As absolute as Hitler's control over the German war machine was, it depended on the ability, judgment and unquestioning loyalty of the senior officers charged with putting his ideas, however difficult, into effect.Top military historian James Lucas examines the stories of fourteen of these men: all of different rank, from varied backgrounds, and highly awarded, they exemplify German military prowess at its most dangerous. Among his subjects are Eduard Dietl, the commander of German forces ...

This is the first volume to bring together all the hitherto scattered evidence—archaeological, literary, and artistic—for the forms and uses of scale and lamellar armors in the region west of the Urals throughout the two thousand years during which these armors were used. Lamellar armor differs from the earlier scale armor in not needing a backing for the individual pieces of leather, iron, or bronze. The interpretation of this meticulous collection of data is informed by the author's deca...

Armour Never Wearies is the first volume to bring together all the hitherto scattered evidence – archaeological, literary and artistic – for the forms and uses of scale and lamellar armours in the region west of the Ural Mountains throughout the 3,500 years during which these armours were used. The interpretation of this data is informed by the author's long practical experience as a maker of arms and armour, martial artist and horseman. It offer...

This fascinating compilation of wartime battlefield reports drawn from British, American, Russian and German sources has been carefully selected by Emmy Award winning author and historian Bob Carruthers to produce an absorbing overview of the life and death of Germanys Panzer forces as the events unfolded during World War II. Featured topics include the Tiger, Panther, flame throwing tanks, experimental vehicles, tank tactics, mobile artillery, assault guns and more.Combining contemporary rep...

"The Trumpet Major" is a rich tapestry of love and war, set against the backdrop of the Napoleonic Wars. John Loveday, the trumpet major, finds himself entwined in a heartrending love triangle with his brother Robert and the enchanting Anne Garland. Amidst the looming threat of invasion and the tumult of military life, the personal dramas of Hardy's characters unfold, capturing the essence of human resilience and the complexities of love. This novel stands as a testament to the fleeting mo...

A group of Internet aviation fans once debated the subject of the worst fighter of World War II. Their hands-down favorite: the Brewster Buffalo. Two books are titled The World's Worst Aircraft. The Buffalo is the only fighter from any era to have a chapter in both of them.The Royal Air Force fobbed the Brewster fighter onto the Fleet Air Arm and colonial squadrons; the U.S. Navy gave it to the Marines. Pilots thought it was a sweet plane to fly, but complained that the wh...

From an internationally acclaimed expert in the field comes a detailed, analytical and comprehensive account of the worldwide evolution of tanks, from their inception a century ago to the present day.With new ideas stemming from the latest academic research, this study presents a reappraisal of the development of tanks and their evolution during World War I and how the surge in technological development during World War II and the subsequent Cold War drove developm...

In 1914 the artillery of Britain's 'Field Army' encompassed those weapons judged to have sufficient mobility to keep up with troops in the field.This book describes all major variants, from the 60-pdr guns of the heavy field batteries, perched somewhat uncomfortably on the cusp between field artillery and siege artillery, to the 2.75in. guns of the mountain batteries, almost toy-like in comparison.Between these two extremes lay the bulk of the artillery of ...

The Fairbairn-Sykes Commando dagger has become iconic as the most widely recognized fighting knife in the world. The origins of the dagger can be traced to Shanghai in the 1930s where W. E. Fairbairn and US Marine officers including Sam Yeaton carried out experiments to develop what they considered the perfect knife for close combat. When Fairbairn and Sykes became instructors for the Commandos, they refined the design which would evolve into the classic Fairbairn-Sykes dagger. The dagger ...

This book assesses current views of the body armour used by the Roman army and its development, melding these with the archaeological evidence available. It draws together the streams of published information of sculptural imagery and archaeological 'hard' evidence, while also looking at the component parts and how they are physically put together. This has involved a return to basics, in examining wherever possible the original material (as opposed to the published 2-D photographic images...

The M18 76mm Gun Motor Carriage was developed for the US Army's Tank Destroyer Command. It was the only tank destroyer deployed during World War II actually based on their requirements for speed and firepower.This book examines the development of this vehicle, the controversies over the need for high-speed tank destroyers, and its actual performance during World War II. Special emphasis is placed on examining its performance in its intended mission. Alongside illus...

The first Rolls-Royce armoured car - a privately owned vehicle fitted with a machine-gun and limited armour plate - was used by the Royal Naval Air Service in Flanders in 1914.By 1915, nearly 100 had been built and turned over to the Army. From then on, as Sir Albert Stern said 'They searched the world for war', operating as far apart as the northwest frontier of India, the Middle East and southern Africa. The cars were fast, quiet and reliable but above all powerf...