The decisive WWII campaign that brought Italy to its knees is vividly captured in this in-depth photographic history.With victory in North Africa complete, the Allies had a choice. The Americans wanted an early cross-channel attack from Britain on Northwest Europe. Churchill favored invading the soft underbelly of Italy to weaken the Axis forces and gain Italian surrender. With Eisenhower's army and battle-hardened Eighth Army in North Africa, Churchill prevailed.

"This photo essay produces a very effective picture of the defeat of British forces in Malaya and Singapore by the Japanese . . . Highly recommended."—FiretrenchIn just 10 weeks from 8 December 1941 to mid-February 1942, British and Imperial forces were utterly defeated by the numerically inferior Japanese under General Yamashita.British units fought hard on the Malayan mainland, but the Japanese showed greater mobility, cunning and tactical superiority. Mo...

"Highly recommended . . . excellent maps, [a] large number of black and white images, and detailed coverage of the subject." — AMPSAfter the Normandy breakout, the Allies' headlong dash east came to a halt in the autumn with the ill-fated Market Garden operation and overextended supply lines short of the Rhineland. After repulsing the Nazis' daring Ardennes offensive, Montgomery's and Bradley's Army Groups cleared the Reichwald and Rhineland and closed on ...

General Douglas A MacArthur, Commander of the Southwest Pacific Area, saw the liberation of the Philippines Archipelago as the launching board for the invasion of the Japanese Home Islands. By late 1944, with the capture of New Guinea and surrounding islands, the US Sixth and Eighth Armies were poised for the challenge. American forces landed on Leyte on 20 October 1944 with the Leyte Gulf naval battle quickly following. By 25 December the island was cleared opening the way for Lieutenant ...

Archibald Wavell remains one of the great Allied commanders of the early phases of World War II.In fact, between June 1940 and June 1941, he was the only British theatre commander actively engaging Axis forces. At a time when the British Expeditionary Force had been expelled from Europe, Wavell was conducting campaigns across nine countries and two continents. In those 12 months, he planned and directly oversaw a multitude of campaigns, from the hugely successful w...

“…offer exceptional views of men and uniforms in the jungle, in the rear areas, and around Henderson Airfield.” – Historical Miniatures Gaming SocietyAfter the Pearl Harbor attack, the Japanese quickly captured Hong Kong, Guam, Wake Island, the Gilbert Islands and Rabaul. Japanese conquests of Malaya and Singapore, the Philippines, the Dutch East Indies and Burma followed into the spring of 1942. The Japanese juggernaut continued southwards with bases established a...

Featuring specially commissioned artwork, gripping first-hand accounts and expert analysis, this engaging reassessment offers a glimpse of what it was like for Britain's Chindits to fight in the jungles and mountains of Burma at the height of World War II.In order to keep China in the war against the Japanese, the Western Allies believed they had to return to Northern Burma. Colonel Orde Wingate, a military maverick and proponent of guerrilla warfare, knew that a d...

"This series is basically a photo compilation with brief historical sections for each batch of images so we have some idea of what these images are all about. I've always been interested in this part of the war and very much enjoyed this one. I'm sure you will find it just as nice." -ModelingMadness.Com Fierce Pacific ground, sea, and aerial combat raged between the Allies and Imperial Japan to halt the latter's inexorable advance in 1942-1943. After the American victory at Guadalcanal in ...

“Vinegar Joe” Stilwell's assault on the Japanese position at Myitkyina, the key to northern Burma.Myitkyina was a vital objective in the Allied re-conquest of Burma in 1943–44. Following the disastrous retreat from Burma in April 1942, China had become isolated from re-supply except for the dangerous air route for US transports over the Himalaya Mountains.The Burma Road, which ran from Lashio (south of Myitkyina) through the mountains to Kunming was closed ...

A detailed study of one of the most influential commanders of World War II, one who is often regarded as a 'flawed genius'.Orde Wingate rose to fame by creating the Chindits in Burma in 1943. He is an extremely important figure in military history, and deserves just as much attention as Alanbrooke, Montgomery, and Auchinleck. Unlike them, however, he always operated outside the accepted etiquette and the formal chain of command. He was a maverick and misfit, and he...

"A compelling chronicle of the Battle of Papua New Guinea with rarely viewed images from World War II . . . an excellent book." — Naval Historical FoundationThe Japanese seizure of Rabaul on New Britain in January 1942 directly threatened Northern Australia and, as a result, General Douglas MacArthur took command of the Southwest Pacific Area. In July 1942, the Japanese attacked south across the Owen Stanley mountain range.Thanks to the hasty deploym...

General Stilwell's ad hoc force of Merrill's Marauders, American-trained Chinese divisions, Kachin guerrillas and General Wingate's Chindits conducted a northern Burmese offensive that led to the coup de main seizure of Myitkyina's airfield in May 1944. In August 1944, after a protracted siege, Myitkyina town on the Irrawaddy River fell to the Allies. At the same time elements of General Slim's 14th Army were mounting a defence of northeastern India at Imphal and Kohima against Imperial Ja...