This pictorial history of the legendary American tank combines color photographs, commissioned illustrations and authoritative information.The M4 Sherman was one of the most famous tanks of the Second World War. Produced in greater numbers than any other Allied tank, it fought on every front, and continued to serve as a front-line fighting vehicle in the Korean War, the Arab-Israeli wars, and the Indo-Pakistani wars. This detailed history of the Sherman covers its ...

A pictorial history and analysis of the infamous World War II German tanks.The German Tiger I and Tiger II (known to the Allies as the King Tiger or Royal Tiger) were the most famous and formidable heavy tanks of the Second World War. In their day, their awesome reputation inspired such apprehension among Allied soldiers that the weaknesses of these brilliant but flawed designs tended to be overlooked.Anthony Tucker-Jones, in this illustrated history, tells t...

"An in-depth illustrated history of one of the most successful post-war British tanks" from the author of Special Forces Vehicles (Forces Pension Society).Few tank designs have been as effective, versatile and long-lived as that of the British Centurion. Conceived during the Second World War as the answer to the superior German Tiger and Panther tanks and to the lethal 88mm gun, this 52-ton main battle tank incorporated the lessons British designers had lea...

Discover where events in the Old and New Testaments took place and see how people lived in Biblical times.Take a trip around the Holy Land with these beautifully drawn maps, which show where events from the Bible took place. You can follow the journeys of the patriarchs, view inside Solomon's Temple, witness Jesus' miracles, and see exactly where Paul traveled while spreading the message of Christianity. As well as recapping many of the stories from both Old and Ne...

In 1964 Military Assistance Command, Vietnam, activated a joint unconventional task force known as the Studies and Observation Group-MACV-SOG. As a cover its mission was to conduct analysis of lessons learned in combat by all branches of service. SOG's real mission was to conduct covert strategic reconnaissance missions into Laos, Cambodia and South Vietnam as well as sabotage and 'Black' psychological operations. Ground, air and naval assets were employed to insert, collect, extract, and ...

Despite all technological advances, final mastery of any battlefield depends upon the tight-knit group of footsoldiers trained to manoeuvre, shoot and dig in.This first of a two-part study examines the methods by which the Western infantry of World War II - the German, British and US armies - actually brought their firepower to bear. Drawing upon period training manuals for the evolving theory, and on personal memoirs for the individual practice, this first book co...

From June 1941, the Soviets were forced to undertake large-scale defensive operations in the face of the overwhelming German blitzkrieg assault, operations which ran counter to their preference for highly mobile, offensive warfare.Lessons were quickly learned across a wide variety of terrain and climates, including the open steppes, dense forests, wooded swamps, cities, and in snow and ice, where the availability of construction materials differed greatly. The firs...

In 1965, soon after the first US combat troops had arrived in Vietnam, it was realized that in some areas the Viet Cong had developed vast tunnel complexes in which to hide from the enemy. It was long known that such complexes existed, but it was not realized just how extensive they were in some areas, how important they were to the Viet Cong, and how difficult it was to detect and neutralize them. At first infantrymen volunteered to enter the tunnels armed with only pistols and flashlight...

A fascinating study of some of the most famous fortifications of the 20th century and of how their military and political implications shaped the face of northern Europe.In the wake of the bloody civil war that followed Finland's independence from Russia in 1917, the border between the two countries was established across the Karelian Isthmus, an area long fought over by Russia, Finland and Sweden in their attempts to dominate the northern tip of Europe.As ...

In 1965, soon after the first US combat troops had arrived in Vietnam, it was realized that in some areas the Viet Cong had developed vast tunnel complexes in which to hide from the enemy.It was long known that such complexes existed, but it was not realized just how extensive they were in some areas, how important they were to the Viet Cong, and how difficult it was to detect and neutralize them. At first infantrymen volunteered to enter the tunnels armed with onl...

Two major Army units operated in the Pacific – the 11th Airborne Division and the 503rd Parachute Regimental Combat Team (PRCT).They launched small-scale operations on extremely difficult, if not, outright dangerous, terrain, while also conducting amphibious assaults, fighting on jungled hills, swamps and mud. The two units were very different, with the 503rd PRCT being reserved for special purpose missions and the 11th Airborne Division occupying a more traditiona...

The design development and combat history of some of the most technologically advanced fortress networks in Germany and France.Following the defeat of France in the Franco-Prussian War of 1870–71, the German Army began to construct a fortress line from Strasbourg to Luxembourg to protect their new territory, the centrepiece of which was the great Moselstellung (Moselle Position) of Metz / Thionville.Illustrated with rare photographs and full-colour cutaway ...