An amazing collection of eyewitness accounts of the British experience in World War II. First-hand narratives are drawn from every rank of the army and every corner of the conflict to create a moving and illuminating story of the greatest war of this century.Fascinating, moving, frightening, sometimes comic, this selection of eyewitness accounts has been edited into chronological order to form a magnificent oral history of the British and Commonwealth forces at war.We follo...

In February 1942, three of the major ships of the German surface fleet – the battle-cruisers Scharnhorst and Gneisenau, and the heavy cruiser Prinz Eugen – stormed out of the harbour at Brest on a dramatic voyage back to Germany. Passing through the straights of Dover, the ships faced everything the Royal Air Force and the Royal Navy could throw at them. In a dramatic running fight, the ships managed to sail right under the nose of history's greatest maritime nation to reach the safety of ...

First published in 1945 and comprising a compilation of fascinating primary accounts of airborne combat as told by the very men who fought in the action, By Air to Battle is the official history of Airborne operations by British Paratroops in World War II. Spanning the introduction of the Central Landing Establishment to the end of the war, we follow the heroic exploits of the British First and Sixth Airborne Divisions. Never before available in ebook form By Air to Battle is an inspiring ...

A remarkable World War II survival story and combat memoir by "an indestructible wartime tank commander" ( The Telegraph).In campaign after campaign, from the defense of Calais in 1940 to the defeat of Germany in 1945, Bill Close served as a tank commander in Britain's Royal Tank Regiment—and he survived.His tanks were hit eleven times by enemy shellfire and he bailed out. He was wounded three times. He finished the war as one of the most experienc...

This WWII history chronicles the remarkable career of a brilliant British Army commander and the innovative armored vehicles he created.Joining the Royal Tank Corps in 1923, Major-General Percy Hobart quickly established himself as one of the foremost thinkers on armored warfare. By 1938 he was GOC Mobile Division, later 7th Armored Division, in Egypt. He was also known for not suffering fools—a tendency that got him briefly relieved of his command. But during World...

Mike Morgan presents 25 stories about the larger-than-life exploits of the SAS and SBS in World War II, supported by a selection of rare archive and action shots.These vivid stories, including some new and previously unpublished, supported by an updated selection of rare archive and action photographs, explore the larger-than-life escapades of the Special Air Service in the Second World War. From an SAS Jeep patrol in France, outnumbered fifty-to-one, who shot thei...

COPP (Combined Operations Pilotage Parties) were formed in December 1942, when the need for invasion beach reconnaissance and assault guidance for invasion fleets were officially recognised. COPPs were a revolutionary concept: independent teams, led by Lieutenants, Royal Nay qualified Navigators and Hydrographers – capable of navigating cruisers or aircraft carriers – teamed with Captains, Royal Engineers, preferably commando trained: to make small boat reconnaissances of heavily defended ...

When Australian troops stormed ashore in the pre-dawn darkness of April 25th 1915, it was the culmination of one of the most complex and daunting operations in the history of warfare - the seaborne assault of a heavily fortified shore, defended by a well-prepared and forewarned enemy.The risks were enormous, and the death toll on the beach at Anzac Cove could have been murderous - as it was with the British landings further south. Yet the Anzacs had been allowed to organise their o...

Acclaimed historian Max Arthur pays tribute to the Royal Navy from 1914 to 1945 and VE Day, drawing on the personal stories of those who have served during this period, creating a unique narrative history.Lost Voices of the Royal Navy is a memorable and moving testament to the courage, spirit, skill and irrepressible humour of those who served in the Royal Navy during these crucial years.

For a nation with a long and proud military tradition, one token stands above all the others as a mark of recognition for the ultimate acts of individual feats of arms: the Victoria Cross. Awarded for one reason alone - to mark extreme acts of great heroism by British and Commonwealth servicemen in the face of the enemy - it is unquestionably the hardest club in the world to gain entrance to. Its holders, ordinary soldiers, sailors and airmen, are linked by an uncommon bond of exceptional ...

Set in the context of the Dieppe raid as a whole, Will Fowler studies the contribution of No. 4 Commando and Operation Cauldron.In August 1942, the Allies launched a raid against the German-held port of Dieppe on the French channel coast. It was largely a disaster, with the Canadian forces bearing the brunt of the catastrophe. However, it wasn't all a failure, and history has tended to overlook the role of 4 Commando, who, along with their US Ranger counter-parts, ...

This WWII naval history chronicles the development of small fighting boats as well as the evolution of their tactics and coastal warfare operations.Small, fast and highly maneuverable, gunboats and motor torpedo boats were a vital part of naval combat through the Second World War. Every major naval power built their own versions: The Germans had Schnellboote, the Royal Navy had MTBs and MGBs, and the Americans had PT boats. With their daring night raids and close-ra...