The author of Guinness's two books of military blunders from all periods of history presents a corresponding survey of naval incompetence, focusing on the misjudgements and oversights of captains, fleet commanders and strategic planners from Roman times to the Falklands War. omissions of sailors of every rank, the book incorporates failed amphibious operations, avoidable submarine disasters and naval aviation disasters. Case studies at the end of each chapter provide analysis of what went wrong in key battles and campaigns such as Navarino, Tsushima, Gallipoli, Jutland, Midway and Leyte Gulf.
This compendious celebration of ineptitude includes some of history’s most spectacularly ill-conceived expeditions and entirely useless pursuits, and features tales of black comedy, insane foolhardiness, breathtaking stupidity and relentless perseverance in the face of inevitable defeat. It rejoices in men and women made of the Wrong Stuff: writers who believed in the power of words, but could never quite find the rights ones; artists and performers who indulged their creative impulse with a passion, if not a sense of the ridiculous, an eye for perspective or the ability to hold down a tune; scientists and businessmen who never quite managed to quit while they were ahead; and sportsmen who seemed to manage always to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory. Like Walter Oudney, one of three men chosen to find the source of the River Niger in Africa, who could not ride a horse, nor speak any foreign languages and who had never travelled more than 30 miles beyond his native Edinburgh; or the explorer-priest Michel Alexandre de Baize, who set off to explore the African continent from east to west equipped with 24 umbrellas, some fireworks, two suits of armor, and a portable organ; or the Scottish army which decided to invade England in 1349 – during the Black Death. Entries include: briefest career in dentistry; least successful bonding exercise; most futile attempt to find a lost tribe; most pointless lines of research by someone who should have known better; least successful celebrity endorsement; least convincing excuse for a war; worst poetic tribute to a root vegetable; least successful display of impartiality by a juror; Devon Loch – sporting metaphor for blowing un unblowable lead; least dignified exit from office by a French president; and least successful expedition by camel.
An informative look at the military conflicts that most altered the course of history and civilization, from ancient times to the modern world. Rather than celebrating warfare, 50 Battles That Changed the World looks at the clashes the author believes have had the most profound impact on world history. Ranked in order of their relevance to the modern world, these struggles range from the ancient past to the present day and span the globe many times over. Some of the battles in this book are familiar to us all—Bunker Hill, which prevented the American Revolution from being stillborn, and Marathon, which kept the world’s first democracy alive. Others may be less familiar—the naval battle at Diu (on the Indian Coast), which led to the ascendancy of Western Civilization and the discovery of America, and Yarmuk, which made possible the spread of Islam from Morocco to the Philippines. With remarkable accounts of both famous and lesser-known clashes, 50 Battles That Changed the World provides impressive insight into the battles that shaped civilization as we know it.
The English/British have always been known as the sailor race with hearts of oak: the Royal Navy as the Senior Service and First Line of Defense. It facilitated the motto: The sun never set on the British Empire. The Royal Navy has exerted a powerful influence on Great Britain, its Empire, Europe, and, ultimately, the world. This superior annotated bibliography supplies entries that explore the influence of the English/British Navy through its history. This survey will provide a major reference guide for students and scholars at all levels. It incorporates evaluative, qualitative, and critical analysis processes, the essence of historical scholarship. Each one of the 4,124 annotated entries is evaluated, assessed, analyzed, integrated, and incorporated into the historiographical scholarship.
“Simon Webb’s eminently readable book may draw gasps of horror, disbelief, or disdain . . . a mind-blowing and fascinating journey through history.” —On: Yorkshire Magazine All nations and peoples have a body of legendary tales and semi-historical episodes which explain who they are and help to define their place in the world. The British are no exception, and in this book, Simon Webb explores some of the most well-known episodes from British history; stories which tell the British about themselves and the country in which they live. Examining these events in detail reveals something rather surprising. In every case, the historical facts are greatly at variance with what most British people think that they know about such things as the Battle of Waterloo, Magna Carta, the suffragettes, and so on. Indeed, in many cases the reality is precisely the opposite of what is commonly believed. For example, the Battle of Waterloo was not a victory for the British army, Magna Carta did not set out any rights for ordinary people and the suffragettes delayed, rather than hastened, the granting of votes for women. This book shows that much of what the British believe about their history has been either grossly distorted or is just plain wrong; revealing some of the misconceptions which are held about famous incidents from the nation’s past. In each case, the truth is far richer and infinitely more interesting than the version learned by schoolchildren. These myths, for that is what they essentially are, reveal as much about the way that the British people like to see themselves now as they do about what happened in the past.
This book examines the evolving concept of national security and how human systems could be governed in an ever turbulent and dynamic world. It takes a revised look at the concept of national security, previously researched and identified by the author, based on the present context but with a futuristic appreciation of governance, primarily national but extended to global perspectives, in the modern and dynamically shifting world. The book emphasises the need for governments to maximise national security for the well-being of their people. The concept of national security is taken as the key subject of national governance which is extendable to global governance wherein national security is not only the physical or military security alone but also the overall well-being of the people of a nation. This book explores how national security can be achieved by balancing its various elements in different terrains where the game of governance is played in national as well as global perspective. It also presents additional findings and observations to show that the approach is transformative, redefining the key knowledge paradigms. This book is relevant for policy makers, students, researchers and academics who wish to explore and rethink their approach towards governing the human systems, whose well-being is the responsibility of governments.
Dockers’ Stories from the Second World War is a collection of several true stories, drawn from Henry Bradford’s thirty-two years as a Registered Docker in the Port of London, revealing the daring deeds of docklands men in the Second World War. Men were often killed and injured during their every-day work on the docks; nonetheless, never was the bravery of these men so tested as during times of war. Henry heard many stories from dockers in his time working the docks but it was their wartime adventures that seemed most vivid: tales of bravery and escapades of men who, once the wars they had fought in were over, returned to work in the docklands of the Port of London, on the river Thames in sailing barges, or on coastal or continental short sea trading vessels.Henry Bradford’s lively stories and colourful characters reveal the bravery of ordinary men in the Second World War, from Captain Jim Fryer’s ship towage work on Calais roads and Dunkirk beaches, and saving lives of survivors from the bombed hospital ship Paris, for which he was awarded the DSC, to Petty Officer Jack Hicks’ quieter but equally memorable posting steering a clinker-built boat on a hush-hush job from the Thames to the north-east, his crew consisting only of an inexperienced co-man and an incredibly efficient WREN. Heroes of London’s Docklands is sure to appeal to those whose relatives worked as dockers, and to anyone with an interest in London’s East End at war.
