Although harsh and inhospitable, the North African theatre of World War II proved to be a perfect environment for irregular warfare and the deployment of Special Forces. Following Italy's entry into the war in June 1940, the Western Desert became the background for a long conflict dominated by motorized units. The major combatants Great Britain, Free France, Italy and Germany all developed irregular units to exploit the unique conditions of the region with varying degrees of success. This book details the genesis, organization and tactics of these forces, including such famous units as the Long Range Desert Group and the Special Air Service.
From a critically acclaimed and #1 internationally bestselling author, the most riveting WWII story of Churchill's legendary SAS, the special forces unit of the British Army, chronicling one close-knit band of warriors from the SAS foundation through to the Italian landings—which truly turned the tide of war. In 1941, as World War Two raged, scores of men stepped forward to answer Winston Churchill’s call for volunteers for Special Service, a high-risk opportunity to undertake the most hazardous, top-secret duties of war. Comprised of some of the finest fighting units in the entire British Army, these warriors longed to leave behind their mind-numbing garrison duties for battle. They hungered to pit themselves against a seemingly omnipotent enemy and brave a bloody and bruising baptism by fire. A rightfully proud regiment with an unrivalled esprit de corps, they were disavowed as unruly by top brass, unyieldingly vaunted by Churchill, and courageously loyal to the clandestine “butcher and bolt” raids that made their sacrifices—and their triumphs—legendary. But even as the combat-worn ranks of the SAS risked all to deliver the first resounding defeats on Nazi Germany, there were well-founded fears that their fortunes would change. In Brothers in Arms, Damien Lewis pays tribute to the mavericks and visionaries who founded elite-forces soldiering—the SAS. Exhaustively researched from an invaluable trove of never-before-seen documents, wartime letters, diaries, mission reports, rare photos, undeveloped film, plus interviews with WWII veterans and their surviving families, Damien follows one close-knit band of men from the founding of the SAS through to the Italian landings, which truly turned the tide of the war. It is a breathtaking narrative of do-or-die action and unbelievable daring chronicling the exploits of some of the most fearless, revered, and under-the-radar soldiers of the 20th century.
Who is a Yankee and where did the term come from? Join author Jim McNiven as he explores the emergence and influence of Yankee culture while traversing an old transcontinental highway reaching from the Atlantic to the Pacific—US 20, which he nicknames "The Yankee Road." The Yankee Road: Tracing the Journey of the New England Tribe that Created Modern America combines fascinating history with a travel narrative, taking the reader on a journey through the places Yankees and their descendants settled as they expanded westward. Using a physical road to connect locations important to the Yankee cultural "road," McNiven takes us on side trips into individual stories, introducing readers to the origins of such large-scale and diverse ideas as conservation, public education, telegraphy, mass production, religion, and labor reform. This second volume of a projected trilogy, Domination, centers on the growth of industry around the Great Lakes in the mid-nineteenth century into the twentieth century, something that led to the Yankee victory in the Civil War and the emergence of the reunited country as a major world power. Erastus Corning, Ida Tarbell, John Brown, JD Rockefeller, Henry Flagler, Thomas Edison, Henry Ford, the Kellogg brothers, the Wright brothers and Judge Gary, all make appearances.
Willy's Raiders, who always play fair and square, prove the good guys always win when they go up for the championship against the Weasels, who resort to dirty tricks.
From the author of D-Day: “an amazing tale of how the world’s very first special force was created specifically for North Africa during WWII” (Books Monthly). The origins of most of the West’s Special Forces can be traced back to the Long Range Desert Group, which operated across the limitless expanses of the Libyan Desert, an area the size of India, during the whole of the Desert War from 1940 to 1943. After the defeat of the Axis in North Africa, they adapted to serve in the Mediterranean, the Greek islands, Albania, Yugoslavia, and Greece. In the process, they became the stuff of legend. The brainchild of Ralph Bagnold, a prewar desert explorer featured in fictional terms in The English Patient, the LRDG used specially adapted vehicles and recruited only men of the right temperament and high levels of fitness and endurance. Their work was often dangerous, always taxing, exhausting, and uncomfortable. They were a new breed of soldier, and the Axis never managed to field a similar unit. Once the desert war was won, they transferred their skills to the Mediterranean sector, retraining as mountain guerrillas, serving in the ill-fated Dodecanese campaign, then in strife-torn Albania, Yugoslavia, and Greece, fighting alongside the mercurial partisans. In addition, the LRDG worked alongside the fledgling SAS and established, beyond all doubt, the value of highly trained Special Forces, a legacy which resonates today. “Genuinely gripping, a tale of eccentrics and their high adventures during very dangerous times.” —Classic Military Vehicle
