The Imperial Japanese Navy was the third most powerful in the
world at the start of World War II, and came to dominate the
Pacific in the early months of the war. This was a remarkable
turnaround for a navy that only began to modernize in 1868,
although defeats inflicted on the Russians and Chinese in
successive wars at the turn of the century gave a sense of the
threat the IJN was to pose. This book details the Japanese ships
and examines the principles on which they were designed, how
they were armed, when and where they were deployed and how
effective they were in battle.
New in d/w - 392pp, Numerous b/w
& colour photos & illustrations
While Rome was struggling for survival against the
Carthaginians in the Second Punic War, Philip V of Macedon
attempted to take advantage of its vulnerability by allying with
Hannibal and declaring war. For the time being the Romans
negated this threat by shrewd use of allies to keep Philip
occupied in Greece and Illyria. Once Carthage was defeated,
however, the Romans were free to settle the score. Though sorely
tested, the Roman legions emerged victorious from the battles of
Cynoscephelae and Pydna, and the home of Alexander the Great
fell under the power of Rome, along with the rest of Greece.
Specially-commissioned colour plates bring the Armies vividly to
life in meticulously-researched detail.
New in d/w - 192pp, 7 maps,
13 colour illustrations
A compulsively readable and vivid account of life as a young
soldier in Russia's Chechen wars, it takes the raw and mundane
reality of days amid guns and grenades and twists it into
compelling, chilling, and eerily elegant prose. Babchenko traces
his journey from innocence to experience, beginning with his
teenage arrival in the transit camp just north of Chechnya and
harsh treatment by his seniors as a naive and scared new recruit,
through to his period of active duty at the front, by which time
he has become a brutalized and hardened soldier.
In this sought after study the author systematically
examines every aspect of the tank crewman's needs, with
particular regard to the engineering problems arising
from the NBC threat. The first two parts cover all
ground elements of the airmechanized combat system and
focus on ensuring that the total crew-vehicle system
enters battle fit to fight. The third part deals with
the men who crew the tank, as we know it, or its
successor. This is rounded off with an essay on command
and control.
HITLER'S PRE-EMPTIVE WAR: THE BATTLE FOR NORWAY,
1940
by Henrik O. Lunde
After Hitler conquered Poland the British began to exert control
of the coastline of neutral Norway, an action that threatened to
cut off Germany’s iron-ore conduit to Sweden.
The Germans quickly responded with a dizzying series of assaults.
Airlifted infantry, mountain troops and paratroopers seized
Norwegian strong points, forestalling larger Allied units. The
German navy also set sail ensuring that key harbours could be held.
The air, airborne, naval, amphibious, infantry, armoured and
commando aspects of this brief but violent campaign are covered in
meticulous detail.
New in card cover - 590pp, 29 b/w photos,
15 maps, tables
