When Tony Thorne first turned up for his medical in 1956 he had little idea of the adventures he would face and the people he would encounter over the next two years in service. Brasso, Blanco & Bull is the hilarious account of life in National Service, where 23339788 Thorne faced the horrors of basic training, the boredom of the drill yard as well as the unforgettable camaraderie of the squad. Praise: 'This book took me back more years than I care to remember.' Bernard Cribbins, The Parachute Regiment, 1947-8 'A great reminder for those of us that did it and a great treat for those that didn't.' Windsor Davies, East Surrey Regiment, 1950-2 'More Virgin Soldiers just like the ones I remember. This lot made me laugh a lot.' Leslie Thomas, Royal Army Pay Corps 1949-51 'I thoroughly enjoyed the read.It took me back to my days of national service, most of which I enjoyed!' Freddie Truman, OBE, Royal Air Force 1951-3

The Landsknecht (meaning 'servant of the country') flourished during a key period for military organisation and practice. In the late 15th century, the Holy Roman Emperor, Maximilian I, recruited thousands of mercenaries from Central and Northern Europe, with the aim of creating a reliable source of men for his armies - and the Landsknecht were born. This book reveals the true-life experiences of the Landsknecht soldier, using numerous first-hand accounts. It takes a close look at the recruitment, training, daily life and and careers of these formidable soldiers, and examines in detail their clothing, equipment and weaponry. Many fine, contemporary illustrations, some drawn by Landsknecht themselves, accompany the text.

Bristol - 1945 The war has ended; the men are returning home to their loved ones, but for some things have changed. Charlotte Hennessey-White's husband, David is no longer the gentle loving man he once was and Charlotte, so independent during the war, is devastated. Edna Burbage's strong fiancee, Colin has suffered appalling physical injuries. He won't hold her to her promise of marriage, but she insists her feelings are unchanged. But is that true? Is she marrying him out of love or pity? And Polly Chandler's sweetheart, Gavin who'd she'd planned her whole future around, hasn't come home at all. War and suffering have changed their men leaving the women to cope on their own. But they too are changed. They harbour secrets best kept that could do untold damage to these already fragile lives. Praise for Lizzie Lane: 'A gripping saga and a storyline that will keep you hooked' Rosie Goodwin 'The Tobacco Girls is another heartwarming tale of love and friendship and a must-read for all saga fans.' Jean Fullerton 'Lizzie Lane opens the door to a past of factory girls, redolent with life-affirming friendship, drama, and choices that are as relevant today as they were then.' Catrin Collier 'If you want an exciting, authentic historical saga then look no further than Lizzie Lane.' Fenella J Miller

In 2016, the Veterans Benefits Administration (VBA) centralized distribution of the disability compensation claims workload through the National Work Queue, which prioritizes and distributes claims to regional offices based on their capacity; however, there are gaps in VBA's guidance for processing claims with errors. Chapter 1 examines (1) how VBA manages workload and performance for the disability compensation claims process, (2) how well VBA's timeliness and accuracy measures capture its regional offices' performance in processing these claims, and (3) how well selected regional offices communicate with VSOs and congressional caseworkers about these claims. The Department of Veterans Affairs' (VA) plan for implementing a new disability appeals process while attending to appeals in the current process addresses most, but not all, elements required by the Veterans Appeals Improvement and Modernization Act of 2017 (Act). Chapter 2 examines the extent to which VA's plan (1) addresses the required elements in the Act, and (2) reflects sound planning practices identified in prior GAO work. Chapters 3, 4 and 5 focus on the extent to which VA's plan: addresses the required elements in the Act, and reflects sound planning practices previously identified. Chapter 6 examines (1) what is known about the quality and timeliness of VBA contracted exams; (2) the extent to which VBA monitors contractors' performance; and (3) how VBA ensures that its contractors provide qualified and well-trained examiners. Chapter 7 addresses: (1) what is known about the quality and timeliness of VBA contracted exams; (2) the extent to which VBA monitors contractors' performance to ensure that they provide high quality and timely exams; and (3) how VBA ensures that its contractors provide qualified and well-trained examiners.

A TLS and a Prospect Book of the Year A revelatory, explosive new analysis of the military today. Over the first two decades of the twenty-first century, Britain has changed enormously. During this time, the British Army fought two campaigns, in Iraq and Afghanistan, at considerable financial and human cost. Yet neither war achieved its objectives. This book questions why, and provides challenging but necessary answers. Composed from assiduous documentary research, field reportage, and hundreds of interviews with many soldiers and officers who served, as well as the politicians who directed them, the allies who accompanied them, and the family members who loved and - on occasion - lost them, it is a strikingly rich, nuanced portrait of one of our pivotal national institutions in a time of great stress. Award-winning journalist Simon Akam, who spent a year in the army when he was 18, returned a decade later to see how the institution had changed. His book examines the relevance of the armed forces today - their social, economic, political, and cultural role. This is as much a book about Britain, and about the politics of failure, as it is about the military.

Riots and demonstrations, the lifeblood of American social and political protest in the 1960s, are now largely a historical memory. But Mary Fainsod Katzenstein argues that protest has not disappeared--it has simply moved off the streets into the country's core institutions. As a result, conflicts over sexual harassment, affirmative action, and the rights of women, gays and lesbians, and people of color now touch us more than ever in our daily lives, whether we are among those seeking change or those threatened by its prospects. No one is more aware of this than women demanding change from within the United States military and the American Catholic church.

Women in uniform are deeply patriotic and women active in the church are devoted to their callings. Yet Katzenstein shows that these women often feel isolated and demeaned, confronted by challenges as subtle as condescension and as blatant as career obstruction. Although faithful to their institutions, many have proved fearless in their attempts to reshape them. Drawing on interviews with over a hundred women in the military and the church--including senior officers, combat pilots, lay activists, and nuns--this book gives voice to the struggles and vision of these women as they have moved protest into the mainstream.

Katzenstein shows why the military and the church, similarly hierarchical and insistent on obedience, have come to harbor deeply different forms of protest. She demonstrates that women in the military have turned to the courts and Congress, whereas feminists in the church have used "discursive" protests--writing, organizing workshops and conferences--to rethink in radical ways the meanings of faith and justice. These different strategies, she argues, reflect how the law regulates the military but leaves the church alone.

"Faithful and Fearless" calls our attention to protest within institutions as a new stage in the history both of feminism and of social movements in America. The book is an inspiring account of strength in the face of adversity and a groundbreaking contribution to the study of American feminism, social protest, and the historical development of institutions in American society.

Lieutenant Henry O. Flipper was a former slave who rose to become the first African American graduate of West Point. While serving as commissary officer at Fort Davis, Texas, in 1881, he was charged with embezzlement and conduct unbecoming an officer and a gentleman. A court-martial board acquitted Flipper of the embezzlement charge but convicted him of conduct unbecoming. He was then dismissed from the service of the United States. The Flipper case became known as something of an American Dreyfus Affair, emblematic of racism in the frontier army. Because of Flipper's efforts to clear his name, many assumed that he had been railroaded because he was black.In The Fall of a Black Army Officer, Charles M. Robinson III challenges that assumption. In this complete revision of his earlier work, The Court-Martial of Lieutenant Henry Flipper, Robinson finds that Flipper was the author of his own problems. The taint of racism on the Flipper affair became so widely accepted that in 1999 President Bill Clinton issued a posthumous pardon for Flipper. The Fall of a Black Army Officer boldly moves the arguments regarding racism--in both Lt. Flipper's case and the frontier army in general--beyond political correctness. Solidly grounded in archival research, it is a thorough and provocative reassessment of the Flipper affair, at last revealing the truth.