An illustrated study of the history of the Moscow Kremlin, a metaphor for Russia, a symbol for its government and an enduring icon of the country. A fortified complex covering 70 acres at the heart of Moscow, behind walls up to 18m high and watched over by 20 towers, the Kremlin houses everything from Russia's seat of political power to glittering churches. This is a fortress that has evolved over time, from the original wooden guard tower built in the 11th century to the current stone and brick complex, over the years having been built, burnt, besieged and rebuilt. Starting with the initial building of a wooden watch tower on the banks of the Moskva river in the 11th century, this book follows the Kremlin's tumultuous history through rises and falls and various iterations to today, supported by photographs, specially commissioned artwork and maps. In the process, it tells a story of Russia, and also unveils a range of mysteries around the fortress, from the 14th-century underground tunnels built to permit spies to enter and leave it covertly through to today's invisible defences such as it GPS spoofing field (switch on your phone inside the walls and it may well tell you you're at Vnukovo airport, 30km away) and drone jammers.

In 1758, at the height of the French and Indian War, British Brigadier General John Forbes led his army on a methodical advance against Fort Duquesene, French headquarters in the Ohio valley. As his army closed in upon the fort, he sent Major Grant of the 77th Highlanders and 850 men on a reconnaissance in force against the fort. The French, alerted to this move, launched their own counter-raid. 500 French and Canadians, backed by 500 Indian allies, ambushed the highlanders and sent them fleeing back to the main army. With the success of that operation, the French planned their own raid against the English encampment at Fort Ligonier less than fifty miles away. With only 600 men, against an enemy strength of 4,000, the French & Amerindians launched a daring night attack on the heart of the enemy encampment. This book tells the complete story of these ambitious raids and counter-raids, giving in-depth detail on the forces, terrain, and tactics.

The Maginot Line was one of the most advanced networks of fortifications in history. Built in the aftermath of World War I, and stretching along the French eastern border from Belgium to Switzerland, it was designed to prevent German troops from ever setting foot on French soil again. Its primary defensive weapons were the gun turrets. Beginning development in the 1870s and improving on German designs, they were constructed out of steel wedges and could revolve and disappear from sight after firing, making them impervious to enemy bombardment. They were deadly accurate and created havoc on the German units that attacked the line during their invasion of France in 1940. This fully illustrated study will examine the technical details of the French artillery turrets. It will show the evolution of the design of the guns and turrets used in the French forts before and during World War I, then those built exclusively for the Maginot Line to give a comprehensive overview of the weapons designed to protect France from invasion.