Download or read book Slim Master of War written by Robert Lyman and published by Constable. This book was released on 2016-06-02 with total page 392 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: 'Elegantly written and beautifully produced' TLS How 'Uncle Bill' won the war in Burma Defeated and demoralised, British units in the Far East had virtually been ejected from Burma when, in 1943, General W. J. Slim organised, trained and then deployed his famous 'forgotten' 14th Army to devastating effect, defeating the Japanese twice and liberating Burma in the process. One of the most innovative soldiers of his generation, Slim's 'smart' style of soldiering was startling in its modernity - and with it he achieved something no one believed possible. An intelligent, compassionate commander, the unconventional Slim was also a heroic figure to the men he commanded - known affectionately to the ranks as 'Uncle Bill'. This biography tells the fascinating story of how he brought victory out of defeat; Lyman now gives him his rightful place, alongside Patton and Guderian, in the pantheon of eminent and unorthodox Second World War commanders.

Download or read book People Places and Passions written by Russell Davies and published by University of Wales Press. This book was released on 2015-06-15 with total page 608 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: It takes a different view of the history of Wales, examining a panorama of different emotions and experiences – laughter, happiness, fear, anger, adventure, lust, loneliness, anxiety – to give an entertaining and exciting new history to Wales. a wide range of sources are used to present the ambitions and anxieties which drove and destroyed Welsh people The book’s literary style and the fact that it follows earlier successful studies by the author should ensure an audience.

Download or read book The Burma Campaign written by Frank McLynn and published by Yale University Press. This book was released on 2011-10-04 with total page 458 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This history reveals the failures and fortunes of leadership during the WWII campaign into Japanese-occupied Burma: “a thoroughly satisfying experience” (Kirkus). Acclaimed historian Frank McLynn tells the story of four larger-than-life Allied commanders whose lives collided in the Burma campaign, one of the most punishing and protracted military adventures of World War II. This vivid account ranges from Britain’s defeat in 1942 through the crucial battles of Imphal and Kohima—known as "the Stalingrad of the East"—and on to ultimate victory in 1945. Frank McLynn narrative focuses on the interactions and antagonisms of its principal players: William Slim, the brilliant general; Orde Wingate, the idiosyncratic commander of a British force of irregulars; Louis Mountbatten, one of Churchill's favorites, overpromoted to the position of Supreme Commander, S.E. Asia; and Joseph "Vinegar Joe" Stilwell, a hard-line—and openly anlgophobic—U.S. general. With lively portraits of each of these men, McLynn shows how the plans and strategies of generals and politicians were translated into a hideous reality for soldiers on the ground.

Download or read book Burma 1942 written by Alan Warren and published by A&C Black. This book was released on 2011-12-01 with total page 304 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In December 1941 Japan set out to seize South-East Asia and the western Pacific to complete the building of a self-sufficient empire. The rapid loss of all of Britain's possessions in the Far East was the culmination of a failed attempt to deal with the rise of Japanese imperialism. Britain's bluff was called and millions of Britain's 'protected' subjects in Asia fell into the hands of a brutal occupying power. The British fought the Second World War in Burma and India against the backdrop of nationalist unrest and revolt. The appalling Bengal famine of 1943, brought about by the loss of Burma's rice crop and the dislocation of government, would cause the deaths of many. Alan Warren provides a new study of the series of battles that made up the Burma campaign, including first-hand accounts of the conflict and a fresh examination of the armies and commanders of the major combatants. Burma 1942 powerfully demonstrates how victory or defeat in particular battles altered the trajectory of the conflict, affecting the lives of millions.

Download or read book The Reconquest of Burma 1944 45 written by Robert Lyman and published by Bloomsbury Publishing. This book was released on 2023-07-20 with total page 97 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A fascinating exploration of the dramatic battles and Allied operations to wrest back control of Burma (Myanmar) from the Japanese. The Allied reconquest of Burma was not part of Allied Grand Strategy in 1944 and 1945. It happened despite it – in particular, because of the dramatic failure of the Japanese invasion of India (Operation U-Go), which ended ignominiously for the Japanese Empire in August 1944. The reconquest was one of the longest campaigns of World War II. It comprised 11 distinct battles and offensives that were part of the overall continuum of operations that resulted in the Allied victory. Written by a foremost expert on the British Army in World War II, this superbly illustrated work details the Allied operations to retake Burma from Japanese control. Accounts of Operation Capital, the capture of Meiktila and Mandalay, the Allied advance in the Arakan, the race for Rangoon, Operation Dracula, the Battle of the Sittang Bend and Japanese breakout operations across the Pegu Yomas are supported by easy to follow 2D maps and 3D diagrams. Among the events brought to life in vivid battlescene artworks are an SOE-led ambush in Operation Character, and the famous Defence of Hill 170 in the Arakan.

Download or read book Japanese Conquest of Burma 1942 written by Tim Moreman and published by Bloomsbury Publishing. This book was released on 2022-11-24 with total page 97 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book provides a fascinating exploration of the Japanese conquest of Burma, as the Allied forces were forced back in disarray to India and China. The Japanese invasion of Burma in January 1942 marked the beginning of the single longest campaign of World War II. In the Burmese jungles, the battle-hardened, highly trained and lightly equipped Imperial Japanese Army quickly proved itself a vastly superior fighting force in clashes against the British, Indian and Gurkha troops that formed Burma Army and Chinese nationalist forces deployed in eastern Burma. This superbly illustrated book narrates Burma Corps' epic fighting retreat northwards, carried out mostly in contact with the enemy and across hundreds of miles of highly malarial and extremely difficult terrain, to safety in India. Among the battles covered are the disaster at the Sittang Bridge on 22 February 1942 (where 17th Indian Division was all but destroyed), the fall of Rangoon in March 1942 and the clashes at Yenangyaung, Monywa and Shwegyin. The performance of the opposing commanders and forces is also examined in detail, highlighting the success of Japanese aggressive light infantry tactics, which ruthlessly exploited the cover and concealment provided by the jungle to outflank, bypass and encircle their bewildered enemy.

Download or read book Orde Wingate and the British Army 1922 1944 written by Simon Anglim and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2015-10-06 with total page 293 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Major General Orde Wingate (1903–1944) was the most controversial British military commander of the Second World War, and perhaps of the last hundred years. Anglim's biography fills a significant void in the literature, making extensive use of Wingate's papers to place him firmly in the context of the British army of the time.

Download or read book We Gave Our Today written by William Fowler and published by Weidenfeld & Nicolson. This book was released on 2009-02-26 with total page 313 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Lost Voices of our 'Forgotten Army' in the war with Japan 1941-45. Nearly a million strong by 1944, the British 14th Army fought and ultimately conquered the Japanese forces that invaded Burma and strove to break through into India. But the victory was hard won, with great suffering along the way. With priority given to defeating Germany, these troops were last in line for additional men and equipment, and they joked about being "The Forgotten Army." Here is the story of these remarkable soldiers, whose monument at Kohima reads: 'When You Go Home, Tell Them Of Us And Say, For Their Tomorrow, We Gave Our Today.'

Download or read book The Special Operations Executive SOE in Burma written by Richard Duckett and published by Bloomsbury Publishing. This book was released on 2017-10-30 with total page 391 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In the mountains and jungles of occupied Burma during World War II, British special forces launched a series of secret operations, assisted by parts of the Burmese population. The men of the SOE, trained in sabotage and guerrilla warfare, worked in the jungle, deep behind enemy lines, to frustrate the puppet Burmese government of Ba Maw and continue the fight against Hirohito's Japan in a theatre starved of resources. Here, Richard Duckett uses newly declassified documents from the National Archives to reveal for the first time the extent of British special forces' involvement - from the 1941 operations until beyond Burma's independence from the British Empire in 1948. Duckett argues convincingly that `Operation Character' and `Operation Billet' - large SOE missions launched in support of General Slim's XIV Army offensive to liberate Burma - rank among the most militarily significant of the SOE's secret missions. Featuring a wealth of photographs and accompanying material never before published, including direct testimony recorded by veterans of the campaign and maps from the SOE files, The SOE in Burma tells a compelling story of courage and struggle in during World War II

Download or read book In the Service of the Emperor written by N.S. Nash and published by Pen and Sword Military. This book was released on 2022-09-21 with total page 346 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The expansion of the Japanese Empire between 1931 until its defeat in 1945 is one of the most extraordinary yet shocking episodes in human history. Extraordinary in that a relatively non-industrialised island nation was prepared to go to war, concurrently, with China, the most populous country, Great Britain with its world-wide empire and the USA, the wealthiest and most powerful country on earth. Shocking, as those 'in the service of the Emperor’ practiced persistent and unrestrained brutality as they conquered and occupied swathes of South East Asia. But, as this superbly researched work reveals, there is no denying their fighting and logistical expertise. The author examines the political, economic and strategic effects of the rapid Japanese expansion and explores the cult of deity that surrounded the Emperor. The contribution of the Allied forces and their leadership is given due attention. When retribution duly came, it was focussed on the military leadership responsible for unspeakable atrocities on their military and civilian victims. The physical perpetrators remaining largely unpunished. Japan, today, has still not acknowledged its wartime guilt. The result is an authoritative, balanced and highly readable account of a chapter of world history that must never be forgotten.

Download or read book Stilwell the Patriot written by David Rooney and published by Skyhorse. This book was released on 2016-08-16 with total page 303 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Joe Stilwell, known as “Vinegar Joe” for his caustic personality, was stationed in Burma during World War II and famously differed in strategy from other commanders in his division. In retrospect analyses, it’s said that if he had gotten his way, the United States might have defeated the Communists in 1945 and changed the course of history. This meticulously-reached biography of Vinegar Joe presents an intimate account of his career, working as Chinese military leader Chiang Kai-shek’s chief of staff, the commander of the Chinese divisions in Burma, and the deputy supreme commander of the South East Asia Command. It explores Stilwell’s determination to drive a road through the jungle in order to reopen the old Burma Road, and his passion to ensure that the colossal American contribution to the Burma Campaign was not misappropriated by Chiang, his boss. In recounting Vinegar Joe’s unusual escapades, historian David Rooney provides an intimate understanding of why Stilwell came to distrust and despise Chiang, and why he was fiercely critical of his fellow commanders. Simultaneously sympathetic and critical, the biography is one of a controversial American patriot. And in addition to Rooney’s compelling and enlightening text, Stilwell the Patriot features fifteen black-and-white photographs and six maps. The images includes photographs of Stilwell and Chiang, American tanks in Burma, and maps of where nearby battles took place. After a limited print-run more than ten years ago, Stilwell the Patriot is being put back in print shortly after the seventieth anniversary of the Burma Campaign. Skyhorse Publishing, along with our Arcade, Good Books, Sports Publishing, and Yucca imprints, is proud to publish a broad range of biographies, autobiographies, and memoirs. Our list includes biographies on well-known historical figures like Benjamin Franklin, Nelson Mandela, and Alexander Graham Bell, as well as villains from history, such as Heinrich Himmler, John Wayne Gacy, and O. J. Simpson. We have also published survivor stories of World War II, memoirs about overcoming adversity, first-hand tales of adventure, and much more. While not every title we publish becomes a New York Times bestseller or a national bestseller, we are committed to books on subjects that are sometimes overlooked and to authors whose work might not otherwise find a home.

Download or read book East Asia s Other Miracle written by Alex J. Bellamy and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2017 with total page 354 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Mass atrocities were once a common occurrence in East Asia. Yet, over the past three decades, mass atrocities have declined in East Asia to the point of near elimination. This book explains how and why.

Download or read book Dadland written by Keggie Carew and published by Open Road + Grove/Atlantic. This book was released on 2017-03-07 with total page 420 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: As her father’s memory fails, a daughter explores his military past: “Part family memoir, part history book . . . Compelling and moving from start to finish” (Financial Times). One of the San Francisco Chronicle’s Ten Best Books of the Year For most of Keggie Carew’s life, she was kept at arm’s length from her father’s personal history. But when she is invited to join him for the sixtieth anniversary of the Jedburghs—an elite special operations unit that was the first collaboration between the American and British Secret Services during World War II—a new door opens in their relationship. As dementia begins to stake a claim over Tom Carew’s memory, Keggie embarks on a quest to unravel his story, and soon finds herself in a far more consuming place than she bargained for. Tom Carew was a maverick, a left-handed stutterer, a law unto himself. As a Jedburgh he parachuted behind enemy lines to raise guerrilla resistance first against the Germans in France, then against the Japanese in Southeast Asia, where he won the nickname “Lawrence of Burma.” But his wartime exploits were only the beginning. A winner of the Costa Book Award, Dadland takes us on a journey through peace and war and shady corners of twentieth-century politics; though the author’s English childhood and the breakdown of her family, and into the mysterious realm of memory. “Brings to mind Helen MacDonald’s H is for Hawk in the way it soars off in surprising directions, teaches you things you didn’t know, and ambushes your emotions.” ―NPR “Astonishing . . . Mixes intimate memoir, biography, history and detective story: this is a shape-shifting hybrid that meditates on the nature of time and identity . . . Tom Carew was a razzle-dazzle character, larger than life and anarchically self-invented . . . For all its vigor and comic zest, Dadland is a careful and tender discovery that patiently circles around a man who spent his life mythologizing and running away from himself.” ―The Observer

Download or read book Where China Meets India written by Thant Myint-U and published by Macmillan. This book was released on 2012-09-18 with total page 397 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "An account of the Asian frontier's long and rich history and its modern significance."--Publisher's description.

Download or read book Patton Montgomery Rommel written by Terry Brighton and published by Crown. This book was released on 2009-11-03 with total page 474 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In Patton, Montgomery, Rommel, one of Britain's most accomplished military scholars presents an unprecedented study of the land war in the North African and European theaters, as well as their chief commanders—three men who also happened to be the most compelling dramatis personae of World War II. Beyond spellbinding depictions of pivotal confrontations at El Alamein, Monte Cassino, and the Ardennes forest, author-scholar Terry Brighton illuminates the personal motivations and historical events that propelled the three men's careers: how Patton's, Montgomery's, and Rommel's Great War experiences helped to mold their style of command—and how, exactly, they managed to apply their arguably megalomaniacal personalities (and hitherto unrecognized political acumen and tact) to advance their careers and strategic vision. Opening new avenues of inquiry into the lives and careers of three men widely profiled by scholars and popular historians alike, Brighton definitively answers numerous lingering and controversial questions: Was Patton really as vainglorious in real life as he was portrayed to be on the silver screen?—and how did his tireless advocacy of "mechanized cavalry" forever change the face of war? Was Monty's dogged publicity-seeking driven by his own need for recognition or by his desire to claim for Britain a leadership role in postwar global order?—and how did this prickly "commoner" manage to earn affection and esteem from enlisted men and nobility alike? How might the war have ended if Rommel had had more tanks?—and what fundamental philosophical difference between him and Hitler made such an outcome virtually impossible? Abetted by new primary source material and animated by Terry Brighton's incomparable storytelling gifts, Patton, Montgomery, Rommel offers critical new interpretations of the Second World War as it was experienced by its three most flamboyant, controversial, and influential commanders—and augments our understanding of each of their perceptions of war and leadership.

Download or read book Dictionary of Euphemisms written by R. W. Holder and published by Oxford University Press, USA. This book was released on 2008-09-25 with total page 430 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This is a study of the language of evasion, hypocrisy, prudery and deceit. It dissects the human tendency to prefer vague, roundabout expressions rather than use words which are precise and disagreeably true.

Download or read book Mountbatten Cold War and Empire 1945 79 written by Adrian Smith and published by Bloomsbury Publishing. This book was released on 2022-11-17 with total page 289 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Mountbatten, Cold War and Empire 1945-79 focuses upon Admiral Lord Mountbatten as a commanding – if controversial – figure in the history of Britain and its empire, from Churchill's wartime coalition through to the Labour governments of the 1960s, and forms a sequel to Mountbatten: Apprentice War Lord. Written in three parts, focusing on the premierships of Churchill and Attlee; Eden, Macmillan, Douglas-Home; and Wilson, this book examines the debates over Mountbatten's record in Southern Asia in 1943-6 and 1947-8. Additional chapters focus on Mountbatten's position at the heart of the British state and his pivotal role at key moments in the immediate post-war era, most notably the partition of India, the Suez Crisis and the renewal of an ostensibly independent nuclear deterrent. This book also considers Mountbatten's relationship with Anthony Eden, both during and following the Suez Crisis, as well as detailing Mountbatten's achievements as First Sea Lord and Chief of the Defence Staff under Harold Macmillan and his immediate successors. Smith acknowledges Mountbatten's centrality to the history of Britain and its empire in the immediate post-war era and, in doing so, presents a fascinating picture of one of the most prominent figures of the 20th-century. Smith's scrupulous examination of primary sources, including those available in the Broadlands Archives, results in a thorough examination of a controversial figure: by eschewing often baseless speculation about Mountbatten's personal life Smith creates the first comprehensive overview of Admiral Lord Mountbatten's career from 1943 to the mid-sixties.