Search results for ""Imperial War Museum""

Part of a stunning new design partnership between Puffin and the Imperial War Museum, this is an unforgettable novel from a Carnegie Medal-winning author, featuring a special foreword from Elizabeth Wein, author of Code Name Verity.Scotland, 1915. A group of teenagers from very different backgrounds meet for an idyllic picnic, but the war across the Channel is proving increasingly impossible to ignore, and all too soon they will be engulfed by what is to become known as The Great War. Determined to forge their own paths during a time of enormous upheaval, the five friends encounter not only the horrors of the trenches, but also the thrum of first love, and the political struggles of pacifism and women's rights. Their lives will be changed forever - and nothing will ever be the same again.

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The HMS Belfast 1000 piece jigsaw puzzle from the Imperial War Museum is not just a puzzle; it's a journey through history. With meticulous attention to detail, this puzzle captures the essence of the last surviving war ship from WW2. HMS Belfast is renowned for its role in World War II and is now an iconic museum based in London.

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This special 1000 piece puzzle is to commemorate the 80th anniversary of D-Day. Piece by piece, uncover the intricate tapestry of Operation Overlord, the monumental Allied invasion of Normandy during World War II. Each fragment of this puzzle unveils a snapshot of history, featuring iconic photographs, detailed map and poignant imagery from the historic D-Day landings.

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As relevant today as when they were first published in 1943, Wise Eating in Wartime and How to Keep Well in Wartime offer cheerful and practical advice on healthy diet, exercise and wellbeing. From providing a 'menu for the ideal meal' to addressing dilemmas such as 'do we eat too much sugar?', from offering useful remedies for fatigue to divulging frank advice on 'sex problems', they offer an amusing and interesting insight into keeping well in wartime.

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Spanning the Sicilian countryside to the brothels of Ostend, and the final book in Alexander Baron's War Trilogy, The Human Kind is a series of pithy vignettes reflective of the author's own wartime experiences. This is a brand new edition in IWM's Wartime Classic series.

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Drawing on IWM's unrivalled collection, The Air War in Paintings reveals how the artists of the 1940s responded to the unfolding air war in Britain, illuminating their private anxieties, their ambitions and their experiences.

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Welcome to Weird War Two, a catalogue of the weird, the wonderful and the downright eccentric, from deep within IWM's Second World War archives.

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John Singer Sargent's Gassed is one of IWM's most iconic and best-loved objects. Truly monumental in scale, it is also the largest painting in the museum's collection and has been on near-constant display since it was first exhibited in 1919. A favourite among visitors and the most requested image by researchers and publishers, the work endures as a lasting symbol of modern art in public service, and of the transformative conflict from which it came. In the following pages IWM's Head of Art Rebecca Newell traces the origins of this large and powerful painting in the final months of the First World War and celebrates the vibrancy and visual power of the work, revealed once again during recent conservation. John Singer Sargent's Gassed reflects on the challenges of creating and displaying a canvas of such size and the dramatic impact the work has had on generations of visitors to IWM. Finally, the book considers the painting's enduring legacy in the context of art inspired by conflict - a legacy now secured for future generations.

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When Allied troops fell into enemy hands, one secret and ingenious branch of military intelligence was tasked with their rescue. M.I.9 created and supported a network of escape and evasion lines across war-torn Europe to ensure the safe return of Allied fighters. These escape lines were essential in the Total War against Nazi Germany. Every individual was vital to the fight, and failure wasn't an option. Published for the first time since its creation in 1942, this 'most secret' facsimile reveals the many marvellous escape aids created by M.I.9 to help Allied personnel both evade capture and escape from prisoner of war camps. From silk maps designed for concealment in garments to tiny radio receivers hidden in cigar boxes, these gadgets and inventions were the brainchild of Christopher Clayton Hutton – the eccentric M.I.9 inventor who inspired many of Q's creations in James Bond. Most Secret offers a rare look at the most highly classified and clandestine tools of British intelligence. An accompanying introduction uncovers the history of this secret volume and traces the origin and use of escape aids from their emergence in the First World War to their development and wider use in the Second World War.

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By summer of 1940, the Nazi Blitzkrieg had swept through much of western Europe, seizing control of territory right up to the Channel coast. A German invasion of Britain was expected to begin at any moment. But the key to success in such an invasion would be control of the skies over Britain – and the nation’s defenders were determined not to give in to their Nazi aggressors. The stage was set for one of the most important battles of the Second World War. This highly illustrated book tells the heroic story of the air battle, as well as the Blitz bombing campaign which followed, through photographs, interviews, diary and letter extracts, film stills and artwork from the world-famous IWM archives. Personal testimony from those who lived through the famous ‘Spitfire Summer’ of 1940 brings to life this truly unique visual retelling of one of the crucial moments of the conflict.

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A magical tale set one Christmas Eve, when all of Santa's reindeer caught colds and couldn't deliver any more presents, putting Christmas at risk for all the good girls and boys. Luckily, a plane everyone knows is on hand to save the day. Told in rhyme and featuring over 20 hand-drawn illustrations, this is the perfect gift for a kid at Christmas

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October 1941. Twenty-one-year-old Alan Mart is posted to India and taken under the wing of the dogmatic, overbearing Acting-Captin Sam Holl. Following the Japanese advance on Singapore, the men are deployed to Malaya. What follows is a quietly shattering and searingly authentic depiction of the claustrophobia of jungle warfare and the futility of war.

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Churchill's War in Words transports the reader back to the storm-struck days of the Second World War. Focussing only on words used at the time, it reveals the way that Winston Churchill talked about the conflict in public and in private - and the way that he himself was viewed at the time by family, friends, politicians, military leaders, staff , voters, allies and enemies.Presented in chronological order and accompanied by short year-by-year introductions, the quotations convey afresh the full force of Churchill's oratory, the wit he displayed in the face of often appalling odds, and the hopes and fears that he inspired in those around him. Together they reveal to the modern reader what it was truly like to be locked in a struggle in which victory - or total defeat - was yet to be decided. Together they tell the extraordinary story of Churchill's War in Words.

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Based on the author’s own experience with the British Army and specifically the Royal Armoured Corps, Mailed Fist brings this extraordinary story of tank warfare to life.

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'The English have for centuries been a puzzle to the people of other countries', explains this guide produced for overseas forces stationed in England during the Second World War. The English and Their Country attempts to solve this puzzle, providing an account of English characteristics for confused guests. Including everything from a description of England's geography and climate, to an explanation of the English class system and the Englishman's 'reserved', 'sensitive' and 'shy' behaviour, this book is a lighthearted and amusing take on English life and customs.

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Welcome to Weird War Two, a catalogue of the weird, the wonderful and the downright eccentric, from deep within IWM's Second World War archives. From wacky inventions to elusive secret agents, from bizarre propaganda posters to the dummy acting as a decoy for a daring escape, from inflatable tanks to painted cows, this is proof that, as ever, the truth is stranger than fiction.

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Using first-hand accounts from IWM's unparalleled archives, HMS Belfast at D-Day tells the extraordinary story of this remarkable ship, her crew, and the contribution they made in the summer of 1944.

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The D-Day Landings showcases 50 iconic photographs of the largest amphibious assault ever undertaken in the history of conflict. This insightful collection of photographs commemorates the momentous day that paved the way for the Allied victory in Europe.

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When Singapore falls to Japan's Imperial army in early 1942, the life that Susan Sandyman has lovingly created abroad is shattered. Forced to flee home to the hamlets of southern England, she can either succumb to grief or find solace in war work. When a chance encounter with the elusive Air Transport Auxiliary pilots stirs a spark of excitement, Susan's decision is made. Based on the authors' own experiences with the ATA, Paid To Be Safe vividly captures the gruelling training and day-to-day life of female ferry pilots. To these women, the allure of the Spitfire is more than just the freedom to fly, but an invitation to start anew. Detailing their camaraderie, bravery and romantic encounters, this classic novel explores the depths of personal loss during conflict and the healing powers of love, family and friendship.

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Christmas has been regularly celebrated during wartime. From the Christmas truce of 1914 out in no-mans land on the Western Front, to POWs cooking up their very unique Christmas dinners with whatever they could get their hands on in German prisoner of war camps in the 1940s, the privations and difficulties caused by conflict has never stopped people indulging in a little Christmas cheer. This highly illustrated gift book tells the stories of those who lived through these challenging times, when wrapping paper was banned, rationing was in force and children were separated from their families. Also included are tips and tricks to create recycled presents and greetings cards, and recipes to cook a delicious wartime Christmas meal. Wartime Christmas explores the dichotomy apparent in celebrating 'peace to all men' while continuing to fight a war of aggression.

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The famous Sherman tank was the most widely used Allied tank of the Second World War, and the sheer number of units produced played a crucial part in the Allies winning the war. Using rare footage from the film archive at IWM, this flip book shows the famous Sherman tank move up to the front, as a tank squadron prepares for action north of Caen in early July 1944.

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During World War II, London was at its most perilous moment since the Great Fire of 1666. Districts were transformed at night by falling bombs, fires, and searchlights. During the day, when the results of the previous night's bombing were laid bare, ordinary people dealt with the aftermath as best they could. In 1939, the Ministry of Information set up the War Artists Advisory Committee (WAAC) to compile an artistic record of Britain during the war. After the war had ended, more than half of the paintings commissioned--some three thousand works--ended up in the Imperial War Museums collection. Wartime London in Paintings showcases seventy oil paintings from the IWM's unmatched collection in one stunning illustrated volume, portraying the ordinary and the extraordinary of London at the time. Featuring works by some of the most famous war artists of the conflict--including Graham Sutherland, Henry Moore, Edward Ardizzone, and more--this incredible visual exploration of a wartime city gives readers a firsthand look at how London coped during one of the most significant periods of its history.

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It is well to remember that the stomach governs the world. Winston Churchill Mrs. Landemare s food is distinguished. She is an inspired intuitive cook. Clementine Churchill "Churchill s Cookbook" provides fascinating insight into what the legendary prime minister ate during World War II, containing over three hundred delicious recipes created by his personal cook, Georgina Landemare. The celebrity cook of her day, Landemare specialized in creating sumptuous feasts for England s nobility. At the outbreak of the Second World War, however, she devoted her full-time services to the Churchill family, declaring This will be my war work! She worked for the prime minster throughout the war; she was up at dawn preparing his breakfast and remained steadfastly in the kitchen until after his last whiskey at night. On VE Night, Churchill told her that he could not have managed through the war without her. With an introduction by Phil Reed, director of the Churchill War Rooms, "Churchill s Cookbook" marks the fiftieth anniversary of Churchill s death and the seventieth anniversary of VE Day. Covering mouth-watering cakes, biscuits, and puddings; healthy salads; and warming soups; this timely publication revives some forgotten British classics and reveals the food that sustained Churchill during his finest hours."

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The major art installation Blood Swept Lands and Seas of Red at the Tower of London marked one hundred years since the first full day of Britain's involvement in the First World War. Created by artists Paul Cummins and Tom Piper, 888,246 ceramic poppies progressively filled the Tower's famous moat between 17 July and 11 November 2014. Each poppy represented a British military fatality during the war. The poppies encircled the iconic landmark, creating a spectacular display visible from all around the Tower, which attracted more than 5 million visitors. The scale of the installation was intended to reflect the magnitude of such an important centenary and create a powerful visual commemoration. Featuring forewords by Paul Cummins and Tom Piper and stunning photography of the installation, The Poppies: Blood Red Lands and Seas of Red is the only official publication to mark this landmark event. As thousands of the poppies used in the installation tour the country during the remainder of the First World War Centenary, this publication will undoubtedly prove popular with visitors to both the Tower and the new venues alike.

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London was a city on the front line in the Second World War. It suffered hits from nearly 12,000 tons of bombs, with nearly 30,000 civilians killed by enemy action. The Blitz changed the landscape of the city. Many famous landmarks were hit, including Buckingham Palace, the Houses of Parliament, the Tower of London - even the Imperial War Museum. Some areas, such as Stepney, were so badly damaged that they had to be almost entirely rebuilt after the war. But it wasn't just the city's physical landscape that was transformed. With the arrival of large numbers of Commonwealth and overseas service personnel, London became much more cosmopolitan. After 1942, vast numbers of American servicemen were deployed in the capital, and it was also a busy transport hub and a popular destination for troops on leave.This book tells the story of these momentous years in London's history through IWM's unique collections. Using personal accounts from letters and diaries, objects, photographs, maps and documents it gives an up-close and revealing insight into those turbulent years in the capital, experienced by those who lived there.

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Using rare archival footage from IWM's unique collection, this flip book recreates the impressive manoeuvres of the legendary Hurricane in flight.

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Colour in the amazing animal heroes from IWM's unique collection of stories.

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IWM holds approximately 11 million photographs in its archives, covering the causes, course and consequences of modern conflict from the First World War to the present day. Drawing on this unique collection, Fighter Command showcases 50 photographs of the iconic aircraft and crew behind Britain's spirited fighting force. These vibrant images traces the development of Fighter Command from its inception and growth in the 1930s as war clouds gathered over Europe, to the dawn of the supersonic age in the early years of the Cold War.

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IWM holds approximately 11 million photographs in its archives, covering the causes, course and consequences of modern conflict from the First World War to the present day. Since the First World War, both official and unofficial photographers have documented the visceral, sensory and emotional experiences of war, from combat to medical innovation, friendship and loss. War Photographers showcases 50 iconic images by war photographers from the First World War to the Falklands, including Olive Edis, Vera Elkan, Bill Brandt, Jimmy Mapham and Paul RG Haley.

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The Blitz showcases 50 images from this unique collection. On 7 September 1940, the German air force unleashed a devastating bombing campaign. Seeking to force Britain into surrender, the Blitz saw towns and cities across the United Kingdom blasted with high explosives and set ablaze by firebombs. Yet even as the bombs rained down, a civilian army of air raid wardens, firemen, first aiders and rescue parties mobilised for battle. These striking photographs tell the stories of those who experienced the Blitz and highlight the bravery and determination of civilians in wartime Britain.

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Monica Felton’s 1945 novel gives a lively account of the experiences of a group of men and women working in a munitions factory during the Second World War.

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"Brook was overcome by the most powerful feeling of sheer animal terror. It was as though his whole body and soul had suddenly rebelled against what he was doing and where he was. For a fraction of a second he wanted to scream and fly in panic, and only the physical impossibility of getting out of the tank stopped him. A moment later it passed, and he found himself obeying Donovan's orders automatically." Based on Peter Elstob's own wartime experiences, Warriors for the Working Day follows one tank crew as they proceed from the beaches of Normandy into newly liberated Western Europe, evoking the claustrophobia, heat, and intensity of tank warfare in brilliant detail. Published to great acclaim in 1960, the classic novel has been translated into several languages. This repackaged edition includes a contextual introduction by an Imperial War Museums historian.

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This book offers a powerfully intimate account of the Battle of Britain, related by young pilots in their most unguarded moments, talking with their chaplain. Guy Mayfield was the Station Chaplain at the Royal Air Force's Duxford base in the summer of 1940, and his diary is full of stories told by the pilots in his charge during that period of heroism and danger. Mayfield's notes on his conversations deliver unique insights into the mindset of these young men as they took to the skies night after night, risking death to defend their homes and countrymen. Rounded out with photographs of the men and a context-setting narrative by historian Carl Warner, the book gives us moving insights into the men who, through their commitment and sacrifice, ensured that Britain would survive its finest hour.

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Tim Hetherington highlights 50 photographs by the award-winning conflict photographer Tim Hetherington. Featuring seminal photography of his time in Liberia (2003-2006), Afghanistan (2007-2008) and Libya (2011) alongside unseen moments, this book showcases his important work as both a conflict photographer and humanitarian innovator.

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It is 1943, and a month into their service as Land Girls, Bee, Anne and Pauline are dispatched to a remote farm in rural Scotland. Here they are introduced to the realities of 'lending a hand on the land', as back-breaking work and inhospitable weather mean they struggle to keep their spirits high. Soon one of the girls falters, and Bee and Pauline receive a new posting to a Northumberland dairy farm. Detailing their friendship, daily struggles and romantic intrigues with a lightness of touch, Barbara Whitton's autobiographical novel paints a sometimes funny, sometimes bleak picture of time spent in the Women's Land Army during the Second World War.

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Operation Overlord, the codename given to the Allied invasion of German-occupied Western Europe in 1944, was arguably the most challenging, complicated and risky military operation in history. It began on 6 June with Operation Neptune, the largest seaborne invasion ever seen, when 150,000 troops crossed the Channel and attempted to land on the beaches at Normandy. This assault would lay the foundation for the Allied victory on the Western Front, and is now commonly known as D-Day. This highly illustrated book, first published to mark the 75th anniversary of D-Day in 2019, will reconstruct the historic landings and the resultant battle for Normandy using artefacts, documents, interviews, film, art and photographs from the archives at IWM. Importantly, it will feature first-hand accounts of the action from the vast documents and sound collection, allowing the reader to follow a personal narrative throughout and experience what it was like to live through what was one of the most significant campaigns of the Second World War.

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January 1944, the south coast of England. The Fifth Battalion, Wessex Regiment wait patiently and nervously for the order to embark. There is boredom and fear, comedy and pathos as the men - all drawn from different walks of life - await the order to move. From The City, From The Plough is a vivid and moving account of the fate of these men as they set off for Normandy and advance into France.

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The scale and nature of the First World War, and the manner in which the dead were treated, created conditions in which a very particular language of grief and remembrance of the war dead flourished. From imposing monuments and dramatic artworks to mantelpiece memorials and cultural outpourings, A Century of Remembrance explores the varied - and often surprising - ways Britain's First World War dead have been remembered. Richly illustrated with objects, photographs, documents and artworks from the unique collections of IWM, A Century of Remembrance examines he deeply personal ways in which people mourned their loved ones, and memorialised them, and examines the cornerstones of national-scale remembrance that took hold in Britain throughout the 1920s, from the poppy to the cenotaph.

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Keep calm and carry on. In 1939, Britain s Ministry of Information produced this now-ubiquitous reminder to its citizens in the event of widely predicted air attacks. But in the six consecutive years before Germany s surrender to Allied forces, the British public would feel keenly both the physical and moral hardships of war. To boost morale and raise awareness of how citizens efforts might helpor hinderthe wartime effort, one of the most effective forms the British government had at its disposal was the poster. "British Posters of the Second World War" presents one hundred posters from this important period in world history. Some proclaimed in bold type that Victory of the Allies is assured and featured stalwart British soldiers alongside exaggerated enemy figures. Others, however, hung on the walls of bus and railway stations, town halls, and pubs, called for continued self-sufficiency, urging Britons to raise chickens and join pig clubs. As the threat of espionage came to be regarded as ever-present, another category of posters cautioned soldiers and civilians alike against talking about the war: Furtive Fritz is always listening warned one; another, Keep mumshe s not so dumb. Drawing on the Imperial War Museum s impressive collection of materials related to conflicts involving Britain in the twentieth and twenty-first centuries, "British Posters of the Second World War" explores these campaigns and many others with an introduction and explanatory text by the museum s senior curator, Richard Slocombe."

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In August 1943, Sergeant Craddock leads his battle-weary platoon down Via Garibaldi in Catania, Sicily. The next few weeks take on a dreamlike quality as newfound relationships flourish and the war itself recedes into the distance. Against this backdrop, the second book of Alexander Baron's War Trilogy meditates upon friendship, loyalty and love.

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