Military History
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Beaufighter vs German Flak Ships: North Sea and Mediterranean 1941–45: 151 (Duel)
An illustrated study of RAF Coastal Command’s deployment of the Beaufighter against German supply lines in 1941 and the long-running ‘arms race’ with Kriegsmarine Flak ships that followed.Crucial German shipping lines faced a new threat in 1941 when RAF Coastal Command debuted the iconic long-range Beaufighter. The aircraft and its subsequent Mk VIC and Mk X versions gave the Allies a tough, relatively fast and very hard-hitting platform for air attack on German convoys, and so it became essential for the Kriegsmarine to fit ever-heavier anti-aircraft batteries to its escort vessels, and even to develop specialist Flak vessels.
In this compelling study, naval aviation historian Matthew Willis chronicles the little-explored arms race that saw RAF Coastal Command and the Kriegsmarine engaged in a fierce battle of one-upmanship until war’s end. New artwork, rare archive photography and contemporary records of Beaufighter operations add depth to fascinating historical accounts, including the actions of the famous North Coates Strike Wing against shipping in the North Sea and the exploits of Beaufighter units tasked with severing Rommel’s all-important supply lines.
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One Woman’s War: Rags to Riches, Book 2 (Audio Download): Rosie Goodwin, Charlie Sanderson, Zaffre: Amazon.co.uk: Books
A Rags to Riches novel .
The second book in a brand-new historical trilogy from Britain’s best-loved saga author.
Nuneaton, 1914
War is just around the corner and for Annie Lilburn and her adopted family, life will never be the same. Annie, after a difficult childhood, has never felt like she fits in, but since Levi Lilburn, the local rag and bone man, took her under his wing and she became a business woman in her own right, things have been on the up. Soon that is set to change when World War I is declared and the men of the town enlist. And as more and more casualties come in, Annie needs to step up and do her bit for the war effort.
Annie trains to become a nurse and eventually finds herself on the battlefields in France. With death and destruction all around her, Annie is experiencing things she could never have imagined, but finds an inner strength like no other. Then through the devastation of war, love starts to bloom when Annie meets a young officer. Could this orphan girl finally be finding her place in the world and someone to truly love her, or is her happiness set to come crashing down once again?
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Sea Power in the Pacific: A History from the Sixteenth Century to the Korean War
An epic history of the fierce struggle for supremacy over the world’s greatest ocean.This book is sure to be enjoyed by fans of Ian Toll, James D. Hornfischer, and Craig L. Symonds.
Despite being the largest body of water on the globe, the Pacific was often overlooked by historians until the conflict between Japan and the USA after Pearl Harbor. Donald Macintyre, renowned naval authority and wartime U-boat hunter, sets this right.
Drawing upon a wealth of research, Macintyre charts how naval forces were developed and clashed across the Pacific Ocean over the course of five centuries. He begins with the years prior to European intervention in the region, then explores how Portuguese, Dutch, and British naval forces reshaped the balance of power in these vast waters. Particularly compelling is the history of Japanese influence in the Pacific, as it transformed from an isolated medieval state into a modern naval power, asserting itself in the early twentieth century through conflicts with China and Russia.
The origins of the Pacific War, as well as all its major battles — from the Coral Sea to Leyte Gulf — are recorded in fascinating detail, before Macintyre concludes with an overview of the Pacific’s last major naval conflict: the Korean War.
Sea Power in the Pacific: A History from the Sixteenth Century to the Korean War is essential reading for anyone interested in the rise of early modern European empires, their maritime conflicts, and how the Pacific became a crucible of war in the twentieth century.
‘A clear, concise, and very readable history of events.’ — The RUSI Journal
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SS Kommando: Hitler’s Special Forces in the Second World War (The Third Reich’s Shadow Forces Book 1)
The secret war of Germany’s elite commandos — a gripping account of sabotage, espionage, and survival in World War Two.For readers of James Owen, Peter Young, James Lucas and Franz Kurowski.
The SS Kommandos and their forerunners, the Brandenburgers — led by Admiral Canaris and later Otto Skorzeny — fought their war in the shadows of Europe for six years. During this time, they battled and plotted behind enemy lines across three continents and dozens of countries. Their clandestine activities undoubtedly changed the course of history.
Often overlooked in favour of the perhaps better-known British Special Forces or American Rangers, the Kommandos were, in fact, the first military units to embrace and utilise such an unconventional style of warfare. In this book, author Charles Whiting presents a thorough account of the men and the operations they undertook during the war years, using first-hand interviews with the remaining survivors — including Skorzeny himself. The result is a vivid, personal account of ordinary men, both heroes and victims of the German war machine, engaged in a deadly struggle for survival.
The daring and complexity of some of the SS Kommando operations is truly staggering and includes the 1943 rescue of deposed dictator Benito Mussolini from under the noses of the Italians in the mountains; the 1944 kidnapping of the son of the Regent of Hungary to keep that country in the war against the Allies; and the theft of a large quantity of diamonds in South Africa to sabotage Britain’s war effort. Brutally efficient and often disregarding the rules of war, these men seized strategic targets, captured key bridges, engaged in espionage and sabotage, and would ultimately influence the development of special forces around the world.
This book is a compelling read for anyone interested in Kommando operations throughout World War Two — the men involved, their leaders and rivals under the Führer, and the desperate tactics employed in the face of defeat.
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Trafalgar: Nelson’s Great Victory (The Age of Sail)
A gripping account of one of history’s most famous naval battles: Trafalgar.But why was the battle so important? How did Napoleon’s navy come to threaten English shores? And what truly unfolded during those brutal hours on 21 October 1805?
In this authoritative and engrossing narrative, Donald Macintyre charts the dramatic prelude to Trafalgar — from Horatio Nelson’s rise to fame at the battles of the Nile and Copenhagen, to Pierre-Charles Villeneuve’s bold attempt to unite French naval forces in the Caribbean before slipping past the British blockade to challenge their command of the seas.
The mounting tension is brilliantly captured as Nelson pursues Villeneuve across the Atlantic, leading to a fateful clash off the coast of Spain. Though the outcome is known to history, the battle’s gripping details — the daring manoeuvres, the desperate fighting, and the heroism of individual ships and captains — are vividly brought to life, revealing both the triumph and the tragedy of Britain’s most celebrated naval victory.
Trafalgar is essential reading for anyone fascinated by this legendary conflict of the Age of Sail.
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From £4.35