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The Battle of London: Trudeau, Thatcher, and the Fight for Canada's Constitution
by Frédéric Bastien Jacob HomelA bestseller in Quebec that describes the horse-trading, intrigue and unrest behind Trudeau’s quest to repatriate the Constitution. After the referendum in 1980, Pierre Elliott Trudeau turned his sights on repatriating the Constitution in an effort to make Canada fully independent from Britain. What should have been a simple process snowballed into a complicated intrigue. Quebec, which thought its prerogatives would be threatened if the Constitution were repatriated, mounted a charm offensive, replete with fine dining and expensive wines in order to influence key British MPs. Not to be outdone, Canada’s native leaders, who felt betrayed by the British Crown, decided to enter the fray, determined to ensure that their cause would triumph. The English Labour Party had a view on the matter as well, which chiefly involved embarrassing Prime Minister Thatcher as thoroughly as possible. Historian Frédéric Bastien describes with great flair how the maverick Trudeau and the uncompromising Thatcher entered into one of history’s most unlikely marriages of convenience in order to repatriate the Canadian Constitution.
The Battle of London 1939-45: Endurance, Heroism and Frailty Under Fire
by Jerry White'Endlessly fascinating. . . White is such a brilliant historian' Mail on SundayLasting for six long years, the Blitz transformed life in the capital beyond recognition, marking a time of almost constant anxiety, disruption, deprivation and sacrifice for Londoners. With the capital the nation's frontline during the Second World War, by its end, 30,000 inhabitants had lost their lives.While much has been written about 'the Myth of the Blitz', its riveting social history has often been overlooked. Unearthing what it was actually like for those living through those tempestuous years, Jerry White paints a fascinating portrait of the daily lives of ordinary Londoners, telling the story through their own voices.'As a history of the capital in wartime, it is probably unsurpassable' Sunday Telegraph'An impressive history of the capital at war. . . White, an accomplished chronicler of London's history, tells it with brio and a confident mastery of the sources' Literary Review
The Battle of Long Tan: As featured in The Vietnam Years
by Michael CaulfieldThe truth about the battle that came to define our Vietnam War - from the men who were there.18th August, 1966. 1pm?D Company entered the plantation. They thought that, if they were lucky, they were closing in on perhaps 30 or 40 VC. They were horribly wrong.Over twelve long, bloody and brutal hours, 105 Australian soldiers and three New Zealanders fought off mortar attacks and heavy machine-gun fire, unaware they were facing up to 2500 Viet Cong and North Vietnamese forces. The first major battle of the war for the Australians, our men showed extraordinary courage and, against all odds, they triumphed ? although the Vietnamese didn?t admit this for another forty years.In The Battle of Long Tan, Caulfield takes us through that hellish day in the Long Tan rubber plantation, combining gripping first-hand accounts from eleven of the men who fought with an authoritative overview of the battle itself ? from headquarters to the men in the field.This is as close as you?ll get to being there.Michael Caulfield has worked as a composer, musician, TV and film producer, and director. He was the executive producer of the ABC TV series AUSTRALIANS AT WAR. His books with Hachette Australia include THE VIETNAM YEARS, WAR BEHIND THE WIRE and VOICES OF WAR.
The Battle of Long Tan
by Peter FitzSimonsFrom the bestselling author of Kokoda and Gallipoli comes the epic story of Australia's deadliest Vietnam War battle.4.31 pm: Enemy [on] left flank. Could be serious.5.01 pm: Enemy ... penetrating both flanks and to north and south.5.02: Running short of ammo. Require drop through trees.It was the afternoon of 18 August 1966, hot, humid with grey monsoonal skies. D Company, 6RAR were four kilometres east of their Nui Dat base, on patrol in a rubber plantation not far from the abandoned village of Long Tan. A day after their base had suffered a mortar strike, they were looking for Viet Cong soldiers. Then - just when they were least expecting - they found them. Under withering fire, some Diggers perished, some were grievously wounded, the rest fought on, as they remained under sustained attack.For hours these men fought for their lives against the enemy onslaught. The skies opened and the rain fell as ferocious mortar and automatic fire pinned them down. Snipers shot at close quarters from the trees that surrounded them. The Aussie, Kiwi and Yankee artillery batteries knew it was up to them but, outnumbered and running out of ammunition they fired, loaded, fired as Viet Cong and North Vietnamese Army forces just kept coming. And coming.Their only hope was if Armoured Personnel Carriers (APCs) could reach them before they were wiped out. The APCs did their best but low cloud and thunderstorms meant air support was stalled. A daring helicopter resupply mission was suggested but who would want to fly that? The odds against this small force were monumental...By far the deadliest battle for Australian forces in Vietnam, the Battle of Long Tan has a proud place in the annals of Australian military history - and every ANZAC who fought there could hold his head high.Peter FitzSimons, Australia's greatest storyteller, tells the real story of this classic battle. He reveals the horror, the bravery, the wins and the losses that faced our soldiers. He brings to life the personal stories of the men who fought, the events leading up to that memorable battle and the long war that followed, and the political decisions made in the halls of power that sealed their fates. The Battle of Long Tan is an engrossing and powerful history that shows the costs of war never end.
The Battle of Long Tan
by Peter FitzSimonsFrom the bestselling author of Kokoda and Gallipoli comes the epic story of Australia's deadliest Vietnam War battle.4.31 pm: Enemy [on] left flank. Could be serious.5.01 pm: Enemy ... penetrating both flanks and to north and south.5.02: Running short of ammo. Require drop through trees.It was the afternoon of 18 August 1966, hot, humid with grey monsoonal skies. D Company, 6RAR were four kilometres east of their Nui Dat base, on patrol in a rubber plantation not far from the abandoned village of Long Tan. A day after their base had suffered a mortar strike, they were looking for Viet Cong soldiers. Then - just when they were least expecting - they found them. Under withering fire, some Diggers perished, some were grievously wounded, the rest fought on, as they remained under sustained attack.For hours these men fought for their lives against the enemy onslaught. The skies opened and the rain fell as ferocious mortar and automatic fire pinned them down. Snipers shot at close quarters from the trees that surrounded them. The Aussie, Kiwi and Yankee artillery batteries knew it was up to them but, outnumbered and running out of ammunition they fired, loaded, fired as Viet Cong and North Vietnamese Army forces just kept coming. And coming.Their only hope was if Armoured Personnel Carriers (APCs) could reach them before they were wiped out. The APCs did their best but low cloud and thunderstorms meant air support was stalled. A daring helicopter resupply mission was suggested but who would want to fly that? The odds against this small force were monumental...By far the deadliest battle for Australian forces in Vietnam, the Battle of Long Tan has a proud place in the annals of Australian military history - and every ANZAC who fought there could hold his head high.Peter FitzSimons, Australia's greatest storyteller, tells the real story of this classic battle. He reveals the horror, the bravery, the wins and the losses that faced our soldiers. He brings to life the personal stories of the men who fought, the events leading up to that memorable battle and the long war that followed, and the political decisions made in the halls of power that sealed their fates. The Battle of Long Tan is an engrossing and powerful history that shows the costs of war never end.
The Battle of Long Tan: The Company Commanders Story
by Harry SmithOn the afternoon of 18 August 1966, just five kilometres from the main Australian Task Force base at Nui Dat, a group of Viet Cong soldiers walked into the right flank of Delta Company, 6 RAR. Under a blanket of mist and heavy monsoon rain, amid the mud and shattered rubber trees, a dispersed Company of 108 men held its ground with courage and grim determination against a three-sided attack from a force of 2,500 Viet Cong and North Vietnamese Army troops. When the battle subsided, 18 Australian soldiers lay dead and 24 had been wounded. Battlefield clearance revealed 245 enemy bodies with captured documents later confirming the count at over 500 enemy killed and 800 wounded. These men were led by a gruff and gusty perfectionist, Major Harry Smith. Now, some 53 years after the battle, Harry tells his story. The Battle of Long Tan is more than just an account of a historic battle. Harry Smith takes his readers on an extraordinary journey — one that ultimately reveals a remarkable cover-up at the highest military and political echelons. The Battle of Long Tan is also Harry’s life story and portrays his many personal battles, from failed marriages to commando-style killing; from a horrific parachute accident through to his modern-day struggles with bureaucracy for recognition for his soldiers. Harry&’s battles are tempered by his love of sailing, where he has at last found some peace. The Battle of Long Tan portrays the wrenching, visceral experience of a man who has fought lifelong battles, in a story that he is only now able to tell. Harry can still hear the gunfire and smell the blood spilt at Long Tan. For him, the fight continues.
Battle of Lookout Mountain (Bonnets and Bugles #7)
by Gilbert MorrisLeah brother Royal has returned from the Civil war battlefields but has found himself engaged in a battle of a different sort - a battle for a lady's affection. The lady is the beautiful Lori Jenkins of Chattanooga, and the enemy is the dastardly Drake Bedford, one of Pineville's most venomous fighters. Just as their friendship starts to blossom, Lori is called home to Tennessee to care for her sick sister and Royal once again must face the Rebel army. The good news is, the army is headed toward Chattanooga where the friendship could continue to grow. The bad news is, Drake Bedford has decided to join the Union army as a soldier in Royal's company! Join the excitement as the conflicts continue, on and off the battlefields. And see how God's grace can change the lives of even the most stubborn sinners.Battle of Lookout Mountain is the seventh of a ten book series, that tells the story of two close families find themselves on different sides of the Civil War after the fall of Fort Sumter in April 1861. Thirteen year old Leah becomes a helper in the Union army with her father, who hopes to distribute Bibles to the troops. Fourteen year old Jeff becomes a drummer boy in the Confederate Army and struggles with faith while experiencing personal hardship and tragedy. The series follows Leah, Jeff, family, and friends, as they experience hope and God&’s grace through four years of war.
Battle of Lookout Mountain (Bonnets and Bugles #7)
by Gilbert MorrisLeah brother Royal has returned from the Civil war battlefields but has found himself engaged in a battle of a different sort - a battle for a lady's affection. The lady is the beautiful Lori Jenkins of Chattanooga, and the enemy is the dastardly Drake Bedford, one of Pineville's most venomous fighters. Just as their friendship starts to blossom, Lori is called home to Tennessee to care for her sick sister and Royal once again must face the Rebel army. The good news is, the army is headed toward Chattanooga where the friendship could continue to grow. The bad news is, Drake Bedford has decided to join the Union army as a soldier in Royal's company! Join the excitement as the conflicts continue, on and off the battlefields. And see how God's grace can change the lives of even the most stubborn sinners.Battle of Lookout Mountain is the seventh of a ten book series, that tells the story of two close families find themselves on different sides of the Civil War after the fall of Fort Sumter in April 1861. Thirteen year old Leah becomes a helper in the Union army with her father, who hopes to distribute Bibles to the troops. Fourteen year old Jeff becomes a drummer boy in the Confederate Army and struggles with faith while experiencing personal hardship and tragedy. The series follows Leah, Jeff, family, and friends, as they experience hope and God&’s grace through four years of war.
Battle of Maida, 1806: Fifteen Minutes Of Glory
by Richard HoptonA nation's history is littered with conveniently forgotten defeats and military disasters but it is unusual for significant victories to be ignored. Richard Hopton, the up-and-coming historian, has uncovered the long overlooked defeat of Napoleon's forces by General Sir John Stuart at Maida, Southern Italy in 1806. For many years the only hint that there had been a triumph there has been the residential area of North West London that derives its name from the battle. Following UIm and Austerlitz, Napoleon's reputation for military genius was fast becoming a morale problem for his opponents, in the same way that Rommel's prowess did some 240 years later. No small part of the significance of the Allied victory at Maida in 1806 was the proof it offered that the French under Napoleon were not invincible. The author brilliantly describes the cast of colorful yet highly improbable characters whom fate and circumstances brought together. Arguably pride of place must go to Ferdinand II, Ruler of the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies, whose eccentricity was only exceeded by his abject incompetence.
The Battle of Maldon: Together with the Homecoming of Beorhtnoth
by Peter GrybauskasIn 991 AD, vikings attacked an Anglo-Saxon defence-force led by their duke, Beorhtnoth, resulting in brutal fighting along the banks of the river Blackwater, near Maldon in Essex. The attack is widely considered one of the defining conflicts of tenth-century England, due to it being immortalised in the poem, The Battle of Maldon. <p><p>Written shortly after the battle, the poem now survives only as a 325-line fragment, but its value to today is incalculable, not just as an heroic tale but in vividly expressing the lost language of our ancestors and celebrating ideals of loyalty and friendship. <p><p>J.R.R. Tolkien considered The Battle of Maldon ‘the last surviving fragment of ancient English heroic minstrelsy’. It would inspire him to compose, during the 1930s, his own dramatic verse-dialogue, The Homecoming of Beorhtnoth, Beorhthelm’s Son, which imagines the aftermath of the great battle when two of Beorhtnoth’s retainers come to retrieve their duke’s body.
The Battle of Maldon: Together with the Homecoming of Beorhtnoth
by J. R. Tolkien Peter GrybauskasThe first-ever standalone edition of one of J.R.R. Tolkien’s most important poetic dramas, that explores timely themes such as the nature of heroism and chivalry during war, featuring previously unpublished and never-before-seen texts and drafts.In 991 AD, Vikings attacked an Anglo-Saxon defense-force led by their duke, Beorhtnoth, resulting in brutal fighting along the banks of the river Blackwater, near Maldon in Essex. The attack is widely considered one of the defining conflicts of tenth-century England, due to it being immortalized in the poem, The Battle of Maldon.Written shortly after the battle, the poem now survives only as a 325-line fragment, but its value to today is incalculable, not just as a heroic tale but in vividly expressing the lost language of our ancestors and celebrating ideals of loyalty and friendship.J.R.R. Tolkien considered The Battle of Maldon “the last surviving fragment of ancient English heroic minstrelsy.” It would inspire him to compose, during the 1930s, his own dramatic verse-dialogue, The Homecoming of Beorhtnoth Beorhthelm’s Son, which imagines the aftermath of the great battle when two of Beorhtnoth’s retainers come to retrieve their duke’s body.Leading Tolkien scholar, Peter Grybauskas, presents for the very first time J.R.R. Tolkien’s own prose translation of The Battle of Maldon together with the definitive treatment of The Homecoming of Beorhtnoth and its accompanying essays; also included and never before published is Tolkien’s bravura lecture, “The Tradition of Versification in Old English,” a wide-ranging essay on the nature of poetic tradition. Illuminated with insightful notes and commentary, he has produced a definitive critical edition of these works, and argues compellingly that, Beowulf excepted, The Battle of Maldon may well have been “the Old English poem that most influenced Tolkien’s fiction,” most dramatically within the pages of The Lord of the Rings.
Battle of Manila: Nadir of Japanese Barbarism, 3 February–3 March 1945 (History of Terror)
by Miguel MirandaThis &“extensively researched and well-illustrated&” history recounts the bloody fight to liberate Manila from occupation during WWII (WWII History Magazine). For nearly four years during the Second World War, Japanese occupation had devastated the Philippines. Then, in 1944, General MacArthur led a massive army of American and Filipino forces determined to take back the island nation. Essential to the Philippine Campaign was recapturing the country&’s once-glittering capital city, Manila. In late January of 1945, the Allied forces embarked on the necessary and urgent mission. Trapped within the old University of Santo Tomas were thousands of ailing prisoners at risk of torture and death by their captors. As the desperate Japanese navy fought to keep the advancing Americans at bay, Japanese troops began killing civilians caught in the crossfire—or using them as human shields. Thousands of Filipinos were trapped in what became the most bitter combat seen in the Pacific Theater.
The Battle of Marne, 1914: A Battlefield Guide
by Andrew UffindellA traveler’s guide to the history and sites of the World War I battle in the Marne River valley in France.The First Battle of the Marne was one of the most pivotal battles in history. Fought outside Paris in September 1914, it turned the tide of the German invasion of France and robbed Kaiser Wilhelm II of his best chance of winning the First World War.The battle began when the French and British armies launched a massive counter-offensive, and it ended—after five, tense days of fluctuating fortunes—in a German retreat. The so-called “miracle of the Marne” was among the most crucial episodes of the war, and yet no complete, in-depth guide to the battlefield has been available until now in English.Andrew Uffindell begins his guidebook with a gripping account of the battle, followed by a series of easy-to-follow tours of the battlefield. Each tour covers a particular sector in detail, using vivid eyewitness accounts to reveal what the fighting was like for the men in the front line.This unique and highly illustrated book enables readers to explore the battlefield and retrace the course of those dramatic events for themselves. It gives directions to dozens of museums, cemeteries, and monuments, including the memorials to the famous “taxis of the Marne.” It will be fascinating reading for anyone interested in the Great War, and an essential companion for visitors keen to see the actual terrain over which the battle was fought.
The Battle of Maryang San 1951 (Australian Army Campaigns #23)
by Dayton McCarthyFor Australia, the Korean War marked its first foray as a minor power in the Cold War and it would be the first conflict to be fought by the newly formed Australian Regular Army (ARA). In this regard, the Army’s premier infantry organisation, the Royal Australian Regiment (RAR), received its baptism of fire in Korea and in the process, earned a number of battle honours for its regimental colours. This book describes the actions behind one such battle honour — the Battle of Maryang San. Over one week in October 1951 and as part of a wider divisional assault, the 3rd Battalion, The Royal Australian Regiment (3 RAR), manoeuvred across difficult terrain to dislodge and destroy Chinese forces three times its number. As such, Maryang San is widely regarded as one of the RAR’s and the Australian Army’s greatest battlefield accomplishments. Author Doctor Dayton McCarthy combines academic rigour with his experience as a professional infantry officer to analyse the battle and produce an account for the general reader and military professional alike. Using official histories, brigade and battalion war diaries as well as personal accounts, McCarthy seeks to provide not only the strategic, operational and tactical context, but also the ‘how’ and the ‘why’ of the battle. Although the battle itself had no lasting impact on the course and outcome of the Korean War, it demonstrated a number of key attributes that make it worthy of professional study such as the use of ground, small unit leadership, integration of combined arms and the role of aggression in close combat. Conversely, the conduct of the battle and its immediate aftermath highlight the enduring nature of war, including friction and the ‘fog of war’ as well as the truism that the enemy must never be discounted.
The Battle of Matapan 1941: The Trafalgar of the Mediterranean
by Mark SimmonsIn March 1941, the Royal Navy scored one of the greatest one-sided victories against the Italian Fleet the Regia Marina at Matapan. It brought to an end six months of remarkable success for the Royal Navy in the Mediterranean. When France fell and Italy declared war on Britain, Admiral Dudley Pound had wanted to evacuate the Mediterranean altogether and concentrate on home defence. Churchill overruled him, regarding such a move as the death knell of the British Empire. His decision made the Mediterranean theatre the focus of British land operations for four years, reliant on the Navy. In Admiral Andrew Cunningham, Churchill had a fleet commander in the Mediterranean who would miss no chance of hounding the enemy. Affectionately known as A.B.C. by his men, Cunningham was salty in his language, intolerant of fools and a master of tactics. In "The Battle of Matapan 1941: The Trafalgar of the Mediterranean", Mark Simmons explores the remarkable victories of Taranto and Matapan, as seen through the eyes of the men who manned the ships and flew the aircraft of the Mediterranean Fleet.
The Battle of Menin Road 1917 (Australian Army Campaigns #20)
by Roger LeeThe Passchendaele Campaign of 1917 is associated with images of slimy, oozing mud: mud deep enough and glutinous enough to drown men, horses and equipment, mud so pervasive that it, rather than the enemy, defeated the British Army’s only major campaign in Belgium. While these images are certainly true for the opening and final months of the campaign, mud was not he defining experience for the infantry of the Australian First and Second Divisions when, for the first time in history, two Australian Divisions fought a battle side by side in the Battle of Menin Road. For them, the defining experience was a well planned, well-conducted attack that saw all the objectives achieved in very short time. Menin Road was the third of the series of battles that together made up the Passchendaele (Third Ypres) Campaign. Intended to capture the high ground of the Gheluvelt Plateau east of Ypres to protect the right flank of the British Army advancing to its north, it was a difficult assignment. Earlier British attempts to clear the Plateau had been repulsed with heavy losses. With overwhelming artillery and air support, sound preparation and with limited objectives, the attack on 20 September surpassed all expectations. It was a classic example of how well-prepared and well-supported infantry could take and hold ground. However, as is explained in the book, it was also a classic example of why this operational method was too slow and would never win the war on the Western Front.
The Battle of Messines 1917: 1917 (16pt Large Print Edition) (Australian Army Campaigns Series #18)
by Craig DeaytonOn 7 June 1917, the British Second Army launched its attack on Messines Ridge, detonating 19 giant mines beneath the German front-line positions. By the end of the day, one of the strongest positions on the Western Front had fallen, a place of such importance that the Germans had pledged to hold it at any cost. It was the greatest British victory in three years of war. The first two years of the First World War had represented an almost unending catalogue of disaster for the Australians. Messines was not only their first real victory, it was also the first test in senior command for Major General John Monash who commanded the newly formed 3rd Division and would later be hailed as Australia&’s greatest soldier. Messines was a baptism of fire for the 3rd Division which came into the line alongside the battle-scarred 4th Australian Division, badly mauled at Bullecourt just six weeks earlier in one of the worst defeats of the war. The fighting at Messines would descend into unimaginable savagery, a lethal and sometimes hand-to-hand affair of bayonets, clubs, bombs and incessant machine-gun fire, described by one Australian as &‘72 hours of Hell&’. After their string of bloody defeats over 1915 and 1916, Messines would be the ultimate test for the Australians.
The Battle of Midway
by Thomas C. HoneThe best way for today's sailors to learn about a battle is from those who fought it. The Battle of Midway, commemorated annually in the U.S. Navy, warrants close attention. This Naval Institute guide includes some of the most vibrant and informed accounts by individuals who fought on both sides of the June 1942 battle. The anthology pulls together memoirs, articles, excerpts from other Naval Institute books, and relevant government documents to help readers understand what happened and explain why the battle was so significant to the naval service. The core of the book focuses on events leading up to the battle and the battle itself, with a separate section examining how others have interpreted the battle's often desperate engagements. When the U.S. Navy stopped the Japanese steamroller off Midway Island, it not only turned the progress of the war but set the Navy's foundation for future counter offensives. The Navy's comeback spread led to the Solomon Islands and on to the other key strategic areas in the Pacific. While many know that Midway was a crucial American victory, they often do not know the details of the battle. This book tells how, for example, the American PT boats contributed to the victory, how the carrier planes formed up for their attacks, and what role radar played in the battle. In addition to excerpts from books and articles, the guide includes selections from several important Naval Institute oral histories. From the enlisted man's perspective all the way to the admiral's, for both Americans and Japanese, readers see the U.S. Navy's greatest victory as the participants saw it.
The Battle of Midway (Cornerstones of Freedom)
by Tom McgowenDescribes a pivotal battle during World War II on the Pacific island of Midway.
The Battle of Mill Springs, Kentucky (Civil War Sesquicentennial Series)
by Stuart W. SandersOn January 19, 1862, Confederate and Union forces clashed in the now-forgotten Battle of Mill Springs. Armies of inexperienced soldiers chaotically fought in the wooded terrain of south-central Kentucky as rain turned bloodied ground to mud. Mill Springs was the first major Union victory since the Federal disaster of Bull Run. This Union triumph secured the Bluegrass State in Union hands, opening the large expanses of Tennessee for Federal invasion. From General Felix Zollicoffer meeting his death by wandering into Union lines to the heroics of General George Thomas, Civil War historian Stuart Sanders chronicles this important battle and its essential role in the war.
The Battle of Milne Bay 1942 (Australian Army Campaigns Series #24)
by Nicholas AndersonBy 1942 the formidable Japanese military had conquered swathes of territory across south-east Asia and the Pacific Ocean. Despite its defeat at the Battle of Midway, Japan remained a potent enemy committed to the creation of a defensive arc to shield its captured possessions in the Pacific. The capture of Port Moresby would cement the southern border of this defensive arc and sever the vital lines of communication between Australia and the United States. It was the Japanese plan to seize Moresby that would set the course for the Battle of Milne Bay. Situated on the eastern tip of New Guinea, Milne Bay was a wretched hell-hole: swamp-riddled, a haven for malaria and cursed with torrential rain. It was here that General Douglas MacArthur ordered the secret construction of an Allied base with airfields to protect the maritime approach to Port Moresby. But the Japanese soon discovered the base at Milne Bay and despatched a task force to destroy its garrison and occupy the base. All that stood between the Japanese and their prize was a brigade of regular Australian soldiers untrained in tropical warfare and a brigade of Australian militia with no combat experience whatsoever. While the Kokoda campaign is etched in public memory, its sister battle at Milne Bay has long been neglected. However the bitter fighting over this isolated harbour played an equally important role in protecting Port Moresby and made a valuable contribution to shifting Allied fortunes in the Pacific War.
The Battle of Minden, 1759: The Impossible Victory of the Seven Years War
by Stuart ReidThe fighting in Europe during the Seven Years War hung in the balance. After initial successes the Austro-French forces had been driven back across the Rhine. With the opposing sides reinforcing their armies, the campaign of 1759 was going to prove decisive.Britain and her German allies met the French at Minden in Germany. Due to a misunderstanding of orders the British infantry actually attacked and dispersed the French cavalry. That action is still commemorated on 1 August each year with the wearing of roses by the infantry and artillery regiments whose predecessors picked flowers and put them in their coats as they passed through German gardens on the way to the battle.By contrast Lord Sackville, who commanded the British cavalry, was accused of ignoring orders to charge the retreating French which could have turned defeat into rout. He was court-martialled and cashiered.The victory at Minden was just one in a number of British successes that years against French forces and overseas territories across the globe. This led to 1759 being described by the British as the Annus Mirabilis the year of miracles.
Battle of Mine Creek, The: The Crushing End of the Missouri Campaign (Civil War Series)
by Jeffrey D. StalnakerIn 1864, Union troops controlled much of the South, Sherman's men marched with impunity through Georgia and defeat at Gettysburg was a painful and distant memory. The Confederacy needed to stem the tide. Confederate major general Sterling Price led an army of twelve thousand troops on a desperate charge through Missouri to deliver the state to the Confederacy and dash President Lincoln's hopes for reelection. This daring campaign culminated with the Battle of Mine Creek. A severely outnumbered Union army crushed the Confederate forces in one of the war's largest and most audacious cavalry charges. HistorianJeff Stalnaker puts the reader in the saddle with the Union troopers as they destroy all hope for Rebel victory in the Trans-Mississippi.
The Battle of Mogadishu: First Hand Accounts From the Men of Task Force Ranger
by Matt Eversmann Dan SchillingIt started as a mission to capture a Somali warlord. It turned into a disastrous urban firefight and death-defying rescue operation that shocked the world and rattled a great nation. Now the 1993 battle for Mogadishu, Somalia–the incident that was the basis of the book and film Black Hawk Down–is remembered by the men who fought and survived it. Six of the best in our military recall their brutal experiences and brave contributions in these never-before-published, first-person accounts. “Operation Gothic Serpent,” by Matt Eversmann: As a “chalk” leader, Eversmann was part of the first group of Rangers to “fast rope” from the Black Hawk helicopters. It was his chalk that suffered the first casualty of the battle. “Sua Sponte: Of Their Own Accord,” by Raleigh Cash: Responsible for controlling and directing fire support for the platoon, Cash entered the raging battle in the ground convoy sent to rescue his besieged brothers in arms. “Through My Eyes,” by Mike Kurth: One of only two African Americans in the battle, Kurth confronted his buddies’ deaths, realizing that “the only people whom I had let get anywhere near me since I was a child were gone.” “What Was Left Behind,” by John Belman: He roped into the biggest firefight of the battle and considers some of the mistakes that were made, such as using Black Hawk helicopters to provide sniper cover. “Be Careful What You Wish For,” by Tim Wilkinson: He was one of the Air Force pararescuemen or PJs–the highly trained specialists for whom “That Others May Live” is no catchphrase but a credo–and sums up his incomprehensible courage as “just holding up my end of the deal on a bad day.” "On Friendship and Firefights,” by Dan Schilling: As a combat controller, he was one of the original planners for the deployment of SOF forces to Mogadishu in the spring of 1993. During the battle, he survived the initial assault and carnage of the vehicle convoys only to return to the city to rescue his two closest friends, becoming, literally, “Last Out.” With America’s withdrawal from Somalia an oft-cited incitement to Osama bin Laden, it is imperative to revisit this seminal military mission and learn its lessons from the men who were there and, amazingly, are still here today.
Battle Of Mogadishu: Anatomy Of A Failure
by Major Roger N. SangvicBy applying Cohen and Gooch's model to the Battle of Mogadishu, this paper shows that the failure of the TFR mission on 3-4 October 1993 was the result of a system failure. Secretary Aspin received far more blame than he deserved for making the decision. Misperception of the real impact tanks and APCs could have had on the overall mission is the real cause of this disproportionate blame. GEN Hoar and GEN Powell, in addition, bear as much responsibility as Secretary Aspin for the decision. Neither of these generals strongly advocated the deployment to Aspin even though the worsening situation on the ground merited their strong support. Both Hoar and Powell's approval recommendations can be characterized as lukewarm. Aspin's real failure was of not being more critical of the conduct of the TFR operations. In light of Secretary Aspin's acknowledged concern over the number of similar operations conducted by TFR and his knowledge that the Administration was seeking a political solution, he should have notified MG Garrison of the policy shift though the JCS and CINCCENT and provided additional guidance on risk. Had Aspin either reassessed the risk of each TFR operation more thoroughly or done a better job coordinating the policy shift in light of the increased risks, it is likely that the three October raid would not have occurred.