This book, first published in 1980, is an invaluable assessment of SOE's contribution to the Allied victory. From both first-hand knowledge (Howarth served with SOE for 4 years) and in-depth research, this book traces the development of the organisation and its successes and failures. By bringing to life some of the outstanding men and women who served in SOE, this book pays tribute to their bravery and examines their role in fomenting and supporting clandestine resistance against the Nazi regime.

This book, first published in 1985, examines various aspects of the intellectual achievements of writers and artists in the Vichy period; a strong emphasis on the ambiguity of much of their work emerges from the research. It goes a long way in answering the question of what it was like living under the fascist Vichy regime, and what the collaborators and resistance thought about their purpose and patriotism.

This book, first published in 1946, collects documents illustrating the foreign policy of the Soviet Union during the Second World War. They show how the fighting alliance of the USSR, Britain and the USA came into being and grew stronger, how relations were restored with other anti-Nazi countries, and how diplomatic relations were extended between the USSR and hitherto un-connected countries. The collection of three parts of translated documents: statements and speeches made by Stalin; documents, treaties, agreements; appendices including press statements and telegrams.

This book, first published in 1946, collects documents illustrating the foreign policy of the Soviet Union during the Second World War. They show how the fighting alliance of the USSR, Britain and the USA came into being and grew stronger, how relations were restored with other anti-Nazi countries, and how diplomatic relations were extended between the USSR and hitherto un-connected countries. The collection of three parts of translated documents: statements and speeches made by Stalin; documents, treaties, agreements; appendices including press statements and telegrams.

This book, first published in 1969, discusses objectively the tragic wartime position of Poland, having both the Nazis and Soviets as enemies - the war opened with the country being invaded by both. The book examines the work of the Polish underground army (Home Army) and its cooperation with SOE in providing intelligence of German movements - plans for attacking the Soviet Union, and experiments with V2 rockets. It also gives special attention to the Warsaw Rising and the political and military problems connected with it.

This book, first published in 1986, examines the American economic aid that was a vital factor in enabling Britain's success in the Second World War. Whilst Lend-Lease did keep the British war effort alive, the agreement was always a source of great friction between the two countries. This book argues that although Lend-Lease solved Britain's wartime supply problems, the price was the acceptance of a series of burdens that seriously aggravated the country's long-term economic decline.

This book, first published in 1946, analyses the state of the world at the close of the Second World War. Global power was passing from Britain to the United States and the Soviet Union, with the US being involved in every part of the world, Russia dominant in eastern Europe and the world looked a very uncertain place. This survey of the main three powers examines their changing conditions and foreign policies.

This book, first published in 1942, examines the economic necessities, defensive and offensive, basic and strategic, involved in waging war. Written with total global war raging, it analyses the unprecedented demands placed on the economic system of a nation, and looks at the great shifts of productive effort and limits on consumption that were needed.

This new approach to the history of the Second World War, first published in 1990, examines the events of this period through the cartoons of the day. Roy Douglas explains the messages behind the humour and reveals that the perception of war differed radically from country to country. This collection highlights the importance of the media in this global war. 'An authoritative narrative about what inspired the artists to take to their pens and papers... By putting it all into perspective, the poignancy, and often the brilliance of the political cartoonist is shown to the reader... Douglas's historical narrative adds to the enjoyment.' West Coast Review of Books 'Douglas's valuable book uses the political cartoon as historical mirror... The book is very important for its attempt to correlate visual media with national policy at a crucial period in recent history.' Choice

This book, first published in 1986, examines the wartime evacuation of children in Britain from their homes in cities to safety in the countryside. It analyses the social impact of the separation on parents and children, and teases out of the official records the origins and assumptions of evacuation planning. It examines the aims, implementation and evolution of the evacuation policy, its success or failure and its effect upon post-war social planning in Britain.

This book, first published in 1942, covers the whole field of wartime life and organization. Is the private ownership and control of industry holding up production? Are the burdens of war being shared equally by the whole community? How can individual liberty be reconciled with maximum efficiency? Are women taking their rightful share in the national effort? Does our literature and art reflect the spirit of an aroused and determined people? Have we a message which will win the oppressed peoples of Europe to our side? These questions are frankly discussed and positive suggestions are made.

This book, first published in 1967, examines the foundations and the substance of the Montgomery Legend. His appearance upon the scene in the Western Desert coincided with a change in warfare as 'ironmongery replaced generalship', as General Fuller observed, and with Montgomery's victories came a British need for a Champion for all to see. The public needed a Hero as Britain's time on the ropes ended, and it was also politically necessary, lest Britain be swamped by the power of its allies.

The Sunday Times top 10 bestseller With a foreword by King Charles III. 'A stunningly moving book about the power of hope and love to overcome the very worst of mankind' - Piers Morgan When Holocaust survivor Lily Ebert was liberated in 1945, a Jewish-American soldier gave her a banknote on which he'd written 'Good luck and happiness'. And when her great-grandson, Dov, decided to use social media to track down the family of the GI, 96-year-old Lily found herself making headlines round the world. Lily had promised herself that if she survived Auschwitz she would tell everyone the truth about the camp. Now was her chance. In Lily's Promise she writes movingly about her happy childhood in Hungary, the death of her mother and two youngest siblings on their arrival at Auschwitz in 1944 and her determination to keep her two other sisters safe. She describes the inhumanity of the camp and the small acts of defiance that gave her strength. From there she and her sisters became slave labour in a munitions factory, and then faced a death march that they barely survived. Lily lost so much, but she built a new life for herself and her family, first in Israel and then in London. It wasn't easy; the pain of her past was always with her, but this extraordinary woman found the strength to speak out in the hope that such evil would never happen again. 'Utterly compelling, heartbreaking, truthful and yet redemptive, a memoir of the Holocaust, a testimony of irrepressible spirit and an unforgettable family chronicle, written in lucid prose by a truly remarkable woman about her life from Hungary to Auschwitz, Israel to London. I couldn't stop reading it.' - Simon Sebag Montefiore

A fascinating exploration of how between February 1 and March 10, 1942, three small US task forces launched several unexpected raids across the Japanese defensive perimeter in the Central and South Pacific. After the devastating Japanese blows of December 1941, the Allies found themselves reeling with defeat everywhere in the Pacific. Although stripped of his battleships and outnumbered 10:3 in carriers, the US Navy commander-in-chief Admiral Ernest J. King decided to hit back at Japan's rapidly expanding Pacific empire immediately, in an effort to keep the Japanese off-balance. On February 1, 1942, Vice Admiral Bill Halsey led the US Pacific Fleet carriers on their first raid, using high-speed hit-and-run tactics to strike at the Japanese, at a time when most of the Japanese carrier fleet was in the Indian Ocean. Halsey's aggressive commitment inspired its American participants to invent the mythical "Haul Ass With Halsey" club. The last of the 1942 US carrier raids in March 1942 would form a defining moment in the Pacific War, prior to a new phase of high-seas battles between the opposing fleets. This superbly illustrated book documents for the first time in a single volume this little-known but important World War II naval campaign. The fabulous illustrations, including maps and colour artworks, bring to life the US air and naval raids on the Japanese bases in the Marshall and Gilbert Islands, Rabaul, Wake Island, Marcus Island, and Lae and Salamaua in northern New Guinea.

In Central Europe, limited success in revisiting the role of science in the segregation of Roma reverberates with the yet-unmet call for contextualizing the impact of ideas on everyday racism. This book attempts to interpret such a gap as a case of epistemic injustice. It underscores the historical role of ideas in race-making and provides analytical lenses for exploring cross-border transfers of whiteness in Central Europe. In the case of Roma, the scientific argument in favor of segregation continues to play an outstanding role due to a long-term focus on the limited educability of Roma. The authors trace the long-term interrelation between racializing Roma and the adaptation by Central European scholars of theories legitimizing segregation against those considered non-white, conceived as unable to become educated or "civilized." Along with legitimizing segregation, sterilization and even extermination, theorizing ineducability has laid the groundwork for negating the capacity of Roma as subjects of knowledge. Such negation has hindered practices of identity and quite literally prevented Roma in Central Europe from becoming who they are. This systematic epistemic injustice still echoes in contemporary attempts to historicize Roma in Central Europe. The authors critically investigate contemporary approaches to historicize Roma as reproducing whiteness and inevitably leading to various forms of epistemic injustice. The methodological approach herein conceptualizes critical whiteness as a practice of epistemic justice targeted at providing a sustainable platform for reflecting upon the impact of the past on the contemporary situation of Roma.

Using specially commissioned artwork and detailing technical specifications, this book explores the Bf 109's different roles occasioned by wartime necessity, from its employment as a fighter to its evolution as a fighter-bomber. One of the principal types in the Luftwaffe's inventory at the beginning of World War II, the piston-engined Bf 109 was central to the many initial victories that the Germans achieved before coming up against the unbeatable RAF during the Battle of Britain. Nevertheless, by the second half of 1940 the Bf 109's operability was widened due to operational needs and it was flown as a fighter-bomber for precision attacks in Southern England. At first ad hoc conversions were made 'in the field' to allow the aircraft to carry a bomb or extra fuel tank. Such modifications were soon formalised by Messerschmitt, which created the Jabo Bf 109s. Drawing from pilots' first-hand accounts, author Malcolm V. Lowe explores the number of specialised units, including Lehrgeschwader 2 and dedicated fighter-bomber sections of standard fighter units such as 10. Staffel of Jagdgeschwader 26, which flew this highly specialised fighter-bomber. Including technical specifications, rare photographs and outstanding artwork, this book explores the Jabo versions of the Bf 109E, F and G both on the production line and with the addition of Rustsatze field conversion kits.

The book tells the story of a little known artillery regiment, the 155th (Lanarkshire Yeomanry) Field Regiment, RA which saw constant action during the ill-fated Malayan Campaign of 1941/42 and whose members later experienced the worst kind of hell as POWs of a cruel and bestial enemy. Following the Japanese invasion of Malaya, the Regiment fought a brave and resolute rearguard action all the way down the Malayan Peninsular and onto the so called impregnable fortress of Singapore. Held in the highest respect by comrades and foe alike, this former territorial cavalry regiment fully deserved its Royal Artillery moto - Ubigue - 'everywhere'. In the years that followed, the Gunners slaved, suffered an d died on the infamous Burma Railway, in copper mines of Formosa and camps throughout the Far East. More men of the Regiment died as POWs than fell in action. They should not be forgotten. Included is a full nominal roll which allows the reader to identify the camp/s where each individual Gunner was held. A Roll of Honour provides the date, place and cause of death and place of burial/commemoration of the Regiment's casualties.

Celebrated military historian James Holland chronicles the experiences in World War II of the legendary tank unit, the Sherwood RangersIn the annals of World War II, certain groups of soldiers stand out, and among the most notable were the Sherwood Rangers. Originally a cavalry unit in the last days of horses in combat, whose officers were landed gentry leading men who largely worked for them, they were switched to the "mechanized cavalry" of tanks in 1942. Winning acclaim in the North African campaign, the Sherwood Rangers then spearheaded one of the D-Day landings in Normandy on June 6, 1944, led the way across France, were the first British troops to cross into Germany, and contributed mightily to Germany's surrender in May 1945. Inspired by Stephen Ambrose's Band of Brothers, acclaimed WWII historian James Holland memorably profiles an extraordinary group of citizen soldiers constantly in harm's way. Their casualties were horrific, but their ranks immediately refilled. Informed by never-before-seen documents, letters, photographs, and other artifacts from Sherwood Rangers' families--an ongoing fraternity--and by his own deep knowledge of the war, Holland offers a uniquely intimate portrait of the war at ground level, introducing heretofore unknowns such as Commanding Officer Stanley Christopherson, squadron commander John Semken, and Sergeant George Dring, and other memorable characters who helped the regiment become the single unit with the most battle honors of any ever in the British army. He weaves the Sherwood Rangers' exploits into the larger narrative and strategy of the war, and also brings fresh analysis to the tactics used. Following the Sherwood Rangers' brutal journey over the dramatic eleven months between D-Day and V-E Day, Holland presents a vivid and original perspective on the endgame of WWII in Europe.

First Published in 1981. The objective of this study is to reconstruct the difficulty faced by American and British policy-makers in 'determining the capabilities and intentions' of their two main wartime allies regarding the Middle East. Specifically, it seeks to explore the role of great power relations in the Middle East in the breakdown of the wartime alliance and in the origins of the Cold War.

A compelling and in-depth history of one of the world's greatest armoured warfare commanders, Hermann Balck (1897-1982). During World War II, Balck commanded panzer troops from the front line and led by example, putting himself in extreme danger when rallying his soldiers to surge forward. He fought battles that were masterpieces of tactical operations, utilizing speed, surprise and a remarkable ability to motivate his men to achieve what they considered to be impossible. We follow his journey through the fields of France, mountains of Greece and steppes of Russia. In Greece, through flair and innovative leadership, his soldiers overcame every obstacle to defeat determined Australian and New Zealand soldiers defending the narrow mountain passes. Balck personally led his men to victory in battles at Platamon Ridge on the Aegean coast and in the Vale of Tempe, before entering Athens. This is also the story of a cultured and complex man with a great love of antiquity and classical literature, who nevertheless willingly fought for Hitler's Third Reich while remaining strangely detached from the horrors around him. The book is the result of extensive research of primary and secondary sources, including Balck's battle reports and first-hand accounts written by Allied soldiers who opposed him, panzer division war diaries and campaign assessments, and declassified Pentagon documents.

German Heavy Anti-Tank Unit 653 was equipped with the heaviest tank destroying vehicles of the German armed forces. Initially activated as an assault gun battalion and redesignated in April 1943, the 653 received its first Ferdinand heavy tank destroyers (later modified and renamed Elephants) in May 1943 and went into action on the Eastern Front a month later. In 1944, the unit converted to the even more massive Jagdtiger. The seventy-five-ton, heavily armored Jagdtiger was the behemoth of the battlefield and boasted a 128mm gun-as opposed to the Ferdinand's 88-with a range of more than thirteen miles, making it deadly despite its limited mobility. Outfitted with these lethal giants, the 653 saw service in Russia, Italy, Austria, and Germany. The Combat History of German Heavy Anti-Tank Unit 653 in World War II includes hundreds of photos, many never published before, of Germany's rarely seen tank destroyers, including the Ferdinand, Elephant, and Jagdtiger. Color illustrations focus on unit markings, numbering, and camouflage, and the accompanying text chronicles the unit's combat operations as well as personal accounts from the men who rode in these mechanical monsters.

A New York Times bestseller, The Conquerors reveals how Franklin Roosevelt's and Harry Truman's private struggles with their aides and Winston Churchill and Joseph Stalin affected the unfolding of the Holocaust and the fate of vanquished Nazi Germany.

With monumental fairness and balance, The Conquerors shows how Roosevelt privately refused desperate pleas to speak out directly against the Holocaust, to save Jewish refugees and to explore the possible bombing of Auschwitz to stop the killing. The book also shows FDR's fierce will to ensure that Germany would never threaten the world again. Near the end of World War II, he abruptly endorsed the secret plan of his friend, Treasury Secretary Henry Morgenthau, to reduce the Germans to a primitive existence -- despite Churchill's fear that crushing postwar Germany would let the Soviets conquer the continent. The book finally shows how, after FDR's death, President Truman rebelled against Roosevelt's tough approach and adopted the Marshall Plan and other more conciliatory policies that culminated in today's democratic, united Europe.

'A fascinating, superbly researched and revelatory book - told with tremendous pace and excitement' William Boyd 'Rick Stroud writes brilliantly about war ... an astonishing book ... a wonderful story' Ben Macintyre 'Enthralling, edge-of-smart exciting and also heart-breaking...Stroud's book is a reminder and fitting testimony to their immense bravery' James Holland On 18 June 1940 General de Gaulle broadcast from London to his countrymen in France about the catastrophe that had overtaken their nation - the victory of the invading Germans. He declared: 'The flame of French Resistance must not and will not be extinguished.' The Resistance began almost immediately. At first it was made up of small, disorganised groups working in isolation. But by the time of the liberation in 1944 around 400,000 French citizens, nearly 2 per cent of the population, were involved. The Special Operations Executive (SOE) set up by Winston Churchill in 1941 saw its role in France as helping the Resistance by recruiting and organising guerrilla fighters; supplying and training them; and then disrupting the invaders by any means necessary. The aim of this work was to prepare for the invasion of Europe by Allied forces and the eventual liberation of France. It was soon decided that women would play a vital role. There were 39 female agents recruited from all walks of life, ranging from a London shop assistant to a Polish aristocrat. They all knew France well, were fluent in French and were prepared to sacrifice everything. The women trained alongside the men, learning how to disappear into the background, how to operate a radio transmitter and how to kill a man with their bare hands. Once trained, they were infiltrated behind the lines; some went on to lead thousands of Resistance fighters, while others were arrested, brutally interrogated and sent to concentration camps. Lonely Courage tells their remarkable story and sheds new light on what life was really like for these brave women.