Adopted in 1938 and remaining in British service until 1991, the popular and reliable Bren was an iconic light machine gun, and arguably the most recognizable Commonwealth weapon of World War ll. Gas-operated and magazine-fed, it was based on a Czech design and was issued in large numbers during and after World War ll, as a section-level automatic weapon. Offering remarkable accuracy for an LMG, the Bren had an effective range of 600 yards, but could reach out to over 1,500 yards. It was generally fired from the prone position using a bipod, but could be fired from the hip when necessary. If kept clean, the Bren gave a reliable service in the harshest of environments, from the deserts of Libya to the Korean mountains in winter. As well as widespread infantry use, the Bren was widely supplied to resistance movements in Occupied Europe. Featuring specially commissioned full-colour artwork and based on meticulous research, this is an engaging story of the iconic light machine gun that equipped British and Commonwealth forces throughout World War II and in a host of postwar conflicts, right up to the Falklands and beyond.

This book explores the origins, development, combat use and lasting influence of Nazi Germany's automatic rifles, focusing on the Gew 41(W), Gew 43/Kar 43, FG 42 and MP 43/StG 44. The Blitzkrieg campaigns of 1939-40 convinced many observers that most infantry combat took place at closer ranges than the 750-1,000m. From 1941 Germany's arms designers took note and produced a new series of infantry firearms. This study not only provides a detailed technical description of each weapon, but also explores how the firearms performed on the battlefields of World War II. The combat takes us from the FG 42 in the hands of Fallschirmjager at Monte Cassino through to StG 44s being used by Waffen-SS soldiers on both the Eastern and Western Fronts. Postwar service is also studied, such as the Gew 43's adoption by the Czech Army and the StG 44's use by the Viet Cong in the Vietnam War. Setting each firearm in its tactical and historical context, and employing striking photographs and full-colour artwork, firearms expert Chris McNab sets out the absorbing story of this distinctive and influential series of weapons.

The two-handed swords found in modern museums are often so large and elaborately decorated that the onlooker might question whether such an apparently impractical weapon could ever have been a serious weapon of war. Yet during the Late Middle Ages, although never numerous, such weapons could instil dread in those that faced them on the battlefield and in skilled hands posed a very real danger, being capable of inflicting fearsome wounds. Neil Melville explains how, from the late-13th century, technological advances made the development of larger swords requiring both hands both possible and desirable. From their origins in Germany he traces their development and divergence into regional variations. He examines the evidence for their use on the battlefield over 300 years, most notably in the hands of the Swiss, the German landsknechts and the Scottish clans, before considering their later use in fencing and as ceremonial weapons. Practical advice on fighting with the two-handed sword is also given, drawing on contemporary fencing manuals. The detailed and informative text is beautifully enhanced by dozens of illustrations.

Jousting is the most iconic form of mounted combat. For more than five hundred years, the sport itself, and the chivalric culture that surrounded it, took on almost mythical qualities. Here, Tobias Capwell explains the glitz and glamour of a sport that attracted enormous popular audiences throughout the late middle ages. Though he deals almost exclusively with weapons and warriors, Capwell tells a story not of war and destruction, but of pageantry and valour. This is the story of the armour of peace. The book forms part of a series of introductions to aspects of the Royal Armouries' collection of arms and armour. Written by specialists in the field, they are packed full of fascinating information and stunning photography. Royal Armouries is the national museum of arms and armour, with sites at Leeds, the Tower of London and Fort Nelson, Hampshire.

During the American Civil War, the mounted soldiers fighting on both sides of the conflict carried a wide array of weapons, from sabers and lances to carbines, revolvers, and other firearms. Though some sections of the cavalry placed their trust in the sabre, the advent of viable breechloading carbines -- especially repeaters such as the Spencer -- was to transform warfare within little more than a decade of General Lee's final surrender at Appomattox. However, output struggled to keep up with unprecedented demands on manufacturing technology and distribution in areas where communication was difficult and in states whose primary aim was to equip their own men rather than contribute to the arming of Federal or Confederate regiments. In addition, the almost unparalleled losses of men and equipment ensured that almost any firearm, effectual or not, was pressed into service. Consequently, the sheer variety of weaponry carried reflected the mounted soldiers' various roles in different theatres of operation, but also the availability -- or otherwise -- of weapons, notably on the Confederate side. Fully illustrated, this study assesses the effectiveness of the many different weapons arming the Civil War cavalryman and analyses the strengths and weaknesses of the decisions made after 1865 concerning the armament of the US cavalry.

In October 1993, eighteen experts from ten countries met in Munster, Germany at the German NBC Defence Research Establishment to discuss various aspects of the problem of old chemical munitions and toxic armament wastes. This volume, that conference, and the research project from which both grew were supported by the Volkswagen Foundation. This study covers: characteristics of chemical warfare agents and toxic armament wastes, their detoxification, deterioration and degradation technical approaches to them past chemical weapons (CW) production activities CW disposal and destruction sea dumping of CW and legal issues related to old chemical munitions and toxic armament wastes.

The current concern that ballistic missile technologies are spreading throughout the world is addressed in this book. It examines the missile and missile-armament programmes and technologies, and the ability of countries to acquire such technologies. The concluding chapter investigates the international efforts to control ballistic missile proliferation.

The SIPRI Yearbook 1995 continues SIPRI's review of the latest developments in nuclear weapons, world military expenditure, the international arms trade and arms production, chemical and biological weapons, the proliferation of ballistic missile technology, armed conflicts in 1993, and nuclear and conventional arms control.

The SIPRI Yearbook 1994 continues SIPRI's review of the latest developments in nuclear weapons, world military expenditure, the international arms trade and arms production, chemical and biological weapons, the proliferation of ballistic missile technology, armed conflicts in 1993, and nuclear and conventional arms control. It is the most complete and authoritative source available for up-to-date information in war studies, strategic studies, peace studies, and international relations.

The story of arms in Western Europe from the Renaissance to the Industrial Revolution. A treasury of information based on solid scholarship, anyone seeking a factual and vivid account of the story of arms from the Renaissance period to the Industrial Revolution will welcome this book. The author chooses as his starting-point the invasion of Italy by France in 1494, which sowed the dragon's teeth of all the successive European wars; the French invasion was to accelerate the trend towards new armaments and new methods of warfare. The authordescribes the development of the handgun and the pike, the use and style of staff-weapons, mace and axe and war-hammer, dagger and dirk and bayonet. He shows how armour attained its full Renaissance splendour and then suffered itssorry and inevitable decline, culminating in the Industrial Revolution, with its far-reaching effects on military armaments. Above all, he follows the long history of the sword, queen of weapons, to the late eighteenth century, when it finally ceased to form a part of a gentleman's every-day wear. Lavishly illustrated. EWART OAKESHOTT was one of the world's leading authorities on the arms and armour of medieval Europe. His other works on the subject include Records of the Medieval Sword and The Sword in the Age of Chivalry.

Arming the US military is an ongoing process, one of vital importance. This book will help Americas leaders, educators and general public better understand how to manage the business of rearmament. Drawing on historical anecdotes, common business principles and the authors 31 years of military service, the book provides an engaging and educational look at the complexities of arming the American military.

Since the unprecedentedly effective performance of the allied air campaign against Iraq during Operation Desert Storm, the role of American air power in future wars has become a topic of often heated public debate. In this balanced appraisal of air power's newly realized strengths in joint warfare, Benjamin Lambeth, a defense analyst and civilian pilot who has flown in most of the equipment described in this book, explores the extent to which the United States can now rely on air-delivered precision weapons in lieu of ground forces to achieve strategic objectives and minimize American casualties.

Beginning with the U.S. experience in Southeast Asia and detailing how failures there set the stage for a sweeping refurbishment of the nation's air warfare capability, Lambeth reviews the recent history of American air power, including its role in the Gulf War and in later operations over Bosnia, Kosovo, and Serbia. He examines improvements in areas ranging from hardware development to aircrew skills and organizational adaptability.

Lambeth acknowledges that the question of whether air power should operate independently or continue to support land operations is likely to remain contentious. He concludes, however, that air power, its strategic effectiveness proven, can now set the conditions for victory even from the outset of combat if applied to its fullest potential.

This book offers a sober appraisal of the world trade in naval weapon systems at a time when recent attacks on merchant shipping in the Persian Gulf have kept maritime security at the centre of global attention. At the same time India, outside the international non-proliferation regime, has become the first-ever customer for a nuclear attack submarine. In 1987-88, the most expensive and controversial arms sales were related to naval systems, and yet while regional navies are busy increasing their firepower, the traditional naval powers remain dependent on their sea-borne trade. In particular the book highlights critical areas in which trade in naval systems differs from the sale of land or air systems, and it discusses the implications of these differences.

This book is a fascinating discussion of the development of the military equipment of the earliest organized armies. Dan Howard describes the development of weapons, armour and chariots, how they were made and their tactical use in battle. Spanning from the introduction of massed infantry by the Sumerians (c. 26th century BC) through to the collapse of the chariot civilizations (c. 12th century BC), this is the period of the epic struggles described in the Old Testament and Homer's Iliad, the clashes of mighty empires like those of the Babylonians, Egyptians and Hittites. The author draws on the latest research and archaeology, as well as his own experiences of using and making replica weapons and armour, to challenge established views and bring fresh insights to this fascinating period of military history. The main regions of discussion are the Aegean, the Near East and the Middle East but some reference is also made to other relevant cultures such as the Aryan Indians and the Shang Chinese.

Winchester lever-action repeating rifles are an integral part of the folklore of the American West. Introduced after the American Civil War, the first Winchester, the M1866, would go on to see military service as far afield as Bulgaria, but it was in the hands of civilians that it would become known as 'The gun that won the west'. Offering a lethal combination of portability, ruggedness and ammunition interchangeability with pistol sidearms, the Winchesters and their innovative and elegant breech-loading system represented a revolutionary design. They were used by a staggering variety of military and civilian groups - gold-miners, trappers, hunters, farmers, lawmen, professional gunmen and Native Americans. It equipped a whole generation of settlers and as such left an imprint on American culture that continues to resonate today. This book explores the Winchesters' unique place in history, revealing the technical secrets of their success with a full array of colour artwork, period illustrations and close-up photographs.

In this stunning account of the human impact of a single machine, John Ellis argues that the history of technology and military history are "part and parcel of social history in general." The Social History of the Machine Gun, now with a new foreword by Edward C. Ezell, provides an original and fascinating interpretation of weaponry, warfare, and society in nineteenth-and twentieth-century Europe and America. From its beginning, the machine gun threatened established assumptions about the nature of war. In spite of its highly effective use in the European colonization of Africa, the machine gun was resisted by military elites, who clung to "the old certanties of the battlefield-the glorious change and opportunities for individual heroism." These values were carried into the trenches of World War I and swept away along with a generation of soldiers. After the war, machine guns became commercially availble in America and in many ways became a symbol of the times. Advertisements touted the Thompson submachine gun as the ideal weapon for protecting factory and farm, while "tommy guns" entered the culture's imagination with Machine Gun Kelly and Boonie and Clyde. More significantly, Ellis suggests, the machine gun was the catalyst for the modern arms race. It necessitated a technological response: first the armored tank, then the jet fighter, and, perhaps ultimately, the hydrogen bomb.

In the past, an excavated musket ball might simply have been catalogued as either a ""spherical lead bullet"" or an ""impacted bullet."" But each recovered ball, far from being a mere lump of lead, is a part of history and has a story to tell. With the help of new equipment and research techniques, and an increase in the number of discoveries, these narratives can finally contribute exacting detail to the historical record. Battlefield archaeologist Daniel M. Sivilich provides readers with the tools and techniques to unlock the stories of small shot in this book, the first definitive guide to identifying musket balls, from the oldest formed to those fired in the early nineteenth century. Musket Ball and Small Shot Identification: A Guide traces the history of musket balls and small shot, and explores their uses as lethal projectiles and in nonlethal alterations. Sivilich asks - and answers - a variety of questions to demonstrate how a musket ball found in a military context can help to interpret the site: Was it fired? What did it hit? What type of gun is it associated with? Has it been chewed, and if so, by whom or what? Was it hammered into gaming pieces? By equipping historians and archaeologists with the information necessary for answering these questions, Sivilich's accessible work opens new views into firing lines, casualty areas, and military camps. It dispels long-held misperceptions about lead shot having been bitten by humans, offers examples of shot altered to improve lethality, and discusses balls made of materials other than lead, such as pewter. Coupling detailed analysis with more than 300 color and black-and-white illustrations for comparison and identification, this guide will prove indispensable to historians, battlefield archeologists, and collectors. It is a critical resource for understanding the full story of firepower.

The introduction of the scutum in the 4th century BC revolutionized the way the Romans fought. Instead of being purely defensive, the shield became a weapon in its own right. Using the top edge or boss to punch an opponent, or the lower rim to smash down on their feet, it served to unbalance an enemy and allow the sword to do its work. The versatility of the scutum was characterized by the testudo, a formation the Romans used offensively like a pedestrian tank. Meanwhile, other shield types equipped the auxiliaries who fought alongside the legionaries. The curved, rectangular scutum survived into the 3rd century AD, only to be replaced by an oval, slightly domed shield derived from the oval shields of Early Imperial auxiliaries. Drawing together historical accounts, excavated artefacts and the results of the latest scientific analyses of the boards and fittings, renowned authority M.C. Bishop reveals the development, technology, training and use of the scutum and other Roman shield types.

Sand, Planes and Submarines is an unlikely title for a book about the role two small towns far from the sea played in the First World War. Yet this extraordinary account tells how Leighton Buzzard and Linslade provided the means to shorten the war. Without the sand, the big guns could not have been made for the Front; the planes allowed the Royal Flying Corps to take on the superior German air force; and the submarine nets protected not only the British fleet but also the French, Italians, Americans and Russians. The two towns were changed dramatically by the war. They ceased to be the playground of the rich from London. The army requisitioned the hundreds of thoroughbred horses that had been used by the aristocracy to hunt with the Rothschilds. Among these larger themes there are many personal stories like that of the Linslade postman and his horse, Bluebell, who took part in the last great cavalry charge of the war.

What happens when competing assertions of validity collide? This question stands at the center of 22 projects being undertaken in various fields as part of the interdisciplinary research project Transcendence and Shared Meaning. Drawing on empirical examples, the contributions show how transcendence is founded or, alternatively, challenged."

Between the world wars, Hungary was a relatively small country aiming to recover territory lost because of World War One, and its Army was trained, equipped, armed and prepared to fight with its neighbours, to this end. At the outset of World War Two, Hungarian involvement in the war was minimal. Then, suddenly, this small country found itself in a total war with the Allied nations, primarily the Soviet Union. Although in 1941, this war was remote, in 1944-45 it arrived in Hungary, crushing the kingdom. This book gives a brief history of the Hungarian Army (Honv ds g), focusing on the main armament of the land forces: armoured vehicles, artillery pieces, infantry weapons and motor vehicles. The Hungarian Army had an interesting mix of weaponry and equipment inherited from the Austro-Hungarian Army, purchased from Germany, Italy, Sweden and Switzerland and produced by the Hungarian war industry, based on licences or its own designs. The 170 illustrations include 18 original colour photos and 18 colour profiles, skilfully painted by Tamas Deak.

From September 1940 until May 1941, Britain - especially Greater London - suffered heavily under a barrage of day and night-time raids by the then mighty Luftwaffe; raids which killed some 20,000 people and destroyed or damaged one million homes during what came to be known as the London Blitz. A baby blitz' followed, from January to May 1944, which was destined to be the final manned bomber offensive by a much depleted Luftwaffe. Afterwards, there came the last gasp, the final blitz on London, this time delivered by the V1 flying bombs and V2 rockets which were aimed at the capital. Overall, the V weapons killed or seriously injured 31,000 in London and destroyed or seriously damaged 1.6 million houses throughout Britain. Yet despite all this, British industry, economy and morale remained largely intact. Group Captain Nigel Walpole grew up in London during the Blitz and he has traced the full history of the V1 'doodlebugs' and V2 rockets that terrorised so many at this time. He looks at the infamous missile development site at Peenemunde and the engineers who brought Hitler's horrific visions to life. He reports his vivid memories of the three Blitz campaigns and the countermeasures taken in response to them. Having been granted direct access to the history of the V weapons, he describes the evolution, development, production deployment and launch of the flying bombs and rockets. Whilst acknowledging the terrible damage inflicted by these weapons, Nigel also recognises them as an example of Germany's extraordinary capacity for innovation and determination during one of the darkest periods of world history.

This book examines Western military technological innovation through the lens of developments in small arms during the twentieth century. These weapons have existed for centuries, appear to have matured only incrementally and might seem unlikely technologies for investigating the trajectory of military-technical change. Their relative simplicity, however, makes it easy to use them to map patterns of innovation within the military- industrial complex. Advanced technologies may have captured the military imagination, offering the possibility of clean and decisive outcomes, but it is the low technologies of the infantryman that can help us develop an appreciation for the dynamics of military-technical change. Tracing the path of innovation from battlefield to back office, and from industry to alliance partner, Ford develops insights into the way that small arms are socially constructed. He thereby exposes the mechanics of power across the military- industrial complex. This in turn reveals that shifting power relations between soldiers and scientists, bureaucrats and engineers, have allowed the private sector to exploit infantry status anxiety and shape soldier weapon preferences. Ford's analysis allows us to draw wider conclusions about how military innovation works and what social factors

Are we afraid of war? Has the advancement of military technology created a mindset of invincibility on the battlefield? In War X, Tim Blackmore argues that the technology of warfare has essentially erased the human body from battlespace. The result is a physical and psychological distance between humanity and bloodshed. As the machinery of war develops, and as advances are made in the biological sciences, war becomes increasingly palatable - attractive, even - resulting in a sanitized murder culture in which war is anticipated and viewed with little anxiety. Blackmore makes connections between human beings in battle and the very different world of weapons manufacturers, finding between the two a romance of war technology. Using popular science fiction literature and film, personal war narratives, biographies, and military imagery, he explores the human body in war, the ways in which soldiers imagine themselves superhuman - posthuman - protected by the armour of muscles and steel, tanks and helicopters, robotics and remote control. War X is an explosive introduction to the discussion of modern warfare and a timely consideration of industrial warfare as it is unfolding even now in Iraq and Afghanistan, and as it might be in the future, with new weapon development. It is also a deliberation on the startling world of new weapon development, and the indescribable future of war that beckons.