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Afghanistan
Michael Kerrigan
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R502
Discovery Miles 5 020
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Ships in 12 - 17 working days
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“The United States of America will use all our resources to
conquer this enemy. We will rally the world. We will be patient.
We’ll be focused, and we will be steadfast in our
determination.” – President George W. Bush, September 12, 2001
On September 11, 2001, Islamic terrorists hijacked four airliners,
crashing them into the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center in New
York City, the Pentagon and near the White House, killing nearly
3,000 people. Osama bin Laden and the al-Qaeda network quickly
claimed responsibility for the outrage. The aftermath still
reverberates around the world today, with President Bush declaring
a “War on Terror” against al-Qaeda and its allies. By October,
the US military was carrying out air strikes against al-Qaeda
training camps in Afghanistan, and US ground forces were deployed
against bin Laden’s protectors, the incumbent Taliban regime. By
June 2002 the Taliban had been ousted and a US-friendly government
established in the capital, Kabul. But the campaign didn’t end
there, as American and allied NATO forces became bogged down for
the next two decades. Afghanistan provides a photographic
exploration of the 20-year war in Afghanistan, from the first
deployment of US special forces in October 2001 to the final
withdrawal of US forces in August 2021. In between, the book offers
a compact overview of the operations fought by the US and NATO
forces against the Taliban/al- Qaeda insurgency, including the
bombing of the Tora Bora cave complex, Operation Anaconda,
President Obama’s deployment surge, the Navy SEAL’s
assassination of Osama bin Laden in neighbouring Pakistan, the
development of a local Afghan army, police force and government,
the eventual withdrawal of US forces and the collapse of the Afghan
administration amidst renewed Taliban pressure. Afghanistan offers
a concise pictorial history of the war that came to define US
policy in Central Asia and the Middle East in the 21st century.
“From Stettin in the Baltic to Trieste in the Adriatic, an iron
curtain has descended across the Continent. Behind that line lie
all the capitals of the ancient states of Central and Eastern
Europe. Warsaw, Berlin, Prague, Vienna, Budapest, Belgrade,
Bucharest and Sofia” – Winston Churchill, 5 March 1946
Following the Allies’ victory in World War II, the European
continent was soon divided into two broad zones of influence, with
Eastern Europe coming under communist Soviet control, and the west
under the oversight of the liberal democracies led by the United
States. What developed over the next 40 years was a military and
ideological stand-off that defined Europe and much of the world
until 1989. In countries such as Germany, the Cold War divided
families between the two zones of control. The two opponents
competed for global dominance, building up ever greater arsenals of
nuclear weapons, funding and fighting costly proxy wars in
Southeast Asia, Africa and Central America, deploying espionage and
trade embargoes, and even seeking technological advantage in space
exploration, which became known as the “Space Race”. The Cold
War provides a pictorial examination of this crucial era in 20th
century history, offering the reader an instant understanding of
the key events and figures in this 40-year period through 150
dramatic photographs.
On 26 April 1986, the unthinkable happened near the Ukrainian town
of Pripyat: two massive steam explosions ruptured No. 4 Reactor at
the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant, immediately killing 30 people
and setting off the worst nuclear accident in history. The
explosions were followed by an open-air reactor core fire that
released huge amounts of radioactive contamination into the
atmosphere for the next nine days, spreading across the Soviet
Union, parts of Europe, and especially neighbouring Belarus, where
around 70% of the waste landed. The following clean-up operation
involved more than half a million personnel at a cost of $68
billion, and a further 4,000 people were estimated to have died
from disaster-related illnesses in the following 20 years. Some
350,000 people were evacuated as a result of the accident
(including 95 villages in Belarus), and much of the area returned
to the wild, with the nearby city of Pripyat now a ghost town.
Chernobyl provides a photographic exploration of the catastrophe
and its aftermath in 180 authentic photos. See the twisted wreckage
of No. 4 Reactor, the cause of the nuclear disaster; marvel at
historic photos of the clean-up operation, with helicopters
spraying decontamination liquid and liquidators manually clearing
radioactive debris; see the huge cooling pond used to cool the
reactors, and which today is home to abundant wildlife, despite the
radiation; explore the ghost town of Pripyat, with its decaying
apartment blocks, empty basketball courts, abandoned amusement
park, wrecked schools, and deserted streets.
From monarchy to the world's first socialist state, from Communism
to Capitalism, from mass poverty to Europe's new super rich, Russia
has seen immense revolutions in just the past century, including
purges, poisonings, famines, assassinations and massacres. In that
time, it has also endured civil war, world war and the Cold War.
But the extremes of Russian history are not restricted to the past
100 years. When Napoleon invaded in 1812, the Russians retreated,
slashing and burning their own country and Moscow itself, rather
than conceding defeat to Napoleon. They were victorious, but at
immense cost. Russia's history is also spiked with mystery. Did
Stalin shoot his wife? Who ordered the killing of Rasputin? Or the
shooting of Anna Politkovskaya and the poisoning of Alexander
Litvinenko or the Skripals in Salisbury, England? What involvement
and influence did Russian intelligence have on the 2016 US
Election? In addition, it is a history of appalling disasters, such
as at the Chernobyl nuclear power station, the sinking of the Kursk
submarine, and the 2022 invasion of Ukraine. Ranging from medieval
Kievan Rus' to Vladimir Putin, The History of Russia explores the
murder, brutality, genocide, insanity and skulduggery in the
efforts to seize, and then maintain, power in the Slav heartland.
Illustrated with 180 photographs and artworks, the book is a
fascinating, lively and wide-ranging history from the Mongol
invasions to the present day.
Rich and delicate, ethereal and muscular, the art of William Blake
is as fascinating as the philosophies threading through his poetry
and prophetic works. Presented here in this magnificent new
collection, his vivid paintings and gently weaving illustrations
are imprinted in the consciousness of Romantic art, but their
impact on Gothic literature remains as strong and quixotic as the
artist himself.
At its peak in January 1945, 10,000 people worked at Bletchley
Park, reading 4000 messages a day, decrypting German and Japanese
communications and helping the Allies to victory. But while we know
that Bletchley was the centre of Britain's World War II
code-breaking, how did its efforts actually change the course of
the war? Enigma: How Breaking the Code Helped Win World War II
tells the story of Bletchley's role in defeating U-boats in the
Atlantic, breaking the Japanese codes, helping the Allies to
victory in North Africa, deciphering the German military
intelligence code, learning of most German positions in western
Europe before the Normandy Landings, defeating the Italian Navy in
the Mediterranean, and helping sink the German battleship
Scharnhorst off Norway. In tracing these events, the book also
delves into the stories of major Bletchley characters, 'boffins'
such as Alan Turing and Gordon Welchman, and 'Debs' such as Joan
Clarke and Margaret Rock. An accessible work of military history
that ranges across air, land and naval warfare, the book also
touches on the story of early computer science. Illustrated with
120 black-&-white and colour photographs, artworks and maps,
Enigma: How Breaking the Code Helped Win World War II is an
authoritative and novel perspective on WWII history.
Temples have been places of worship, a focus for spirituality and a
place for communities to gather since the earliest days of human
civilisation. The first temples date back to ancient Mesopotamia
and Egypt, deriving from the cult of deities and residing places
for gods and immortals. Today, temple buildings remain lively focal
points for the Jewish, Buddhist, Hindu, Jain and Sikh religions.
Organised by continent, Amazing Temples of the World offers the
reader an intimate portrait of some spectacular and unusual places
of worship dating from the fourth millennium BCE to the present.
Ornate or spartan, immense or intimate, from the Middle East to
California, this book features such impressive places of worship as
the Mahabodi Temple, India, built in the location where Buddha is
thought to have achieved enlightenment; the fifth century BCE
Temple of Confucius in Qufu, China, the largest Confucian temple in
the world; Abu Simbel, in southern Egypt, the great carved monument
to the Pharaoh Ramses II; the Golden Temple in Amritsar, Punjab,
the spiritual home of the world's 25 million Sikhs; and the Shri
Swaminarayan Temple in Neasden, London, the biggest Hindu temple
outside India. Illustrated with more than 180 photographs, Amazing
Temples of the World includes more than 150 places of worship, from
Ancient Greece and Rome, through traditional synagogues to modern
Buddhist, Taoist and Sikh temples.
From monarchy to the world's first socialist state, from Communism
to Capitalism, from mass poverty to Europe's new super rich, Russia
has seen immense revolutions in just the past century, including
purges, poisonings, famines, assassinations and massacres. In that
time, it has also endured civil war, world war and the Cold War.
But the extremes of Russian history are not restricted to the past
100 years. When Napoleon invaded in 1812, the Russians retreated,
slashing and burning their own country and Moscow itself, rather
than conceding defeat to Napoleon. They were victorious, but at
immense cost. Russia's history is also spiked with mystery. Did
Stalin shoot his wife? Who ordered the killing of Rasputin? Or the
shooting of Anna Politkovskaya and the poisoning of Alexander
Litvinenko or the Skripals in Salisbury, England? What involvement
and influence did Russian intelligence have on the 2016 US
Election? In addition, it is a history of appalling disasters, such
as at the Chernobyl nuclear power station and the sinking of the
Kursk submarine. Ranging from medieval Kievan Rus to Vladimir
Putin, Dark History of Russia explores the murder, brutality,
genocide, insanity and skulduggery in the efforts to seize, and
then maintain, power in the Slav heartland. Illustrated with 180
colour and black-&-white photographs and artworks, Dark History
of Russia is a fascinating, lively and wide-ranging story from the
Mongol invasions to the present day.
Gustav Klimt is renowned as a quintessential artist of the art
nouveau movement, but he was one of a number of Viennese artists
who strove to break free of the constraints of the late 19th
Century academic art establishment. The Secessionists were united,
not in the style of their work, but their desire for freedom, so
although there are echoes of similarity in the work of Klimt,
Schiele, Kolomon Moser and the many other fine artists, their
distinction lies in their magnificent difference. This new
illustrated book focuses on the rich diversity of the movement and
offers a sumptuous gift of colour and glamour for every art lover.
Symbols are all around us - some mysterious, some timeless, some
arcane and some prosaic. But what are their origins? What does the
infinity symbol really signify? Do you understand yin and yang? And
why is the swastika really a good luck sign? This enticing gift
book explores the world of classic symbols and signs, revealing the
deep meaning and often quirky history behind each one. From the
ouroboros and the ankh to the menorah, caduceus and astrological
symbols, the book ranges widely across the world's most recognised
symbols. With one symbol per page, accompanied by a detailed
explanation and history, and printed on high quality paper with a
special binding, Classic Symbols is a unique and attractive book
which will appeal to a broad range of readers, both as a gift and
as a source for tattoo designs and other creative projects.
Henry James said, 'Paris is the greatest temple ever built to
material joys and the lust of the eyes'. Renowned as the City of
Light, Paris is celebrated for its beautiful city plan, its
architecture, museums, bridges, cathedrals, parks, shopping, flea
markets, sidewalk cafes, wide and luxurious boulevards, elegant
cuisine, and numerous monuments. Once confined to an island in the
middle of the river Seine, the Ile de la Cite, Paris, founded more
than 2,000 years ago, quickly spread to both banks of the river -
the 'rive droit' (right bank) and the 'rive gauche' (left bank).
The right bank is known for being the commercial heart of the city
while the left bank is home to the University of Paris and all that
is intellectual and artsy. Paris has also been feted for its aura
of romance and mystery and has been the setting for many novels
(The Americans, The Three Musketeers and the Maigret stories) and
movies (Last Tango in Paris, Ratatouille). This gorgeous new book
in the successful Secrets series is divided into several
geographical sections, from the Louvre and Champs Elysees, via Les
Halles, Le Marais and Bastille, to Montmartre and beyond. It's a
brilliant read for the armchair traveller and everyone interested
in the history and the mysteries of the great cities of the world.
The mythology and folklore of England is as old as the land itself,
rich in symbolism and full of tales of quests and heroic daring-do,
ghosts and witches, romantic heroines and noble outlaws. Who hasn't
heard of the master sorcerer Merlin, Robin Hood and his merry men,
or the legendary monster Grendel? Beginning with the great
Anglo-Saxon epic Beowulf, English Myths explores the early legends
of post-Roman England, many of which blend history and myth. The
book goes on to examine the rich seam of Arthurian and romantic
legends first told in the Medieval era, before looking at English
folk heroes and the beasts, witches and ghosts that have haunted
the land. Discover the brothers Hengist and Horsa, legendary
leaders of the first Angles, Saxons and Jutes to settle in England;
learn the tragic story of Cornish hero Tristan and his love for
Irish princess Iseult; tremble at the Black Dog ghost, a nocturnal
hellhound found stalking the country from Suffolk in the east to
Devon in the west; and enjoy the tale of George and the dragon, who
saved the nation from a rampaging serpent and became the patron
saint of the country. Illustrated with 150 photographs and
artworks, English Myths is an accessible, entertaining and highly
informative exploration of the fascinating mythology underlying one
of the world's oldest and most influential cultures.
A breathtaking land of wildly varied landscapes, Ireland is shown
here in all its beauty. From well-loved spots to seldom-seen
vistas, this great little book captures the country as you've never
seen it before, covering the whole of the Emerald Isle from Ulster
North to Munster South, from Giant's Causeway to the Cliffs of
Moher. Fascinating text alongside the pictures and the desirable,
chunky format make this an ideal gift for any lover of Ireland and
travel in general.
Prior to the invention of the printing press, all books had to be
written by hand. Manuscripts are the beautiful manifestation of
this craft, and the most precious and expensive of such manuscripts
were 'illuminated' through the use of brightly coloured pigments
and gold embellishments. Beginning with a fresh and thoughtful
introduction to illuminated manuscripts, Illuminated Manuscripts
Masterpieces of Art goes on to showcase key works in this stunning
artistic genre.
This beautiful book, packed with stunning photographs, will take
you on a pictorial journey through Alaska's most magnificent
landscapes. From the arctic north, with its glittering sea ice,
frozen tundra and ethereal aurora borealis, to the lush rainforests
and breathtaking fjordlands of the south, this is a country as
diverse as it is immense. Take in the wild majesty of Denali
National Park and its towering peaks, marvel at the blue-white
glaciers of Glacier Bay and the untamed rivers of Alaska's pristine
Interior. Encounter the wind-battered coastlines of the Aleutian
Islands, and the sheltered bays of the Kodiak Archipelago; embrace
frontier spirit along its highways, railways and winding hiking
trails. Uncover Alaska's intriguing history through its onion-domed
churches, Native villages, remote settlements and abandoned
boomtowns. And if that was not enough, experience close encounters
with some impressive Alaskan residents, including humpback whales,
bears, caribou, moose, puffins, seals and more. Exploring sights
both familiar and unexpected, natural and man-made, new and old,
Best-kept Secrets of Alaska will introduce you to one of the most
awe-inspiring places on earth.
Scotland's landscape is wildly diverse, ranging from towering
mountains reflected in mirror-like lochs to ancient castles and
bustling city streets. This wonderful book provides historic,
geographic and arts-based text alongside captivating images of
everywhere from the Borders in the south to Orkney in the north.
The desirable, chunky format makes this an excellent travel
companion for discovering both tourist destinations and
lesser-known idyllic sites.
A rusting anti-aircraft fort in the North Sea. A German submarine
base in France. A Flak tower in a Viennese park - more than 70
years after the end of World War II, its legacy can still be seen
from Europe to Japan. World War II Abandoned Places explores more
than 100 bunkers, pillboxes, submarine bases, forts and gun
emplacements from the North Sea to Okinawa. Included are defensive
structures, such as the Maginot Line on France's eastern border
with Germany, Germany's own western and eastern border defences,
and the Atlantic Wall, the German-built bunkers and pillboxes on
the coast from Denmark down to Brittany. The book also includes
both Hitler's and Himmler's Eastern Front bunkers in Poland. But
beyond the military installations, the book explores the ruins of
concentration camps, the empty village of Oradour-Sur-Glane,
Hitler's mountain retreat at Berchtesgaden and the dilapidated Nazi
party rally grounds in Nuremberg, among other non-military places.
With 150 outstanding colour photographs, World War II Abandoned
Places is a brilliant pictorial examination of both the military
and non-military legacy of the conflict.
A Nazi scheme to capture the Pope, an IRA plan to invade Northern
Ireland, a British plan to attack the Soviet Union after the defeat
of Hitler or a Japanese seizure of the Panama Canal - it may sound
unbelievable, but during World War II these operations and others
as seemingly far-fetched were seriously considered by both the
Allies and the Axis. World War II Plans That Never Happened tells
the stories of some of the most secret and outrageous operations
that were planned during the war, many of which could have taken
place and might well have changed the course of history: from the
German plan to seize bases in Spain and Portugal and invade
Switzerland, to the Japanese plan to bomb the United States, to the
American plan to use Marines to attack V-1 bases in Europe, and the
British plan to invade Norway and Sweden in 1939/40. Using
documents newly released from war archives, World War II Plans That
Never Happened explains the context of each planned operation and
explores whether it might have been successful, and what the impact
might have been on the war if it had gone ahead. Arranged
chronologically, the book includes copies and transcripts of
previously secret documents, rare colour and black-&-white
photographs, illustrations and maps. World War II Plans That Never
Happened will prove fascinating to anyone interested in World War
II.
A broken piano, a dilapidated staircase, a chair half standing on
two bent legs surrounded by layers of history peeling from the
wallpaper of an abandoned house. The chilling air of an abandoned
church, or a desolated factory, with the faint signs of the human
sounds now trapped in the detritus of lost interiors. In Michigan,
in Italy, in Russia, Japan, in China, the lost dreams of a teaming
human horde are captured in this evocative exploration of abandoned
buildings, the achievements of humankind struck down by calamity or
neglect, then over-run by the ancient forces of time and nature, as
the planet earth moves slowly to regain its supremacy against the
noisy, mechanical clatter of the human species. The incredible new
book explores the half-life of abandoned buildings and the sad
beauty of desolation.
Ranging from the Egyptians to the late Roman Empire, Ancient
Peoples In Their Own Words celebrates the excitement and importance
of historical primary sources in an accessible way that will appeal
to general readers. Presenting numerous ancient inscriptions from
tombs, ceramics and buildings, accompanied by translations and text
putting the work into context, this book explains the significance
of these works both in the ancient world and for today. Besides
famous cases such as the Egyptian Rosetta Stone and Tutankhamun's
Tomb as well as lesser known cases such as the Decree of
Themistocles or examples or Roman graffiti, Ancient Peoples In
Their Own Words also includes examples from classical Greece, Rome,
Bible texts, Persia, Minoan and Mycenean dynasties, as well as a
couple of mysterious, undeciphered cases. Illustrated throughout
with more than 300 colour and black & white photographs, maps
and artworks, Ancient Peoples In Their Own Words is an exciting,
expertly written, highly informative and innovative insight to the
history of the classical world.
From around 750BC to 12BC, the Celts were the most powerful people
in central and northern Europe. With the expansion of the Roman
Empire and the later Christianization of these lands, they were
pushed to the fringes of north-western Spain, France and the
British Isles. But there the mythology of these peoples held
strong. The tales from Celtic myth were noted down and also
absorbed into other cultures. From Roman and Christian scribes we
know of characters like Morrigan the shape-shifting queen, who
could change herself from a crow to a wolf, Cu Chulainn, who,
mortally wounded in battle, tied himself with his own intestines to
a rock so that he'd die standing up, and the Cauldron of Bran,
which could restore life. Other than being fascinating in their own
right, Celtic legends are of interest for the influence they had
over subsequent mythologies. The story of the Holy Grail first
appears in medieval romances but its antecedents can be found in
the Celtic tale, the Mabinogion. Illustrated with more than 180
artworks and photographs and maps, Celtic Myths is an expertly
written account of the mythological tales that both fascinate us
and influence other writings.
Paul Nash, the British landscape and Surrealist painter, lived
through both the First and Second World Wars. His depictions of
these human catastrophes, with their damaged landscapes and broken
machinery are much remembered today. His painting life moved from
representational landscapes, through to the Surrealist and
symbolist styles of his later years where he experimented with
abstraction and the everyday. He was regarded as a fine book
illustrator and often created work for other graphic and theatrical
forms. This new book offers 100 images, with an introduction to his
art and contribution made by Nash to the cultural sophistication of
the modern world.
Built to last, built to impress, built with style and grandeur - it
is all the more remarkable when the most ostentatious of buildings
fall into disrepair and become ruins. From imperial residences and
aristocratic estates to hotels and urban mansions, Abandoned
Palaces tells the stories behind dilapidated structures from all
around the world. From ancient Roman villas to the French colonial
hill station in Cambodia that was one of the final refuges of the
Khmer Rouge, the book charts the fascinating decline of what were
once the homes and holiday resorts of the most wealthy. Ranging
from crumbling hotels in the Catskill Mountains or in Mozambique to
grand mansions in Taiwan, and from an unfinished Elizabethan
summerhouse to a modern megalomaniac's estate too expensive ever to
be completed, the reasons for the abandonment of these buildings
include politics, bankruptcy, personal tragedies, natural and
man-made disasters, as well as changing tastes and fashions. With
150 outstanding colour photographs exploring more than 100
hauntingly beautiful locations, Abandoned Palaces is a brilliant
and moving pictorial examination of worlds we have left behind.
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