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The Stroud Valleys in the Great War
by Camilla BoonThe First World War claimed over 995,000 British lives, and its legacy continues to be remembered today.Stroud’s Five Valleys in the Great War offers an intimate portrayal of the region and its people living in the shadow of the 'war to end all wars'. This highly accessible volume explores themes of local reaction to the outbreak of war; the experience of individuals who enlisted; the changing face of industry and related unrest; the work of the hospitals in the area; the effect of the conflict on children; the women who defied convention to play a vital role on the home front and how people coped with the transition to life in peacetime once more. The Great War story of the Stroud Valleys – including Stroud, Brimscombe, Chalford, Bussage, Woodchester, Stonehouse, Minchinhampton and Rodborough – is recalled by those who were there and is vividly illustrated with photographs, postcards, documents and other First World War ephemera.
The Structure of Morale
by J. T. MacCurdyDuring World War I, when Captain J. T. MacCurdy, a Canadian psychiatrist and Cornell University lecturer, was despatched on a special mission to Britain, he undertook one of the earliest studies of war neuroses. The new factor was the availability of high explosives following Nobel’s discovery of dynamite in 1867 (nitroglycerin and diatomaceous earth) and developments thereof such as trinitrotoluene (TNT) and picric acid. High explosives were a boon to the mining and the civil engineer but inflicted terrible injuries on combatants. Shell shock—or, as we would now call it, post-traumatic stress disorder—resulted from extreme experiences on the battlefield, injury, concussion, being buried alive or simply the scale of the slaughter.This book, which was first published in 1943, contains the text of lectures delivered by Dr. J. T. MacCurdy to groups of officers from the army and the auxiliary women’s services early in WWII. MacCurdy, continuing on from his findings during WWI, discusses the nature of fear, the national factors at play in the creation and sustainability of morale with reference to the Allied and Axis powers, and the significance of psychological factors in practice in an organized community.“This intelligent, objective analysis of the nature of the psychological factor in war was intended for the British soldier, but its interest and application are universal.”—Foreign Affairs
The Structure of the Defense Industry: An International Survey (Routledge Library Editions: International Security Studies #19)
by Nicole Ball and Milton LeitenbergProponents of arms control and disarmament are often confronted with the argument that reductions in defense expenditure lead to cutbacks in military industries and thus to economic hardship. While a reduction in defense production would cause some economic dislocation, this would be mitigated by the ability of the economy to adapt to changing patterns of production. This book, first published in 1983, assesses the likely effects of reductions in defense industries by an examination of the roles these industries play in national economies. Each chapter discusses industry employment, output, research and development, capital value, profitability, concentration and competition, internal organization and regional employment concentration. Other questions considered include the economic importance of weapons exports, the defense industry as a ‘leading edge’ in maintaining national technological capabilities, and the reliance of individual firms on defense contracting.
The Struggle For Europe
by Chester WilmotIncludes over 50 maps and plansChester Wilmot's The Struggle for Europe is the most highly regarded single-volume history of the Second World War in Europe. First published in 1952, the book has the advantage of the author's extensive interviews with participants from all sides of the conflict, when recollections of the war were still painfully fresh. The pattern of post-war Europe, he maintains, was determined during the fighting; he sees the shaping events through a study of wartime diplomacy and strategy and of the impact on wartime policies of the personalities of the statesmen and generals with whom the decisions lay. Throughout Wilmot hews to one guiding principle: To concern ourselves solely with the course of military events would be to tell only half the story and to see only half its significance. It is the political outcome that counts, and in this book the two are closely related at every stage.-Print ed.
The Struggle against Imperialism: Anticolonialism and the Cold War (Exploring World History)
by Edward Judge John LangdonThis concise and engaging text argues that the Cold War and anti-colonial movements should properly be studied and taught together, not as distinct developments, but rather as interwoven aspects of a complex global transformation. The authors provide a cogent and concise description of the post–World War II era and reveal connective dimensions of that era that remain hidden in books that focus primarily on either the Cold War or the struggles against imperial rule. It not only deals with anti-colonialism and Cold War together but also portrays the Cold War as a contest between “anti-imperialist empires,” capped by the collapse of one of them—the multicultural trans-regional Soviet realm—in a work that is engaging and accessible to both students and general readers.
The Struggle for Abolition: Power and Legitimacy in Multilateral Nuclear Disarmament Diplomacy
by Kjølv EgelandCan the genie be returned to the bottle? This book investigates the pursuit by states, civil society groups, and international organisations of nuclear abolition. Detailing the evolution of the institutional architecture for multilateral nuclear disarmament from the 1960s onwards, this book tells a story of high hopes, broken promises, and clashing views of history, security, and the future.Global nuclear politics deals in material power and security but is also shot through with contests over prestige, justice, and mutual recognition. Waves of innovation in multilateral nuclear disarmament diplomacy have typically come about on the back of crises of legitimacy within the broader nuclear order.The book concludes with a discussion of policy implications and a reflection on successes and failures in the history of multilateral nuclear disarmament. The volume will be of great interest to scholars and researchers of diplomacy, history, and politics and international relations.
The Struggle for Iraq: A View from the Ground Up
by Thomas M. RenahanThe Struggle for Iraq is a vivid personal account of the Iraqi people’s fight for democracy and justice by an American political scientist. Thomas M. Renahan arrived in southern Iraq just three days before the capture of Saddam Hussein in 2003. Later he worked in Baghdad through the dark days of the country’s sectarian violence and then in Iraqi Kurdistan. One of the few Americans to serve in all three major regions of Iraq, he spearheaded projects to develop democratic institutions, promote democracy and elections, and fight corruption. With inside accounts of two USAID projects and of a Kurdish government ministry, this engrossing and cautionary story highlights efforts to turn Baathist Iraq into a democratic country. Renahan examines the challenges faced by the Iraqi people and international development staff during this turbulent time, revealing both their successes and frustrations. Drawing on his on-the-ground civilian perspective, Renahan recounts how expatriate staff handled the hardships and dangers as well as the elaborate security required to protect them, how Iraqi staff coped with the personal security risks of working for Coalition organizations, and the street-level mayhem and violence, including the assassinations of close Iraqi friends. Although Iraq remains in crisis, it has largely defeated the ISIS terrorists who seized much of the country in 2014. Renahan emphasizes, however, that reconciliation is still the end game in Iraq. In the concluding chapters he explains how the United States can support this process and help resolve the complex problems between the Iraqi government and the independence-minded Kurds, offering hope for the future.
The Struggle for Pakistan
by Ayesha JalalEstablished as a homeland for India’s Muslims in 1947, Pakistan has had a tumultuous history that has unfolded in the vortex of dire regional and international conflicts. Beset by assassinations, coups, ethnic strife, and the breakaway of Bangladesh in 1971, the country has found itself too often contending with religious extremism and military authoritarianism. Now, in a probing biography of her native land amid the throes of global change, Ayesha Jalal provides an insider’s assessment of how this nuclear-armed Muslim nation evolved as it did and explains why its dilemmas weigh so heavily on prospects for peace in the region. <p><p> Attentive to Pakistan’s external relations as well as its internal dynamics, Jalal shows how the vexed relationship with the United States, border disputes with Afghanistan in the west, and the conflict with India over Kashmir in the east have played into the hands of the generals who purchased security at the cost of strong democratic institutions. Combined with domestic ethnic and regional rivalries, such pressures have created a siege mentality that encourages military domination and militant extremism. <p> Since 9/11, the country has been widely portrayed as a breeding ground for Islamic terrorism. Assessing the threats posed by Al-Qaeda and the Taliban as American troops withdraw from Afghanistan, Jalal contends that the battle for Pakistan’s soul is far from over. Her definitive biography reveals how pluralism and democracy continue to struggle for a place in this Muslim homeland, where they are so essential to its future.
The Struggle for Sea Power: A Naval History of the American Revolution
by Sam WillisA fascinating naval perspective on one of the greatest of all historical conundrums: How did thirteen isolated colonies, which in 1775 began a war with Britain without a navy or an army, win their independence from the greatest naval and military power on earth? The American Revolution involved a naval war of immense scope and variety, including no fewer than twenty-two navies fighting on five oceans—to say nothing of rivers and lakes. In no other war were so many large-scale fleet battles fought, one of which was the most strategically significant naval battle in all of British, French, and American history. Simultaneous naval campaigns were fought in the English Channel, the North and Mid-Atlantic, the Mediterranean, off South Africa, in the Indian Ocean, the Caribbean, the Pacific, the North Sea and, of course, off the eastern seaboard of America. Not until the Second World War would any nation actively fight in so many different theaters. In The Struggle for Sea Power, Sam Willis traces every key military event in the path to American independence from a naval perspective, and he also brings this important viewpoint to bear on economic, political, and social developments that were fundamental to the success of the Revolution. In doing so Willis offers valuable new insights into American, British, French, Spanish, Dutch, and Russian history. This unique account of the American Revolution gives us a new understanding of the influence of sea power upon history, of the American path to independence, and of the rise and fall of the British Empire.
The Struggle for the Dardanelles: The Memoirs of a German Staff Officer in Ottoman Service
by Major Erich PriggeThis is a detailed eye-witness account of the Dardanelles/Gallipoli campaign from the perspective of the Turks, through the eyes of Major Erich Prigge an adjutant to Marshal Liman von Sanders, the German commander-in-chief of the Ottoman forces in the Dardanelles. The focus is overwhelmingly on combat but includes related matters such as reconnaissance and logistics. Packed with specific information and technical detail as well as action, it should be of great interest to historians and enthusiasts. Prigge actually wrote two accounts of the campaign. The first, published in January 1916 while the fighting continued, revealed so much information that the Ottoman government asked the German authorities to suppress it. The other, published later that year, included coverage of the British evacuation. Although Prigge had removed many of the sensitive details of unit names, casualties etc., he had substantially rewritten and augmented many passages with lively descriptive material. Philip Rance here presents the first English translations of both versions, which together form one of the most complete and valuable accounts of this campaign available from the Turkish perspective.
The Struggle for the Files
by Astrid M. EckertWhen American and British troops swept through the German Reich in the spring of 1945, they confiscated a broad range of government papers and archives. These records were subsequently used in war crimes trials and published under Allied auspices to document the German road to war. In 1949, the West Germans asked for their return, considering the request one of the benchmarks of their new state sovereignty. This book traces the tangled history of the captured German records and the extended negotiations for their return into German custody. Based on meticulous research in British, American and German archives, The Struggle for the Files highlights an overlooked aspect of early West German diplomacy and international relations. All participants were aware that the files constituted historical material essential to write German history and at stake was nothing less than the power to interpret the recent German past.
The Struggle for the West: A Divided and Contested Legacy (Routledge Critical Security Studies)
by Christopher Browning Marko LehtiIn recent years debates about the nature and future of the West have been high on the political agenda. Prognoses of the West's imminent demise have been countered by those arguing for its continued relevance, or those arguing that while the West will survive its nature, and the balance of power between its constituent units, is transforming. This book argues that understanding contemporary developments requires subjecting the very idea of the West to critical scrutiny and in particular asking what kind of concept it actually is. Locating the West as a discursive concept the book argues attempts to save, fix or reclaim the meaning of the West are illustrative of political agendas rather than indicative of accurate claims about the essential nature of the West. In contrast, the book argues that as a concept the West is impregnated with various discursive legacies, the most embedded of which are those of a civilisational, modern and political West. However, while attempts to define the West's essence are therefore doomed to fail, given the concept's historical and discursive flexibility, such attempts reaffirm the legitimising role which claims to the West continue to perform. Beyond this, the book challenges traditional genealogies of the West, which overwhelmingly depict the West as an inside-out concept. In contrast, the book argues that historically outsiders have played an important role in defining the nature of the West and constituting it as a political subject; processes that remain evident today. This book will particularly interest students of critical security studies, critical geopolitics, European politics, American politics and IR theory.
The Strumpet Wind
by Gordon MerrickThe Strumpet Wind, first published in 1947, is a fictional account of espionage during the later days of World War II. Set in southern France, the novel revolves around a French family (the husband is a collaborator with the Vichy government and the German army), and an American intelligence agent, whose mission is to transmit false messages to the Nazis. Mercanton, the collaborator, attempts to switch allegiance to the Allied cause, but his actions, although helpful, do not prevent the tragic consequences brought about by his earlier activities. Author Gordon Merrick (1916-1988), served in the O.S.S. in France during World War II, reaching the rank of captain. The Strumpet Wind was his first novel.
The Stryker Brigade Combat Team: Rethinking Strategic Responsiveness and Assessing Deployment Options
by Seth G. Jones Bruce R. Pirnie Alan J. Vick David T. OrletskyExamines alternative means to decrease the deployment time for the new Army medium-weight brigade, comparing air and sealift from the United States with air and fast (but short-range) sealift from forward bases or preposition sites. Historical experience and an assessment of U.S. regional interests are used to determine how much warning time the United States typically has before major force deployments and where it is most likely to deploy such forces
The Student's Life of Washington; Con: For Young Persons and for the Use of Schools
by Washington IrvingWashington Irving (April 3, 1783 - November 28, 1859) was an American author of the early 19th century. Best known for his short stories The Legend of Sleepy Hollow and Rip van Winkle (both of which appear in his book The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon), he was also a prolific essayist, biographer and historian. Irving and James Fenimore Cooper were the first American writers to earn acclaim in Europe, and Irving is said to have encouraged authors such as Nathaniel Hawthorne, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, and Edgar Allan Poe. Irving was also the U.S. minister to Spain 1842-1846.
The Stuff of Soldiers: A History of the Red Army in World War II through Objects (Battlegrounds: Cornell Studies in Military History)
by Brandon M. SchechterThe Stuff of Soldiers uses everyday objects to tell the story of the Great Patriotic War as never before. Brandon Schechter attends to a diverse array of things—from spoons to tanks—to show how a wide array of citizens became soldiers, and how the provisioning of material goods separated soldiers from civilians.Through a fascinating examination of leaflets, proclamations, newspapers, manuals, letters to and from the front, diaries, and interviews, The Stuff of Soldiers reveals how the use of everyday items made it possible to wage war. The dazzling range of documents showcases ethnic diversity, women's particular problems at the front, and vivid descriptions of violence and looting.Each chapter features a series of related objects: weapons, uniforms, rations, and even the knick-knacks in a soldier's rucksack. These objects narrate the experience of people at war, illuminating the changes taking place in Soviet society over the course of the most destructive conflict in recorded history. Schechter argues that spoons, shovels, belts, and watches held as much meaning to the waging of war as guns and tanks. In The Stuff of Soldiers, he describes the transformative potential of material things to create a modern culture, citizen, and soldier during World War II.
The Subaltern
by George Robert Gleig Pickle Partners PublishingThis ebook is purpose built and is proof-read and re-type set from the original to provide an outstanding experience of reflowing text for an ebook reader. The Reverend Gleig was a famous military author of his day, a former officer in the British army, a commentator on military matters and a close relationship with the Iron Duke, Wellington. He wrote many works and articles including a biography of Wellington, a book based on his own experiences during the war of 1812 in America and editing the memoirs of a Chelsea pensioner. Originally published as a series of articles in Blackwoods Magazine, in the 1820s Reverend Gleig's most famous novel, The Subaltern, was published as a book in its own right soon after going through numerous editions. It presents a slightly coloured and retouched memoir of Gleig's own experiences in the Duke's army in the Peninsular and the invasion of the South of France. Somewhat lighter in tone than some of the more gruesome memoirs written of the war, it is a fascinating read. Text taken, whole and complete, from the 1825 edition, published in Edinburgh by William Blackwood. Original - 392 pages. Author- George Robert Gleig 1796-1888 (1844-1912) Linked TOC.
The Subaltern Officer. — A Narrative
by Captain George WoodThis ebook is purpose built and is proof-read and re-type set from the original to provide an outstanding experience of reflowing text for an ebook reader. George Foot started his military career in the Peninsula as a Lieutenant in the 82nd Foot, Prince of Wales's Volunteers, having being involved in the initial struggles around Lisbon at Roliça and Vimiero in 1808, before the general action at Talavera in 1809. Interestingly, he transferred to the 2nd Battalion of Detachments for the rest of the War before being seriously wounded at the battle of the Pyrenees. His narrative is enlivened with an eye for detail both in the battles he fought in and the towns and villages that he and his foot-sore comrades tramped through. Title - The Subaltern Officer. -- A Narrative Author -- Captain George Wood Text taken, whole and complete, from the edition published in 1825, London, by Septimus Prowett Original - xvi and 247 pages. Illustrations -- one illustrations.
The Submarine Service, 1900–1918 (Navy Records Society Publications #142)
by Nicholas LambertThe year 2001 marks the centenary of the Royal Navy's submarine service. In the aftermath of the 2016 celebrations of the Battle of Jutland centenary, it is worth considering how the First World War at sea changed. This volume opens with an examination of the background to the Board of Admiralty's decision in 1900 to buy submarines, bringing to light documents that go a long way toward dispelling the myth that Britain's pre-1914 naval leaders were opposed to the development of the submarine as a major weapon. Indeed, the documents show that senior naval officers and influential civilians in Whitehall believed that the advent of the submarine would revolutionize naval warfare in a way that would bolster the Royal Navy's position as the world's predominant naval power. This edited selection of documents illustrates not only the Admiralty's thinking on the employment of the submarine between 1900 and 1918, it also charts the technical development of British submarines, and explains issues such as why the pioneer submariners came to regard themselves as an élite group within the Royal Navy - and were allowed to become the 'silent service'.
The Submarine: A History
by Thomas ParrishThe importance of submarines in the wars of the twentieth century.
The Successors to Drake
by Sir Julian S. CorbettThe present work is designed as a sequel to Drake and the Tudor Navy (1898), to which it practically forms a third and concluding volume, carrying the reader through the period of hostilities with Spain which extended from the death of Drake in 1596 to the conclusion of the war at James I.'s accession.It is a period which, if we except the operations of Essex at Cádiz in 1596, has been much neglected by historians and as much misunderstood. [...]Mainly the work is concerned with naval history, hut not so exclusively as the two previous volumes. Military affairs begin to intrude themselves. Indeed it is doubtful whether the naval and the military history of England should ever be written apart. The real importance of maritime power is its influence on military operations. This is the thesis which lies at the bottom of all the teaching with which Captain Mahan's name is pre-eminently associated. [...]The direction of a great war can only be followed out in the mutual reaction of the two forces, and how closely they are inter-dependent nothing shows more emphatically than the last years of the Elizabethan war. It is impossible to deal adequately with the naval operations without understanding what the soldiers were doing. To treat, for instance, of the action of the fleet during the Spanish descent on Ireland in 1601 without following the strategy ashore might be naval chronicling. It would not be history.WITH PORTRAITS AND OTHER ILLUSTRATIONS.
The Suffocating Night: The Lydmouth Crime Series Book 4
by Andrew Taylor'Andrew Taylor is a master story-teller' Daily Telegraph From the No.1 bestselling author of The Ashes of London and The Fire Court, this is the fourth instalment in the acclaimed Lydmouth seriesThe Korean war rumbles in the background throughout this novel as a reporter is found murdered at the Bathurst Arms, squatters are evicted from a military camp and there are new developments in the three-year-old hunt for a missing teenager. And in spite of all that's going on, Jill Francis, a local journalist, and DI Richard Thornhill find they can no longer resist their feelings for each other.'An excellent writer. He plots with care and intelligence and the solution to the mystery is satisfyingly chilling' The Times'The most under-rated crime writer in Britain today' Val McDermid 'There is no denying Taylor's talent, his prose exudes a quality uncommon among his contemporaries' Time Out
The Suffocating Night: The Lydmouth Crime Series Book 4
by Andrew Taylor'Andrew Taylor is a master story-teller' Daily Telegraph From the No.1 bestselling author of The Ashes of London and The Fire Court, this is the fourth instalment in the acclaimed Lydmouth seriesThe Korean war rumbles in the background throughout this novel as a reporter is found murdered at the Bathurst Arms, squatters are evicted from a military camp and there are new developments in the three-year-old hunt for a missing teenager. And in spite of all that's going on, Jill Francis, a local journalist, and DI Richard Thornhill find they can no longer resist their feelings for each other.'An excellent writer. He plots with care and intelligence and the solution to the mystery is satisfyingly chilling' The Times'The most under-rated crime writer in Britain today' Val McDermid 'There is no denying Taylor's talent, his prose exudes a quality uncommon among his contemporaries' Time Out
The Suffragette Bombers: Britain's Forgotten Terrorists
by Simon WebbIn the years leading up to the First World War, the United Kingdom was subjected to a ferocious campaign of bombing and arson. Those conducting this terrorist offensive were members of the Women's Social and Political Union; better known as the suffragettes. The targets for their attacks ranged from St Paul's Cathedral and the Bank of England in London to theatres and churches in Ireland. The violence, which included several attempted assassinations, culminated in June 1914 with an explosion in Westminster Abbey.Simon Webb explores the way in which the suffragette bombers have been airbrushed from history, leaving us with a distorted view of the struggle for female suffrage. Not only were the suffragettes far more aggressive than is generally known, but there exists the very real and surprising possibility that their militant activities actually delayed, rather than hastened, the granting of the parliamentary vote to British women.
The Suicide Exhibition: A Novel (The Never War #1)
by Justin RichardsThe threat is not new. The aliens have been here before.The German war machine has woken an ancient threat - the alien Vril and their Ubermensch have returned. With this new power, ultimate Victory in the war for Europe is now within the Nazis' grasp.Obsessed with the Occult, Hitler and other senior Nazis believed they were destined to inherit the Earth. To this end, they are determined to recover 'their' ancient artifacts -- the Ark of the Covenant, the Holy Grail, the Spear of Destiny. When Dunkirk veteran and Foreign Office trouble-shooter Major Guy Pentecross stumbles across a seemingly unbelievable conspiracy, he, together with pilot and American spy Sarah Diamond and SOE operative Leo Davenport, enter the shadow world of Section Z. All three have major roles to play as they uncover the Nazis' insidious plot to use the Vril's technology to win the war... at any cost.Justin Richards has an extremely credible grasp of WWII history and has transformed it into a groundbreaking alternate reality thriller in The Suicide Exhibition.