As a four-engine heavy bomber, the Avro Lancaster flew with a designated crew member, the flight engineer, to oversee the hydraulic, electrical and fuel systems. Peter Baxter completed hundreds of hours flying in this role, often at night, and also became the Engineer Leader for No. 153 Squadron. In this volume, which includes previously unpublished photos and detailed technical descriptions, he describes his RAF career, from the everyday camaraderie to operational details.

This history of the Lynx helicopter, with first-hand accounts from the people who flew and operated it, presents detailed descriptions of its technical development and insights into its versatility. While designed for anti-submarine warfare it has been used in military operations in the Falklands War and the Gulf but also played a role in Arctic deployments, hurricane relief and drugbusting.

The dedicated RAF and RN trainer since 1976, the BAE Hawk is well known from its use by the Red Arrows display team. This photographic tribute presents over 250 colour images of the T1 and T1A versions mostly in low-level flight over hills and mountains in Britain, with extended captions and a detailed description of the aircraft.

This compilation of first-hand accounts of flying RAF Nimrods from the Cold War onwards includes stories from the Falklands, the First Gulf War and anti-drug-smuggling operations in the Caribbean. Pilots, observers and electronics operators recall how the first jet-powered maritime aircraft was deployed, often in rescue missions and anti-submarine warfare, for which its state-of-the-art navigation and electronics systems were essential, and describe the cancelled Nimrod MR4 project.

Since the MiG-23 was introduced by the Soviets in the 1970s, it has been exported to five major Arab countries. Illustrated with rare images, this history shows the pivotal role it has played in subsequent conflicts in the region.

Drawing on his experiences as an SAS corporal, Chris Ryan tells the story of his regiment from its formation during the Second World War. He describes its post-war revival in 1950 to combat communist insurgents in Malaya, the 1980 Iranian Embassy siege, its operations in Northern Ireland and the Falklands, and its response to today’s threats from international terrorism and an increasingly assertive Russia.

The British Army has been continuously employed, somewhere in the world, since 1945 – despite diminishing significantly in numbers. In this history of post-war Britain, former Chief of the General Staff Richard Dannatt examines affairs of state through the prism of the army's involvement, from managing the end of empire and the troubles in Northern Ireland to the Cold War, the Middle East and the emerging threats of the 21st century.

This photographic history of the Vietnam War, which contains over 500 images, is based on the PBS documentary series The Vietnam War: A Film by Ken Burns and Lynn Novick and captures the pain, bewilderment and political frustrations of soldiers, civilians and officials on both sides of the conflict. The narrative refers to both the military and political battlefields, revealing the intimate stories and often tragic circumstances of those portrayed. Slightly off-mint. and felt-tip mark on lower trimmed edge.

Non-French mercenaries formed a crucial part of Napoleon's Grande Armée. This comprehensive study examines each foreign unit in turn, giving an overview of its origins, organizational and combat history, uniforms and standards, and eventual fate. Eyewitness accounts from contemporary sources and memoirs illustrate what life was like for soldiers the of the predominantly Polish, German, Swiss, Italian, Spanish, and other units.

In the freezing winter of 1808, a small British force found itself outnumbered and outmanoeuvred by Napoleon’s army. The only escape route for the British, commanded by Sir John Moore, was through the snow and ice of northern Spain, constantly pursued by the French. This account of their march recalls the desperation of the often barefoot and starving soldiers.

While the ‘little ships’ who helped to evacuate the BEF from Dunkirk are rightly celebrated, the Royal Navy’s destroyers, minesweepers and personnel ships were indispensable, transporting a large proportion of those rescued back to England. In the aftermath of Operation Dynamo, the Admiralty required ships’ Commanding Officers to submit the reports that are the basis of this book, detailing first-hand the chaos, improvization, skill and bravery that were required.

After an introduction comparing the performance of these three classic planes, facsimiles of the original Pilot’s Notes for the Supermarine Spitfire and Hawker Hurricane describe their fuel, oil and coolant systems, controls, operation and handling. The results of Air Ministry tests provide similar data for captured Messerschmitt Bf 109s. The material is illustrated by historic photographs of the aircraft and their crews, diagrams and cutaway views.

Over 125 Royal Navy men and women give accounts of their wartime experiences in this book collated by an ex-naval medic. Chosen from the Imperial War Museum’s audio archive, the transcripts show the variety of life at sea, including the boredom, fear and moments of humour, with chapters dedicated to the contributions of the WRNS and the Boy Seamen as well as an epilogue following their post-war lives.

With detailed specifications, drawings and archival photographs, this guide to Russian military hardware includes every significant weapon deployed by Soviet forces during the Second World War, some of which provided models for those still in use decades later. Chapters cover tanks and armoured fighting vehicles, artillery and small arms, aircraft and naval weapons, in addition to the lend-lease weapons that were supplied to the Red Army by the Western Allies.

During the Cold War, Warsaw Pact countries prepared for a third world war by manufacturing thousands of weapons, including Badger and Backfire bombers, MiG fighters and nuclear submarines. This fully illustrated guide by a former Intelligence Officer and military expert focuses on aircraft, warships and missiles (a companion volume focuses on ground vehicles), some of which are still deployed by armies and militia groups today.

After resisting the Japanese in Indochina, the Viet Minh sought independence from French colonial rule. This illustrated history charts the decade-long conflict that ended with the French defeat at Dien Bien Phu, and presaged America’s involvement in Vietnam.

This aviation history series presents photographs of aircraft on the ground and in flight as well as detailed illustrations showing the planes in profile and cross section as a reference for historians and modellers. Covering some of Britain's best known post-war aircraft, this volume focuses on the Vickers Valetta, Hawker Hunter, De Havilland Vampire T11 and English Electric Canberra.

Between 1808, when British troops landed in Portugal, and 1814 when their advance into France hastened Napoleon’s downfall, the Peninsular War involved numerous battles and sieges. Drawing on letters, diaries and memoirs, this book presents a chronological account of the campaign in the words of the men who fought in it. Six maps illustrate key engagements, including Talavera and Salamanca.

First published as part of Fortescue’s A History of the British Army in 1920, this classic account is presented here as a single volume. Illustrated with maps and battle plans, it details the tactics deployed by both sides in every engagement from Napoleon’s escape from Elba in March 1815 to his final defeat at Waterloo in June.

This is the second of two volumes which together form a record of memorials to more than 3,150 British and Allied soldiers of Waterloo and the Peninsular War. Each entry provides the full inscription on the stone or tablet, information on its location, and the rank, regiment, honours and service record of the man commemorated. Separate sections cover battlefield and regimental memorials and the accompanying CD Rom contains photographs of many of the memorials.

A Victorian military writer’s classic accounts of Renaissance warfare in the British Isles are reproduced here, together with the engravings that illustrated them, detailing skirmishes from the Battle of Flodden in 1513 to the Battle of Newburn Ford in 1640.

First published in 1894, when the author was still able to interview participants in the war, this book includes accounts of turning points from the Redan and the bombardment of Odessa and Bomarsund to the close of the campaign.

Drafted into the US Army, Tim O’Brien served as foot soldier in Vietnam from 1969 to 1970, and drawing on that experience, his storytelling blurs fiction and reality. This sequence of short stories, together as powerful as a novel, describes both the madness of the war and the burden of the experience on those who fought. First published in 1990, when the Guardian described it as ‘one of the best war books of this century’.

Russia played a decisive role in the fighting that overthrew Napoleon in 1814, but its perspective on the campaign has been largely overlooked in the West because of the lack of translated sources. This book fills the gap, presenting the letters, memoirs and diaries of Russian participants, from generals to ordinary soldiers. These first-hand accounts, never before published in English, offer a fresh and richly human insight into an event that changed the course of history.

The primary role of American B-52 bombers in the earlier years covered by this study was to carry the US nuclear threat. Other jet operations of the 1950s and 1960s saw MiGs, Mirages and F-4 Phantoms in action in conflicts including the Six Day War and Vietnam.

Beginning with the end of the Vietnam War this volume illustrates how fighter-bombers and tactics have developed up to the present day, examining conflicts including the Falklands War, the Gulf Wars and the recent campaigns against Islamic State.

Contemporary footage of the German advances through Belgium, Luxembourg, Holland and France (1939–41) are featured on the three films on this DVD, with additional still images from the period.

Heinrich Himmler’s fanaticism for the superiority of the Aryan race extended to mysticism and the occult and this programme explores his attempts to align his SS organization with an imagined ancient pagan master race.

Trained as a jet pilot in the late 1950s when Britain was still a leading air power, Richard Johns achieved the top rank in the RAF in 1997, by which time Britain's military capacity had been much reduced. His autobiography examines his key operations as commander, including the First Gulf War and Balkan conflict in the 1990s, as well as reflecting on the evolution of the RAF and the other services during his career.

The first encounter at sea of the Second World War took place along the South American coast when three British ships inflicted enough damage on the German pocket battleship Admiral Graf Spee to corner it in Montevideo harbour. The captain, encouraged by British misinformation, chose to scuttle his ship rather than face destruction. This account of the famous episode was first published in 1956 and also contains the official despatch from the British commander.

The Battle of the North Cape off the coast of Norway was one of the last ship-to-ship engagements fought and HMS Belfast was among the British contingent that sunk the German battleship Scharnhorst. This history of the cruiser tells its story in the context of the wider role of the Royal Navy in the Second World War as well as reviewing its post-war duties before it assumed its present role as a museum ship.

Before being let loose in a Supermarine Spitfire, fighter pilots would have to familiarize themselves with the 'Pilot's Notes' which comprehensively detailed the aircraft's equipment, controls and operation. These instructions are reproduced in this book together with examples of log books, combat reports and other contemporary training booklets advising on such skills as identifying enemy aircraft, estimating range and combat flying.

As soon as the French troops entered a deserted Moscow in September 1812, a fire broke out that destroyed two thirds of the city and ultimately forced Napoleon to embark on the disastrous winter retreat that routed his army. Drawing on French, German, Polish and Russian archives and eyewitness accounts, Mikaberidze examines this pivotal event from Russian and French points of view, exploring the Russians’ motives for the conflagration and assessing its consequences.

It was British policy at the beginning of the Boer War not to share intelligence with locally raised forces or employ black people in any military capacity. This proved disastrously misguided and thousands of lives were lost before the commanders on the ground remodelled their forces to meet the specific challenges of the Boers' tactics. This book looks at the war with a focus on the experiences of the people of Natal, both combatants and civilians of all ages.

The naval battle at Actium, when the future emperor Augustus defeated the forces of Antony and Cleopatra, was perhaps the most significant military engagement in Roman history. Yet many details of exactly what happened on that September day continue to elude scholars. This study of the literary and historical sources offers a fresh examination of the evidence, with close analysis of hitherto unconsidered allusions to Actium in the description of an equestrian engagement in Book Eleven of Virgil’s Aeneid.

By the end of the 15th century, following the introduction of gunpowder and the cannon, it was clear that fortresses would need to be built very differently to withstand the assault of artillery. This review of the evolution of fortifications in Britain charts developments from Henry VIII's castles to the pillboxes of the 1940s and the underground bunkers of the nuclear age.

The Macedonian army created by Philip II's reforms is widely recognized as representing 'one of the most important leaps in military thinking in the West before Napoleon'. However, Karunanithy's comprehensive analysis shows that modern scholarly research has neglected important sources of information about this hugely successful system. He presents the full range of archaeological and literary evidence, investigating such aspects as the army's training and preparation, soldiers' dress and battle equipment, and the logistical support provided by non-combatant specialists.

The 20th century was a time of unprecedented change and action for the Royal Navy. The service's senior officers during this period included celebrated figures such as Jackie Fisher and Louis Mountbatten, and hundreds more whose names are not so well remembered. This reference work contains nearly 1,500 pages of biographical accounts of more than 300 admirals, in PDF format on a CD-Rom. The accompanying book provides background information on terminology, rank structure and career progression in the Navy.

Sir Michael Beetham joined the RAF as a pilot in 1941 and stayed on after the war, serving as a commanding officer at a number of critical moments, from the Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962 and Aden in 1964 to the Falklands War, and was appointed Marshal of the RAF in 1982. This biography traces his long, distinguished and very active career, from flying Lancasters in the Second World War to sending Vulcan bombers to the Falklands.

Above the trenches of the First World War, the battle in the air between the first primitive aircraft and the intrepid aviators who flew them was played out like a medieval knightly tournament. This deadly contest is brought to life in the memoir of Ernst Udet (1896–1941), the German ace whose reputation was second only to that of the Red Baron. Richard Overy introduces this new edition of this aviation classic.

From 1808, when he joined the 9th Foot as an ensign, until the eve of his death in battle shortly before the end of the Peninsular War, Peter Le Mesurier kept up an extensive correspondence with his family, giving a wry officer’s-eye view of Moore and Wellington’s campaigns against Napoleon. These letters have been freshly transcribed and are now published for the first time, with a connecting narrative giving background information and commentary on the episodes described.

The Napoleonic Wars were fought as far afield as South America and the Caribbean as well as in Europe, and in line with British military procedure every action was reported to the Admiralty or War Office in an official dispatch. This book collects these original communiqués from over 50 battles, up to 1806, including Nelson's victories at Trafalgar and the Nile and the first encounter with Napoleon Bonaparte himself, as a young captain, at the Siege of Toulon in 1793.

Intended as a companion to his pictorial histories of the Napoleonic, imperial and world wars, Mark Bryant's biographical dictionary covers political, editorial and joke cartoonists and caricaturists from the French Revolutionary Wars in 1792 to 1945. The entries, illustrated with reproductions of around 150 classic cartoons, describe the wartime careers of over 300 artists, arranged alphabetically from Crispim do Amaral (1858–1911) lampooning Queen Victoria during the Boer War, to the German First World War cartoonist Heinrich Zille (1858–1929).

Attempting to open up another front against Napoleon, Britain sent a force of 40,000 men and 600 ships to the Dutch coast at Walcheren in 1809. Although 4,000 men were lost in the debacle, few of them were casualties of any fighting but rather a mysterious disease that became known as Walcheren Fever. A Fellow of the Royal Colleges of Physicians and Pathologists, author Martin Howard applies medical as well as historical analysis to this account of the campaign.

'The enemy fired round shot, and shell – grape and canister – and new horse nails, tied up in bundles, nine bundles in a gun... unlawful carnage.' This report from 'a sergeant of the Guards' gives a vivid insight into the brutality of the pivotal battle that raged in a field near Brussels on 18 June 1815. This collection of eyewitness testimony includes letters, diaries and published accounts from participants on all sides, from ordinary soldiers to Wellington and Napoleon.

When Gerald Constable Maxwell was flying as a fighter pilot in WWI his brother Michael was born – both went on to have distinguished flying careers in WWII. This is the story of

After three military defeats in a week in South Africa in late 1900, two military heroes – Field Marshal Lord Roberts and Major General Lord Kitchener – were sent to replace the beleaguered General Sir Redvers Buller. This study of a spectacularly successful military partnership describes how, within weeks, Roberts and Kitchener had raised morale, reorganized their forces and transformed the war; but also how the relief of Kimberley and Ladysmith and the defeat of Boer forces sometimes involved less than heroic tactics.

Victor Gregg (b.1919) joined the army in 1937 and in Rifleman (2011) he told the story of his service in the Rifle Brigade in Palestine, Alamein and Arnhem. Here, he goes back to his childhood and teenage years on the 'mean streets' of King's Cross, Soho and Bloomsbury. Gregg's memoir evokes how, abandoned by his father and living in poverty, the family struggled and survived in the familiar, yet strange world of London between the wars. Slightly off-mint.

In an attempt to break the siege of Cádiz in 1811, Spanish, Portuguese and British forces were sent south from the city by sea in order to approach the French lines from the rear. This book examines in detail the resulting battle at Barrosa, a tactical victory for the British commander Sir Thomas Graham that failed to achieve a decisive rout of the French but did prevent an absolute defeat of Spain and influenced the course of the war against Napoleon.

Hugh Trenchard (1872–1956) had an unpromising start in life, failing the Army and Navy entrance exams, but found his métier when he joined the fledgling Royal Flying Corps in 1912. Nicknamed 'Boom' for his stentorian voice, he was obstinate and tactless, yet inspired unflagging loyalty in his men. As this fascinating biography makes clear, it was these very qualities that enabled him to create the Royal Air Force in the face of entrenched opposition from the older services.

In a concise reinterpretation of one of history's most argued-over battles, the eminent military historian Jeremy Black uses Waterloo and its aftermath to discuss the changing nature of warfare, the rise and fall of Napoleon's empire, and the effects of the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars on Europe and on Britain's role in the world during the 19th century.

208 Squadron, based at RAF Valley in Anglesey, was disbanded during its 100th year of operations in 2016. In this history marking the centenary, Air Commodore Graham Pitchfork, who formerly commanded the squadron, describes how it evolved, from its formation as Naval 8 on the Western Front during the First World War, through its activities in the Second World War and Gulf War to its modern-day role as an advanced flying training squadron.

A photographic introduction to the Submarines of the Royal Navy demonstrating a rich history of innovative design and construction, with images accompanied by captions with

Before Pearl Harbor and the entry of the United States into the Second World War, American pilots seeking adventure, or with strong political motivations, volunteered for the RAF to fight the Germans. From cultural conflicts with their English hosts to action over France, particularly the Dieppe raid of August 1942, this book charts the experiences of the 270 airmen who flew in the three RAF 'Eagle' squadrons of American volunteers before being reassigned to the USAAF by late 1942.

For much of the 14th and 15th centuries, England was almost continuously at war with its neighbours, and enjoyed an unprecedented degree of military supremacy. Peter Reid's extensive account is not simply a catalogue of battles, but combines analysis of strategy and weaponry with a dramatic telling of how and why the wars, from Bannockburn to the Wars of the Roses, came about, and how they were fought.

In 264 BCE, when the Romans first went to war with Carthage, they had no navy, relying instead on ships from South Italian cities. However, when the Punic Wars ended more than a century later, Rome had developed a powerful fleet, which would prove vital for imperial expansion. DeSantis traces the growth of this naval supremacy and discusses the tactics that made it possible, such as the boarding-bridge by which the superior Roman infantry simply walked onto the enemy’s decks.

The decisive battle at Flodden Field in 1513 marked the climax of the personal and political tension between England’s Henry VIII and his brother-in-law James IV of Scotland. This book traces the origins and escalation of their rivalry, with analysis of the political and military manoeuvres leading up to Flodden. It ends with an account of the battle itself, which saw the first artillery exchange on a British battlefield, and an assessment of James’s level of responsibility for Scotland’s defeat.

During the Second World War the German Kriegsmarine conducted many large scale fleet manoeuvers (sic) in the Atlantic and Pacific. Using rare German archive footage, this DVD shows these spectacular naval actions. The main film is accompanied by shorter pieces on the Battleships Scharnhorst and Gneisenau. 1 DVD; running time 60 min.

An account by the US Army commander who oversaw operations in Kosovo in 1999, offering a look at military decision making in real time and exposing the nature of the conflicts within the Atlantic Alliance and within the US government. 8pp b&w plates

On September 11th 2001, the myth that wars were to be fought elsewhere on Western terms was destroyed. Jeremy Black explores the realities of war in a globalised world where growing prosperity increases the likelihood of conflict and American power is increasingly challenged.

WS Hewison's history of the anchorage between Hoy and the Orkney mainland describes the dramatic naval events that Scapa Flow has witnessed and examines their effects on the local community.

After examining the origins of castle building in northern France, Dan Spencer’s military history focuses on the role of castles in warfare in England and Wales, from their introduction by the Normans in the 11th century to the death of Henry VIII in 1547. The book covers all the major conflicts, including the conquest of Wales, war with Scotland, 1295–1337, the Hundred Years War and the Wars of the Roses, ending with the early Tudors’ fortifications against invasion.

At the end of the Second World War, as Germany lay in ruins, the Western Allies looked with alarm towards a new adversary in the east: Stalin’s Russia. The Italian port of Trieste, occupied by Yugoslav troops, was a flashpoint. Like a Cold War thriller, this history charts the destinies of a British SOE officer, an Austrian SS general, an American spy and a teenage Italian female partisan in a true story of espionage, escape and revenge.

Simon James takes an archaeologist’s approach to the study of Rome’s military history, telling the story of the sword – ‘the literal cutting edge of Roman power’ – from early times to the fall of the western empire. To supplement the battle narratives of ancient historical writers, he explains developments in sword-smithing techniques and military ideology, considers cultural reasons for changes in hardware and tactics and helps the reader to visualize the direct human experience of the ‘myriad individual acts of mayhem’ in battle.

Sicily’s strategic location at the heart of the Mediterranean enabled Syracuse to become one of the most powerful cities of the ancient world but it also made the island a target for expansionist powers. This second volume of Champion’s narrative history covers the tumultuous political and military events in Sicily from the death of Dionysius the Elder until the Roman siege of Syracuse (213–211 BCE), when even the ingenious defences and inventions of Archimedes could not prevent the city’s capture.

Off-mint.

Made by the Battlefield History TV team, this film follows the extremely dangerous – and for many, fatal – SAS campaign to disrupt railways and delay German reinforcements in Normandy. Running time 60mins.

This film was made in 1943 to inform and motivate German troops facing the Russian advance. Including a dramatization of an offensive by Soviet T34s, it gives a detailed summary of the advice given to infantrymen on repelling such attacks.

Manfred von Richthofen was the leading ace of the First World War and helped to develop effective new aerial combat tactics while leading his Jagdgeschwader 1 fighter unit. This documentary includes original wartime footage, a revealing assessment of the controversial circumstances of his death and bonus galleries of archive photographs.

Part of a series that uses original German newsreel film to examine the military history of the Third Reich, this DVD records the military events surrounding the decline and defeat of the U-Boat fleets.

The He 111 was a primary Luftwaffe medium bomber in service 1939 to 1944. Using subtitled footage from the weekly Wochenschau newsreels, this DVD shows bomber crews preparing for and carrying out raids on Polish cities during the German invasion, along with footage of the destruction.

The start of Operation Barbarossa is depicted in this collection of subtitled footage from the Wochenschau newsreels. Starting with Hitler’s repudiation of the Non-Aggression Pact, it shows battle scenes, Jewish ghetto clearances and captured Bolsheviks from Russia’s borders with the Baltic States and Eastern Europe.

This DVD covers three battles involving Panzer and heavy artillery in the West: Operation Cerberus, a spectacular operation by the German Kriegsmarine in the English Channel; the Dieppe Raid; and the last major German attack - the Ardennes offensive. One DVD, running time approx 58 min.

The status of the free city of Danzig (modern Gdańsk) gave Hitler a pretext to invade Poland in September 1939, and the newsreels of the invasion emphasize both the decisive power of German military forces and the validity of their cause.

After a brief survey of the development of the Luftwaffe after 1918, this film examines Luftwaffe strategy, the attack on Poland in 1939, and the role of the German fighter squadrons as defence against the Allied strategic bombing offensive. Running time: 55 minutes. This DVD is from a series that uses original German film footage, with English voice-overs, offering the opportunity to see elements of the Second World War from a contemporary German perspective.

Part of the Hitler’s War Machine series tracing the military history of the Third Reich through wartime German newsreels with English translation, this film records the decisive and massively destructive siege of Leningrad, which lasted from September 1941 to the Red Army victory in January 1944.

With the British 1st Airborne Division thwarted and isolated at Arnhem, the paratroopers fell back to Oosterbeek and a grim battle ensued against the German forces, which included the flame-throwing tanks of the 2nd SS Panzer Corps. DVD.

Recording Churchill’s attempt to seize the ‘soft underbelly’ of Europe, the DVD shows how Germany’s defensive battles lasted until the final moments of the Second World War.

First published in 1948, this Second World War reportage relates the experiences of Anita Leslie, the daughter of a baronet and a distant cousin of Winston Churchill. Her account includes descriptions of working for the Mechanised Transport Corps, driving an ambulance for the Free French Forces, writing letters home from Hitler’s office in the Reich Chancellery, and marching in the Victory Parade in Berlin.

Seven escape attempts earned Peter Tunstall 415 days of solitary confinement during his captivity in prison camps (including Colditz) during the Second World War. Written shortly before his death in 2013, this memoir is a mature reflection of his experiences as a bomber pilot and POW, balancing the excitement and adventure of his exploits with the pain, hunger, fear and boredom that came with it.

Julian Thompson, himself a commander in the Falklands War, recreates the experiences of the ill-equipped, under-trained soldiers of the British Expeditionary Force in May 1940, when they endured weeks of a desperate fighting withdrawal inland and were then trapped on the beaches at Dunkirk, awaiting evacuation.

With a talent for invention and a taste for adventure, Italian Jew Renato Levi operated as a double agent in the Middle East and North Africa during the Second World War. This book uncovers the story of the remarkable spy, which has only come to light in recent years, and his CHEESE network, an entirely fictitious ring of intelligence sources providing misdirection that helped to defeat Rommel in North Africa and diverted German defences from the D-Day landing sites.

Bletchley Park may be famous for the exploits of Alan Turing and the team operating his first 'computer', but at the peak of its operations Station X employed as many as 12,000 people, two-thirds of whom were women. From language students to society debutantes and even a former ballerina, this book explores the extraordinary secret life of these women during the Second World War and the significant contribution they made to the Allied victory.

In 1943 Bob Laycock succeeded Louis Mountbatten as Chief of Combined Operations, becoming the youngest major general in the British Army. This biography examines a military career that began with the Royal Horse Guards in 1927, ended with a period as Governor of Malta in the 1950s but is chiefly notable for involvement in the Battle of Crete, the Rommel Raid and in particular for a part in establishing the Commando special forces units.