Search results for ""Fonthill Media Ltd""

Kaiser Friedrich III and his consort Victoria, Princess Royal of Great Britain, had six children who lived to maturity, the eldest being Kaiser Wilhelm II. The three younger sisters, Victoria, Sophie and Margaret, were particularly supportive of their mother during her widowhood and remained close throughout their lives. Like their parents, they would know much sorrow as adults. Victoria's romance with Alexander of Battenberg, Prince of Bulgaria, was thwarted by Bismarck for political reasons and she married twice, firstly to a minor German prince and secondly to a young Russian adventurer who left her to die in poverty. Sophie married the future King Constantine of Greece, whose ill-starred reign saw them forced to leave their throne not once but twice, both dying in exile. Margaret married a prince of Hesse-Cassel, both became members of the Nazi party, and she lived to see her family and house become victims of theft on a major scale at the hands of occupying forces at the end of the Second World War. Using previously unpublished sources, this is the first biography to tell the lives of all three princesses.

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Lieutenant-Colonel Alexander Daniel Reid was killed on the first day of the Battle of Passchendaele in 1917. His body was never recovered; however, there is nothing singular about that. What is remarkable is that his eloquent journal has survived untouched for 100 years. The context for Alexander Daniel Reid's contemporary account of the Great War are provided partly by the memoirs of his brother, Harry, who was the transport officer in the same battalion, and partly from historical research. Although it is essentially a biography of two Scottish-born brothers in an Irish battalion on the Western Front, Harvest of Battle: Brother Officers of the 7th Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers in the First World War is unique in that it reaches to the corners of the Empire and tells of conflicts from German South-West Africa to the Rand Rebellion of 1922. Alexander Daniel Reid was a professional soldier and served with the Indian Army before migrating to Canada. Harry began a career working for one of the wealthiest mining magnates in Johannesburg. Both knew that their chances of survival in the 'Fighting Seventh' Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers were slim. Theirs is a narrative common enough to serve as a general introduction to the First World War for a new generation of readers, yet it contains valuable new material to add to the historical record in this Centenary year of the outbreak of war.

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During the 1950s, Chris Helme was often asked by relatives: 'What do you want to be when you grow up?' A policeman was always his answer. A child of the Fifties, he was brought up to respect the local police who seemed to know everyone. Suffering from colour blindness and short of a few O-Levels, Helme was finally accepted to serve in Leeds City police; however, he joined the police in Bradford a year later. By 1975, he was in the West Yorkshire Police achieving his life's ambition by serving his hometown of Brighouse and was the local policeman on the same housing estates that he grew up on. All in a Day's Work: 30 Years as Brighouse Bobby is his journey to achieving that ambition culminating with being awarded the British Empire Medal for services to his community in 1990. A local bobby had to deal with everything that happened on his 'patch'. This book takes the reader through a catalogue of sad, humorous, and almost unbelievable incidents in the life of a local policeman.

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Early in 1945 the British Liberation Army (BLA), who had battled their way from the Normandy beaches to the borders of Germany, embarked on Operation Eclipse. This was the 'end-game' of the Second World War, the unique military campaign to invade and conquer Hitler's Third Reich and liberate 20 million enslaved nationals from Holland, Denmark and Norway; to free multitudes of displaced persons (DPs) or slaves; and inter alia to free the survivors of twenty concentration camps and many Allied POW camps. The Allied Military Government (AMG) brought law and order to 23 million German nationals in the allocated British zone of occupation (BAOR) and appropriate retribution too. A thrilling race with Stalin's Red Army ensued to reach the Baltic. A matter of a few hours and Denmark and Norway would have been swept into the evil Soviet empire. The author fought vigorously as a junior RHA officer in the five great river battles - Rhine, Dortmund-Ems, Weser, Aller and the Elbe. Soon after VE Day he was the junior officer in War Crimes Tribunals in Hamburg and Oldenburg and witnessed Mr Alfred Pierrepoint administering the hanging of prison camp guards.

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Prince Alfred, who was created Duke of Edinburgh in 1866 and became Duke of Saxe-Coburg Gotha in 1893, was the second son of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert. A patron of the arts, pioneer philatelist and amateur violinist, he joined the Royal Navy as a boy and rose to become Admiral of the Fleet. At the age of 18 he was elected King of Greece by overwhelming popular vote in a plebiscite, although political agreements between the Great Powers of Europe prevented him from accepting the vacant crown. The most widely travelled member of his family, he had visited all five continents by the age of 27, and while on a tour of Australia in 1868 he narrowly escaped assassination at the hands of a Fenian sympathiser. Married to Grand Duchess Marie of Russia, the only surviving daughter of Tsar Alexander II, at one stage he had to face the possibility that he might be required to fight on behalf of the British empire against that of his father-in-law. His last years were overshadowed by marital difficulties, alcoholism and ill-health, and the suicide of his only son and heir.

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No English king has suffered wider fluctuations of reputation than Richard III, perhaps the most controversial ruler England has ever had. Vilified by critics as a ruthless master of intrigue and a callous murderer, he has been no less extravagantly praised by defenders of his reputation against Tudor and Shakespearian charges of tyranny. Richard III: From Contemporary Chronicles, Letters and Records, by its presentation of contemporary and near contemporary sources, enables the reader to get behind the mythology and gain a more realistic picture of the king. An invaluable collection of the primary sources presented clearly and concisely, it demonstrates just why Richard has remained an enigma for so long. Established as an essential part of the literature on Richard III since its first publication under the title Richard III: A Reader in History, this new edition has been completely revised and considerably expanded to offer an indispensable source book for historians, students and the general reader. Also, this up to date edition includes a chapter in relation to the exciting discovery of Richard III's skeleton that was found under a car park in Leicester. The Genesis of this book came from a summary guide produced by Keith Dockray for all of his second year undergraduate students. Upon this foundation has been built an accessible and enjoyable history of this fascinating king, as seen by those who knew him at the time, or who were living shortly after his untimely death at Bosworth Field.

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During the Second World War, the RAF employed Special Duties pilots and aircrew on operations across a wide range of extraordinary and daredevil missions. In many instances, specially selected and trained crews flew specific sorties, seeking out small targets of utmost importance to the war effort. A number of these operations were filmed by cameramen and RAF Special Duties: A Collection of Exclusive Operational Flying Sorties by the Royal Air Force enables their stories to be told for the first time. The various exploits in this exceptionally well-researched and gripping book are supported, in many instances, by 'Flying Logbooks' and other materials stemming directly from the pilots themselves. These men were true originals - undertaking hugely dangerous missions against the odds, and often operating as individual aircraft in completely unknown conditions.Accounts in the book include:Cameramen flying on special raids to film precise low level Mosquito sorties, including on the Gestapo HQ in Copenhagen; A Mosquito pilot flying a single aircraft into Germany to cause disruption by setting off air raid sirens; A Stirling pilot flying with radar-jamming equipment to disguise the D-Day invasion; Mosquito pilots attacking targets identified by British SAS units in France; Experience as a wireless operator flying in Churchill's personal aircraft; Dropping supplies over Burma

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As we recall the recent forty-fifth anniversary of the end of steam working on British Rail, Steam North West is a fascinating journey along the West Coast mainline from Crewe to Carlisle, also visiting a number of lines which made a junction with this vital railway artery. Set in the final two years of steam working in North West England, we call in at well known places such as Preston and some less well known like Heysham and Barrow. Also included are visits to the last remaining steam sheds and infrastructure of the steam railway. Views range from the industrial and suburban scene to the beauty of the Northern Fells. Steam North West concludes with a look at the very end of steam working on British Rail in August 1968 with the very last workings recalled with a final tribute to the steam era by night. Many memories are remembered with a wealth of colour material, mostly previously unpublished and nearly all taken from the author's private collection.

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Life and Death in Bomber Command is an intimate account of the human cost of the bombing offensive against Nazi Germany and targets in occupied Europe. The story of Lancaster rear gunner W/O Sidney Knott, DFC, unfolds within a detailed assessment of the bomber war by author Tony Redding. Sidney Knott survived sixty-four operations. The first tour, beginning in January 1943, included many 'Battle of the Ruhr' targets. His aircraft attacked Duisburg five times and Essen on three occasions. They also participated in three raids on Berlin. In April 1944, Knott began a second tour as a Pathfinder. Another thirty-five operations included attacks on German cities, but the focus was the assault on V1 and V2 sites and French rail targets prior to D-Day and the Normandy landings. This unique combination of dramatic narrative and strategic overview includes controversial views about post-war perspectives on the morality of area bombing and its contribution to victory in Europe. It is a moving account of squadron life and describes how every individual lived with unspoken fears. The story is complete as it also portrays how former aircrew struggled to set aside traumatic wartime experiences and adjust to life on 'civvy street'.

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Meopham Changing Places is a collection of old photographs of the village of Meopham in Kent, with historical comment, accompanied by matching contemporary photographs of the same sites and buildings. This book will take its place in the Changing Places series which shows the changes bovver the years in English villages. It is based on the Meopham in Old Picture Postcards book published in 1986 and produced by our local historian and past president of the Meopham Historical Society Jim Carley. As Meopham is such a historic village, this new production has attempted to extend the range of the original work, but with the addition of matching present day photographs, contrasts are certainly striking. Likewise we see how faces differ over the passing decades.

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Paul Lunney has been a devoted follower of Scottish football creating a vast archive of images and anecdotes. In this book he weaves a wonderful tapestry of imagery of players who have done so much for the club in its 124-year history. Celtic have won the Scottish League Championship on 43 occasions, most recently in the 2011-12 season, the Scottish Cup 35 times and the Scottish League Cup 14 times. In 1967 Celtic won an unprecedented quintuple: not only becoming the first British team to win the European Cup but also winning the Scottish League Championship, the Scottish Cup, the Scottish League Cup, and the Glasgow Cup. Celtic also reached the 1970 European Cup Final, and the 2003 UEFA Cup Final. This book encapsulates some of the glory by featuring star players down the ages.

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The pictures in this book were chosen from the many hundreds of 35mm colour slides Bill Reed took on and off the route stretching from London to Aberdeen. Station scenes, views on works and in sheds are featured. They roughly cover a period from 1951 to 1967 and depict the last gasp of steam before the introduction of diesels. As if on some imaginary journey, the book begins at King's Cross station wanders over to Liverpool Street steps into Great Eastern country then meanders north to finish at Aberdeen. It is noticeable that Bill has depicted marvellously the post WWII atmosphere on the railways when steam was on its last legs; the vast majority of the locomotives are in a very grimy condition and a number are seen on the scrap line. There is also evidence of how complicated and labour intensive it was to run a steam engine the vast coal hoppers and water tanks are examples to this submission. Looking back now at the 1950s and 1960s, Bill says he would have taken many more pictures of steam locomotives. But that is no matter, he has taken enough to give us more than a hint of what it was like in those last days.

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On 19 May 1928, just three months after the sport had been launched in this country at the pioneering High Beech meeting, Fred Mockford and Cecil Smith introduced speedway racing to Crystal Palace with the first international match between England and Australia, the forerunner of the Test matches. It was an immediate success with the public who flocked in their tens of thousands to witness these latter day black-clad gladiators hurtling their way round the track on bikes with no brakes at breakneck speed and flinging their bikes into a slide at the corners at impossible angles. This book looks at how speedway came to open at Crystal Palace and follows its history through the next six years as a league team operating in the world's first speedway league until its closure in 1933 and its brief revival in the late 1930s. Although one of the pioneering tracks little was known about its history until now as Norman Jacobs provides a comprehensive history covering the major events at the track, facts and figures, behind the scenes anecdotes and its larger than life characters including Johnnie Hoskins, Ron Johnson and Tom Farndon, who became the Star Riders' champion in 1933.

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Writing under the pseudonym Neil Gordon, A. G. Macdonell wrote several crime and thriller novels. In the classic genre of '20s and '30s crime fiction, Macdonell managed to introduce a different element, unusual twists that keep the reader captivated and anxious to discover what came next. Silent Murders begins with murder of an elderly tramp on the road between King's Langley and Berkhampstead. Nobody really knows who the tramp was or what his background was. To his gentlemen-of-the-road peers he was known as 'Stuck-up Sam'. The only unusual aspect of the crime was a square of cardboard tied to the last surviving button of the tramp's ragged overcoat and on which was written the word 'Three.' The next victim could not have been different; for the gentleman silently shot through the open window of a taxi, stationery in traffic, was Mr Aloysius Skinner, Chairman of the Imperial Cochineal Company. A clue, for what it was worth, was a piece of white cardboard on which was printed in ink the single word 'Four', presumably thrown through the open window by the murderer. Another murder took place at a quiet family tennis party in suburbia, with the host's elder brother being the unfortunate victim of the bullet. The police assumed the bullet was intended for the host, Mr Henry Maddock, a gentleman of great wealth with a dubious background in Africa from where poverty had changed with peculiar suddenness to riches. But with skill, ingenious twists, and a fast moving story-line, a tale is woven to show that not all was what it seemed...New Introduction by Alan Sutton

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Wilhelm II (27 January 1859 - 4 June 1941) was the last German Emperor (Kaiser) and King of Prussia, ruling the German Empire and the Kingdom of Prussia from 15 June 1888 to 9 November 1918. He was the eldest grandson of the British Queen Victoria and related to many monarchs and princes of Europe, three notable contemporary relations being his first cousins King George V of the United Kingdom, Marie of Romania, Queen consort of Romania and second cousin to Tsar Nicholas II of the House of Romanov, the last ruler of the Russian Empire before the Russian Revolution of 1917 which deposed the monarchy.He became monarch in 1888 and ruled in peace for twenty-five years. Wilhelm's father had been the hero of three wars and his mother the Princess Royal of Great Britain. When his father died prematurely of throat cancer, Wilhelm succeeded him at age twenty-nine and became the icon of the new 'Wilhelminian' age. Germany excelled in commerce, agriculture, trade, science, cars, the arts, and medicine. Already having Continental Europe's greatest army, Wilhelm set about winning world power via overseas colonies and the building of a vast Imperial High Seas Fleet that rivalled Britain's.Eventually, he was defeated by the combined forces of the UK, US, France and Russia, and driven into exile by the red revolution. He remained politically active in exile, pressing for a return to the monarchy up to the time of his death in 1941.This is a fresh look at a much maligned figure, including his relationships with Bismarck, Hindenburg, Tirpitz, King Edward VII and Tsar Nicholas II, all on the precipice of global change. Was Wilhelm a visionary, a fool, or both?

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The Coupe d'Aviation Maritime Jacques Schneider (commonly called the Schneider Trophy, or prize or cup) was a prize competition for seaplanes. Announced by Jacques Schneider, a financier, balloonist and aircraft enthusiast, in 1911, it offered a prize of roughly GBP1,000. The race was held eleven times between 1913 and 1931. It was meant to encourage technical advances in civil aviation but became a contest for pure speed with laps over a triangular course (initially 280 km, later 350 km). The races were very popular and some attracted crowds of over 200,000 spectators. Since 1977 the trophy has been on display at the Science Museum in London. The race was very significant in advancing aeroplane design, particularly in the fields of aerodynamics and engine design, and would show its results in the best fighters of WW2. The streamlined shape and the low drag, liquid-cooled engine pioneered by Schneider Trophy designs are obvious in the British Supermarine Spitfire, the American P-51 Mustang, and the Italian Macchi C.202 Folgore. This book is a history of the 100+ different aircraft types designed to contest for the Schneider Trophy from its inception in 1912 through to the final post-script in 1934. The narrative covers the political dynamics of the contests, the rivalries and the partnerships that led to the development of these aircraft. Each aircraft and engine is described along with the story of their construction and testing. The core of the book is a set of detailed 1:72 scale 3-view drawings and photographs from the author's personal collection, most of which have not been published previously. The text and drawings draw upon the author's comprehensive library of drawings, photographs, blueprints, reports, books and magazines on the subject and contain much new information. The majority of these aircraft, including some of the better known types, have been served poorly in the past in terms of availability of drawings. The book will appeal both to readers with a casual interest in the Schneider Trophy and to those seeking a comprehensive source of information on the subject. It will be of particular use to aircraft modellers. At present there are no books in print on the subject of the Schneider Trophy, the most recent in English was published in 2000. The majority of the more recent books date from 1981, the 50th anniversary of the final contest.

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This collection of stories shows passenger liners, large and small as well as famous and obscure, through the eyes of officers & crew, with tales of the great Cunarders, P&O, Holland America & Union Castle liners, providing added insight, understanding, and even color to these liners of another age. It is a voyage along maritime memory lane.

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U2 formed in 1976 and over forty years later are one of the most successful rock bands of all time releasing fourteen albums and over seventy singles. U2: Song by Song examines every song from the band's first album in 1980 to the 2021 single Your Song Saved My Life, including hits and lesser-known album tracks, written by a lifelong U2 fan.

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In February 1942, six Swordfish armed with torpedoes encountered heavy anti-aircraft fire in the English Channel and were shot down but not before two torpedoes were launched at a German battleship sailing at high speed. This attack was part of a wider British effort to stop the battleships Scharnhorst and Gneisenau from making their way back to Germany. The Scharnhorst is one of the most famous capital ships to have served with the Kriegsmarine. Yet she and her sister ship Gneisenau have been largely overshadowed by the Bismarck and Tirpitz, despite the fact that they played a more proactive role in the Second World War and were Germany's most successful battleships. This book provides an authoritative and informative look at the Scharnhorst and Gneisenau, the first capital ships of the Kriegsmarine, from their conception through the first successful years of the Second World War to their respective losses. This is a detailed account of naval warfare against the Royal Navy off the coast of Norway and the war against Allied commerce from the German perspective.

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The Macchi C.202 was probably the most successful Italian fighter during the Second World War. It is generally agreed that the performance of the Macchi was superior to both the Hawker Hurricane and the Curtiss P-40 Kittyhawk and on a par with the Supermarine Spitfire Mk. V. It is not by chance that virtually all the Italian top scoring aces flew this plane either with the Regia Aeronautica or the Aeronautica Nazionale Repubblicana. At the same time, the Mc.202 is the symbol of the dysfunctions in the Italian military-industrial complex: the lack of sound industrial planning resulting in orders from the Regia Aeronautica for an exaggerated number of different aircraft; the lack of the development of adequate engines limiting aircraft performance and reducing capacity to house weapons with a proper punch; the corruption of politics and the culpable connivance of the high military spheres. The Mc.202 was therefore produced in limited numbers, while there is consensus that air war, especially in the African theatre, would have been different had the aircraft been adopted before.

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A photographic journey of the ever changing railway scene of southern England stretching from Cornwall to the Kent Coast, served from 1953 to the present day by the Southern Region and its successors. When our story begins steam west of the Portsmouth man line still reigns supreme whilst much of the rest of the network is served by Southern Electric. Many of the trains at work in 1953 were of pre-1939 origin, some even dating back to the first decade of the 20th century, although the influence of Oliver Bullied's revolutionary semi-streamline pacifics and high capacity suburban electric multiple units pointed to the future. By 1967 diesel would replace steam, and electrification would spread, whilst many less well used lines in Hampshire, Dorset, Devon and Cornwall would close. Electrification had begun in the London area in the early 1900s, expanding to the Kent, Sussex and east Hampshire coasts, in the process creating the greatest main line electrified system in the world: this would continue down to today.

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During the Second World War, thousands of young men volunteered for service with the Royal Air Force. Some of these became fighter pilots, but a great many more were destined to be trained as members of bomber aircrew; pilots, navigators, wireless operators, bomb aimers, air gunners and flight engineers. On completion of their training a number of these men were posted to XV Squadron, a highly regarded frontline bomb squadron which had been formed during the First World War. Bomber Squadron -Men Who Flew with XV relates the personal stories of a small number of these men, giving an insight to their anxious moments when flying on operational sorties, staring death in the face in the form of enemy night-fighters and ground fire, and relaxing with them during their off-duty hours. The book also reveals the motivations, emotions and personal attitudes of these men, who flew into combat on an almost nightly basis. Their stories encompass the whole six years of the war, over which period XV Squadron flew a range of different bomber aircraft including Fairey Battles, Bristol Blenheims, Vickers Wellingtons, Short Stirlings and Avro Lancasters.

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This is the dramatic, often erratic, and at times unbelievable story of the fortunes and misfortunes over 900 years to the present day of one of England’s premier aristocratic families, who in 1661 were given the Earldom of Essex by Charles II. This fascinating, previously untold story begins just after the Norman Conquest with a Hugh Capel in AD 1100 and ends at the present day, with Frederick Paul de Vere Capell, 11th Earl of Essex and the future heir presumptive, William Jennings Capell, a former shelf stacker, who lives in Yuba City, California. Over a period of 400 years the Capell family built a fortune, and over the next 500 years lost it due to an incredible number of mistakes bad judgment calls, and misfortunes. Lord Arthur Capel, one of England’s richest men, changed sides from Parliament to support Charles I, and after a further series of poor decisions, was executed at Palace Yard, Westminster at the age of 41 in 1649 by the same executioner, using the same axe as had executed King Charles I barely three months earlier. His son, also Arthur Capel, created 1st Earl of Essex by Charles II became involved in a plot against the king, and was mysteriously found with his throat cut whilst awaiting trial in the Tower of London. Did he commit suicide to avoid the consequences of treason and to save the estates and titles for his son? Conspiracy theories abounded. The king commented sadly that he owed the Earl’s father had died for his father, and he owed him a life and would have spared him. Arthur’s young son became the 3rd Earl and went down in history as `the most debauched young man in London.’ The long-lived 5th Earl had numerous mistresses and, as a close friend of the debauched Prince Regent, shared a well-known courtesan, Mrs Robinson with the Prince. Unhappily married, with no legitimate male heir, living at the family seat, Cassiobury in Watford, at the age of 81 he married secondly a 44-year-old actress and died shortly afterwards, accompanied to the grave by some very irreverent press comments. The three-times-married 6th Earl, whose father was a bankrupt debauched gambler, had an illegitimate son, George Ingerfield Capel, who had an illegitimate daughter who was the mistress of the `Sundance Kid.’ The 7th Earl, in 1892 struggling to keep Cassiobury and the family fortunes together married a title-hunting American heiress, Adele Beach Grant, who was not really an heiress, and who became a member of the Edwardian `fast set’. Her alcoholic husband, known as `sulky’ stepped in front of a cab outside his London club in 1916 and was killed. Adele was found mysteriously dead in the bath in 1922. Her step-son the 8th Earl had eloped with and married young, and by the 1920s the extensive family estates had to be sold. The much-married 9th Earl died heirless in Bermuda in 1966. A contest broke out over whom should now inherit the titles. Robert Edward de Vere Capel, the next Earl, born in 1920 was the son of a railway parcel porter and was a Royal Air Force flight sergeant during the Second World War. He fought a dramatic battle to prove his right to the Earldom. His son, Frederick Paul de Vere Capell, the 11th Earl of Essex, who lives modestly not far from Lancaster, is a retired assistant schoolmaster and a classical music devotee. He has no children and unless the inheritance laws change, the title will one day go to his American cousins in Yuba City, California.

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A unique book showing Cambridge in the late 1960s from different angles. Striking, previously unpublished photographs show famous buildings as well as the river and backstreets and some of the small towns, villages and countryside nearby. Students and distinguished members of staff are here, with builders, shoppers in the market, and men from the gasworks. This was a time of 'demos', protests and disruption to established, maybe complacent, academic traditions. The author draws on archive sources to illustrate 'official' concerns at that time with, for example, major worries about overreactions triggering widespread unrest. However, he also draws on personal recollections as a Cambridge student, together with anecdotes from others and further archive material to suggest that most students were far more interested in the quality of meals they were served, and the state of the showers. Cambridge students from any generation, and anyone else who knows the city, will find themselves entertained and challenged. But the book's appeal goes further: there are amusing reflections on moving from the north of England to Cambridge almost half a half century ago, and on student life in post-war Britain; the eye-catching photographs will have widespread appeal.

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Evelina van Millingen Pisani was a modern woman in the age of Queen Victoria. She was born in Constantinople in 1831 to an eccentric French mother and an English father, who was a doctor accused of having murdered Lord Byron. Educated in Papal Rome until the age of eighteen, she was whisked back to Constantinople by her father, now working for the sultan. While visiting Venice, this striking beauty of twenty-two met and married the wealthy Count Pisani. Evelina became an exotic star in the firmament of wealthy American and English socialites, artists, and writers, for whom the artistic decadence of Venice was an antidote to the factories, materialism, and homophobic laws they saw at home. In her circle of friends were Isabella Stewart Gardner and an admiring Henry James. When her husband died after twenty-seven years of marriage, the grieving countess unexpectedly found herself saddled with his mortgage debts. Inheriting the vast but rundown Pisani estate in the misty flatlands near Padua, Evelina took full charge. Becoming a hands-on farmer, she restored swampland, built an English garden, and created a model farm for hundreds of tenant farmers. Through it all, she remained a pillar in the admiring Venetian set.

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The New Kingdom of Egypt marks the apogee of military organisation and preparedness. Beginning the era under foreign occupation, the Egyptians built up an army to challenge the invaders and liberate their land. Using the newest battlefield technologies (bows, chariots and hand weapons) the new pharaohs pushed the frontiers of the New Kingdom into Syria and Ethiopia. This is the era of Set I, Ramses II and Thuthmoses III, the greatest military pharaohs in Egyptian history. This book narrates this incredible rise to power and then describes in detail the way in which the Egyptian war machine was structured, how it was supplied, and how it fought. It considers all aspects, some often neglected, such as campaign tents, logistics and rations, as well as the design of hand weapons and bows. Many pieces of kit have been reconstructed for the book, giving the reader a very immediate sense of what an Egyptian warrior's equipment looked like. --

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There are many biographies of former soldiers of the German Wehrmacht, many of whom had fascinating stories to tell, and several of whom were highly decorated. Few, however, can match Hans Sturm in his astonishing rise from a mere private in an infantry regiment, thrown into the bloody maelstrom of the Eastern Front, to becoming a glorified war hero whose role brought him into direct regular contact with Prominenten of the Third Reich. This young man's fearless heroism in combat earned him some of Germany's highest military awards, and yet he was pugnaciously outspoken about bullying and injustice. From striking a member of the feared Sicherheitsdienst in defence of a Jewish woman to refusing to wear a decoration he felt was tainted by its encouragement of inhumane treatment of enemy partisans, Sturm repeatedly stuck to his moral values no matter what the risk. But even when the war was finally over, his travails did not end: he was held in a number of Soviet labour camps, before finally being released in 1953. Hans Sturm: A Soldier's Odyssey on the Eastern Front is an engaging reconstruction of events based on exchanges of correspondence and reminiscences between the author and Hans Sturm himself. It vividly portrays not only a German soldier's experience on the Eastern Front, but the intriguing trajectories that success in the battlefield yielded for him at home under the Nazi regime.

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Jasper, Earl of Pembroke, Duke of Bedford, brother and uncle of kings, was a central figure in the Wars of the Roses, and the Lancastrian claimant during the reign of Edward IV. The second son of Owen Tudor and the widowed queen Katherine of Valois, he was the half-brother of Henry VI, who gave him a prominent role at court. As one of England's major nobles and a potential successor to Henry, he was seen as a threat by Yorkists. He took part in the major battles of the war, leading the Lancastrian forces at Mortimer's Cross and Tewkesbury. The tempestuous politics in England meant that he had to spend time in exile in Brittany, taking his nephew, Henry, with him. Under Jasper's influence, Henry prospered and returned to England to defeat Richard III at the Battle of Bosworth, leading to the establishment of the Tudor dynasty. Despite his important place in history, Jasper has become the forgotten kingmaker, neglected by historians. This book is the first full academic study of him, drawing upon contemporary sources from England, Wales and France, and the wider historiography to present a detailed and superbly-researched biography.

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The development of aviation engines in Germany was revolutionary during closing stages of the Second World War. In 1945, the Daimler Benz, Jumo and BMW engines in service, equipped with power boosting systems, generated 2,000 hp. There were prototypes that could generate 3,000 hp and BMW/Argus projects could reach 4,000 hp. To benefit from their extreme performances, Blohm und Voss, Daimler Benz, Dornier, Focke Wulf, Heinkel, Henschel, Messerschmitt and Skoda designed an impressive series of fighters that never left the drawing board. The reason was the decision taken by the Oberkommando der Luftwaffe to mass manufacture the iconic and revolutionary Messerschmitt Me 262 jet fighter. This lost generation of projects were quickly forgotten and after years of research have been recovered and presented in The Ultimate Piston Fighters of the Luftwaffe. Profusely illustrated with technical drawings and fascinating data and information on the Luftwaffe's most radical fighter projects, The Ultimate Piston Fighters of the Luftwaffe chronicles these revolutionary designs that might have changed the course of the war. A fascinating book for the military historian, modellers and those interested in aviation, this shows how advanced German scientists were towards the end of the Second World War and how the beloved Spitfire and Mustang would have been instantly superseded by radical Nazi fighters.

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From its very inception, the little-known Kustenfliegergruppen, the German coastal air service, was hindered by restrictions imposed at the Treaty of Versailles and the rising dominance of Hermann Goring's Luftwaffe. Its size, capability and mandate were suppressed, and in 1944, the last Kustenfliegerstaffeln was disbanded in favour of the Luftwaffe's own naval air units. From early designs and development in the interwar period, includings involvement in the Spanish Civil War, to the heroic deeds of various Sonderkommandos during the Second World War, Kustenflieger: The Operational History of the German Coastal Air Service 1935-1944 charts the fascinating history of this obscure but dynamic German fighting unit. Based on original material from German archives and illustrated with 120 photographs, many previously unpublished, this is the first major work on the subject and essential reading for historians, modellers, and naval aviation and Second World War enthusiasts.

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‘Panzersoldaten!’ is a history of the Milizia Volontaria per la Sicurezza Nazionale (MVSN), commonly referred to as the Blackshirts due to their wartime attire. They were an anti-Communist paramilitary organisation that fought for Mussolini while Italy was under fascist rule; following the Duce’s removal from power, the organisation was quickly swept up by the Italian Army, and forced to swear allegiance to the king. Some, however, defected and continued to fight for the Axis alliance as volunteer units in the German Army. This volume covers the history of the Blackshirt Division during the campaign on the Eastern Front, focusing on its relations with the Italian Army, the history of the MVSN, its advance into Ukraine, and the First and Second Battles of the Don River. Morisi, using almost exclusively contemporary resources and battalion war diaries, as well memoirs from senior officers of the division, has created a definitive analysis of the Blackshirts.

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Even by Victoria Cross standards, the exploits of Thomas 'Todger' Jones V.C., D.C.M., of the 1st Battalion, The Cheshire Regiment, are truly extraordinary. It was a miracle that he survived the act for which he was awarded his V.C., but remarkably, after going 'over the top' by himself, he defeated the odds and secured what is believed to be the most prisoners ever captured by a single individual in the entire war. 'Todger', as he was affectionately known, served as a private soldier for the duration of the conflict, but in that time he displayed outstanding levels of gallantry and leadership, far in excess of his rank. A quiet man unassuming man in peacetime, Todger was a force to reckon with when in battle. This book chronicles his life with an added emphasis on his wartime service in the trenches of France and Flanders. Todger was born and bred in Runcorn, Cheshire. In 2014 his commemorative statue was unveiled opposite the town's cenotaph. This book also features never seen before photographs of the statue being made.

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With Edward now his curate at Stanway and married with a family Francis' interest in national and county events is eclipsed by family and local events. The growing Oxford Movement, (or Tractarians), is now mentioned regularly and Francis begins to lean more towards the Movement and away from his previous view of himself as a 'traditional' clergyman. His attitude to the Triennial Music Meeting changes too from the enthusiasm of younger years to a distinctly negative view as he grows older.

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Volume Eight begins with a family holiday, probably the only time in which the whole family, including grandchildren, spent a long time together (May-June 1846). The destination was the Isle of Wight where they had an enjoyable sojourn of five weeks, although Margaret's poor health precluded her doing much walking. Much of the volume covers property matters and the Hunt Trust. The summer of 1847 did not include a holiday, but as a substitute, Francis and Margaret spent nine days with the Hunt family in Stoke Doyle, Northamptonshire, and of course much Trust business was discussed. The following year saw their holiday, with a four-week break in North Wales. From 1848 onwards Margaret's health went into a severe decline. Missing diaries result in us knowing little of what happened between November 1848 and December 1849, but from that point onwards Margaret became bed-bound and by the end of this volume she was lying at death's door. Volume Eight is interesting for depth of detail. The Irish Potato Famine is covered, although not in as much detail as one may have imagined.There is also the say news of the death of Frederick Howell, in South Africa, killed in a conflict with Hottentots. Frederick was the eldest son of Thomas Howell, Francis Witt's closest friend.

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Carrying On presents the complete story of the Carry Ons which have made Britain laugh for generations on film, television, and stage, and of the unique British filmmaking partnership of producer Peter Rogers and director Gerald Thomas. Writer and film historian Ian Fryer takes us on a journey into the glorious days of classic British humour, bringing to life the Carry On films and the vibrant, fascinating world of comedy from which they sprang. This lively and entertaining book presents detailed histories of the thirty Carry On films, revealing a cinematic legacy which is often more clever and complex than expected; from the post-war optimism of Carry On Sergeant and Carry On Nurse, via mini-epics such as Carry On Cleo, all the way to the smut-tinged seventies. Carrying On also turns the spotlight onto the host of other productions the Rogers and Thomas partnership brought to the screen along with detailed biographies of legendary Carry On stars such as Sid James, Kenneth Williams, Charles Hawtrey, Joan Sims, and Barbara Windsor who have brought fun and laughter to millions for decades.

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Waterloo is perhaps the most famous battle of the 19th century and surely in the top ten of all military engagements in the last 500 years. Many have sought reasons why Napoleon lost the great battle. This book presents the litany of failures by one of Napoleon's key subordinates, General Drouet d'Erlon, which led ultimately to defeat.

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A unique event-the handing over of an entire country by another that did not own it, to a people who simply laid claim to it by virtue of their myths and traditions-happened in 1917 when the British 'gave' Palestine to the Jews via the Balfour Declaration. The Palestinian Arabs never accepted the theft of their land but have been powerless to resist the weight of support for the Jews given by the most powerful nations. Despite the foundation of Israel in 1948, the region has been plagued by wars, injustice, and a vast refugee 'problem' which has dominated the lives of millions. Today, the future of the Palestinians is dire and seemingly inevitable. In this thorough new examination, J. E. Thomas delves deep into the foundations of the issue, analysing the Zionist claim to the Holy Land in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, and their ruthless campaign to dispossess Palestinian Arabs-a campaign that continues to this day.

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The holocaust began for the Slovka Jews in Autumn of 1938, when Slovakia became an autonomous region. Jewish property was confiscated and businesses liquidated at bargain prices all in an effort to "Aryanize" the country. But by March 26, 1942 the first trainloads of Jews deported from Slovakia embarked to their final destination at Auschwitz, and death camps in the Lublin area. The mechanism for rounding up the Jews and subsequent forced deportation was the Hlinka Guard. By October 1942 the Hlinka Guard had overseen the deportation of some 60,000 Slovak Jews. During the 1944-1945 German occupation, another 13,500 Jews were deported and 5,000 imprisoned. Many of the Jews ended up at the Auschwitz Birkenau Concentration and Extermination Camp. After a brief respite, the Hlinka guard once again took to rounding up, and persecuting Jews throughout Slovakia. Slovak Gypsies (Roma) were also persecuted by the Hlinka Guard. Hlinka Guardsmen were used to do the dirty work, killing suspect Roma rebels in front of their wives and children, and then murdering the entire family.

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Belfast, August 1969. A campaign for civil rights in Northern Ireland (which had begun less than two years previously) degenerates into intercommunal violence as centuries of mistrust, animosity, and blatant sectarianism come to a shuddering head. The three days of August 13th, 14th, and 15th drastically changed the course of Northern Irish history and also radicalised a generation of Catholic youths. On the Protestant side, there was similarly little to predict that their young generation would become embroiled in the longest period of Irish Troubles to date. The UVF, dormant since the creation of the state, was revived in 1966, but it was barely mentioned anywhere outside the Shankill Road; by 1972 it was involved in full conflict. Belfast '69 provides interviews with individuals from both sides of the conflict, many of whom went on to join the various 'armies' that sprung up in the wake of the riots. Many British Army officers who were only passive onlookers in those early days also offer up their own stories. By analysing these fascinating personal accounts in the wider context of the Troubles, alongside other key sources, Belfast '69 seeks to answer the most pertinent questions about the events of those days. How were the emerging youth of both sides radicalised by the violence? How did the events drive an otherwise-indifferent generation to carry out some of the most heinous crimes in Irish history? And, most importantly, can today's society learn from the bloody mistakes of our recent past?

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An aviation legend designed in the mid-1940s, the Canberra entered service in 1951 with RAF Bomber Command. It served in the conventional, interdictor and nuclear bomber role with the RAF, in the UK, Germany, the Middle East and Far East. Its performance and adaptability made it ideal as a reconnaissance aircraft, and the final version, the Canberra PR9, only finally retired in July 2006! The Canberra was used in many support roles, especially in signals / electronic warfare. The Canberra was adopted by air forces from South America to Africa and India, as well as Australia and New Zealand, and license-built as the Martin B-57 served. It was involved conflicts from the Suez War and Malaya Confrontation, and various other hot spots with the RAF, to the Australian and USAF ops in Vietnam, and even the India-Pakistan War when both sides used Canberras, and the 1982 Falklands War. Used in trials and evaluation the Canberra held various height and speed records, and NASA’s High Altitude Research Program WB-57s are still active. The Canberra has also had dedicated enthusiasts, and aircraft (or cockpits) still survive in museums, as well as some in flying condition.

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In late 1944, the Second World War in the Pacific was going badly for Japan. The U.S. Pacific fleet had moved to the Mariana Islands in support of General MacArthur’s army, which had landed on the east coast of Leyte in October. The U.S. 7th Fleet was near the Surigao Strait off Leyte. The Japanese strategy was to entrap the U.S. Navy’s 7th Fleet by its naval forces from the north in the Sibuyan Sea, and with assault from the south from Surigao Strait. On the afternoon of 24 October, 7th Fleet torpedo-boats moved through Leyte Gulf and Surigao Strait into the Mindanao Sea south of Leyte, and by dusk were in position on their patrol-lines. Covering the northern part of the strait, were posted the destroyer squadrons, cruisers, and battleships to form the horizontal bar to a "T" of vast fire power which the enemy would be forced to approach vertically as he moved forward. With overwhelming force, the impenetrable gauntlet defeated the Japanese at Surigao Strait and played a significant in winning the Battle of Leyte Gulf and in so helping to secure the beachheads of the U.S. Sixth Army on Leyte against Japanese attack from the sea.

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Robert Ellis James-Robertson (but always known as Ellis) lived at Worcester from the mid-1950s and travelled extensively around the country building up a large railway archive. In the early 1960s a few of Ellis’s photographs were published in books and magazines and the credit ‘R. E. James-Robertson’ may be familiar to some. This book of mainly unpublished colour and black and white photographs has been created entirely from Ellis’s collection within about a 35 miles radius of Worcester, it will appeal to railway enthusiasts, modellers, and those with an interest in local history. The time period covered is from the mid-1950s through to the mid-1960s, steam is the predominant traction throughout together with occasional shots of early diesel power. Coverage includes much of Herefordshire, Gloucestershire, Warwickshire, and Worcestershire, plus the Birmingham area. Ellis and his wife Norah celebrated their diamond wedding anniversary in 2013, and Ellis passed on in April 2015 aged 92. Their daughters, Louisa and Fiona, contacted filmmaker and author Michael Clemens whose late father was a friend of Ellis’s. Ellis’s collection lives on today at films shows around the country given by the author and now in this first of a number of books using his photographic archive.

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From 'Neighbours' TV teen queen to Stock Aitken Waterman's megastar, the rise of Kylie Minogue to the top of the charts is one of the biggest smash hit success stories in pop music. Across 15 studio albums her transition from SexKylie (with help from Michael Hutchence) to IndieKylie (thanks to Nick Cave and Manic Street Preachers), then to undisputed Princess of Pop (courtesy of the irresistible 'Can't Get You Out Of My Head') proved she was not just an actress, a singer and a remarkable live performer (including Glastonbury Goddess), but a true global superstar. After successfully beating cancer, Kylie returned to the top with several big-selling albums, including the critically lauded 'The Abbey Road Sessions', festive fave 'Kylie Christmas' and 2020's history-making 'Disco'. This book is an exhaustive "step back in time" through her complete 'Katalogue' across five poptastic decades. Every released track and collab from her 300+ song catalogue - many self-penned or co-written - over 35 years is examined in detail with new insights, revelations & vital video/remix information. 'Kylie: Song By Song' celebrates this unique artist's truly remarkable and unparalleled career and is a must-have for every dedicated fan of the lucky, lucky, lucky Australian pop princess.

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This book covers the design, development, production and operational service of the Vickers Wellington from before the Second World War through to the 1950s. The aircraft and crews served with great distinction from the start to the end of the Second World War despite heavy losses. The aircraft was operated by Bomber Command until replaced by the bigger four engine heavy bombers, and played a major part in the Mediterranean Theatre. Its versatility was show with maritime operations against the U-boat threat. It was also used for transport and the hazards of aircrew training. It’s geodetic construction, developed from the airship era, made it rugged and capable of absorbing battle damage bring its crews home safely from combat over hostile territory.

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The RAF and Commonwealth air crews were bound by regulations and discipline during WWII. Survival was by no means a certainty, with casualties becoming a part of everyday life. The evolution of non-established clubs was recognised and regarded as an important area within RAF history that boosted moral. The regulations flexed to allow membership pins and badges to be worn on RAF and Commonwealth flying uniforms. This book allows the reader to experience a number of individual stories and understand the relevance of being a: - 'Goldfish' (Lives saved by the use of personal life preservers and dinghies), 'Caterpillar' (Lives saved by parachutes) or: - 'Guinea Pig' (Lives saved by pioneering surgery conducted by Archibald McIndoe at the Queen Victoria Hospital Sussex) In many instances the accounts are recalled in great detail from the official records of medals and awards. True heroism and gallant deeds supported by original photographs create an easy to read book, revealing areas of interest not previously visited in this format.

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Skalski Against all Odds provides a gripping and detailed account of the career of General Stanislaw Skalski, VM & bar, KW & 3bars, DSO, DFC & 2bars, the leading Polish fighter ace. Skalski gallantly served from the first day of the Second World War, becoming the first ace of the conflict, and continued his service through the Battle of Britain, Channel offensive, Tunisian & Italian campaigns, and Normandy landings. He finished the war on staff positions. Returning to communist Poland, he was duly arrested on charges of spying on behalf of Great Britain and sentenced to death. He was not executed, and after spending eight years in prison, he rejoined service, to fly MiG-15 jet fighters. He continued his service at non-flying positions, and following retirement, he was involved in popularizing aviation as well as in politics. The story is based on a number of documents, many of them published here for the first time and in most cases previously unavailable to the English reader.

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