Download or read book X Troop written by Leah Garrett and published by HarperCollins. This book was released on 2021-05-25 with total page 373 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: WALL STREET JOURNAL BOOK OF THE MONTH "This is the incredible World War II saga of the German-Jewish commandos who fought in Britain’s most secretive special-forces unit—but whose story has gone untold until now." —Wall Street Journal “Brilliantly researched, utterly gripping history: the first full account of a remarkable group of Jewish refugees—a top-secret band of brothers—who waged war on Hitler.”—Alex Kershaw, New York Times best-selling author of The Longest Winter and The Liberator The incredible World War II saga of the German-Jewish commandos who fought in Britain’s most secretive special-forces unit—but whose story has gone untold until now June 1942. The shadow of the Third Reich has fallen across the European continent. In desperation, Winston Churchill and his chief of staff form an unusual plan: a new commando unit made up of Jewish refugees who have escaped to Britain. The resulting volunteers are a motley group of intellectuals, artists, and athletes, most from Germany and Austria. Many have been interned as enemy aliens, and have lost their families, their homes—their whole worlds. They will stop at nothing to defeat the Nazis. Trained in counterintelligence and advanced combat, this top secret unit becomes known as X Troop. Some simply call them a suicide squad. Drawing on extensive original research, including interviews with the last surviving members, Leah Garrett follows this unique band of brothers from Germany to England and back again, with stops at British internment camps, the beaches of Normandy, the battlefields of Italy and Holland, and the hellscape of Terezin concentration camp—the scene of one of the most dramatic, untold rescues of the war. For the first time, X Troop tells the astonishing story of these secret shock troops and their devastating blows against the Nazis. “Garrett’s detective work is stunning, and her storytelling is masterful. This is an original account of Jewish rescue, resistance, and revenge.”—Wendy Lower, author of The Ravine and National Book Award finalist Hitler’s Furies

Download or read book Ian Fleming s Commandos written by Nicholas Rankin and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2011-10-07 with total page 424 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Rankin tells the story of a secret intelligence outfit conceived and organized by Ian Fleming during World War II, named "30 Assault Unit", a group who was expected to seize enemy codebooks, cipher machines, and documents in high-stakes operations, and which inspired his creation of the James Bond character.

Download or read book Combined Operations the Official Story of the Commandos written by Louis Mountbatten and published by Legare Street Press. This book was released on 2023-07-18 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Combined Operations is a detailed account of the development and operations of the British Commandos during World War II. The book provides an inside look at the strategy, tactics, and training of the Commandos and covers some of their most daring missions, including the raid on St. Nazaire and the D-Day landings. This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important, and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it. This work is in the "public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work. Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.

Download or read book Commando written by James Owen and published by Abacus. This book was released on 2014-06-17 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: June 1940: As Britain's soldiers limped home from Dunkirk, a maverick Army officer was already devising a bold plan to hit back at the enemy. His idea was to revolutionise military thinking and change the face of warfare for ever. Relying as much on stealth and guile as on courage and stamina, the Commandos brought to the battlefield the skills of the guerrilla. Trained by an unconventional band of experts, and led by a big-game hunter, a film star, a Highland chief and an eccentric wielding a bow and arrow, they became the spearhead of the Allied drive for victory. Weaving together official documents, new research and veterans' own accounts, Commando reveals for the first time the exhilarating full story of WWII's most formidable fighting force.

Download or read book British Commandos 1940 46 written by Tim Moreman and published by Osprey Publishing. This book was released on 2006-03-28 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: From their establishment in June 1940, the Commando units conducted a succession of daring hit-and-run raids from the sea into North-West Europe, Scandinavia, Italy and the Middle East. Among the highly publicised Commando operations were the raids on Vaagso, Dieppe, and St Nazaire. The Commandos also spawned a range of other Special Forces, including the Special Air Service, Special Boat Service and the Parachute Regiment. This Battle Orders title provides a detailed examination of the Army (and later Royal Marine) Commandos raised in the United Kingdom, from their inception in 1940 through to 1946, when the Army Commandos were disbanded and the role was assigned exclusively to the Royal Marines.

Download or read book Commando Tactics written by Stephen Bull and published by Casemate Publishers. This book was released on 2011-06-13 with total page 340 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: British commandos are among the most celebrated soldiers of the Second World War. Their daring, ingenuity and bravery have given rise to an almost legendary reputation that makes it difficult to appreciate fully their role and their true value as fighting men.Stephen Bull, in this in-depth study of commando tactics and history, seeks to dispel the myths and the misunderstandings that surround them, and he places these elite troops of 70 years ago in the context of their times. He also demonstrates that the idea of the commando took time to develop and that commando operations were far from always successful. Commando tactics amphibious, mountain, close quarter were forged through the often-painful experience of raids and combined operations. And commando tactics and organization remained in a state of flux throughout the war as new situations and challenges arose.Stephen Bulls vivid account will be essential reading for anyone who is interested in commando fighting techniques and the early history of special forces.

Download or read book Army Commandos 1940 45 written by Mike Chappell and published by Osprey Publishing. This book was released on 1996-09-15 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The period from early 1940 to the end of 1942 was a time of gloom and uncertainty for the British, who stood alone against the assembled might of the Axis powers. They badly needed a champion, and were to find this in a small force of soldiers who inspired them with a series of daring raids against the coasts of 'occupied Europe', becoming the heroes of the British public and of the British Prime Minister who had created them. This title explores the wartime history of the British Army Commandos whose bravery did so much to raise the morale of the British public during World War II (1939-1945).

Download or read book The Commandos written by Russell Miller and published by Time Life Medical. This book was released on 1998 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Originally published: Alexandria, Va.: Time-Life Books, 1981.

Download or read book Commando written by David Reynolds and published by History Press. This book was released on 2001 with total page 288 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This is the story of the development of the Commandos from the courage and tragedy of Dieppe in 1942 to the biggest amphibious landings in history at Normandy on 6 June 1944, as well as the post-war conflicts in Palestine, Suez, Malaya, Cyprus, Borneo, the Falklands, Northern Iraq and Ulster. A final chapter brings the account fully up-to-date, as it discusses the role of the Commandos in Afghanistan following the terrible events of September 11th. David Reynolds documents the development in the 21st century of Britain's Royal Marine Commandos as a key element of the UK's rapid deployment force. Equipped with new assault ships and a purpose-built helicopter carrier, the green berets are on permanent readiness for operations anywhere in the world. They are, in essence, Britain's "masters of flexible response."

Download or read book Commandos From The Sea written by John B. Dwyer and published by Paladin Press. This book was released on 1998-01-01 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: For the first time the full story of U.S. amphibious special warfare units during World War II and the Korean War is revealed in gripping, painstakingly researched accounts of battles that few knew even occurred. Author and historian John B. Dwyer spent years gathering these first-person accounts of amphibious commando operations in Europe, North Africa, the Pacific, China, and Korea. From secret joint military-OSS and CIA missions and thrilling submarine ops to river raids deep into Nazi-controlled North Africa to the training and insertion of Korean commandos for a secret war in North Korea to fatal engagements with Japanese occupation forces in China, Dwyer chronicles the heroic feats of men who were willing to try anything and go anywhere to accomplish their dangerous missions. With dramatic action shots of amphibious commandos in action, Commandos from the Sea is the definitive history of America's waterborne warriors of World War II and the Korean War.

Download or read book It Had to be Tough written by James Dunning and published by Casemate Publishers. This book was released on 2012-05-19 with total page 332 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book tells the fascinating story of the origins of the Commandos (Britain's first Special Service troops and the forerunners of today's Parachute Regiment, the SAS and the SBS) and the development of their special training in World War II. The commandos were raised on the specific and personal orders of the prime minister, Winston Churchill, in the dark days of the summer of 1940 when these islands faced the real threat of a Nazi invasion. It was a bold, but typically Churchillian, decision.The book traces the formation of the Commandos and the development of the extreme and often unorthodox training methods and techniques used to prepare the volunteers from all branches of the British Army for subsequent world-wide-operations from 'bolt and butcher' raids to the 'great raids' on Norway and France and finally their employment in the full scale invasions of North Africa. Sicily, Italy, Normandy, the Crossing of the Rhine and finally in Burma, whilst at all times fostering that indomitable fighting spirit with which the name 'Commando' became synonymous. So great was the Commandos' contribution in that war that the Army Commandos were awarded thirty eight Battle Honors and these are emblazoned on the Commando Flag which hangs in Westminster Abbey. Arguably the Army Commandos were disbanded too hastily after the War but their legacy, traditions and fighting spirit lives with those artillery, engineer and corps troops who today win their coveted 'Green Berets' and serve alongside their comrades of the Royal Marines on active service today.

Download or read book Wild Bill Donovan written by Douglas Waller and published by Simon and Schuster. This book was released on 2012-02-21 with total page 482 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "Entertaining history...Donovan was a combination of bold innovator and imprudent rule bender, which made him not only a remarkable wartime leader but also an extraordinary figure in American history" (The New York Times Book Review). He was one of America's most exciting and secretive generals--the man Franklin Roosevelt made his top spy in World War II. A mythic figure whose legacy is still intensely debated, "Wild Bill" Donovan was director of the Office of Strategic Services (the country's first national intelligence agency) and the father of today's CIA. Donovan introduced the nation to the dark arts of covert warfare on a scale it had never seen before. Now, veteran journalist Douglas Waller has mined government and private archives throughout the United States and England, drawn on thousands of pages of recently declassified documents, and interviewed scores of Donovan's relatives, friends, and associates to produce a riveting biography of one of the most powerful men in modern espionage. William Joseph Donovan's life was packed with personal drama. The son of poor Irish Catholic parents, he married into Protestant wealth and fought heroically in World War I, where he earned the nickname "Wild Bill" for his intense leadership and the Medal of Honor for his heroism. After the war he made millions as a Republican lawyer on Wall Street until FDR, a Democrat, tapped him to be his strategic intelligence chief. A charismatic leader, Donovan was revered by his secret agents. Yet at times he was reckless--risking his life unnecessarily in war zones, engaging in extramarital affairs that became fodder for his political enemies--and he endured heartbreaking tragedy when family members died at young ages. Wild Bill Donovan reads like an action-packed spy thriller, with stories of daring young men and women in his OSS sneaking behind enemy lines for sabotage, breaking into Washington embassies to steal secrets, plotting to topple Adolf Hitler, and suffering brutal torture or death when they were captured by the Gestapo. It is also a tale of political intrigue, of infighting at the highest levels of government, of powerful men pitted against one another. Donovan fought enemies at home as often as the Axis abroad. Generals in the Pentagon plotted against him. J. Edgar Hoover had FBI agents dig up dirt on him. Donovan stole secrets from the Soviets before the dawn of the Cold War and had intense battles with Winston Churchill and British spy chiefs over foreign turf. Separating fact from fiction, Waller investigates the successes and the occasional spectacular failures of Donovan's intelligence career. It makes for a gripping and revealing portrait of this most controversial spymaster.

Download or read book Commando Tactics written by Stephen Bull and published by Casemate Publishers. This book was released on 2010-01-01 with total page 225 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: British commandos are among the most celebrated soldiers of the Second World War. Their daring, ingenuity and bravery have given rise to an almost legendary reputation that makes it difficult to appreciate fully their role and their true value as fighting men. Stephen Bull, in this in-depth study of commando tactics and history, seeks to dispel the myths and the misunderstandings that surround them, and he places these elite troops of 70 years ago in the context of their times. He also demonstrates that the idea of the commando took time to develop - and that commando operations were far from always successful. Commando tactics - amphibious, mountain, close quarter - were forged through the often-painful experience of raids and combined operations. And commando tactics and organization remained in a state of flux throughout the war as new situations and challenges arose. Stephen Bull's vivid account will be essential reading for anyone who is interested in commando fighting techniques and the early history of special forces.

Download or read book Operation Basalt written by Eric Lee and published by The History Press. This book was released on 2016-03-02 with total page 198 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: German soldiers assigned to guard the tiny Channel Island of Sark described it as a ‘little Paradise’ and, because it was never bombed by the RAF, the best air-raid shelter in all of Europe. But paradise for them came to a bloody end in October 1942 when a small group of British Commandos raided the island, capturing one German soldier and killing several others. Operation Basalt would have been a footnote in history but for the reaction of Hitler, who believed that British soldiers executed several Germans who had already surrendered and whose hands were bound. Days after the raid, he issued the infamous ‘Commando Order’, a death sentence for those Allied commandos who fell into German hands.Drawing on extensive archival research and interviews with survivors of the period, Eric Lee has written the definitive account of the raid, putting it into the context of the German occupation of British lands during the war.

Download or read book Commandos from the Sea written by Юрий Стрехнин and published by US Naval Institute Press. This book was released on 1996 with total page 296 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Readers follow the expert swimmers, parachutists, skiers, mountain climbers, marksmen, and hand-to-hand combat specialists on one impossible mission after another, working behind German lines to gather intelligence and conduct partisan and diversionary-demolition operations. With prices on their heads, and hounded by ever growing numbers of German SS troops, the commandos lived by their wits and off the land, fighting their way out of every dangerous situation, blowing up bridges and fortifications, ambushing German patrols, snatching prisoners, and reporting enemy strengths. Commandos from the Sea reads like the best action/adventure fiction.

Download or read book The First Commandos written by Ralph Coyne and published by Petaurus Press. This book was released on 2009-12-02 with total page 64 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: At the time they were extremely secret. Still little known, Australia’s first commandos were repeatedly put in dangerous situations to achieve results disproportionate to their small numbers. Their story is historically important, for these few hundred men possibly changed the course of Australia’s history. Establishing commando units was a bold and dangerous gamble for the Australian military authorities facing Japan’s entry into the Second World War. They did not know how commandos would be used when conventional army operations relied on large numbers of soldiers supported by heavy weapons, sometimes naval gunfire or aircraft, and comprehensive supply trains. Very quickly the commandos showed they were extremely efficient and could perform a role which exceeded the ability of forces many times their size. The 2/4 Independent Company, which included Ralph Coyne, was sent to Timor to supplement and then replace the original (2/2) company. Outnumbered nearly one hundred to one but assisted by Timorese natives, the commandos kept a Japanese force of 20,000 men fully occupied and unavailable to fight elsewhere, possibly preventing invasion of Australia and at least greatly improving the chances of stopping the Japanese advance in New Guinea. After Timor more drama followed in New Guinea and Borneo. In one terrible incident Ralph Coyne was one of only four out of forty-eight commandos left alive and uninjured. Against the odds Ralph Coyne survived to tell his fascinating tale. Sometimes humorous, tragic, horrifying, even macabre, but usually dramatic, this book records the experiences of one of Australia’s first commandos.

Download or read book Commandos written by John Parker and published by Headline. This book was released on 2013-02-28 with total page 250 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Commandos were Britain's first-ever special forces, formed in 1940 using volunteers from all three services. After the war, Commando units of the Royal Marines engaged in virtually every military scenario involving British troops from 1945 to the present day. They became the elite of the British 'ready-to-go' forces, capable of deploying at a moment's notice to any trouble spot in the world. In this latest book in John Parker's acclaimed series on British military activity, dramatically recalled in their own words by men who were there, he recounts the major events in the 60-year history of British Commando forces.