Download or read book The Black Devils March a Doomed Odyssey written by Evan McGilvray and published by . This book was released on 2012-08-19 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Black Devils' March is an account of how the 1st (and only) Polish Armored Division in the West under the leadership of General Stanislaw Maczek, arose out of the ashes of defeat and while attempting to avoid the internal politics of the Polish Government in Exile, was able to return to Europe in August 1944 on the side of the Western Allies. In Europe the Division achieved glory, honor and victory but was unable to liberate Poland owing to the politics of the postwar settlement in Europe. The account of the formation and combat service of the Division is fully researched from Polish, English and German sources, and includes training in Scotland, the unit's sharp introduction to warfare in the Normandy bocage, the Falaise Gap and Hill 262, the advance into Belgium and Holland, and final victory on German soil. The text is supported by nearly 100 photographs (many previously unpublished), maps, and detailed appendices, including a list of the Division's medal recipients. The politics of the Polish Army are examined as well as the historical legacy of the Polish soldier in exile. This helps the reader understand the frustration of the Poles as they sought to form an armored unit - not only was it of value as part of the Polish Army fighting alongside the Allies, it was also of considerable political value to the Poles as they sought to preserve their dignity and sovereignty. The conclusion points to a rather hollow victory for the Poles by May 1945, as Germany may have been vanquished but Poland remained occupied, this time by the Soviet Union.

Download or read book The Black Devils March written by Evan McGilvray and published by Helion. This book was released on 2005 with total page 161 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Black Devils March is an account of how the 1st (and only) Polish Armoured Division in the West under the leadership of General Stanislaw Maczek, arose out of the ashes of defeat and while attempting to avoid the internal politics of the Polish Government in Exile, was able to return to Europe in August 1944 on the side of the Western Allies. In Europe the Division achieved glory, honour and victory but was unable to liberate Poland owing to the politics of the post-war settlement in Europe.The account of the formation and combat service of the Division is fully researched from Polish, English and German sources, and includes training in Scotland, the unit's sharp introduction to warfare in the Normandy bocage, the Falaise Gap and Hill 262, the advance into Belgium and Holland, and final victory on German soil. The text is supported by nearly 100 photographs (many previously unpublished), maps, and detailed appendices, including a list of the Division's medal recipients. In addition, there are four pages of outstanding colour profiles showing the camouflage and markings of the unit's tanks and other vehicles.The politics of the Polish Army are examined as well as the historical legacy of the Polish soldier in exile. Much of the book was researched from hard-to-find Polish sources. The text is supported by 4 pages of colour AFV profiles, nearly 100 photographs (many previously unpublished), maps and appendices.

Download or read book A Perfect Hell written by John Nadler and published by Presidio Press. This book was released on 2007-12-18 with total page 434 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: It’s 1942 and Hitler’s armies stand astride Europe like a colossus. Germany is winning on every front. This is the story of how one of the world’s first commando units, put together for the invasion of Norway, helped turn the tide in Italy. 1942. When the British generals recommend an audacious plan to parachute a small elite commando unit into Norway in a bid to put Nazi Germany on the defensive, Winston Churchill is intrigued. But Britain, fighting for its life, can’t spare the manpower to participate. So William Lyon MacKenzie King is contacted and asked to commit Canadian troops to the bold plan. King, determined to join Roosevelt and Churchill as an equal leader in the Allied war effort, agrees. One of the world’s first commando units, the First Special Service Force, or FSSF, is assembled from hand-picked soldiers from Canadian and American regiments. Any troops sent into Norway will have to be rugged, self-sufficient, brave, and weather-hardened. Canada has such men in ample supply. The all-volunteer FSSF comprises outdoorsmen — trappers, rangers, prospectors, miners, loggers. Assembled at an isolated base in Helena, Montana, and given only five months to train before the invasion, they are schooled in parachuting, mountain climbing, cross-country skiing, and cold-weather survival. They are taught how to handle explosives, how to operate nearly every field weapon in the American and German arsenals, and how to kill with their bare hands. After the Norway plan is scrapped, the FSSF is dispatched to Italy and given its first test — to seize a key German mountain-top position which had repelled the brunt of the Allied armies for over a month. In a reprise of the audacity and careful planning that won Vimy Ridge for the Canadians in WWI, the FSSF takes the twin peaks Monte la Difensa and Monte la Remetanea by storming the supposedly unscalable rock face at the rear of the German position, and opens the way through the mountains. Later, the FSSF will hold one-quarter of the Anzio beachhead against a vastly superior German force for ninety-nine days; a force of only 1,200 commandos does the work of a full division of over 17,000 troops. Though badly outnumbered, the FSSF takes the fight to the Germans, sending nighttime patrols behind enemy lines and taking prisoners. It is here that they come to be known among the dispirited Germans as Schwartzer Teufel (“Black Devils”) for their black camouflage face-paint and their terrifying tactic of appearing out of the darkness. John Nadler vividly captures the savagery of the Italian campaign, fought as it was at close quarters and with desperate resolve, and the deeply human experiences of the individual men called upon to fight it. Based on extensive archival research and interviews with veterans, A Perfect Hell is an important contribution to Canadian military history and an indispensable account of the lives and battlefield exploits of the men who turned the tide of the Second World War.

Download or read book With the Black Devils written by Mark J. Nelson and published by Atglen, PA : Schiffer Military Books. This book was released on 2004 with total page 144 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Based on the letters and diary entries of Sam Byrne, who served with the Force from the early days in Montana through the unit's inactivation in France, the book shares the thoughts and emotions of a front line soldier chronicling his activities as they take place.

Download or read book Inside the Regiment written by Carole Divall and published by Casemate Publishers. This book was released on 2011-06-13 with total page 411 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In this companion volume to her pioneering study Redcoats Against Napoleon, Carole Divall tells the fascinating inside story of a typical infantry regiment during the Revolutionary and Napoleonic wars. Rather than focusing on the history of the 30th Regiment of the Line in action and on campaign, she explores its organization, traditions and hierarchy, its personnel, and the ethos that held it together. Using primary source material, in particular surviving regimental records, War Office documents, letters and journals, Divall reconstructs the life of the 30th Foot – and the lives of the men who served in it – during a critical period in Europes military history.

Download or read book March of the Aryans written by Bhagwan S Gidwani and published by Penguin UK. This book was released on 2012-07-17 with total page 654 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In a remarkable feat of imagination and research, bhagwan S. Gidwani takes us back to the dawn of civilization (8000 BCE) to vividly recreate the world of the Aryans. He tells us why the Aryans left India - their native land - for foreign shores and shows us their triumphant return to their homeland. Here are characters like the gentle god Sindhu Putra, spreading his message of love; the hermit Bharat, who inspired the dream of unity, equality, human rights and dignity for all; the physician - sage Dhanawantar and his wife Dhanawantari; peace-loving Kashi after whom the holy city of Varanasi is named; and Nila who gave his name to the rive Nile. Vast and absorbing, with a cast of thousands, March of the Aryans is a gripping tale of kings and poets, seers and gods, battles and romance, and the rise and fall of civilisations, from the bestselling author of The Sword of Tipu Sultan.

Download or read book Flashman on the March written by George MacDonald Fraser and published by Anchor. This book was released on 2007-12-18 with total page 352 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: It’s 1868 and Sir Harry Flashman, V.C., arch-cad, amorist, cold-headed soldier, and reluctant hero, is back! Fleeing a chain of vengeful pursuers that includes Mexican bandits, the French Foreign Legion, and the relatives of an infatuated Austrian beauty, Flashy is desperate for somewhere to take cover. So desperate, in fact, that he embarks on a perilous secret intelligence-gathering mission to help free a group of Britons being held captive by a tyrannical Abyssinian king. Along the way, of course, are nightmare castles, brigands, massacres, rebellions, orgies, and the loveliest and most lethal women in Africa, all of which will test the limits of the great bounder’s talents for knavery, amorous intrigue, and survival. Flashman on the March—the twelfth book in George MacDonald Fraser’s ever-beloved, always scandalous Flashman Papers series--is Flashman and Fraser at their best.

Download or read book Devil s Brigade written by Robert H. Adleman and published by Naval Institute Press. This book was released on 2004-02-13 with total page 298 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The first special service forces of World War II were known as the Devil's Brigade. Ferocious and stealthy combatants, they garnered their moniker from the captured diary of a German officer who wrote, "The black devils are all around us every time we come into line and we never hear them." Handpicked U.S. and Canadian soldiers trained in mountaineering, airborne, and close-combat skills, they numbered more than 2,300 and saw action in the Aleutians, Italy, and the south of France. Co-written by a brigade member and a World War II combat pilot, the book explores the unit's unique characteristics, including the men's exemplary toughness and their ability to fight in any terrain against murderous opposition. It also profiles some of the unforgettable characters that comprised the near-mythical force. Conceived in Great Britain, the brigade was formed to sabotage the German submarine pens and oil storage areas along Norway's coast, but when the campaign was cancelled, the men moved on to many other missions. This World War II tale of adventure, first published in hardcover in 1966 and made into a movie not long after, is now available in paperback for the first time.

Download or read book The March on Rome written by Giulia Albanese and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2019-02-28 with total page 192 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The aim of this book is to reconstruct the violent nature of the March on Rome and to emphasise its significance in demarcating a real break in the country's history and the beginning of the Fascist dictatorship. This aspect of the March has long been obscured: first by the Fascists' celebratory project, and then by the ironic and reductive interpretation of the event put forward by anti-Fascists. This volume focuses on the role and purpose of Fascist political violence from its origins. In doing so, it highlights the conflictual nature of the March by illustrating the violent impact it had on Italian institutions as well as the importance of a debate on this political turning point in Italy and beyond. The volume also examines how the event crucially contributed to the construction of a dictatorial political regime in Italy in the weeks following Mussolini's appointment as head of the government. Originally published in Italian, this book fills a notable gap in current critical discussion surrounding the March in the English language.

Download or read book The Armoured Campaign in Normandy written by Stephen Napier and published by The History Press. This book was released on 2015-07-01 with total page 424 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Beginning with the D-day landings, this is a brutally frank appraisal of the planned use and actual results of the deployment of armour by both German and Allied commanders in the major tank battles of the Normandy campaign including operations Epsom, Goodwood, Cobra and Totalize. The Armoured Campaign in Normandy is a critique of Montgomery's plans to seize territory and break out and describes how they failed in the face of German resistance. It details the poor planning and mistakes of British senior commanders and how the German Army's convoluted chain of command contributed to their own defeat; these were decisions taken which cost the lives of the tank crews of both sides ordered to carry them out. Official reports, war diaries, after action reports, letters, regimental histories, memoirs of generals and recollections of tank men are used to tell the inside story of the campaign from an armour point of view to give a different but detailed perspective of the Normandy campaign from the men who fought in it.

Download or read book The Black Devils written by Sterling M. Means and published by . This book was released on 2015-07-14 with total page 66 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Excerpt from The Black Devils: And Other Poems The Black Devils. You have read of the French Blue Devils, How they climb'd the Alpine Peak; How they fought in France and Flanders, And their deeds like thunder speak; For they fought with Spartan valor, As all history will record, But they failed to check the Teutons, And their raging drunk War Lord; America calls her Black Devils, And lets them loose in the awful fray, They have certainly gone in action, They will find 'em hell to play. They were the first to bear Old Glory, To the hell-swept Western Front, Amid the whiz of shells and shrapnels, But they bravely bore the blunt. Big Bertha then was shelling Paris, Sending forth her projectiles, About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.

Download or read book Hitler s Last Levy written by Hans Kissel and published by Helion and Company. This book was released on 2005-06-19 with total page 383 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: An in-depth account of the formation Nazi Germany’s militia army as a desperate attempt to delay its defeat during the waning days of WWII. A companion volume to the very successful In a Raging Inferno—Combat Units of the Hitler Youth, Hans Kissel’s study offers a highly detailed account of the German Volkssturm, or Home Guard. Formed from men unfit for military service, the young, and the old, this ad-hoc formation saw extensive combat during the desperate defense of the Reich, 1944–45. The author describes the Volkssturm’s training, leadership, organization, armament, and equipment, in addition to its active service on both the Eastern and Western fronts. The text is supported by an extensive selection of appendices, including translations of documents and many fascinating eyewitness combat reports. This edition also includes over 150 previously unpublished black-and-white photos, and four pages of specially commissioned color uniform plates by Stephen Andrew.

Download or read book Panzer Gunner written by Bruno Friesen and published by Casemate Publishers. This book was released on 2008-02-19 with total page 384 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: An insider’s account of training and service in Nazi Germany’s twenty-fifth Panzer Regiment during World War II. There are few memoirs available of German Panzer crews that focus on the climactic last 12 months of the war on the Eastern Front, 1944-45. What makes Bruno Friesen's account virtually unique is his family background: his parents came from a German-speaking Mennonite community in Ukraine, and were to all intents and purposes culturally German. To make matters even more complex, in 1924 his parents left the Ukraine for Canada, where Bruno was born. In March 1939 he and his brother Oscar found themselves on a ship bound for Bremerhaven in Germany. He barely spoke German, and had never been to Germany, nevertheless his father envisaged that a better life awaited them in the Third Reich. Needless to say, Bruno became caught up in the Second World War, and in 1942 was drafted into the Wehrmacht. The author provides a full account of his family background, and how, through these unusual circumstances, he found himself a Canadian-born German soldier. The bulk of the book is a detailed account of the author’s training, and his subsequent service with 25th Panzer Regiment, part of 7th Panzer Division. As the title suggests, Bruno Friesen served as a gunner aboard, initially, Panzer IVs, before crewing the lesser-known Jagdpanzer IV tank hunter. The author provides a fantastic amount of information about these two vehicles, and how the crews actually fought in battle with them. This kind of 'hands-on' detail has almost never been available before, particularly such extensive information concerning the characteristics and combat performance of the Jagdpanzer IV. Apart from providing a large fund of information about specific German tanks and their combat performance, the author writes in great detail about the combat the experienced on the Eastern Front, including tank battles in Rumania, spring 1944, Lithuania in the summer of 1944, and West Prussia during early 1945. If one wants to know how German tank crews fought the Soviets in the last year of the war, then this book provides an outstanding account, containing material simply not found elsewhere. The author closes his account by reflecting on his post-war efforts to return to Canada, which eventually succeeded in 1950, and his subsequent life there. This book is not just a critique of armored fighting vehicles and tank warfare, it is above all a very human story, told in a lively, conversational and fluid manner, and is a remarkable contribution to the literature of the Second World War.

Download or read book First Polish Armoured Division 1938 47 written by Evan McGilvray and published by Pen and Sword Military. This book was released on 2022-07-20 with total page 500 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The First Polish armored Division was formed in Scotland in February 1942 from Polish exiles who had escaped first Poland and then France. Its commander, Stanislaw Maczek, and many of its men had previously served in Polish 10th Motorized Cavalry Brigade (10 BKS), which had taken part in the Polish invasion of Czechoslovakia in 1938 and given a good account of itself in the defense of Poland against German and Soviet invasion of 1939. Under Maczek’s leadership the division was trained and equipped along British lines in preparation for the invasion of France. Attached to 1st Canadian Army, the division was sent to Normandy in late July 1944. It suffered heavily during Operation Totalize but went on to play a crucial role in preventing an orderly German withdrawal from the Falaise Pocket by its stand at Hill 262. They then played their part in the advance across Western Europe and into Germany. This detailed history, supported by dozens of archive photos, concludes by looking at the often-poor treatment of Maczek and his men after the war.

Download or read book Blood Clot written by Jake Scott and published by Helion and Company. This book was released on 2009-01-19 with total page 420 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "As you know 'blood clot' means blood cells coming together to form a strong clot that forms and sticks together to keep the wound sealed enabling it to repair. The Parachute Regiment's 'blood clot' acts the same, whether downtown scrapping or in some far away country fighting alongside each other. Our maroon berets come together, they stick together, they close ranks forming the blood clot and fight against anything that comes their way." (Jake Scott) When the 3 Para battle group departed for Helmand Province, south Afghanistan, nobody really knew what to expect. Within a month of being on the ground the first of many contacts between the Taliban and British forces began. The British government and media were in shock - for the men on the ground it was what they were trained for. As weeks went on the fighting increased. Resources and manning were poor but for the Paras it was too late - it was back to basics, living in holes in the ground in 60 degree temperatures, often in small numbers and under constant attack from the Taliban. It looked as if it was going to be a long six months... 'Blood Clot' is a personal account of the Parachute Regiment's ferocious tour of duty in Helmand Province, Afghanistan 2006 by a man who was involved in the thick of the action. Born in 1981, Jake Scott joined the Parachute Regiment aged 17, and had already seen service around the world - including Iraq - before becoming part of a small reconnaissance team trained to operate behind enemy lines, known as 'the Patrols'. Jake and his mates probed, escorted and fought their way in and around some of the most dangerous areas in the whole of the Middle East - virgin Taliban country. After intense fighting against the odds, leaving dead Taliban soldiers in their wake and encountering some very near misses themselves, the Patrols platoon eventually ended their tour of duty. This is their story - the very beginning of the Afghan troubles in the south, the build up and lack of support and equipment in the initial stages, the close and dangerous fighting, the boredom of the open desert and the uncontrollable sadness of friends killed and injured around them. The Paras and their battle group arrived in small numbers in Helmand in 2006. They set the example for others to follow for many years to come - the aggressiveness of the airborne soldier when it was called for, fighting the Taliban on their turf, up close and personal.

Download or read book The Black Devils and Other Poems written by Sterling M. Means and published by Hardpress Publishing. This book was released on 2012-01 with total page 66 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Unlike some other reproductions of classic texts (1) We have not used OCR(Optical Character Recognition), as this leads to bad quality books with introduced typos. (2) In books where there are images such as portraits, maps, sketches etc We have endeavoured to keep the quality of these images, so they represent accurately the original artefact. Although occasionally there may be certain imperfections with these old texts, we feel they deserve to be made available for future generations to enjoy.

Download or read book First Special Service Force 1942 44 written by Bret Werner and published by Bloomsbury Publishing. This book was released on 2012-09-20 with total page 66 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This is a concise history of the unique integrated commando-style brigade of US and Canadian volunteers formed in 1942. Hand picked, and trained in airborne, amphibious, mountain and winter warfare, demolitions and close-quarter tactics, they left a combat legacy still recognized amongst today's Special Forces. This book explores the remarkable results the FSSF achieved in Italy in the harsh mountain fighting on the Winter Line, in the trenches of Anzio, and in the breakthrough to Rome. Accompanied by unique combat photography and illustrations of their distinctive uniforms, this is an insight into a famous, but little explored unit.