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From Slave Cabin to the Pulpit: The Autobiography of Rev. Peter Randolph (Regenerations Ser.)
by Peter RandolphPeter Randolph was born c. 1825 in Prince George County, Virginia, on the Brandon Plantation. He was enslaved upon birth and owned by Carter H. Edloe, who also held his mother and four or five siblings in bondage. Randolph's father was enslaved on a nearby plantation, and died when Randolph was approximately ten. Edloe had written a will directing that upon his death his slaves be freed and land he owned be sold, in part to pay his debts, but also to finance sending his former slaves to whichever state or colony they sought. Edloe's wishes were initially ignored by the executor of his will after he died in 1844. However, Randolph, who was Edloe's only literate slave, read the will and began legal proceedings to fight for his freedom and that of Edloe's other slaves. Three years later, they were freed by the order of a judge.Aided in settling by the Massachusetts Anti-Slavery Society, Randolph initially lived in Beacon Hill, Boston, where he attended the Belknap Street Church, led by Leonard Grimes. He was an original member of the Twelfth Baptist Church upon its formation and was later a preacher there...By 1861 Randolph was working at a newspaper in Boston and preaching. Randolph grew to become a vocal anti-slavery advocate as a member of the Massachusetts Anti-Slavery Society, donating money and otherwise aiding enslaved people seeking freedom. He published an account of his experience with slavery, The Sketch of a Slave life, or, an illustration of the peculiar institution, in 1855, with the goal of showing "that slaves, when liberated, can take care of themselves, and need no master or overseer to drive them to their toil." Randolph died on August 7, 1897, in Boston.-Wiki.
From Slogans to Mantras: Social Protest and Religious Conversion In The Late Vietnam War Era
by Stephen A. KentThe author has sought out and interviewed many of the folks who first too part in politics and later in radical religious conversions during the sixties.
From Spitfires to Vampires and Beyond: A Kiwi Ace's RAF Journey
by Owen HardyWorld War Two Spitfire pilot Owen Hardy was probably the last New Zealand ace to tell his story. He left home at 18 bent on joining the RAF and by 1942, aged only 20, he was at Biggin Hill with 72 Squadron under Brian Kingcome. D-Day found him flying over the Normandy beaches with 485 (New Zealand) Squadron. That he survived the war unharmed owed as much to luck as it did to his ability as a fighter pilot. Unable to settle in civilian life afterwards in New Zealand, he returned to the RAF for the second phase of a remarkable career. Converting to jets, Hardy went on to command 71 Squadron, leading a Vampire aerobatic team with considerable success across Europe – dodging MiGs at the same time! But adapting to peacetime service wasn’t easy. Previously stimulated by the wartime environment and still passionate about flying, he was less enamored with staff jobs; and this despite working on the introduction of a new, state-of-the-art missile system, Bloodhound. Then a fateful decision, to turn down command of a Javelin squadron and follow his mentor, led finally to disillusionment. Hardy pulls no punches in this forthright and refreshingly honest autobiography. In retelling his eye-opening story, editor Black Robertson shines a light on what it was like not just to fly in combat, but also on the changing face of a post-war RAF which arguably undervalued some of its heroes. From the heat of North Africa to the uncertainties of the Cold War, it’s a unique and enthralling tale.
From St Vith to Victory: 218 (Gold Coast) Squadron and the Campaign Against Nazi Germany
by Stephen C. SmithCompiled from a variety of sources and first-hand accounts, this book is an authoritative record of the part played by No.218 (Gold Coast) Squadron during the bomber offensives of World War II. The squadron's activities are described in detail offering a unique insight into the lives of those involved and saluting the important role that No.3 Group and No.218 Squadron played in Bomber Command's ultimate victory.No.218 Squadron was formed a few months before the Armistice which brought to a conclusion the Great War. Disbandment soon followed, rendering the squadron number plate dormant until the rise of National Socialism in Germany. The squadron was reformed in 1936 and spent the remaining peace time years honing its skills, skills that would be tested from the very first day of the bomber offensive against Germany to the very last.
From Stalingrad to Berlin: The Illustrated Edition
by Earl ZeimkeWith scarcely an interlude, the German-Soviet conflict in World War II lasted for 3 years, 10 months, and 16 days. The conflict seesawed across eastern and central Europe between the Elbe and the Volga, the Alps, and the Caucasus. The total number of troops continuously engaged averaged between 8 and 9 million, and the losses were appalling. Wehrmacht losses numbered between 3 and 3.5 million. Deaths on the Soviet side reached more than 12 million, about 47 percent of the grand total of soldiers of all nations killed in World War II. The war and the occupation cost theSoviet Union some 7 million civilians and Germany about 1.5 million. The losses, civilian and military, of Finland, the Baltic States, and eastern and southeastern European countries added millions more.The great struggle completely unhinged the traditional European balance of power. The war consolidated the Soviet regime in Russia, and enabled it to impose the Communist system on its neighbours, Finland excepted, and on the Soviet occupation zone in Germany. The victory made the Soviet Union the second-ranking world power.This book follows the conflict from Stalingrad to Berlin. Topics include strategy and tactics, partisan and psychological warfare, coalition warfare, and manpower and production problems faced by both countries, but by the Germans in particular.With a new introduction by Emmy AwardTM winning historian Bob Carruthers and numerous rare illustrations this powerful book makes for a welcome addition to any Second World War library.
From Storm to Freedom
by John R. BallardCovering both Operation Desert Storm and Operation Iraqi Freedom as two campaigns within a single, if discontinuous, conflict, this book analyzes the strategic interaction between Iraq and the United States from 1990 to 2010 and the key operational decisions that determined the course of the war. The author's assessment of the long war against Iraq includes misunderstandings between government leaders in Iraq and the United States that led initially to war, ineffective UN sanctions, inefficient efforts by the Clinton administration, and uncoordinated actions by the Bush administration that then led to a preemptive strategy, continuation of conventional combat, and the evolution of an Iraqi insurgency.Ballard's thorough examination of these multiple operations within the context of a single conflict provides readers with rare and insightful perspectives on the complexity of modern war and the challenges of operational command. He first identifies the influence of the Vietnam era on the use of U.S. military power and the decision for war in 1990 and then outlines the important factors of Iraqi history and culture that dominated relations between the two nations during the 1980s and 1990s. Subsequent chapters examine the conduct of Desert Storm from the American and Iraqi perspectives and the military, economic, and diplomatic actions of the period between the two conventional campaigns. Final chapters analyze the 2003 offensive on Baghdad, the postwar stabilization operations that began with the failure to transition under the Coalition Provisional Authority, and the eventual implementation of a warfighting strategy that combined new doctrine and a surge of forces to protect the population in a renewed counterinsurgency campaign. A concluding chapter reviews key lessons for the future, including the importance of effective strategic decision making and the operational mindset required to prosecute modern war successfully.
From Stray Dog to World War I Hero: The Paris Terrier Who Joined the First Division
by Pen Farthing Grant Hayter-Menzies Paul E. Funk IIOn the streets of Paris one day in July 1918, an American doughboy, Sgt. Jimmy Donovan, befriended a stray dog that he named Rags. No longer an unwanted street mutt, Rags became the mascot to the entire First Division of the American Expeditionary Force and a friend to the American troops who had crossed the Atlantic to fight. Rags was more than a scruffy face and a wagging tail, however. The little terrier mix was with the division at the crucial battle of Soissons, at the Saint-Mihiel offensive, and finally in the blood-and-mud bath of the Meuse-Argonne, during which he and his guardian were wounded. Despite being surrounded by distraction and danger, Rags learned to carry messages through gunfire, locate broken communications wire for the Signal Corps to repair, and alert soldiers to incoming shells, saving the lives of hundreds of American soldiers. Through it all, he brought inspiration to men with little to hope for, especially in the bitter last days of the war. <p><p> From Stray Dog to World War I Hero covers Rags’s entire life story, from the bomb-filled years of war through his secret journey to the United States that began his second life, one just as filled with drama and heartache. In years of peace, Rags served as a reminder to human survivors of what held men together when pushed past their limits by the horrors of battle.Watch a book trailer.
From Supermarine Seafire XVII to Douglas DC-10: A Lifetime of Flight
by Ronald WilliamsRon Williams flying career started in the Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve which he joined for his National Service in the 1950s. Having completed this he became a civilian pilot and embarked on a career that would see him flying an amazing variety of aircraft in all parts of the world.His first operational naval aircraft was the Seafire XVII, a direct descendent of the Spitfire. This aircraft was capable of 480 knots, and it was during his first solo flight in one that he very nearly killed himself trying to achieve that speed. Luckily he escaped unharmed but much chastened. Whilst serving with the RNVR he also went solo on the Hawker Sea Fury, the worlds fastest piston engine at that time, and also the jet powered Attacker.Having obtained his civilian pilots licence he commenced flying DC-3s for Cambrian Airways around the UK and Europe. He then moved to a charter airline, Independent Air Travel flying the Vickers Viking, then to BlueAir flying DC-4s to Hong Kong and the Far-East. Next came Airwork based in Adelaide, still on DC-4s. A return to the UK saw him flying the Bristol Freighter from Southend Airport to the near Continent carrying passengers and their cars.Tragedy nearly struck when he was attempting to deliver a Scottish Aviation Twin Pioneer from Southend to the Cape Verde Islands. One of the legs of this flight entailed a stop-over on Fuerteventura, one of the Canary Islands. Having elected to fly at night the small twin-engined aircraft hit bad weather and became lost. Unable to make radio contact and running out of fuel he was forced to ditch into the Atlantic in the eye of a hurricane. A Spanish fishing boat was fortunately to hand and rescued Ron, his co-pilot and single passenger.A move to Eire and Air Lingus followed, captaining Boeing 707s to New York and other American cities. Then came Cathay Pacific flying the Convair 880, British Airways flying BAC 1-11s and finally a twenty year stint with British Caledonian flying DC-10s. This airline was eventually merged with British Airways.This book explains many of the practical and technical aspects of commercial flight and also the pleasurable side of Rons enforced nomadic lifestyle. The story covers commercial flight from its early post-war piston-powered infancy to current airline technology and methods.
From Teaching To Practice: General Walter Krueger And The Development Of Joint Operations, 1921-1945
by Major George B. EatonGeneral Walter Krueger commanded the 6th Army in the Southwest Pacific Theater in World War II. As the Commander, 6th Army, he led the troops that liberated New Guinea and the Philippines and he was designated as the commander of the forces scheduled to invade Japan. Krueger's wartime accomplishments were simply a continuation of contributions made to the United States Army and Navy over a 47 year career. Yet, despite his achievements, after the war Krueger simply faded away. Krueger's lack of historical name recognition some 50 years after his greatest achievements deprives current officers and historians not only the knowledge of wartime exploits, but also of significant understanding of the development of joint operations doctrine in the years between World War I and World War II.The current consensus among historians is that the United States Marine Corps was responsible for the development of amphibious operations. While true at the tactical level, this paper demonstrates that the Army and Naval War Colleges and the Army and Navy General Staffs and War Plans Divisions were key players in the development of doctrine at the strategic and operational level. General Walter Krueger attended both war colleges, served on the faculty of both war colleges, and served two tours in the Army War Plans Division, including a two year stint as its Chief. He was on the Joint Board or the Joint Planning Committee for over six years. The intent of this paper is to show Krueger's personal influence in the development of joint doctrine.The paper considers Krueger's assignment history, the war plans he developed, his ideas on unity of command and the need for inter-service understanding, and his principles of war planning. It includes a case study of the Lingayen Gulf Landing in January 1945 to demonstrate the acceptance and rejection of his key ideas. The paper focuses on Army and Navy issues and considers air issues only tangentially.
From The Battle of Britain to Bombing Hitler's Berchtesgaden: Wing Commander James 'jim' Bazin, Dso, Dfc
by James BazinIt was Tuesday, 17 October 1939. Britain had been at war with Germany for more than a month and for only the second time the Luftwaffe had dared to enter British airspace – and at last James ‘Jim’ Bazin’s chance had come. After joining the RAF in 1935, Jim was an experienced pilot when war broke out and he was eager to test his skills against the enemy. This first combat was the start of a career which saw Wing Commander Bazin, as he was to become, being posted to France with 607 (County of Durham) Squadron. He fought there until the last days of the Battle of France. In the course of the campaign, Bazin had battled his way to becoming an ace. He was also shot down behind enemy lines, but successfully evaded capture to return to his squadron and resume the fight. There was no respite for Bazin as he was once again in the air defending Britain’s skies in his trusty Hurricane as the Luftwaffe sort to destroy Fighter Command in the summer of 1940. With ten ‘kills’ to his name, Jim Bazin was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross in October that year. But merely driving off the Luftwaffe was not enough for him. He was posted to Inverness where he served as a Controller in 14 Group’s Operations Room, which gave him a taste for offensive operations. In time, Bazin volunteered to move to Bomber Command. He duly undertook a conversion course in 1943, eventually joining 49 Squadron as a Lancaster pilot to take the war to the very heart of the enemy. After commanding 49 Squadron, including taking part in Bomber Command’s support of the D-Day landings, Bazin was promoted to Wing Commander, leading 9 Squadron on many attacks on special targets such as U-boat pens, viaducts, refineries and, most notably, operating with the famous Dambusters against Hitler’s great battleship Tirpitz. Unrelenting in his efforts against the enemy, Jim Bazin was involved in operations against targets in Poland and Germany right up until the end of the war. This culminated in the last major RAF operation of the Second World War when, on 25 April 1945, Bomber Command attacked the Berghof, Hitler’s Alpine retreat, and other targets in Berchtesgaden. Jim Bazin was awarded the DSO in September 1945 – rightful recognition for a man who had done so much to bring about the defeat of the enemy.
From The Cannon’s Mouth: The Civil War Letters Of General Alpheus S. Williams
by Milo M. Quaife General Alpheus S. WilliamsA candidate for the title of "unsung hero" among the Union generals of the Civil War, Alpheus Williams, "Old Pap" to his men, wrote as frequently as he could to his family in Detroit of his successes, achievements and battles during that terrible period of strife. In this engaging collection of his correspondence he recounts the part he played in the battles both East and West at Second Bull Run, Antietam, Chancellorsville, Gettysburg, Atlanta and the Savannah campaign. A kind hearted man, he was deeply affected by the hardships suffered by the common soldiers under his command who he treated with great care and often sorrow at the awful casualties they suffered.Warmly recommended."Superb war letters. . . . Old 'Pap' Williams possessed an unconscious literary flair that gives simple style and force to his letters. . . . Milo Quaife has added annotation that will enlighten the casual reader and satisfy the scholar."--New York Times Book Review"Civil War scholars are always grateful for a volume of letters written by a high-ranking officer who held important commands in pivotal engagements. . . . A superior collection. . . . Especially useful to students of the war are his keen, detailed accounts of Antietam, Chancellorsville, and Gettysburg."--American Historical Review
From This Moment On (Made in Montana)
by Debbi RawlinsHe's one cowboy she can't resistCowboy and lady-magnet Trace McAllister has a problem...and she's petite, with almond-shaped eyes and a body that makes his libido beg for mercy. Sure, the Sundance Dude Ranch has attracted a bevy of gorgeous townie women. But not one draws him in like sexy little Nikki Flores.Nikki isn't looking to play games with some good-lookin' charmer of a cowboy. She knows better-or should. Besides, she's in Blackfoot Falls only long enough to figure out her next move. And the last thing she needs is to get tied down...or tied up!But all they need is one moment-the moment when temptation takes over....
From Tobruk to Smolensk
by StrategicusOriginally published in 1941, this book represents the third volume in a series on the course of World War II, by a well-informed author who chose to remain anonymous during the time of first publication. The period covered in this volume is roughly from February to August 1941. It is the sequel to The War for World Power and From Dunkirk to Benghazi and, according the author's Preface, "has been written upon the same broad lines as an attempt to disentangle from the amazing confusion of events those which are the most significant and, while there has been some endeavour to admit the jurisdiction of chronology, events have been grouped as far as possible in episodes that have a certain unity."It differs from the preceding volumes in showing the decisive character of the operations. From more concentrated though skilful operations it developed into movements which for mass and momentum have no parallel in history. It has the sort of discontinuity that exists between the art of the miniaturist and that of the scene painter; and yet it is evident that the attitudes and outlooks that conditioned earlier military operations dominated these. It can hardly fail to be realized that the attitude towards defence that caused the fall of France would have led to defeat throughout this period and that the Russians escaped defeat and inflicted damage on their opponents in the measure that they attacked and in so far as they failed it was due to their acting upon the defensive."
From Valmy To Waterloo—Extracts From The Diary Of Capt. Charles François: A Soldier Of The Revolution And The Empire.
by Jules Arsène Arnaud Clarentie Robert B. Douglas Capitiane Charles FrançoisThe cannonade of Valmy (1792) ranks as one of the most significant battles of all time for its strategic results: the defeat of the Prussian invasion heralded the beginning of the French Republic. At the field of Waterloo in 1815, no less a battle ended once and for all the ambitions of Napoleon to dominate Europe under French hegemony. Throughout this period of strife and struggle, which would change the map of Europe forever, Capitaine François fought under the banners and eagles of France, a callow youth at the time of Valmy, a grizzled veteran by the time of Waterloo. His story stretches from the plains of Northern France, through the frozen wastes of Russia, the sunburnt sands of Egypt and to the rotting prisoner hulks of Spain. François was by his own account a ruthless, fearless fighter but tempered with a passionate and phlegmatic nature; of the many memoirs of Napoleon's troops, few are filled with such adventure and anecdote.An excellent from the ranks of Napoleon's army.Author -- Capitaine Charles François (1774 or 5-1853.)Preface -- Jules Arsène Arnaud Claretie (1840-1913.)Translator -- Robert B. DouglasText taken, whole and complete, from the edition published in 1906, London, by Everett and Co.Original Page Count - 332 pages.
From Versailles To Mers El-kébir: The Promise Of Anglo-french Naval Cooperation, 1919-40
by George MeltonThis is a ground-breaking study in Anglo-French naval relations after 1919 as they related to European diplomatic currents between the two World Wars, and to the balance of global naval power before World War II until the summer of 1940. The regional focus is on the Mediterranean, the only area where British and French naval power could be combined to support their diplomatic agenda and to restrain the weakest of the three Axis powers. In broader focus, the study suggests that shifting currents in the balance of global naval power left both the French and British fleets overextended in the late 1930’s, so that their concluding an entente was their only option to redress the strategic imbalance. The book is a study of the troubled courtship between the two naval staffs leading to the conclusion in early 1939 of a naval Entente. The Entente enabled London and Paris to distribute their naval power in the Mediterranean to neutralize Italy and Japan and to combine their naval power in the Atlantic against the Kriegsmarine. But that alliance was not an altogether happy one, as the global defense imperatives of the Admiralty frustrated the regional ambitions of the Rue Royale intent upon unleashing combined Anglo-French naval power against Italy to seize control of the Mediterranean early in the war. The study concludes that the Entente enjoyed its greatest success in terms of naval operations in the Atlantic against German surface raiders and U-boats, and that the British attack upon the French squadron at Mers el-Kébir was more a product of the 1940 Franco-German-Italian armistices that of accumulated tensions in the Entente. Finally, the study concludes with the view that the attack upon the French fleet at Mers el-Kébir was a tactical failure and a strategic blunder that burdened the subsequent war effort and created a naval balance more hostile than that prior to the attack, and that the outcome of the operation demanded a carefully crafted cover-up that twisted the facts and concealed from the public the failure of the operation.
From Versailles to Pearl Harbor
by Nicholas Tarling Margaret LambIn 1941, the European war became a world war. This book tackles that process in its economic, political and ideological dimensions. Margaret Lamb and Nicholas Tarling explore the significance of the Asian factor and the importance of East Asia in the making of the war in Europe and the transformation of the European war of 1939 into the world war of 1941. This Asian factor has often been neglected, but the policies of all the major powers were affected by their world-wide interests. France had its possessions in North Africa and Asia; Nazi Germany chose to become involved in China and to make an agreement with Japan; Britain's action in Europe and the Mediterranean were conditioned by its commitments elsewhere in the world, and the United States and the Soviet Union were both involved in Europe and Asia. In particular the threat that Japan presented to the status quo in East Asia made it difficult for the war in Europe in turn affected the position in East Asia. The US built a two-ocean navy and encouraged the British to continue their struggle by keeping the resources of South East Asia available, and these steps led to a clash with the Japanese. Lamb and Tarling's global approach throws valuable new light on the origins of the Second World War.
From Vision To Reality: Implementing Europe's New Security Order
by Trine FlockhartFrom Vision to Reality takes the reader past the fixation with political decision-making by focusing on the process of implementation that follows important policy decisions. The book identifies the intentions behind a collection of key policy decisions for establishing Europe's new security order and investigates whether the implementation of thos
From Volturno To The Winter Line: 6 October - 15 November 1943 [Illustrated Edition]
by AnonIllustrated with 30 maps and 36 Illustrations.BEFORE DAWN ON THE MORNING OF 13 Oct. 1943, American and British assault troops of the Fifth Army waded the rain-swollen Volturno River in the face of withering fire from German riflemen and machine gunners dug in along the northern bank. This crossing of the Volturno opened the second phase of the Allied campaign in Italy. Five weeks earlier the Fifth Army had landed on the hostile beaches of the Gulf of Salerno. Now it was attacking a well-defended river line.Along the Volturno the Germans had entrenched themselves in the first good defensive position north of Naples. Under pressure from the Fifth Army, commanded by Lt. Gen. Mark W. Clark, their rearguards had relinquished the great port of Naples with its surrounding airfields, providing us with the base necessary for large-scale operations west of the rugged Apennine mountain range, backbone of the Italian peninsula. East of the Apennines the British Eighth Army, under General Sir Bernard L. Montgomery, had reached the mouth of the Biferno River during the first week of Oct.. The Eighth and Fifth Armies now held a line across the peninsula running south from Torre Petacciato on the Adriatic Sea for some sixty-five miles, then west to a point on the Tyrrhenian Sea just south of the Volturno. Along this line of rivers and mountains the Germans clearly intended to make a stubborn stand, hoping to delay, perhaps to stop, our northward advance.Within six weeks, Fifth Army troops had driven the Germans back to the Volturno, had executed a difficult river crossing in the face of a well-entrenched enemy, had gone on to cross the river a second and a third time, and had forced Kesselring's hard-pressed army back into the chain of mountains which formed his next strong defensive position. Whether fighting across rivers, through valleys, or up steep mountain slopes, our men had everywhere proved their ability to defeat Hitler's vaunted master race.
From Wakefield to Towton: The Wars of the Roses (Battleground Britain 1460–1461)
by Philip HaighThe Wars of the Roses was a complicated, bloody affair between the houses of Lancaster and York, and witnessed much changing of sides. That disjointed feuding persisted for a staggering thirty years and was a north versus south affair. However, the period and conflicts covered by this title are refreshingly clear. An intriguing tale of treachery and deceit.
From War To Cold War: The Education Of Harry S. Truman
by Robert James MaddoxThis book reviews the strains between the United States and Great Britain that led to the Cold War as the result of personal characteristics of the leaders of the United States, the Soviet Union, and Great Britain as well as of historical and ideological forces.
From War To Peace: A Guide To The Next Hundred Years
by Kent D. ShifferdThe world's first peace organizations emerged in the 19th century and since that time, anti-war activism has progressed rapidly. This illuminating book presents a realistic analysis of the extent to which the war system has infiltrated all aspects of Western culture and how it works to perpetuate war rather than promote peace. Additionally, the text describes the historically recent and still evolving parallel system of peace institutions. The values and ideas that have grown out of peace activism offer a very real opportunity to outlaw war in the coming century just as slavery was abolished in the 19th century.
From War to Forever
by Andria Large2nd EditionDennis The love of my life is dead. Is there a reason to live anymore? I’m a veteran Marine. Terrorists took not only my foot, but also my wife. Recurrent nightmares, a dead-end job, and a painful limp are all I have left. My best friend, Tucker, and my sister, Lizette, keep me afloat. I wouldn’t be here if it weren’t for Tucker… literally. And then, out of nowhere, there are these feelings. The kind I haven’t felt in years. The kind I’m not sure I can handle, or even want to. But they’ve started wrapping around my broken heart, trying to mend it. Only they are not for a woman, but for the man suddenly sharing my bed. I’m not so sure I’m ready to give love another go. Tucker The war took my hearing, but I’m alive. Many of my friends are not. I am building a life with my best friend, Dennis. We have become practically inseparable. And now, we are more than friends. I’ve never had feelings like these for a man. My parents, my brother, my buddy, Duke—will they understand how I feel about Dennis? Can I risk losing my family? First Edition published as At War by KDP Select, 2015.
From War to Peace in 1945 Germany
by James H. Madison Bradley D. Cook Malcolm L. FlemingAs an Official Army Photographer, "Mac" Fleming's assignment was to take motion pictures of significant wartime events for the US Army. In the pouch intended to carry his first-aid kit on his belt, he instead carried a small personal camera, which he used to take pictures of the people and places that interested him, capturing in his field notes details of the life he observed. From these records, Fleming has assembled this absorbing private chronicle of war and peace. Assigned to the European Theater in February 1945, he filmed the action from the battle for the Remagen Bridge across the Rhine, to the fighting in the Hartz Mountains, on to the linkup with the Russian forces at the Elbe River. After the armistice, Fleming helped document how the Allied Expeditionary Force established a military government in Germany to cope with masses of POWs, establish control of the country, deal with the atrocities committed by the German army, and help thousands of newly released slave laborers return home to Poland, France, and Russia. He also recorded how the army provided rest, recreation, and rehabilitation to the remaining US soldiers and sent them home by truck, train, and ship. Awaiting shipment home, Fleming explored postwar German town and country life and toured some famous castles and historic spots. The foreword by historian James H. Madison describes the important role of photography in war and the special contribution of Fleming's photographic diary.
From War to Peace: The Conversion of Naval Vessels After Two World Wars
by Nick RobinsFrom War to Peace tells the story of the adaptation from White Ensign to Red Ensign, and to flags of other nations, of the numerous classes of naval ships mainly built during the two world wars and surplus to requirements with the advent of peace. It also describes ships sourced from the United States Navy and elsewhere that were converted for commercial use. The most successful classes to transfer to the merchant service were the Hunt-class minesweepers of the Great War, Landing Craft, Tank, the salvage tugs of World War Two, and the wooden-hulled Fairmile launches which became familiar at seaside resorts in the 1950s and ‘60s; and, of course, the MFV classes that helped the fishing industry in the postwar years. The story includes the successful commercial conversions of many of the Flower and Castle Class corvettes and River Class frigates, notably the 1954 conversion of HMCS Stormont to a luxury yacht for the Greek shipping magnate Onassis. It describes why HMS Charybdis became a passenger liner in the Great War, and how HMS Albatross nearly became a luxury liner after World War Two, but in fact was transformed into a very unpopular emigrant ship and ended her days as a floating casino based at Cape Town. The author reveals the military antecedents of numerous commercial vessels that many would have thought were built especially for the service that they later maintained, and it illustrates just how many Royal Navy vessels ended up in private ownership. And the question is asked: if the military had not built so many ships that were eminently suitable for commercial adaptation, would the technical development of merchant shipping have progressed at a faster rate than it did? The answer is a definite ‘no’, and is illustrated in several ways. It was former naval vessels that promoted the early development of the Ro-Ro ferry; former naval ships introduced numerous design innovations, for example, the raised foredeck common for so many years on salvage tugs, and, above all, stripped of their military hardware, ex naval ships provided opportunities for modest investment where otherwise there would have been none. Copiously illustrated throughout, the book tells a fascinating story of invention and ingenious ship conversion, and of pragmatic adaptation in the financially stringent years after two world wars.
From Warfare to Welfare: Defense Intellectuals and Urban Problems in Cold War America
by Jennifer S. LightDuring the early decades of the Cold War, large-scale investments in American defense and aerospace research and development spawned a variety of problem-solving techniques, technologies, and institutions. From systems analysis to reconnaissance satellites to think tanks, these innovations did not remain exclusive accessories of the defense establishment. Instead, they readily found civilian applications in both the private and public sector. City planning and management were no exception.Jennifer Light argues that the technologies and values of the Cold War fundamentally shaped the history of postwar urban America. From Warfare to Welfare documents how American intellectuals, city leaders, and the federal government chose to attack problems in the nation's cities by borrowing techniques and technologies first designed for military engagement with foreign enemies. Experiments in urban problem solving adapted the expertise of defense professionals to face new threats: urban chaos, blight, and social unrest. Tracing the transfer of innovations from military to city planning and management, Light reveals how a continuing source of inspiration for American city administrators lay in the nation's preparations for war.