Originally published in 1994, This Working-Day World is lively collection of essays presenting a social, political and cultural view of British women's lives in the period 1914-45. The volume describes women's activities in many different areas, ranging from the weekly wash to the rescue of child refugees. Each essay, from an international list of contributors, is based on new research which will complement existing studies in a range of disciplines by adding information on, among other topics, women's teacher training colleges, and women in the BBC, in medical laboratories and in Art schools. The book does not, however, idealise women: the militarism and racism of the period infected women too, and this is revealed in the account of women in the British Union of Fascists, and the analysis of the Pankhursts' merging of patriotism and gender issues. Through studies and personal accounts, This Working-Day World reveals past issues that are still pertinent to debates in today's society. As we read the chapter on the recently discovered Diary of Doreen Bates which outlines possibly the first female civil servant campaign for rights as a single mother, we hear echoes of issues being discussed today. Indeed, as we approach the end of the century it is a good moment to look back and re-evaluate areas and degrees of progress - or the reverse - in society, and in British women's lives in particular. With its unusual photographs, this accessible and informative collection provides a rich resource for students in twentieth century social and cultural history, and women's studies courses, and an enlightening volume for general readers.

First published in 2006. Routledge is an imprint of Taylor & Francis, an informa company.

'More compelling and more inspiring than the versions we've previously heard' - JOHN NICHOL 'Gripping and fascinating... unforgettable characters and thrilling adventures' - WILL IREDALE The official origin story of the SAS is a myth. This is the real story of how the world's preeminent Special Forces was born. It's a fly-on-the-wall, character-driven story of the origins of a new means of warfare, forged from the wreckage of Dunkirk. It's the birth of subliminal methods - guerrilla Commando units that could inflict devastating 'mosquito stings' on larger, and better-armed opponents. It's a never-before-told account of how the shock of defeat propelled an unlikely group of renegades into the frontline of the war. An adventure that reaches back from the trenches of the Western Front, to high piracy in the deserts of North Africa, to the final assault on Germany. It's a concept that takes shape in the corridors of headquarters, on long nights at the long bar in Shepheard's Hotel in Cairo, and on the deadliest battlefields in history, around a cast of insubordinate mavericks who didn't fit into the tight hierarchy of the armed forces. Flashing between dramatic accounts from the field and back-channel power negotiations in Westminster, reeling in a cast of characters that includes Evelyn Waugh, Ernest Hemingway and Randolph Churchill, as well as a lot of alcohol, amphetamines and grenades, this is the real story of the SAS as you have never seen it before.

This unique book presents an accurate and reliable assessment of the Special Operations Executive (SOE). It brings together leading authors to examine the organization from a range of key angles. This study shows how historians have built on the first international conference on the SOE at the Imperial War Museum in 1998. The release of many records then allowed historians to develop the first authoritative analyses of the organization's activities and several of its agents and staff officers were able to participate. Since this groundbreaking conference, fresh research has continued and its original papers are here amended to take account of the full range of SOE documents that have been released to the National Archives. The fascinating stories they tell range from overviews of work in a single country to particular operations and the impact of key personalities. SOE was a remarkably innovative organization. It played a significant part in the Allied victory while its theories of clandestine warfare and specialised equipment had a major impact upon the post-war world. SOE proved that war need not be fought by conventional methods and by soldiers in uniform. The organization laid much of the groundwork for the development of irregular warfare that characterized the second half of the twentieth century and that is still here, more potent than ever, at the beginning of the twenty-first. This book will be of great interest to students of World War II history, intelligence studies and special operations, as well as general readers with an interest in SOE and World War II.

The Amazon History Book of the Year 2013 is a magisterial chronicle of the calamity that befell Europe in 1914 as the continent shifted from the glamour of the Edwardian era to the tragedy of total war. In 1914, Europe plunged into the 20th century's first terrible act of self-immolation - what was then called The Great War. On the eve of its centenary, Max Hastings seeks to explain both how the conflict came about and what befell millions of men and women during the first months of strife. He finds the evidence overwhelming, that Austria and Germany must accept principal blame for the outbreak. While what followed was a vast tragedy, he argues passionately against the 'poets' view', that the war was not worth winning. It was vital to the freedom of Europe, he says, that the Kaiser's Germany should be defeated. His narrative of the early battles will astonish those whose images of the war are simply of mud, wire, trenches and steel helmets. Hastings describes how the French Army marched into action amid virgin rural landscapes, in uniforms of red and blue, led by mounted officers, with flags flying and bands playing. The bloodiest day of the entire Western war fell on 22 August 1914, when the French lost 27,000 dead. Four days later, at Le Cateau the British fought an extraordinary action against the oncoming Germans, one of the last of its kind in history. In October, at terrible cost they held the allied line against massive German assaults in the first battle of Ypres.The author also describes the brutal struggles in Serbia, East Prussia and Galicia, where by Christmas the Germans, Austrians, Russians and Serbs had inflicted on each other three million casualties. This book offers answers to the huge and fascinating question 'what happened to Europe in 1914?', through Max Hastings's accustomed blend of top-down and bottom-up accounts from a multitude of statesmen and generals, peasants, housewives and private soldiers of seven nations. His narrative pricks myths and offers some striking and controversial judgements. For a host of readers gripped by the author's last international best-seller 'All Hell Let Loose', this will seem a worthy successor.

Fully revised and restructured, the sixth edition of World War II: A Global History offers students a concise and yet thorough textbook that examines history's bloodiest conflict. The chapters alternate between chronological chapters on Europe and Asia-Pacific and thematic chapters on innovations, home fronts, brutal regimes, and logistics. This textbook includes the following features: A lively narrative of facts, events, people, and ideas that incorporates thoughtful analysis New material and restructured content on global factors that affected the causes, conduct, and consequences of World War II Balanced pace that does not bog readers down in too many details yet gives them sufficient depth and breadth for context Chapters, sections, and sidebars arranged in ways that can complement lectures and assignments Fifty new photographs that illustrate the human condition and weaponry during World War II. Global in focus, by blending both geographic and thematic chapters to ensure readers gain a comprehensive understanding of impact of the war worldwide, this is the perfect volume for all students of the biggest global conflict of the twentieth century.

In late 1941, President Roosevelt agonized over the rapid advances of the Japanese forces in Asia; they seemed unstoppable. He foresaw their intentions of taking India and linking up with the two other Axis Powers, Germany and Italy, in an attempt to conquer the Eastern Hemisphere. US naval forces had been surprised and diminished in Pearl Harbor and the army was not only outnumbered but also ill-prepared to take on the invading hoards. One of Roosevelt's few options was to form a defensive line on the eastern side of the Patkai and Himalayan Ranges; there, he could look for support from the Chinese and Burmese. It was the only defence to a Japanese invasion of India. To support and supply the troops who were fighting in hostile jungle terrain, where overland routes had been cut off, he desperately needed to set up an air supply from Eastern India. His problem was lack of aircraft and experienced pilots to fly the dangerous 'Hump, over the world's highest mountains. Hence the inception of Operation Seven Alpha, a plan to enlist the aircraft - DC-3s - and the pilots - veterans of World War One - of American Airlines.This newly formed elite Squadron would fly the medium-range aircraft in a series of long-distance hops across the Pacific and Southern Asia to the Assam Valley in India. They would then create and operate the vital supply route, carrying arms, ammunition and food Eastward to the Allied bases, before returning with wounded personnel. This is the story of that little-known operation, carried out in the early days of the Burma Campaign. The book is based on first-hand experiences of those who were involved, and it serves as a fitting tribute to the bravery and inventiveness of a band of men who answered their country's desperate call at the outset of the war against Japan in Asia.

Robert Kershaw follows up his best-selling account of the Battle of Arnhem from German eyes - It Never Snows in September - to focus on the experiences the Dutch civilians and British and German soldiers in one street fighting to survive at the heart of one of the most intense battles of World War 2. A Street in Arnhem tells the story of the battle of Arnhem in September 1944 from the perspective of what could be seen or heard from the Utrechtseweg, a road that runs seven kilometres from the Arnhem railway station west to Oosterbeek. This stretch of road saw virtually every major event during the fighting for Arnhem during Operation Market-Garden in September 1944. The story is about the disintegration of a wealthy Dutch suburb caught up unexpectedly in the war it had escaped for so long. The war had thus far been kind to Oosterbeek and its swift liberation on 17th September suggested they might well escape the abject misery inflicted on so many other unfortunate European communities. The book charts the steady destruction of a well established and exclusive rural community, where wealthy Dutch holiday makers had relaxed enjoying its rural delights before the war.It was a popular hotel destination. The destruction of this pretty village is charted through the eyes of British, Polish and German soldiers fighting amid its confused and horrified Dutch inhabitants. It portrays a collage of human experiences, sights, sounds, visceral fears and emotion as ordinary people seek to cope when their street is so suddenly and unexpectedly overwhelmed in a savage battle, in which the heaviest weapons of the day were employed. Robert Kershaw's new research reveals the extent to which most people in this battle, whether soldiers or civilians, saw only what was immediately happening to them. They had virtually no idea of what was going on around them. It offers a unique picture of a stable community coping with a disaster progressing through joy, shock, horror, resignation and then despair as their lives are irrevocably ruined by the conflagration bursting over them. Many original Dutch, German and English accounts have been unearthed through interviews, diary accounts and letters. Post combat reports have been discovered charting the same incidents from both sides as well giving the Dutch civilian perspective.The story is told as a docudrama following the fortunes of a number of British, Polish, German and Dutch characters, within a gripping narrative format. This tale will resonate with any reader. Holland had not witnessed conflict since the Napoleonic wars. What happens when your street, where you have lived for generations is suddenly overwhelmed by conflict? A Street in Arnhem tells that story and provides some of the answers.

This thesis examines the doctrinal grounds and different approaches to working out this "new Buddhist tradition," a startling contrast to the teachings of non-violence and compassion which have made Buddhism known as a religion of peace. In scores of articles as war approached in 1936-37, new monks searched and reinterpreted scripture, making controversial arguments for ideas like "compassionate killing" which would justify participating in war.

'A real treasure that we can't stop exploring' - La Republica Felicia Browne decided it was time to put down her paintbrushes and pick up a rifle. Jimmy Yates left Chicago with three books in his bindle, sacrificing them all on the gruelling trek across the Pyrenees. Salaria Kea worked at the front as a nurse, judged by her skill rather than her skin colour... In 1936 something extraordinary happened. As the threat of fascism swept across the Iberian peninsula, thousands of people from all over the world left their families and jobs to heed the call - No Pasaran! History has never seen a wave of solidarity like it. The Spanish Civil War ended in 1939 with the Republic crushed, but the revolutionary dream of the International Brigades has never burnt out. Through these 60 illustrated profiles, Brigadistes embroiders an epic story of political struggle with the everyday bravery, sorrow and love of those who lived it.

This book, the second in a planned three-part series, looks at the remainder of Sankes aviator cards numbered 544-685. Sanke, Liersch and NPG postcards featuring German World War I aviators have been collected, traded, and reproduced in many publications over the years, but no author until now has focused on determining when, where, why, and by whom these pictures were taken, or when and why they were issued as postcards. This work pursues the answers to those questions, and while doing so unfolds like a detective story. At its heart is the vast collection of supportive photographs, including some of the original images behind the postcards - many have rarely, if ever, been viewed by the modern public.

'An Intimate War' tells the story of the last thirty-four years of conflict in Helmand Province, Afghanistan as seen through the eyes of the Helmandis. In the West, this period is often defined through different lenses -- the Soviet intervention, the civil war, the Taliban, and the post-2001 nation-building era. Yet, as experienced by local inhabitants, the Helmand conflict is a perennial one, involving the same individuals, families and groups, and driven by the same arguments over land, water and power. This book -- based on both military and research experience in Helmand and 150 interviews in Pashto -- offers a very different view of Helmand from those in the media. It demonstrates how outsiders have most often misunderstood the ongoing struggle in Helmand and how, in doing so, they have exacerbated the conflict, perpetuated it and made it more violent -- precisely the opposite of what was intended when their interventions were launched. Mike Martin's oral history of Helmand underscores the absolute imperative of understanding the highly local, personal, and non-ideological nature of internal conflict in much of the 'third' world.

Dr. Evans examines the international responses to the ethnic conflicts in Burundi and Rwanda from 1993-1997 and their overspill into Zaire (now the Democratic Republic of Congo). A senior UK diplomat, she concludes that the international response was impotent and incoherent--soundbite diplomacy led decision-makers to act before adequately assessing the situation and in the end it was the power of local rather than international intervention that set the agenda and provided the solution.
The author urges a number of changes in response by the international community: that the UN should create a Conflict Analysis Center at its headquarters in New York; that governments need to promote lateral understanding and co-operation between different players, including the media and the non-governmental organization community; that enlightened outside support can be most valuable when an inexperienced government has just taken over; and that greater understanding is needed on the part of Western states that traditional Western patterns of diplomacy are often inappropriate in other regions. Instead, non-party democracy and a strong element of subregional cooperation may be the models for the future.

This is a comprehensive new operational military history of the Ottoman army during the First World War. Drawing from archives, official military histories, personal war narratives and sizable Turkish secondary literature, it tells the incredible story of the Ottoman army's struggle from the mountains of the Caucasus to the deserts of Arabia and the bloody shores of Gallipoli. The Ottoman army, by opening new fronts, diverted and kept sizeable units of British, Russian and French forces away from the main theatres and even sent reinforcements to Austro-Hungary and Bulgaria. Against all odds the Ottoman army ultimately achieved some striking successes, not only on the battlefield, but in their total mobilization of the empire's meagre human and economic resources. However, even by the terrible standards of the First World War, these achievements came at a terrible price in casualties and, ultimately, loss of territory. Thus, instead of improving the integrity and security of the empire, the war effectively dismantled it and created situations and problems hitherto undreamed of by a besieged Ottoman leadership. In a unique account, Uyar revises our understanding of the war in the Middle East.

From highly respected field academic Gordon Martel, The World War Two Reader is a rare work that provides a complete and up-to-date overview of the recent historiography on World War Two.

Huge in scope, both geographically and thematically, this excellent reader examines twenty-one articles by some of the best known and most innovative scholars in the field. Taking a global approach, Martel discusses all aspects of the war including:

• the military aspect
• the political and strategic backdrop
• ideology
• gender and women 's roles
• the home front
• social aspects.

Including a comprehensive introduction, chronology, guides to key terms and figures, and introductions to chapters providing context and historiographical background, The World War Two Reader provides wide ranging and innovative reading for all students of the history of the modern world.

The soldiers of the Red Army identified the Reichstag as the victor's prize to be taken in Berlin. This account of the battle lays the many myths created by Soviet propaganda after the event to rest and details what exactly happened as the Red Army and the Allies raced to be the first at the Reichstag.

This is the first book to describe British wartime success in breaking Japanese codes of dazzling variety and great complexity which contributed to the victory in Burma three months before Hiroshima. Written for the general reader, this first-hand account describes the difficulty of decoding one of the most complex languages in the world in some of the most difficult conditions. The book was published in 1989 to avoid proposed legislation which would prohibit those in the security services from publishing secret information.

The past is brought to life in this historical epic about a South African family whose lives collided with the biggest event in history: The First World War. The central theme is the largely forgotten east Africa campaign, but by definition a world war has a wide reach. Five members of one family with deep roots in all four corners of the country, served in three different theatres of war. Their lives on active service are all interwoven and inseparable from the home front. Global events are juxtaposed with everyday life on a farm in the eastern Orange Free State. Appropriately, the author constructs linkages that span generations, uncovering individual experiences of an earlier conflict which had engulfed South Africa barely a decade before the eruption of the 1914-18 war. As the sons of early pioneers, this generation witnessed history in the making before writing their own. Riding into action on horseback or in a flying machine, their paths led from the south west African desert, through disease-infested jungles in east Africa to some of the great battles on the western front. Only one of the five came home unscathed although he crash-landed his aircraft behind enemy lines and only made it back through his audacity and brute strength. Another, an intellectual priest, was left for dead at Delville Wood, and his brother was wounded on Messines Ridge. The remaining two suffered from debilitating tropical illnesses. Hazard and hardship lingered on in the form of Spanish in influenza, mining strikes and the Great Depression. The war cast a long shadow. Between them, these consciously literate men left substantial documentary legacies. Using extracts of their letters from the front, the story is to a large extent told in the words of those who were there. Context is provided by referencing existing literature, unpublished memoirs and archival material. It could be called a military history or a social history, but it is a truly South African story which contains much new material for historians, while for the general reader it offers an accessible insight into an unparalleled period of history.

The commands, units and leaders of the General SS are finally compiled into a single detailed reference book for both the historian and SS memorabilia collector. This complete volume begins with an explanation of the twelve administrative and command main offices involving the SS to include the development, components and functions of each, as well as their respective office chiefs. The following section explores the most powerful posts in the SS, the Higher SS and Police Leaders, along with the subordinate SS and Police Leaders found in occupied territories - both the commands and the individual holder of these posts are examined in depth. The SS Main Districts are covered next including all their various subordinate components, title changes, development, commanders and chiefs of staff. The more than forty SS Districts follow, detailed in a similar format. Examining the more than one-hundred and twenty-five SS Foot Regiments in the General SS, the names and ranks of the hundreds of commaners, as well as details of unit location changes, popular and honor titles as well as other data for each are within a separate chapter. Finally, the elite SS Riding Districts and Regiments are covered similarly. Career biographies are included for more than two hundred senior SS commanders, many of whom served portions of their career in the Waffen-SS, Polizei, SD and other facets of Himmler's commands. The biographical data for individuals alone adds vast detail to this fascinating topic. Along with more than 120 rare photos of SS senior ranking officers and seven maps, a detailed index allows referencing of individual commands or personalities. Mark Yerger is also the author of Riding East, The SS Cavalry Brigade in Poland and Russia 1939-1942; Images of the Waffen-SS, Chronicle of Germany's Elite Troops; and a biography of SS-Strumbannfuhrer Ernst August Krag (all three titles are available from Schiffer Publishing Ltd.).

With the same drama and excitement as Panzer Aces, Panzer Aces II relates the combat careers of six more decorated German Panzer officers. Extensively researched, these gripping accounts follow the men and their tanks across three continents into some of World War II's bloodiest engagements. They campaigned with Rommel in the deserts of North Africa, participated in the monumental tank battle at Kursk, and, maneuvering only by muzzle flashes, fought frightening small-unit contests in the dark of night. Master tacticians and gutsy leaders, these men, including Hermann von Oppeln-Bronikowski, Kurt Knispel, Karl Nicolussi-Leck, and others, are legends.

Alexander the Great was one of the most brilliant generals the world has ever known. His campaigns included the conquest of the ancient Persian Empire, which lifted his Macedonian kingdom from the level of city-state and onto the world stage. This book provides a fascinating insight into his military achievements.