When a historic battlefield site is discovered and studied, the focus is often on the “hardware”: remnants of weaponry, ammunition, supplies, and equipment that archaeologists carefully unearth, analyze, conserve, and frequently place on display in museums.But what about the “software”? What can archaeology teach us about the humans involved in the conflict: their social mores and cultural assumptions; their use and understanding of power?In The Archaeology of Engagemen...

Filled with fresh interpretations and information, puncturing old myths and challenging new ones, Battle Cry of Freedom will unquestionably become the standard one-volume history of the Civil War. James McPherson's fast-paced narrative fully integrates the political, social, and military events that crowded the two decades from the outbreak of one war in Mexico to the ending of another at Appomattox. Packed with drama and analytical insight, the book vividly recounts the momentous episodes...

This biography of the 12th century Islamic military leader provides a fascinating view of the Crusades and the Medieval Muslim world.Saladin was a Kurdish military leader who led the fight against the Crusades and rose to become first Sultan of Egypt and Syria. He united warring Muslim lands, reconquered the bulk of Crusader states and faced King Richard I of England in one of the most famous confrontations in medieval warfare. His extraordinary character and career...

Forward Into Hell, written by a soldier from the ranks, is a candid account of the bloody battle for Mount Longdon during the Falklands War. Vincent Bramley describes in shocking detail the 12 hours of brutal man-to-man combat that it took before the Third Battalion Parachute Regiment were able to take the mountain from the Argentine forces. He exposes the effects that the fear of dying and the reality of killing have on the ordinary soldier during the heat of battle. He tells how some men...

In the summer of 1914, our finest young men flocked to the colors in Northern towns and cities to answer Lord Kitcheners Call to Arms in a spontaneous burst of enthusiasm and patriotism. The Call appealed to their sense of adventure and offered an escape from the humdrum life of office, factory and mill.The new recruits volunteered with brothers, cousins, friends and work mates. The newly formed units became the focus of local civic pride and soon became known as the Pals. The City of Birm...

Poetry, essays, interviews from witnesses to war. Soldiers and civilians give voice to the trauma, suffering, and longterm damage caused by war, and the need for the nation and community to accept the challenge of healing the wounds of war. Contributors include Jonathan Shay, Brian Turner, Jonathan Schell, Emily Warn, Wilfred Owen, Chris Hedges, Andrew Himes, etc.

From its origins to its use in combat today, The Little Book of Camouflage tells the history of camouflage in conflict.Its conception, its uses and the colours are looked at, as well as the key patterns such as the German uniforms of World War II, the ever-recognisable American type worn during Vietnam and the British DPM forming a sort of recognition guide to the various patterns in use in the armies of history and present day.Illustrated througho...

Waged on 14 October 1322, the battle of Byland (an area north-east of Thirsk) was fought between the two monarchs, Edward II and Robert the Bruce, and their forces. The Scots' motive for the engagement was to force the English into accepting the independence that Bannockburn hadn't actually achieved, the aim being to capture the King and force his hand. The plan nearly worked, and Edward II had to make a humiliating escape, losing his baggage train (again), puttin...

The author escaped from Soviet occupied East Germany in 1947 at fourteen years of age. This left him an unwanted citizen in West Germany. Having to survive, he ended up in North Sea dike construction and a spell of coal mining in the Ruhr District. By 1952 he was able to emigrate to Canada and followed the proverbial career of an immigrant; dishwasher, miner, carpenter, eventual university graduation, setting type in a newspaper, work in oceanography, farming and teaching. Being a trained ...

War is an organized and often prolonged conflict that is carried out by states or non-state actors. It is generally characterized by extreme violence, social disruption and an attempt at economic destruction. War should be understood as an actual, intentional and widespread armed conflict between political communities, and therefore is defined as a form of (collective) political violence or intervention. The set of techniques used by a group to carry out war is known as warfare. An absence...

In this work, Fred Drogula studies the development of Roman provincial command using the terms and concepts of the Romans themselves as reference points. Beginning in the earliest years of the republic, Drogula argues, provincial command was not a uniform concept fixed in positive law but rather a dynamic set of ideas shaped by traditional practice. Therefore, as the Roman state grew, concepts of authority, control over territory, and military power underwent continual transformation. This...

During the Civil War, 410,000 people were held as prisoners of war on both sides. With resources strained by the unprecedented number of prisoners, conditions in overcrowded prison camps were dismal, and the death toll across Confederate and Union prisons reached 56,000 by the end of the war. In an attempt to improve prison conditions, President Lincoln issued General Orders 100, which would become the basis for future attempts to define the rights of prisoners, including the Geneva conven...