the build-up to the D-day landings at Normandy, the British government had set up a training ground at Slapton Sands in Devon, to be used by the American forces tasked with landing on Utah Beach, in Normandy. Coordination and communication problems between British and American forces, resulted in friendly fire deaths during the exercise, making a bad situation even worse. The story was then lost to history until it was picked up again by Devon resident, Mr Ken Small after he discovered evidence of the aftermath washed up on the shore at Slapton Sands in the early 1970s. In 1974, Mr Small bought the rights to a submerged American tank, which he had discovered in the waters close to the beach at Slapton Sands. In 1984, he raised the tank, which is now a memorial close to the sea front.

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Book SynopsisIn June 1944, the Nazis locked eighteen-year-old Dave Hersch into a railroad boxcar and shipped him from his hometown of Dej, Hungary, to Mauthausen concentration camp, the harshest, cruellest camp in the Reich. After ten months in the granite mines of Mauthausen's nearby sub-camp, Gusen, he weighed less than 80lbs, nothing but skin and bones. Somehow surviving the relentless horrors of these two brutal camps, as Allied forces drew near Dave was forced to join a death march to Gunskirchen concentration camp, over thirty miles away. Soon after the start of the march, and more dead than alive, Dave summoned a burst of energy he did not know he had and escaped. Quickly recaptured, he managed to avoid being killed by the guards. Put on another death march a few days later, he achieved the impossible: he escaped again. Dave often told his story of survival and escape, and his son, Jack, thought he knew it well. But years after his father's death, he came across a photograph of his father on, of all places, the Mauthausen Memorial's website. It was an image he had never seen before - and it propelled him on an intensely personal journey of discovery. Using only his father's words for guidance, Jack takes us along as he flies to Europe to learn the secrets behind the photograph, secrets his father never told of his time in the camps. Beginning in the verdant hills of his father's Hungarian hometown, we travel with Jack to the foreboding rock mines of Mauthausen and Gusen concentration camps, to the dust-choked roads and intersections of the death marches, and, finally, to the makeshift hiding places of his father's rescuers. We accompany Jack's every step as he describes the unimaginable: what his father must have seen and felt while struggling to survive in the most abominable places on earth. In a warm and emotionally engaging story, Jack digs deeply into both his father's life and his own, revisiting - and reflecting on - his father's time at the hands of the Nazis during the last year of the Second World War, when more than mere survival was at stake - the fate of humanity itself hung in the balance.

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Book SynopsisOften it is assumed that Hitler's panzers stormed into action perfectly formed, driving through the armies of the Poles in 1939 and the French in 1940 and defeating them. The dramatic blitzkrieg victories won by the Wehrmacht early in the Second World War - in which the panzers played a leading role - tend to confirm this impression. But, as Anthony Tucker-Jones demonstrates in this illustrated, comprehensive and revealing history of the panzers, this is far from the truth. As armoured fighting vehicles the early panzers were no better than - sometimes inferior to - those of their opponents, but their tactics rather than their technology gave them an advantage. Later on German tank designers developed technically superior tanks but these could not be built fast enough or in sufficient numbers. For all their excellence, they were overwhelmed by the American Shermans and Soviet T-34s that were produced in their tens of thousands. This is the story Anthony Tucker-Jones relates as he traces the evolution of the panzers from the modest beginnings in the 1930s to the Panzer IVs, Panthers and Tigers which were the most formidable German tanks of the war. Not only does he cover their design and production history, he also assesses their combat performance and gives a fascinating insight into the decision-making at the highest level which directed German tank design.

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Book SynopsisTiger tanks were among the most-feared fighting vehicles of the Second World War and they gained almost legendary status, yet they never fulfilled their potential because they were not produced in sufficient numbers and the tide the war had turned against the German army by the time they were introduced. Often they were deployed in difficult circumstances and in defensive battles, struggling against the odds. Nowhere was this more true than in western Europe during the Allied advance across France and into Germany, and it is the Tigers of this phase of the war that Dennis Oliver portrays in his third volume on the Tiger in the TankCraft series. He uses archive photos and extensively researched colour illustrations to examine the Tiger tanks and units of the German Army and Waffen-SS heavy panzer battalions that struggled to resist the onslaught of Allied armour and air attacks during the last days of the conflict. A key section of his book displays available model kits and aftermarket products, complemented by a gallery of beautifully constructed and painted models in various scales. Technical details as well as modifications introduced during production and in the field are also examined providing everything the modeller needs to recreate an accurate representation of these historic tanks.

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Book SynopsisRudolph Hess flight to Britain in May 1941 stands out as one of the most intriguing and bizarre episodes of the Second World War. In The Truth About Rudolph Hess, Lord James Douglas-Hamilton explores many of the myths which still surround the affair. He traces the developments which persuaded Hess to undertake the flight without Hitlers knowledge and shows why he chose to approach the Duke of Hamilton. In the process he throws light on the importance of Albrect Haushofer, one-time envoy to Hitler and Ribbentrop and personal advisor to Hess, who was eventually executed by the SS for his involvement in the German Resistance movement. Drawing on British War Cabinet papers and the authors unparalleled access to both the Hamilton papers and the Haushofer letters, this new and expanded edition of The Truth About Rudolph Hess takes the reader into the heart of the Third Reich, combing adventure and intrigue with a scholarly historical approach.

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Book SynopsisAlthough only 100 examples were produced, the 155mm Gun Motor Carriage M12 served with distinction as an infantry-support weapon and in particular as a bunker-buster during the U.S. assault on the Siegfried Line in the winter of 1944-45.

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Book SynopsisJoseph Pilyushin, a top Red Army sniper in the ruthless fight against the Germans on the Eastern Front, was an exceptional soldier and he has a remarkable story to tell. His first-hand account of his wartime service gives a graphic insight into his lethal skill with a rifle and into the desperate fight put up by Soviet forces to defend Leningrad. Pilyushin, who lived in Leningrad with his family, was already 35 years old when the war broke out and he was drafted. He started in the Red Army as a scout, but once he had demonstrated his marksmanship and steady nerve, he became a sniper. He served throughout the Leningrad siege, from the late 1941 when the Wehrmacht's advance was halted just short of the city to its liberation during the Soviet offensive of 1944\. His descriptions of gruelling front-line life, of his fellow soldiers and of his sniping missions are balanced by his vivid recollections of the protracted suffering of Leningrad's imprisoned population and of the grief that was visited upon him and his family.

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Book SynopsisFamous for Calvados apple brandy and Camembert cheese, Normandy is a green and pleasant land now dotted with thousands of British-owned second homes. Its coastline is also dotted with thousands of indestructible reinforced-concrete bunkers and gun emplacements that formed part of the Atlantic Wall of Hitler's Fortress Europe. Tourists passing through the ferry ports like Boulogne, Cherbourg and Dunkirk may wonder why there are so few old buildings. Few know that the demolition which preceded the extensive urban renewal of the ancient town centres was effected by British bombs during four years of hell for the people living there. Before its belated liberation three ghastly months after D-Day, the sirens in Le Havre wailed 1,060 times to warn of approaching British and American bombers. After one single Allied raid, over 3,000 dead civilians were recovered from the city's ruins, without counting the thousands of injured, maimed and traumatised survivors. So, whom did the Normans regard as the enemy: the German occupiers who shot a few hundred civilians or the Allied airmen who killed as many neutral citizens of northern France as died in Britain from German bombs during the whole war? Told largely in the words of French, German and Allied eyewitnesses - including the moving last letters of executed hostages - this is the story of Normandy's nightmare war.

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Book SynopsisSothe had already decided to use his nose armament against the 4-mot [four engined bomber]. He looked out and focused on a black shape of the Britisher. Small, bluish exhaust flames made it easier to keep the target in sight. Four engines, twin tail were recorded almost subconsciously. No sudden movement that might attract their attention. Calm now! Guns armed? Night sight switched on? Everything OK! Now he could see that it was a Lancaster, crossing gently from starboard to port. He applied a little more power and approached cautiously. Now he was exactly behind him at about 100 metres' range. The rear turret was clearly recognisable. Bronies kept silent. Pauke! Pauke!' [ Kettledrums! Kettledrums!'] Sothe announced with a cry. Bronies immediately transmitted Ich beruhe'. Then they closed in rapidly for the kill. One can almost smell the flak, taste the cordite and experience the nervous twitch' before jumping out of one's skin to the sound of exploding shells and detonating bombs in this pulsating and highly intriguing selection of never-before-told stories recalled largely by members of the revered Lancaster crews of RAF Bomber Command. From this bomber's introduction into service in 1942 with the famous if flawed raid on Augsburg on 17 April that year, to the attacks on the Tirpitz in 1944, each chapter is a tribute to the spirit of those who flew the Lanc' in anger and gained the respect of their enemies.

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Book SynopsisMartin Bowman presents us here with an unparalleled account of events as they unfolded in the skies above Holland during Operation �Market-Garden' in September 1944. �Market-Garden' was a heroic failure conducted at great cost; combined losses - both airborne and ground forces - in killed, wounded and missing amounted to more than 17,000. �Market', the airborne part of the operation, spanned ten Allied lifts in a calamitous nine days of operations, often in foul weather. Over the course of Operation �Market', 4,050 aircraft saw employment; most of them towed the 1,205 Hamilcar and Horsa gliders and were confronted by an unknown number of Luftwaffe aircraft. Stories of individual heroism punctuate this narrative, such as that of David Lord, a RAF Dakota pilot who was posthumously awarded the Victoria Cross. Tales such as these humanise a period of wartime history that is often reduced to mere facts. There is no doubting the gallant and valorous contribution of the airmen of Arnhem - the RAF Dakota, Stirling, Halifax, Albemarle, Horsa, Hamilcar and Glider Pilot Regiment crews together with those of the USAAF C-47 Troop Carrier Groups of the IX US Troop Carrier Command, the Waco and Horsa gliders, and the B-24 Liberator re-supply crews. All of their incredible, illuminating and often understated accounts of extraordinary courage, camaraderie, shared terror and encounters with the enemy offer a more personalised view of �Market' and are complemented by the author's background information that give an overall picture of each air operation.

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Book SynopsisMartin Bowman's considerable experience as a military historian has spanned over forty years, during which time he has amassed a wealth of material on the participation by RAF and Commonwealth and US 8th and 15th Air Force crews in the series of raids on the cities and oil transportation and industrial targets in the Third Reich, culminating in 'Round-the-Clock' bombing by the RAF, operating at night on the largely forgotten Stirling, the gamely Halifax and ultimately the more successful Lancaster, and the US 8th Air Force B-17 Flying Fortress and B-24 Liberator crews by day on a target list so long and wide ranging that it defies the imagination. Hundreds of hours of painstaking and fact-finding research and interviews and correspondence with numerous airmen and women and their relatives, in Britain, America and beyond has been woven into a highly readable and emotional outpouring of life and death in combat over the Third Reich as the men of the RAF and Commonwealth and American air forces describe in their own words the compelling, gripping and thought-provoking narrative of the Combined Bomber Offensive in World War Two, which resulted from the RAF nocturnal onslaught and the American unescorted precision attacks on targets throughout the Reich until the P-51 Mustang escort fighters enabled the 8th to assume the mantle of the leading bombing partner in theatre. February and March 1945 saw the most intense bombing destruction when Nazi defences were minimal or absent and the war was all but over. Final victory in May 1945 came at a high price indeed. Half of the U.S. Army Air Forces' casualties in World War II were suffered by Eighth Air Force, with in excess of 47,000 casualties, with more than 26,000 dead. RAF Bomber Command lost 55,573 men killed out of a total of 125,000 aircrew and 8,403 wounded in action while 9,838 became prisoners of war. RAF and American bomber crews could, therefore be forgiven for thinking they had won a pyrrhic victory; one that had taken such a heavy toll that negated any true sense of achievement, though, if nothing else, the human effort spent by RAF Bomber Command and the Eighth Air Force did pave the way for the Soviet victory in the east.

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Book SynopsisMartin Bowman's considerable experience as a military historian has spanned over forty years, during which time he has spent hundreds of hours interviewing and corresponding with numerous men and women and their relatives, in Britain, America and beyond, resulting in a wealth of material on the war at sea from World War One to the Falklands and the wars on terror. All these narratives have been woven into a highly readable and emotional outpouring of life and death in action in all his titles, as here, in World War Two, where the men of the Fleet Air Arm and the US Navy fighter (operating bomber and torpedo carrying aircraft) describe the compelling, gripping and thought-provoking narrative of the air war in the freezing Atlantic wastes to the waters of the mighty Pacific.

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Book SynopsisWhen the US Marine Commandant, Major General Thomas Holcomb, announced the formation of what became the US Marine Corps' Women's Reserve, legend has it that the portrait of the fifth Commandant, Archibald Henderson, fell off the wall and crashed to the floor - in disbelief'. This branch of the US Marines was authorized by the U.S. Congress and signed into law by President Franklin D. Roosevelt on 30 July 1942. This law allowed for the acceptance of women into the reserve as commissioned officers and at the enlisted level, effective for the duration of the war plus six months. The purpose of the law was to release officers and men for combat and to replace them with women in shore stations. The result was that between 1943 and 1945 the women of America enlisted in their thousands to Free A Marine to Fight'. This book, the first of its kind, explores in detail the role of Women Marines, or WRs as they were known at the time. It also presents a detailed study of the uniforms of the WRs supported by numerous colour photographs. This book has been written with the full support of the US Marine Corps Histories Division, the Women Marine Association and surviving WR veterans.

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Book SynopsisThis classic Images of War book covers the dramatic events that befell both the Gilbert and Ellis Pacific island groups using a wealth of well-captioned photos and informed text. Soon after the attack on Pearl Harbor in December 1941, the Gilbert Islands were occupied by the Japanese who built a seaplane base at Butaritari. In August 1942 this base was attacked by the US 2nd Raider Battalion (Carlson's Raiders). As a result the base was reinforced and a second built at Apamana. Betio Island on the Tarawa Atoll became the main Japanese strong point. Operation Galvanic, the US assault on Butarita, Apamana and Betio, was launched in November 1943 by the 2nd Marine Division and the 27th Infantry Division. While short in duration, the Betio battle has the dubious distinction of being the most costly in US Marine Corps history. Thanks to the author's in depth knowledge and access to superb contemporary images, this book will be of particular interest and value to historians and laymen.

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Book SynopsisThis classic Images of War book takes up the story of the massive American contribution to the campaign in north West Europe during the autumn and early witner of 1944. Following the dramatic breakout from the Normandy bridgehead, events moved fast with the liberation of Paris quickly following and the Allies closed in on the German border. But the apparent collapse of the Nazis was illusory. As lines of communication lengthened and German resistance stiffened, the Allied High Command was divided on the right strategy. The ill-fated Operation Market Garden brought home the reality that the war would continue into 1945\. The Siegried Line was penetrated and Aachen fell but the American First Army suffered heavy casualties in the Hurtgen Forest. As winter set in, the third Army crossed the Moselle River and into the Saar. The stage was set for the costliest battle in American history - The Bulge, to be covered in the Third and final volume of this trilogy. With his superb collection of images and grasp of the historic significance of the actions so graphically described, Brooke Blades' latest book will be appreciated by all with an interest in the final stages of the Second World War.

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Book SynopsisRevered by some as the ultimate warrior, and condemned by others as ruthless assassins, the combat sniper is more than just a crack shot. These are highly disciplined individuals, calm professionals skilled in marksmanship, reconnaissance and camouflage. During the Second World War these lethal fighters were deployed by all sides to deadly effect. This collection of biographies written by sniper experts from around the world explores the careers of the top marksmen between 1939 and 1945. As well as providing incisive technical information, each author offers a glimpse of the character and personality of their chosen sniper, giving them a human face that is often missing in standard portrayals. These gripping, in-depth narratives go beyond the cursory treatment in existing histories and will be essential reading for anyone wanting to learn about the role and technique of the sniper during the Second World War. The impressive list of contributors to The Sniper Anthology includes Mark Spicer writing on Harry M. Furness, the last surviving British sniper who went ashore on D-Day; Martin Pegler, who details the famous Soviet sniper Vassili Zaitsev; Adrian Gilbert on the Wehrmacht sharpshooter and lone wolf Sepp Allerberger; and Roger Moorhouse on Simo Hayha, the man with the most confirmed kills in any major war.

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Book SynopsisAllied air power made a major, arguably decisive, contribution to victory in The Second World War both in the European and Pacific theatres. The cost in men and machines was horrific with Bomber Command suffering 50% air crew casualties. While many perished, others shot down over enemy territory or water survived only after overcoming extraordinary danger and hardship. Their experiences often remained untold not just for the duration of the War but for many years. The author has gathered together a wealth of unpublished stories from airmen of many nationalities, be they British, Commonwealth or American. Some involve avoiding or escaping from capture, others surviving against all the odds, braving extreme elements and defying death from wounds, drowning or starvation. Importantly the accounts of those who survived the battle in the skies cheating the enemy and the grim reaper give the reader a chilling insight into the fate of the many thousands of brave young men who were not so fortunate. The result is an inspiring and gripping read which bears testimony to human courage and resilience.

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Book SynopsisOperation OVERLORD June 1944 was the greatest seaborne invasion, indeed the greatest military endeavour, of all time. Though eventually a brilliant victory, and duly celebrated as a triumph of intelligence, planning, combined operations and international co-operation, the D Day Landings came close to being the greatest military history disaster. From the parachutists and glider pilots landed behind enemy lines to the sappers, gunners, tank crews, signals, infantry, chaplains and surgeons - and the vast armada of ships and landing craft that brought them to the congested beaches - each has their own story of excitement, elation, horror and heroism. A unique collection of letters and accounts from all ranks and regiments, this book champions the ordinary men who made it possible.

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Book SynopsisEarly morning, 19 March 1944. Tanks manned by New Zealanders, Indians and Americans launch a daring attack along a narrow mountain track on German positions north of Monte Cassino. So began one of the most audacious Allied attempts to break through the Gustav Line and advance on Rome - and it almost succeeded. Yet the extraordinary story has seldom been told, and it has never been told before in the vivid detail Jeffrey Plowman brings to this new account. Using operational orders, combat reports, unit diaries, post-battle photos from private and public archives and the graphic personal accounts of those who took part, he describes the construction of Cavendish Road and the course of the entire operation that followed. The planning for the attack and the men involved are described in a gripping and clear-sighted way, as is the attack itself - its initial rapid success and its ultimate failure. Eighty years later Jeffrey Plowman reveals exactly what happened and shows how and why this bold thrust against the German strongpoints at Monte Cassino, which could have turned the course of the battle, ended in retreat. His book also features a visitor's guide that covers the length of Cavendish Road from the village of Caira to Massa Albaneta, linking each spot with the events described in the narrative.

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Book SynopsisCovert operations and ingenious weapons for irregular warfare were developed rapidly, and with great success, by the British during the Second World War, and the story of the most famous organizations involved like SOE, the SAS and Section D of SIS is now well known, but Military Intelligence (Research), the smallest but one of the most influential of these units is relatively unknown. Malcolm Atkin's intriguing and meticulously researched account describes their role at the heart of the War Office in trying to develop a 'respectable' arm of irregular warfare and their innovations ranging from the early Commandos, sticky bombs, limpet mines, booby traps, and even helicopters to the creation of the MI9 escape organization. They were an 'ideas factory' rather than an operational body but the book describes their worldwide operations including Finland, Norway, Romania, the Middle East and Central Africa. This is also a story of conflicting personalities between Jo Holland, the visionary but self-effacing head of MI(R) and his ambitious deputy, Colin Gubbins (later head of SOE), and the latter's private war with SIS.

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Book SynopsisOn 15 March 1945, a force of sixteen Avro Lancasters from RAF Bomber Command's Nos 9 and 617 Squadrons was despatched to attack a viaduct at Arnsberg. The fourteen aircraft from 9 Squadron carried Tallboys, whilst the two remaining Lancasters, from 617 Squadron, were loaded with Grand Slams. During the mission, which failed to cut the viaduct, three crew members from one of the 9 Squadron Lancasters baled out from their badly-damaged aircraft over the eastern Ruhr. The author of this book, Flying Officer Squire Tim Scott, the Lancaster's navigator, was one of those men. All three airmen soon found themselves in quiet countryside but were quickly captured and imprisoned in a village jail. After a short time, they were moved to a prisoner of war camp in what was one of the strangest journeys of the Second World War. Two German guards led the little group more than 120 miles across the crumbling Third Reich. With the German transport system in chaos, the party had to hitch rides on a variety of farm and commercial vehicles, though they did travel part of the way on one of the few trains still running in Germany. Conditions on the journey were hash and the nights were bitterly cold. There was also the threat of danger, for the RAF was rife with tales of horrific violence when downed Allied bomber crews fell into civilian hands. But the two guards were sympathetic, and the small party was amazed by the civility of the local people. At one stage their guards fell asleep and escape was considered, but eventually rejected and the trio was eventually handed over to the staff at a transit PoW camp. Before they were rescued by Allied forces, twenty days after baling out, the three had only spent fifteen days as prisoners and just thirty-six hours behind barbed wire.

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Book SynopsisLocated in an Observer Corps post on the top of a Martello tower on the seafront at Dymchurch in Kent, Mr E.E. Woodland and Mr A.M. Wraight were on duty on the morning of 13 June 1944. Shortly after 04.00 hours they spotted the approach of an object spurting red flames from its rear end and making a noise like a Model-T-Ford going up a hill'. What they were watching was the first V1 flying bomb heading towards the South Coast. A new battle of Britain was about to begin. The flying bomb that the two men had observed crossed the shoreline and continued northwards. Some ten minutes later it fell to earth with a loud explosion at Swanscombe, near Gravesend. It was the first of more than 10,000 flying bombs launched against Britain that summer, most of which were targeted at London. At its peak, Hitler's flying bomb campaign saw more than 100 V1s a day being fired. Much of the UK suddenly found itself back in the frontline of the war. In the weeks and months that followed, thousands of people were killed, many more injured. In this book the author takes the reader through the day by day battle. Accounts from some of those who survived the buzz bomb attacks bring the story to life as people tell about their fears and experiences. To combat the threat, RAF fighter pilots flew round the clock patrols, desperately trying to shoot the robot rockets down and stop them from reaching their targets, whilst anti-aircraft gunners played their part on the ground. So successful was this joint effort that by the end of March 1945, the combined British defences were accounting for 72.8% of all the reported V1s that were directed at the United Kingdom. This is the story of how that success was achieved.

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Book SynopsisAs one of many artists confined in Stalag Luft III, Carl Holmstrom's superb artwork depicts life as a Kriegie created with the perspective only a prisoner of war could draw upon as an eyewitness to history. He spent the majority of his captivity in that camp made famous by The Great Escape, later made into an award-winning film. While a POW, he sketched his fellow prisoners and encouraged others to take up drawing as hobby, thus breaking the boredom of camp life. But his artistic ability proved to be even more important. Carl forged invaluable official German documents for escape purposes for other prisoners-work that was tedious and painstaking. Remarkably, he saved over 200 examples of his work by carrying them on the appallingly-arduous 1945 winter march through Germany when the camp was evacuated as the Russians closed in from the east Post war, Carl Holmstrom said, 'The drawings were made during imprisonment and represent a sincere effort to portray to the American people and especially to the relatives of the prisoners, intimate glimpses of Kriegie life.' His words proved to be prophetic. His daughter, Susan Holmstrom Kohnowich, spent five years working on an expansion of Carl's earlier self-published Kriegie Life book. Extensive research went into the write-ups under the drawings and the biographies of the men in the portraits. This superb book honours Carl's exceptional artistic gift. Indeed, it has strong claim to contain the finest collection of POW art to emerge from Nazi-occupied Europe.

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Book SynopsisFrom the summer of 1940 until May 1941, nearly twenty German Abwehr agents were dropped by boat or parachute into England during what was known as Operation Lena, all in preparation for Hitler's planned invasion of England. The invasion itself would never happen and in fact, after the war, one of the Abwehr commanders declared that the operation was doomed to failure. There is no doubt that the operation did indeed become a fiasco, with almost all of the officers being arrested within a very brief period of time. Some of the men were executed, while others became double agents and spied for Britain against Germany. Only one man managed to stay at large for five months before eventually committing suicide: Jan Willem Ter Braak. Amazingly, his background and objectives had always remained unclear, and none of the other Lena spies had ever even heard of him. Even after the opening of the secret service files in England and the Netherlands over 50 years later, Jan Willem Ter Braak remained a 'mystery man', as the military historian Ladislas Farago famously described him. In this book, the author - his near-namesake - examines the short and tragic life of Jan Willem Ter Braak for the first time. Using in-depth research, he investigates the possibility that Ter Braak was sent to kill the British Prime Minister Winston Churchill and discovers why his fate has remained largely unknown for so long.

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Book SynopsisIn December 1944 the Third Reich was retreating. It was almost inconceivable that they could mount a counter offensive. To the Allies, the capitulation of the Third Reich was just around the corner. Or was it? Could the Battle of the Bulge succeed in turning the tide of the war for the German high command ? The US 101st Airborne were the only Allied unit capable of slowing down the German advance towards Antwerp - and they were ordered to do just that - at a place called Bastogne. The battle for the small Belgium cross-roads town is now world famous and to add to that historical narrative, the author has located de-classified interviews with the German unit commanders who took part. Brought together for the first time - they provide a unique perspective on the battle as the Germans were forced to make continuous alterations to their plans - and the 101st resisted every attempt to dislodge them. This book offers significant and fresh research on this famous battle and the narrative unfolds in words of the men who were actually there.

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Book SynopsisThe success of German submarines during the First World War in almost cutting off Britain's vital imports had not been forgotten by Adolf Hitler and when, in March 1935, he repudiated the Treaty of Versailles, Britain, magnanimously, signed up to an Anglo-German Naval Agreement. This allowed the Germans to build their submarine strength up to one third of the British Royal Navy's tonnage. When war broke out in 1939, German U-boats went quickly into action, but with only four years of production and development, the main armament of these submarines was considerably weaker than equivalent boats in other navies and many of the other main features, such as living and the fighting conditions, were also significantly inferior. Nevertheless, the German U-boat onslaught against British merchant ships during the autumn of 1940 was highly successful because the attacks were made on the surface at night and from such close range that a single torpedo would sink a ship. Soon, though, Allied technology was able to detect U-boats at night, and new convoy techniques, combined with powerfully-armed, fast modern aircraft searching the seas, meant that by 1941 it was clear that Germany was losing the war at sea. Something had to be done. The new generation of attack U-boats that had been introduced since Hitler came to power needed urgent improvement. This is the story of the Types II, VII and IX that had already become the workhorse' of the Kriegsmarine's submarine fleet and continued to put out to sea to attack Allied shipping right up to the end of the war. The Type II was a small coastal boat that struggled to reach the Atlantic; the Type VII was perfectly at home there, but lacked the technology to tackle well protected convoys; whilst the Type IX was a long-range variety that was modified so that it could operate in the Indian Ocean. In this latest book by the renowned Kriegsmarine historian Jak Mallmann Showell, these attack U-boats are explored at length. This includes details of their armament, capabilities, crew facilities, and just what is was like to operate such a vessel, and of course the story of their development and operational history.

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Book SynopsisIn October 1941, Operation Typhoon and the battle for Moscow began. According to Hitler's plan, it was to be the last offensive', after which nothing could stop Germany from conquering Britain and the rest of Europe - but first he had to overcome the Soviets and especially their air force. _Air Battle for Moscow_ is the first detailed description of one of the most vital, yet little known, air battles of the Second World War. The battle for Moscow opened with the flights of long-range reconnaissance aircraft, which photographed Moscow and the Kremlin. Then, on 22 July 1941, Operation _Clara Zetkin_, the Luftwaffe's aerial assault on Moscow, began. But the Luftwaffe was opposed by the Stalin's Falcons', the elite 6th Air Defence Corps, which defended the Soviet capital with a determination which saw bitter duels to the death and horrendous casualties on both sides. The book presents new facts about this dramatic battle and describes in detail the actions of the aircrew on both sides. Yet this is not just the story or the air war. The authors also describe the lives of people during the war, of suppressed anti-Soviet opposition in Moscow, and of the bloodthirsty and inhuman actions of the Stalin regime. The book also tells of the fate of German pilots caught in Russian captivity, and the adventures of those who were able to survive and escape from the Russian executioners. Many myths concerning the battle are also challenged, such as the often-stated belief that Moscow's anti-aircraft defences were the most powerful in the world and that it was the Soviets who were the finest pilots. In this comprehensive account, details of losses, biographical outlines of the key individuals, analyses of the different aircraft and a full chronology of the battle are presented, as well as numerous exclusive photos, documents and drawings. But it is the stories of those who fought in the Battle for Moscow that, undeniably, have the greatest impact. The harrowing tales of death and survival in conditions that are almost beyond description demonstrate just how important this conflict was to both Russia and the Third Reich and, ultimately, to the outcome of the Second World War.

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Book SynopsisOn Wednesday, 27 September 1944, a force of 283 Consolidated B-24 Liberator bombers from the USAAF’s 2nd Combat Bombardment Wing, took off from their bases in Britain and headed out across the North Sea escorted by 198 P-51 Mustang fighters. The bombers’ target was the industrial city of Kassel in northern Germany. Among the bombers assigned to the raid were the aircraft of the 445th Heavy Bombardment Group. Thirty-five of the 445th’s Liberators, along with the 336 men who made up their crews, took off from their base near the village of Tibenham in Norfolk. Their specific target that day was the engineering works of Henschel & Sohn which built Tiger and Panther tanks. Kassel had been bombed by the Allied air forces in the past, most notably in October 1943 when more than 500 bombers had dropped 1,800 tons of bombs creating a firestorm that had ravaged the city. The raid on 28 September 1944, however, would have a far different result. Due to a navigational error, the lead Liberator of the 445th Heavy Bombardment Group turned due east instead of east-south-east and the following thirty-five bombers missed Kassel altogether, attacking an alternative target. But the worst was to come. The change of direction meant that the bombers lost their escorting Mustangs and on the return flight they were pounced on by 150 enemy fighters – and massacred. Within just six minutes, the 445th experienced the greatest single-day losses suffered by any group from one airfield in the history of aviation warfare. Twenty-five of the Liberators were shot down inside Germany itself; three crashed en route to the coast (two in France and one in Belgium); two made forced landings at an emergency airfield in England; and the last came to grief within sight of home. Just four of the original thirty-five B-24s landed safely back at Tibenham. The human cost was equally high. In the course of just a few minutes, 117 airmen lost their lives, including eleven who were murdered after parachuting safely to the ground. A further 121 men were taken prisoner; only ninety-eight returned to duty. In this highly moving account of the Kassel raid, the author, who lives close to the Tibenham airfield, uncovers the painful details of those terrible moments in September 1944 through the stories of those who survived one of the Second World War’s most disastrous operations in the USAAF’s battle against the Luftwaffe.

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Book SynopsisIn the spring of 1940, Stalin's NKVD executed 22,000 Polish officers, ensigns and state officials near the Russian village of Katyn and other places. When Wehrmacht soldiers discovered some of the graves three years later, the Soviets succeeded in convincing US President Roosevelt of the German perpetration. British Prime Minister Winston Churchill had no clear picture of the crime, and therefore made no public comments. Using thousands of recently released US documents, this book refutes the popular thesis that the Western Allies deliberately lied about the Katyn case in order not to endanger the alliance with Stalin. As well as consulting Polish and Russian documentation on this war crime, for the first time, the diaries of the Nazi Minister of Propaganda Joseph Goebbels, who wrote a great deal about Katyn, have been examined. Completely new for research is the role that Hitler's opponents in the Wehrmacht played in solving the crime: at the Nuremberg trial they convinced the US delegation that the executors were not from the SS, but from the NKVD. Nevertheless, it took until 1990 for Kremlin chief Gorbachev to admit Soviet responsibility. Today in Putin's Russia, however, there is a tendency once more to keep quiet about the crime or even to blame the Germans.

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Book SynopsisOn 6 November 1942 70 captured Red Army soldiers staged an extraordinary mass escape from Auschwitz. Among these men was prisoner number 1418 Andrey Pogozhev. He survived, and this is his story. Pogozhev was caught by the Germans in 1941 and was sent to Auschwitz. The fact that Pogozhev survived the appalling conditions in the camp is remarkable in itself. That he should also have taken part in one of the few successful escapes makes his gripping narrative rare indeed. His description of the escape and his subsequent journey as a fugitive to the east, through the Carpathian mountains into the Ukraine, is unforgettable reading.

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Book SynopsisStalin's purge of army officers in the late 1930s and disputes about tank tactics meant that Soviet armoured forces were in disarray when Hitler invaded in 1941\. As a result, during Operation Barbarossa, the Wehrmacht's 3,200 panzers ran circles round the Red Army's tank force of almost 20,000 - thousands of Soviet tanks were disabled or destroyed. Yet within two years of this disaster the Red Army's tank arm had regained its confidence and numbers and was in a position to help turn the tide and liberate the Soviet Union. This is the remarkable story Anthony Tucker-Jones relates in this concise, highly illustrated history of the part played by Soviet armour in the war on the Eastern Front. Chapters cover each phase of the conflict, from Barbarossa, through the battles at Moscow, Stalingrad and Kursk to the massive, tank-led offensives that drove the Wehrmacht back to Berlin. Technical and design developments are covered, but so are changes in tactics and the role of the tanks in the integrated all-arms force that crushed German opposition.

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Book SynopsisThey were volunteers to a man. These were the airborne troops who dropped into enemy territory ahead of any others, pinpointing the Drop Zone by means of a radio marker. They would then prepare the ground for the main forces that would follow. Once they had marked out the Drop Zones, they then had to defend them, whatever the odds. The volunteers had to pass exacting physical and psychological tests before they could join this elite force. These were the men of the 21st Independent Parachute Company, which was part of the Parachute Regiment, and this is their story, told by one of that unique band, then Sergeant, Ron Kent. The 21st Independent Parachute Company operated in North Africa, Sicily, Italy, Norway, France, as well as the largest airborne operation ever mounted, Market Garden. In compiling this account of the Pathfinders, Ron Kent contacted survivors of his company to provide the first comprehensive history of a unit that General Browning told its commanding officer, Major Wilson, was unsurpassed by any other in the world.

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Book SynopsisThere are many myths and legends surrounding the advanced German aeronautical technology of the Second World War. There are also facts and proven events. Yet within these stories and behind these facts lie conspiracy theories, mistaken assumptions and denials that seem to contradict the evidence. So what really happened? How far ahead were the German scientists? And, of even greater interest, why and how? There have been other books about advanced German wartime aeronautics, yet few authors have fully examined the detail of the designs and their relevance to the fighter and bomber legends of the 1950s and '60s, let alone the current crop of military and civil all-wing or blended-wing aircraft. This book charts the story from it origins, through present-day innovations and beyond, into the all-wing future of tomorrow.

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Book SynopsisHitler's attack on Poland in 1939 was the first brutal act in six years of world war, but the campaign is often overshadowed by the momentous struggle that followed across the rest of Europe. David Williamson, in this timely and thought-provoking study, reconstructs each stage of the battle in graphic detail. He looks at the precarious situation of the Polish nation caught between Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union, reconsiders the pre-war policies of the other European powers, particularly France and Britain, and assesses the state of the opposing armed forces before the Germans launched Operation White. In a vivid and fast-moving narrative he follows the course of the campaign as it moved across Poland in September 1939. His book should encourage a fresh understanding of the Polish-German war and of its significance for the wider conflagration that followed. Critical episodes in the German offensive are re-examined: the mock attack at Gleiwitz, the battles at Westerplatte and Bzura, the siege of Warsaw and the impact of the intervention of the Red Army. Throughout the narrative, first-hand accounts of soldiers and civilians who were caught up in events are used to give an insight into the experience of the war. The author dispels myths that persist about the course of the campaign - the apparent destruction of the Polish air force, the Poles' use of cavalry - and he draws attention to often overlooked flaws in German military organization. He also records the immediate aftermath of the Polish capitulation - the division of Poland between Hitler's Germany and Stalin's Soviet Union and the fate of the captured Polish troops.

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Book SynopsisFrom the mountains of Italy to the beaches of Normandy, and from the deserts of North Africa to the ruined cities of Germany, experience the history of the Second World War in Western Europe from 1939-1945 in an entirely different way. Using unpublished letters and diaries, follow the journeys of some fifty Allied soldiers (American, British, French, Canadian...) as they liberate the continent from Nazi rule, sometimes at the cost of their own lives. Arranged in chronological order and placed in historical context, their stories and letters are illustrated with many personal photographs, war memorabilia and original uniforms. Having miraculously escaped wartime censorship, these new first-hand testimonies are transcribed as is, whether they come from an elite soldier, a combat medic or a USO dancer. These poignant writings, completed in the mud of the European battlefields, reveal the hopes, doubts and fears of these young people sent to hell, making _Till Victory_ first and foremost a book about peace.

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Book SynopsisWhen a proud Adolf Hitler revealed his new Luftwaffe to the world in March 1935, it was the largest, most modern military air arm the world had seen. Equipped with the latest monoplane fighter and bomber aircraft manned by well-trained and motivated crews, it soon became evident that the Luftwaffe also possessed a high degree of technical superiority over Germany's future enemies. Yet within just nine years the once-mightiest air force in the world had reached total collapse, destroyed in part by the very people responsible for creating it. By 1944, the Luftwaffe, wearied by aerial battles on multiple fronts combined with tactical mismanagement from the highest levels of command, were unable to match their enemies in both production and manpower. By this time the Luftwaffe was fighting for its survival, and for the survival of Germany itself, above the burning cities of the Third Reich, facing odds sometimes as high as ten-to-one in the air. Told through the eyes of the fighter and bomber crews themselves, this book explores previously unpublished first-hand accounts of the rise and fall of one of the most formidable air forces in twentieth-century military history. It paints a haunting picture of the excitement, fear, romance intertwined with the brutality, futility and wastefulness that is war.

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Book SynopsisSince it was first published in 1989, Men of the Battle of Britain, the complete third edition of which was published in 2015, has become a standard reference book for academics and researchers interested in the Battle of Britain. This remarkable publication records the service details of every airman who took part in the Battle of Britain, and who earned the Battle of Britain Clasp, in considerable detail. Where known, an individual's various postings and their dates are included, as are promotions, decorations, and successes claimed whilst flying against the enemy. There is also much personal detail, often including dates and places of birth, civilian occupations, dates of death and place of burial or, for those with no known grave, place of commemoration. There are many wartime head-and-shoulders photographs. Inevitably, the passage of time ensures that there is a constant re-evaluation of the wealth of information contained within _Men of the Battle of Britain_. At the same time, since the 2015 edition it has been possible to expand many individual entries, some 330 in total, to give some idea of the wider social context around the aircrew who earned the Battle of Britain Clasp. This has been achieved by reference to existing sources, including information supplied by The Few themselves and their relatives over many years, as well as new research. This invaluable supplement to the 2015 edition ensures that these additions and revisions are available to all researchers, historians, enthusiasts and general readers.

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Book SynopsisIf there was ever a man who was born to fly, it is John M. Billings. He took his first plane ride in 1926, began taking piloting lessons in 1938, and joined the US Army Air Force in July 1942\. After training he was assigned to fly Consolidated B-24 Liberator long-range bombers. He joined the 825th Bombardment Squadron of the 484th Bombardment Group. After flying fifteen daylight strategic bombing missions, Billings was selected for assignment to the 885th Bombardment Squadron (Heavy) (Special). As its designation suggests, the 885th was no regular bombing unit. The 885th specialized in flying top secret, low-altitude missions at night in support of the clandestine operations of the OSS and the Special Operations Executive. The unit's covert missions included parachuting OSS and SOE agents and supplies deep inside German territory. The most eventful and dangerous of Billings' thirty-nine secret missions with the 885th was his assignment in February 1945 to clandestinely insert a three-man OSS team, code-named _Greenup_, into Austria. The drop zone selected for the _Greenup_ insertion was located on a glacier in a valley surrounded by mountains in the middle of the snow-covered Alps. Billings and his crew finally found the weather in the Alps clear enough to spot the drop zone, slip their unwieldy B-24 between the mountain peaks and descend to an altitude just a few hundred feet above the moonlit snow. On Billings' signal, the OSS agents parachuted right on target. The insertion of this OSS team was the inspiration for the feature film _Inglorious Bastards_. However, Brad Pitt's vengeful character was far removed from the leader of the _Greenup_ team, Fred Mayer, who achieved success by infiltrating enemy ranks to gain vital intelligence. After the war, John Billings flew with Trans World Airlines and Eastern Airlines. He also flew more than 300 'Angel Flight' airlift missions which involve the specialized aerial transportation of critically ill medical patients. This is one man's story of a remarkable lifetime of flying, both in peace and in war.

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Book SynopsisAir Vice-Marshal Johnnie Johnson - a policeman's son from Leicestershire - ended the Second World War as the RAF's top-scoring fighter pilot. Fearless, and an exceptional pilot and marksman, Johnnie was also highly intelligent and a gifted writer. Having published two of his own books, _Wing Leader_ and _The Circle of Air Fighting_, during the 1980s and 1990s, Johnnie co-authored several more with another fighter ace, namely Wing Commander P.B. 'Laddie' Lucas. In 1997, the 'AVM' suggested to his friend, the prolific author Dilip Sarkar, that the pair should collaborate on _The Great Adventure_ - a book that would, in effect, be Johnnie's account of the 'Long Trek' from Normandy across Northern Europe into the heart of the Third Reich itself. 'Greycap Leader' was to produce a draft, after which Dilip would add the historical detail and comment. Sadly, the project was unfulfilled, because Johnnie became ill and passed away, aged eighty-five, in 2001\. Years later, Johnnie's eldest son, Chris, discovered the manuscript among his august father's papers. In order to keep Johnnie's memory evergreen, Chris turned to Dilip to finally see the project through to its conclusion. In this book Johnnie re-visits certain aspects of his wartime service, including the development of tactical air cooperation with ground forces; his time as a Canadian wing leader in 1943, when the Spitfire Mk.IX at last outclassed the Fw 190; and details his involvement in some of the most important battles of the defeat of Nazi Germany, including Operation _Overlord_ and the D-Day landings in 1944, Operation _Market_ Gard_e_n and the airborne assault at Arnhem, and the Rhine Crossings, throughout all of which Johnnie also commanded Canadian wings. Here, then, we have _The Great Adventure_ - 'Greycap Leader's' previously unpublished last look back.

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Book SynopsisFrom the year 1066 the English Channel has provided Great Britain with a natural defensive barrier, but never more than in the early days of World War Two. This book relates how the Royal Navy defended that vital seaway throughout the war. From the early days of the Dover Patrols, through the traumas of the Dunkirk evacuation, the battles of the Channel convoys; the war against the E-boats and U-boats; the tragic raids at Dieppe and St Nazaire; the escape of the German battle-fleet; coastal convoys; the Normandy landings and the final liberation of the Channel Islands. Many wartime photographs, charts and tables add to this superb account of this bitterly contested narrow sea.

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Book SynopsisWe shall go out and bomb every building in Britain marked with three stars in the Baedeker Guide' the German Foreign Office announced in April 1942 as the Luftwaffe attacked Exeter, Bath, Norwich, York and Canterbury. Over a thousand people died. These raids were direct retaliation for RAF raids on equally historic German cities. Hitler had ordered that Preference is to be given where attacks are likely to have the greatest possible effect on civilian life' and in this narrow aim -as Jan Gore shows in the first full history of the raids to be published for over twenty years -they certainly succeeded. She explains the Luftwaffe's tactics, the types of bombs that were used -high explosive, parachute mines and incendiaries -and records the devastating damage they caused. Her main focus is on the effect of the bombing on the ground. In graphic detail she describes the air raid precautions, the role of the various civil defence organisations and the direct experience of the civilians. Their recollections -many of which have not been published before -as well as newspaper articles and official reports give us a vivid impression of the raids themselves and their immediate aftermath. Jan Gore's original and painstaking research provides the fullest insight yet into the impact of this bombing campaign on Britain's home front during the Second World War.

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