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Books > Social sciences > Warfare & defence
Eva Tichauer was born in Berlin at the end of the First World War
into a socialist Jewish family. After a happy childhood in a
well-off intellectual milieu, the destiny of her family was turned
upside-down by the rise of Hitler in 1933. They emigrated to Paris
in July of that year, and life started to become difficult. Eva was
in her second year of medical studies in 1939 when war was
declared, with fatal consequences for her and her family: they sere
forced to the Spanish frontier, then returned to Paris to a flat
which had been searched by the Gestapo. Eva was then compelled to
break off her studies due to a quota system being imposed on Jewish
students.
The Second World War affected the lives and shaped the experience
of millions of individuals in Germany--soldiers at the front,
women, children and the elderly sheltering in cellars, slave
laborers toiling in factories, and concentration-camp prisoners and
POWs clearing rubble in the Reich's devastated cities.
Taking a "history from below" approach, the volume examines how
the minds and behaviour of individuals were moulded by the Party as
the Reich took the road to Total War. The ever-increasing numbers
of German workers conscripted into the Wehrmacht were replaced with
forced foreign workers and slave labourers and concentration camp
prisoners. The interaction in everyday life between German civilian
society and these coerced groups is explored, as is that society's
relationship to the Holocaust.
From early 1943, the war on the home front was increasingly
dominated by attack from the air. The role of the Party,
administration, police, and courts in providing for the vast
numbers of those rendered homeless, in bolstering civilian morale
with "miracle revenge weapons" propaganda, and in maintaining order
in a society in disintegration is reviewed in detail.
For society in uniform, the war in the east was one of ideology
and annihilation, with intensified indoctrination of the troops
after Stalingrad. The social profile of this army is analysed
through study of a typical infantry division. The volume concludes
with an account of the various forms of resistance to Hitler's
regime, in society and the military, culminating in the failed
attempt on his life in July 1944.
This text considers the relationship between the Royal Navy and the
US Navy during the years 1917-1919.
The Royal Navy had most of its greatest triumphs in the decades up
to 1815, but there has been relatively little study of its social
life and shipboard administration, beyond popular myth and
sensational accounts. This volume starts with the formal structure
of naval discipline, with Admiralty instructions and captains'
orderbooks. It then looks at how things really happened, using
diaries, medical journals, petitions, court martial reports and
even the menu book of a semi-literate steward. It reveals many
strong characters and colourful incidents of shipboard life, while
providing material for study.
Master historian Edwin P. Hoyt depicts with graphic and gripping
detail the conflict between revolutionary Texas and the Mexican
government determined to rule. In the first paperback edition of a
highly acclaimed history, Hoyt describes the well-known historical
facts of the revolution, the pivotal siege of the Alamo, and the
decisive aftermath, and fills them with new life. By merging a
multitude of authoritative accounts of this turbulent period and
the bloody clashes that shaped it, Hoyt paints a dynamic portrait
of Texas rebels and Mexican authorities locked in a struggle over
the fate of an untamed land. Fully illustrated with more than 120
black and white and full color images, The Alamo reveals the entire
spectrum of Texas's determined bid for independence. Read of the
triumph, passion, and tragedy of the valiant yet doomed defenders
of the old Spanish mission.
From Cabinda in Angola to Dar es Salaam in Tanzania, 4 Reconnaissance Regiment conducted numerous clandestine seaborne raids during the Border War. They attacked strategic targets such as oil facilities, transport infrastructure and even Russian ships. All the while 4 Recce’s existence and capability was largely kept
secret, even within the South African Defence Force.
With unparalleled access to previously top secret documents, 50 operations undertaken by 4 Recce, other Special Forces units and the South African Navy are described here in Iron Fist From The Sea. The daunting Operation Kerslig (1981), in which an operator died in a raid on a Luanda oil refinery and others were injured, is retold in spine-tingling detail. The book reveals the versatility and effectiveness of this elite unit and also tells of both the successes and failures of its actions. Sometimes missions go wrong, as in Operation Argon (1985) when Captain Wynand Du Toit was captured. This fascinating work will enthrall anyone with an interest in Special Forces operations.
Iron Fist From The Sea takes you right to the raging surf, to the adrenalin and fear that is seaborne raiding.
Although millions of Russians lived as serfs until the middle of
the nineteenth century, little is known about their lives.
Identifying and documenting the conditions of Russian serfs has
proven difficult because the Russian state discouraged literacy
among the serfs and censored public expressions of dissent. To date
scholars have identified only twenty known Russian serf narratives.
Four Russian Serf Narratives contains four of these accounts and is
the first translated collection of autobiographies by serfs.
Scholar and translator John MacKay brings to light for an
English-language audience a diverse sampling of Russian serf
narratives, ranging from an autobiographical poem to stories of
adventure and escape. Autobiography (1785) recounts a highly
educated serf s attempt to escape to Europe, where he hoped to
study architecture. The long testimonial poem News About Russia
(ca. 1849) laments the conditions under which the author and his
fellow serfs lived. In The Story of My Life and Wanderings (1881) a
serf tradesman tells of his attempt to simultaneously escape
serfdom and captivity from Chechen mountaineers. The fragmentary
Notes of a Serf Woman (1911) testifies to the harshness of peasant
life with extraordinary acuity and descriptive power. These
accounts offer readers a glimpse, from the point of view of the
serfs themselves, into the realities of one of the largest systems
of unfree labor in history. The volume also allows comparison with
slave narratives produced in the United States and elsewhere,
adding an important dimension to knowledge of the institution of
slavery and the experience of enslavement in modern times."
This study deals with the phenomenon of genocide denialism, and in
particular how it operates in the context of the genocide against
the Tutsi. The term genocide denialism denotes that we are not
dealing with a single act or type of (genocide) denial but with a
more elaborate process of denial that involves a variety of
denialist and denial-like acts that are part of the process of
genocide. From this study it becomes clear that the process of
genocide thrives on a more elaborate denial dynamic than recognized
in expert literature until now. This study consists of three parts.
The first theoretical part analyses what the elements of denial and
genocide entail and how they are (inter)related. The exploration
results in a typology of genocide denialism. This model clarifies
the different functions denial performs throughout the process of
genocide. It furthermore explains how actors engage in denial and
on which rhetorical devices speech acts of denial rely. The second
part of the study focuses on denial in practice and it analyses how
denial operates in the particular case of the genocide against the
Tutsi. The analysis reveals a complex denial dynamic: not only
those who perpetrated the genocide are involved in its denial, but
also certain Western scholars, journalists, lawyers, etc. The
latter were originally not involved in the genocide but recycle
(elements of) the denial discourse of the perpetrators. The study
addresses the implications of such recycling and discusses whether
these actors actually have become involved in the genocidal
process. This sheds light on the complex relationship between
genocide and denial. The insights gained throughout the first two
parts of this study have significant implications for many other
actors that through their actions engage with the flow of meaning
concerning the specific events in Rwanda or genocide in general.
The final part of this study critically reflects on the actions of
a variety of actors and their significance in terms of genocide
denialism. These actors include scholars from various fields, human
rights organisations, the ICTR, and the government of Rwanda. On a
more fundamental level this study critically highlights how the
revisionist scientific climate, in which knowledge and truth claims
are constantly questioned, is favourable to genocide denialism and
how the post-modern turn in academia has exacerbated this climate.
Ultimately, this study reveals that the phenomenon of genocide
denial involves more than perpetrators denying their genocidal
crimes and the scope of actors and actions relevant in terms of
genocide denialism is much broader than generally assumed.
Traditional analyses of global security cannot explain the degree
to which there is "governance" of important security issues - from
combatting piracy to curtailing nuclear proliferation to reducing
the contributions of extractive industries to violence and
conflict. They are even less able to explain why contemporary
governance schemes involve the various actors and take the many
forms they do. Juxtaposing the insights of scholars writing about
new modes of governance with the logic of network theory, The New
Power Politics offers a framework for understanding contemporary
security governance and its variation. The framework rests on a
fresh view of power and how it works in global politics. Though
power is integral to governance, it is something that emerges from,
and depends on, relationships. Thus, power is dynamic; it is
something that governors must continually cultivate with a wide
range of consequential global players, and how a governor uses
power in one situation can have consequences for her future
relationships, and thus, future power. Understanding this new power
politics is crucial for explaining and shaping the future of global
security politics. This stellar group of scholars analyzes both the
networking strategies of would-be governors and their impacts on
the effectiveness of governance and whether it reflects broad or
narrow concerns on a wide range of contemporary governance issues.
Constructing the Holocaust examines the development of Holocaust
historiography in the light of recent critical philosophy of
history. It argues that the Holocaust provides both the occasion
for, and the ultimate test of, new ways of giving meaning to the
past. It also shows that examining our representations of the past
is as important as archival research for understanding history.
The Vietnam War remains a topic of extraordinary interest,
especially in light of the invasion of Iraq. In The Vietnam War,
Mark Lawrence offers readers a superb short account of this key
moment in U.S. as well as world history, based on the latest
European and American research and on newly opened archives in
China, Russia, and Vietnam. While focusing on the American
involvement from 1965 to 1975, Lawrence offers an unprecedentedly
complete picture of all sides of the war, drawing on now available
communist records to capture the complicated brew of motivations
that drove the other side. Moreover, the book reaches back well
before American forces set foot in Vietnam, describing for instance
how French colonialism sparked the 1945 Vietnamese revolution, and
revealing how the Cold War concerns of the 1950s warped
Washington's perception of Vietnam, leading the United States to
back the French and eventually become involved on the ground
itself. Of course, the heart of the book is the "American war,"
ranging from the overthrow of Ngo Dinh Diem to the impact of the
Tet Offensive on the political situation in the US, Johnson's
withdrawal from the 1968 presidential race, Nixon's expansion of
the war into Cambodia and Laos, and the final peace agreement of
1973, which ended American military involvement. Finally, the book
examines the aftermath of the war, from the momentous
liberalization-"Doi Moi"-in Vietnam that began in 1986, to the
enduring legacy of the war in American books, films, and political
debate. A quick and reliable primer on an intensely relevant topic,
this well researched and engaging volume offers an invaluable
overview of the Vietnam War.
Explore the Civil War history of West Virginia's Coal River Valley.
Five daring escapes carried out by the famous fighting force during WWII.
From the infamous 1944 desert campaign to the unforgiving terrain of the Vosges Mountains; from a perilous escape across Europe aided by Resistance networks to three Captains fleeing an Italian Prisoner of War camp in 1943, and a death-defying return to Britain via boat, tunnel and train.
These inspirational true stories bring to life the do-or-die spirit of the SAS, as they faced an enemy hell-bent on wreaking vengeance.
Damien Lewis has worked closely with World War Two veterans and the families of those portrayed, accessing never-before-seen wartime diaries, letters, mission reports, interrogation transcripts and more, to reveal terrifying yet astounding feats of survival from the band of elite soldiers.
The American Civil War shaped the course of the country's history
and its national identity. This is no less true for the state of
Arkansas. Throughout the Natural State, people have paid homage and
remembrance to those who fought and what was fought for in memorial
celebrations and rituals. The memory of the war has been kept alive
by reunions and preservationists, continuing to shape the way the
War Between the States affects Arkansas and its people. Historian
W. Stuart Towns expertly tells the story of Arkansas's Civil War
heritage through its rituals of memorial, commemoration and
celebration that continue today.
It is the most famous speech Lincoln ever gave, and one of the most
important orations in the history of the nation. Delivered on
November 19, 1863, among the freshly dug graves of the Union dead,
the Gettysburg Address defined the central meaning of the Civil War
and gave cause for the nation's incredible suffering. The poetic
language and moral sentiment inspired listeners at the time, and
have continued to resonate powerfully with groups and individuals
up to the present day. What gives this speech its enduring
significance? This collection of essays, from some of the
best-known scholars in the field, answers that question. Placing
the Address in complete historical and cultural context and
approaching it from a number of fresh perspectives, the volume
first identifies how Lincoln was influenced by great thinkers on
his own path toward literary and oratory genius. Among others,
Nicholas P. Cole draws parallels between the Address and classical
texts of Antiquity and John Stauffer considers Lincoln's knowledge
of the King James Bible and Shakespeare. The second half of the
collection then examines the many ways in which the Gettysburg
Address has been interpreted, perceived, and utilized in the past
150 years. Since 1863, African Americans, immigrants, women, gay
rights activists, and international figures have invoked the
speech's language and righteous sentiments on their respective
paths toward freedom and equality. Essays include Louis P. Masur on
the role the Address played in eventual emancipation; Jean H. Baker
on the speech's importance to the women's rights movement; and Don
H. Doyle on the Address's international legacy. Lincoln spoke at
Gettysburg in a defining moment for America, but as the essays in
this collection attest, his message is universal and timeless. This
work brings together the foremost experts in the field to
illuminate the many ways in which that message continues to endure.
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Why War?
(Paperback)
Richard Overy
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R295
R263
Discovery Miles 2 630
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Why has warfare always been part of the human story?
From biology to belief, what explains the persistence of violent
conflict?
What light can this shed on humanity’s past – and its future?
There can be few more important but also more contentious issues than
attempting to understand the human propensity for conflict. Our history
is inextricably tangled in wave after wave of inter-human fighting from
as far back as we have records.
Repeatedly humans have foresworn war, have understood its appalling
risks and have wished to create more pacific, productive societies. And
yet almost inevitably circumstances emerge under which war once more
seems inevitable or even desirable
How can we make sense of what Einstein called 'the dark places of human
will and feeling'? Richard Overy draws on a lifetime's study of
conflict to write this challenging account of how we can understand the
causes of war. Looking at every facet of war from biology to belief,
psychology to security, Overy allows readers to understand the many
contradictory or self-reinforcing ways in which warfare can suddenly
appear a legitimate option, and why it is likely to be part of our
future as well as our past.
Sacred Justice is a cross-genre book that uses narrative, memoir,
unpublished letters, and other primary and secondary sources to
tell the story of a group of Armenian men who organized Operation
Nemesis, a covert operation created to assassinate the Turkish
architects of the Armenian Genocide. The leaders of Operation
Nemesis took it upon themselves to seek justice for their murdered
families, friends, and compatriots. Sacred Justice includes a large
collection of previously unpublished letters, found in the upstairs
study of the author's grandfather, Aaron Sachaklian, one of the
leaders of Nemesis, that show the strategies, personalities, plans,
and dedication of Soghomon Tehlirian, who killed Talaat Pasha, a
genocide leader; Shahan Natalie, the agent on the ground in Europe;
Armen Garo, the center of Operation Nemesis; Aaron Sachaklian, the
logistics and finance officer; and others involved with Nemesis.
Marian Mesrobian MacCurdy tells a story that has been either hidden
by the necessity of silence or ignored in spite of victims'
narratives-the story of those who attempted to seek justice for the
victims of genocide and the effect this effort had on them and on
their families. Ultimately, this volume reveals how the narratives
of resistance and trauma can play out in the next generation and
how this resistance can promote resilience.
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