An extensive biography of the life and distinguished military career of the Scottish air chief marshal.Making full use of archival sources, studies by other scholars, and information provided by family members, Vincent Orange has completed the first biography of Air Chief Marshal Sir Hugh Dowding to cover his entire life.Soldier, pilot, wireless pioneer, squadron commander, spiritualist, champion skier, "Stuffy" Dowding is perhaps best known as the creator of...

"A fine biography of one of the war's greatest unsung heroes," Royal Air Force Commander Keith Park ( The Daily Telegraph)."If ever any one man won the Battle of Britain, he did. I don't believe it is realized how much that one man, with his leadership, his calm judgement and his skill, did to save not only this country, but the world." So wrote Marshal of the RAF Lord Tedder of Keith Park in 1947.As commander of No. 11 Group, RAF Fighter Command r...

The acclaimed author of Dowding of Fighter Command details the life of one of the great strategic minds of the Royal Air Force.Born in India into a family of soldiers and diplomats, John Slessor made the first aerial attack on a Zeppelin. He went on to serve in the Middle East over the Western Front in World War I, and postwar on the North-West Frontier in India.In the inter-war years, under the influence of Sir Hugh Trenchard, he became a devout pro...

The author of Dowding of Fighter Command examines the relationships Churchill had with the airmen of the RAF.Winston Churchill probably had more impact on 20th-century British military history than any other person, especially during World War II. Yet of the many volumes since that war that deal with his relationships with generals and admirals, most surprisingly, there seems not to be a single book devoted to Churchill as a would-be pilot, and, more import...

Arthur Tedder became one of the most eminent figures of the Second World War: first as head of Anglo-American air forces in the Middle East, the Mediterranean and North Africa; then as Deputy Supreme Commander to General Eisenhower for the Allied campaign that began in Normandy and ended in Berlin. During those anxious, exhilarating years, he was, as The Times of London wrote, 'the most unstuffy of great commanders, who could be found sitting cross-legged, jacketless, pipe smo...

A covert agent's memoir of three perilous missions in Nazi-occupied Paris, told with "unconditional honesty" ( Kirkus Reviews).At first, John Goldsmith's services were consistently refused. But in 1942, he was recruited into Buckmasters F Section of the Special Operations Executive—and his wartime exploits would be remarkable.His faultless French and upbringing in Paris were to prove invaluable. After intensive training he was parachuted into France ...

Three true tales of Civil War combat, as recounted by the #1 New York Times –bestselling author of Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee .The acclaimed historian of the American West turns his attention to the country's bloody civil conflict, chronicling the exploits of extraordinary soldiers who served in unexpected ways at a pivotal moment in the nation's history.Grierson'...

The historian and author of Postwar Counterinsurgency and the SAS reveals the full story of how the Special Air Service Regiment began during WWII.Britain's elite Special Air Service Regiment is one of the most revered special-ops units in the world. Its high-profile operations include the storming of the Iranian Embassy in London in 1980 and the hunt for Osama bin Laden in southern Afghanistan following 9/11. Since its inception during the Second World Wa...

At 11.00 hours on 11 November 1918, the guns fell silent across the battlefields of Europe. After the deadliest conflict the world had ever seen, peace had finally arrived. Since the withdrawal from the Somme and the repulse at Verdun, the Germans knew they could not win the war and had sought a negotiated end to the fighting. This was rejected by the Allies and the fighting continued until, almost two years later, with its economy on the verge of collapse, Germany had no choice but to acc...

"The compelling story of the squadron of adventurous young American pilots who were among the first to engage in air combat." — Tampa Bay TimesIn First to Fly, lauded historian Charles Bracelen Flood draws on rarely seen primary sources to tell the story of the daredevil Americans of the Lafayette Escadrille, who flew in French planes, wore French uniforms, and showed the world an American brand of heroism before the United States entered the Grea...

A social history of British women's brave yet forgotten service during WWI from a historian of female wartime experiences—includes photos.At the outbreak of World War I, women looking to contribute to the Allied effort were told by the war office to "go home and sit still." Thankfully, hundreds of thousands of women from all corners of society ignored that advice and lent their collective strength to the cause. In We Also Served, Vivien Newman digs beneath...

The book that former Defense Secretary James Mattis recommends as America faces the threat of conflict with North Korea.In a recent story, Newsweek reported: "Amid increasingly deteriorating relations between the U.S. and North Korea, as President Donald Trump and Kim Jong Un exchange barbs and the threat of a nuclear conflict looms, Mattis responded to a question on how best to avoid such a war."An audience member asked: 'What can the U.S. militar...