In this authoritative and beautifully illustrated new account of Napoleon's greatest victory and the campaign that preceded it, Ian Castle sheds new light on the actions of the commanders and questions the assumptions—and explores the myths—that have shaped our understanding of the event ever since. His account follows every twist and turn of a war that was fought out across central Europe two centuries ago. In particular he reconstructs the course of the action in every sector of the Aust...

A riveting account of the first sustained, strategic aerial bombing campaign in history—by German airships on Britain in the First World War.At the outbreak of the Great War, the United Kingdom had no aerial defense capability worthy of the name. Britain had just thirty guns to defend the entire country, with all but five of these considered of dubious value. So when raiding German aircraft finally appeared over Britain, the response was negligible and ineffective....

The First Blitz tells the story of Germany's strategic air offensive against Britain, and how it came to be neutralized.The first Zeppelin attack on London came in May 1915 – and with it came the birth of a new arena of warfare, the 'home front'. German airships attempted to raid London on 26 separate occasions between May 1915 and October 1917, but only reached the capital and bombed successfully on nine occasions.From May 1917 onwards, this theat...

At the beginning of 1916, as the world entered the second full year of global conflict, the cities, towns and villages of Britain continued to lay vulnerable to aerial bombardment. Throughout that period German Zeppelin airships and seaplanes had come and gone at will, their most testing opposition provided by the British weather as the country's embryonic defences struggled to come to terms with this first ever assault from the air. Britain's civilians were now standing on the frontline —...

"The book is well illustrated with maps showing the routes of the raiders and photographs of the various aircraft, personnel, bombs, and damage... For readers who are very familiar with the events of WWI and yet wish to discover little-known aspects of the conflict, this book is quite useful." - Roads to the Great WarBy the autumn of 1916, advances in Britain’s air defense capability had all but ended the Zeppelin menace, which had haunted the nation for almost two...

A visual history of this forgotten WWI bombing campaign: "A fantastic book. Remnants of stained glass windows, grocery shop scales . . . and so much more." — War History OnlineThe First World War ushered in many new and increasingly deadly weapons and strategies—none more so than Germany's sustained aerial bombing campaign against Britain, which opened an entirely new theatre of war—the Home Front. It was a shocking awakening to twentieth...

An illustrated history of the French siege of Fort William Henry in 1757 and the most infamous incident of the French-Indian War: the massacre that inspired the book The Last of the Mohicans.After the British garrison of Fort William Henry in the colony of New York surrendered to the besieging army of the French commander Marquis de Montcalm in August 1757, it appeared that this particular episode of the French and Indian War was over. What happened next b...

This book explores the aerial campaign against the British capital, and the birth of the Royal Air Force.On a sunny May afternoon in 1917, the peace of an English seaside town was shattered when a flight of German Gotha bombers appeared without warning. Twenty-three Gothas had set out to attack London in this first bomber raid, but heavy cloud forced them to target Folkestone and the Shorncliffe army camp instead. It was the start of a new phase of the war aimed at...

This book reveals the fascinating story of the cat and mouse duel between the airship and another pioneering form of technology – the submarine - during World War 1.Detailed cut-away drawings reveal the design and development of the airship, during and after the war, whilst full-colour illustrations depict the airship in dramatic action shots. A tragic accident in 1930 brought the airship's military service to an end, resulting in a tiny window in which they were u...

This book reveals the fascinating story of the cat and mouse duel between the airship and another pioneering form of technology – the submarine - during World War 1.Detailed cut-away drawings reveal the design and development of the airship, during and after the war, whilst full-colour illustrations depict the airship in dramatic action shots. A tragic accident in 1930 brought the airship's military service to an end, resulting in a tiny window in which they were u...

This book explores the aerial campaign against the British capital, and the birth of the Royal Air Force.On a sunny May afternoon in 1917, the peace of an English seaside town was shattered when a flight of German Gotha bombers appeared without warning. Twenty-three Gothas had set out to attack London in this first bomber raid, but heavy cloud forced them to target Folkestone and the Shorncliffe army camp instead. It was the start of a new phase of the war aimed at...

Things hadn’t been going very well for Lucy and her two sisters. When their parents died, their uncle had moved in and took over. The girls, apparently, were too much trouble to worry about, so he’d dumped them onto the streets to fend for themselves.It was just luck that Ian McCray and his family had found Lucy that day. Both Lucy and her sister, Jilly, were in bad need of medical attention. Ian was just thrilled to have found his mate alive. In their situation, it could have been...