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The Coming of the Spanish Civil War: Reform, Reaction and Revolution in the Second Republic 1931–1936 (pdf)
by Paul Preston
Coming Out Under Fire: The History of Gay Men and Women in World War II
by Allan BérubéDuring World War II, as the United States called on its citizens to serve in unprecedented numbers, the presence of gay Americans in the armed forces increasingly conflicted with the expanding antihomosexual policies and procedures of the military. In Coming Out Under Fire, Allan Berube examines in depth and detail these social and political confrontation--not as a story of how the military victimized homosexuals, but as a story of how a dynamic power relationship developed between gay citizens and their government, transforming them both. Drawing on GIs' wartime letters, extensive interviews with gay veterans, and declassified military documents, Berube thoughtfully constructs a startling history of the two wars gay military men and women fough--one for America and another as homosexuals within the military.Berube's book, the inspiration for the 1995 Peabody Award-winning documentary film of the same name, has become a classic since it was published in 1990, just three years prior to the controversial "don't ask, don't tell" policy, which has continued to serve as an uneasy compromise between gays and the military. With a new foreword by historians John D'Emilio and Estelle B. Freedman, this book remains a valuable contribution to the history of World War II, as well as to the ongoing debate regarding the role of gays in the U.S. military.
The Coming Revolution: Political Writings of Patrick Pearse
by Patrick PearsePearse's skill as an orator is indisputable. His fiery idealism was one of the key motivators that brought the rebels to the GPO in 1916. This collection of his wrting showcase's this skill, but also the complex philosophy that underpinned it. Ranging from his theories of education articulated in 'The Murder Machine' (1912), through his orations on the great Fenian leaders of the past: Wolfe Tone, Emmet and O'Donovan Rossa; to his writings on 'The Separtatist Idea', 'The Spiritual Nation' and 'The Sovereign People' in the months leading up to the rising; this is a crucial collection for the library of anyone with an interest in Irish history.
Command: The Politics of Military Operations from Korea to Ukraine
by Sir Lawrence FreedmanThroughout history, the concept of command -- as both a way to achieve objectives and as an assertion of authority -- has been essential to military action and leadership. But, as Sir Lawrence Freedman shows, it is also deeply political.Military command has been reconstructed and revolutionized since the Second World War by nuclear warfare, small-scale guerrilla land operations and cyber interference. Freedman takes a global perspective, systematically investigating its practice and politics since 1945 through a wide range of conflicts from the French Colonial Wars, the Cuban Missile Crisis and the Bangladesh Liberation War to North Vietnam's Easter Offensive of 1972, the Falklands War, the Iraq War and Russia's wars in Chechnya and Ukraine. By highlighting the political nature of strategy, Freedman shows that military decision-making cannot be separated from civilian priorities and that commanders must now have the sensibility to navigate politics as well as warfare.
Command: How the Allies Learned to Win the Second World War
by Al MurrayAl Murray's passion for military history and the Second World War in particular has always run parallel with his comedy and was brought to the fore with several acclaimed and award-winning television shows and the recent huge success of his podcast We Have Ways of Making You Talk which he hosts with fellow bestselling military author James Holland. In his first serious narrative book, Command showcases Al Murray's passion for this pivotal period in the twentieth century, as he writes an engaging, entertaining and sharp analysis of the key allied military leaders in the conflict. Command highlights the performance and careers of some of the leading protagonists who commanded armies, as well as the lesser-known officers who led divisions, regiments and even battalions for the British, Commonwealth and United States of American armies. By showcasing each combat commander across every major theatre of operations the allies fought in, Murray tells the story of how the Western Allies rebounded from early shocking defeats (Dunkirk and Pearl Harbor) to then victories (El Alamein and D-Day) in its efforts to defeat the Axis forces of Nazi Germany and Japan, and what that tells us about the characters and the challenges that faced them. Command is the book for all fans of Second World War History who appreciate a true enthusiast of the genre with something new and compelling to say.
Command and Control: Nuclear Weapons, The Damascus Accident, And The Illusion Of Safety
by Eric SchlosserFrom famed investigative journalist Eric Schlosser, author of Fast Food Nation, comes Command and Control a ground-breaking account of the management of nuclear weaponsA groundbreaking account of accidents, near-misses, extraordinary heroism and technological breakthroughs, Command and Control explores the dilemma that has existed since the dawn of the nuclear age: how do you deploy weapons of mass destruction without being destroyed by them? Schlosser reveals that this question has never been resolved, and while other headlines dominate the news, nuclear weapons still pose a grave risk to mankind. At the heart of Command and Control lies the story of an accident at a missile silo in rural Arkansas, where a handful of men struggled to prevent the explosion of a ballistic missile carrying the most powerful nuclear warhead ever built by the United States. Schlosser interweaves this minute-by-minute account with a historical narrative that spans more than fifty years. It depicts the urgent effort by American scientists, policymakers, and military officers to ensure that nuclear weapons can't be stolen, sabotaged, used without permission, or detonated inadvertently. Looking at the Cold War from a new perspective, Schlosser offers history from the ground up, telling the stories of bomber pilots, missile commanders, maintenance crews, and other ordinary servicemen who risked their lives to avert a nuclear holocaust. Drawing on recently declassified documents and interviews with men who designed and routinely handled nuclear weapons, Command and Control takes readers into a terrifying but fascinating world that, until now, has been largely hidden from view. It reveals how even the most brilliant of minds can offer us only the illusion of control. Audacious, gripping and unforgettable, Command and Control is a tour de force of investigative journalism.Eric Schlosser is the author of Fast Food Nation and Reefer Madness, as well as the co-author of a children's book, Chew on This. His work has appeared in the Atlantic Monthly, the New Yorker, the Nation, and Vanity Fair. Two of his plays, Americans (2003) and We the People (2007), have been produced in London.'A work with the multi-layered density of an ambitiously conceived novel' John Lloyd, Financial Times'Command and Control is how non-fiction should be written ... By a miracle of information management, Schlosser has synthesized a huge archive of material, including government reports, scientific papers, and a substantial historical and polemical literature on nukes, and transformed it into a crisp narrative covering more than fifty years of scientific and political change. And he has interwoven that narrative with a hair-raising, minute-by-minute account of an accident at a Titan II missile silo in Arkansas, in 1980, which he renders in the manner of a techno-thriller' New Yorker'The strength of Schlosser's writing derives from his ability to carry a wealth of startling detail on a confident narrative path'Ed Pilkington, Guardian'Disquieting but riveting ... fascinating ... Schlosser's readers (and he deserves a great many) will be struck by how frequently the people he cites attribute the absence of accidental explosions and nuclear war to divine intervention or sheer luck rather than to human wisdom and skill. Whatever was responsible, we will clearly need many more of it in the years to come'Walter Russell Mead, New York Times
Command at Sea: Naval Command and Control since the Sixteenth Century
by Michael A. PalmerCommanders at sea struggle not only with the unpredictability of natural elements, but also with a shroud of uncertainty often referred to as the "fog of war." Over the centuries most admirals yielded to the natural temptation to find in new technologies a means to assert centralized control over their forces. But other commanders have recognized the fog for what it is: a constant level of uncertainty resistant to mere technological solution. In this grand history of naval warfare, Michael Palmer observes five centuries of dramatic encounters under sail and steam. From reliance on signal flags in the seventeenth century to satellite communications in the twenty-first, admirals looked to the next advance in technology as the one that would allow them to control their forces. But while abilities to communicate improved, Palmer shows how other technologies simultaneously shrank admirals' windows of decision. The result was simple, if not obvious: naval commanders have never had sufficient means or time to direct subordinates in battle. Successful commanders as distant as Horatio Nelson (1758-1805) and Arleigh Burke (1901-1996) accepted this reality. They sought solutions to the dilemmas of command in the personal indoctrination of subordinates through discussion, comradeship, and displays of trust and confidence. Such leaders created a commonality of vision and fostered a high degree of individual initiative. Their decentralized approach to command resulted in a resiliency that so often provided the key to success in battle. Palmer's exciting and enlightening history reveals the myriad efforts of naval commanders to navigate the fog of war.
Command Authority: INSPIRATION FOR THE THRILLING AMAZON PRIME SERIES JACK RYAN (Jack Ryan #18)
by Mark Greaney Tom ClancyCommand Authority sees the return of Tom Clancy's greatest hero, Jack Ryan.Decades ago, when he was a young CIA analyst, President Jack Ryan, Sr. was sent on what was supposed to be a simple support mission to investigate the death of an operative who had been looking into suspicious banking activities at a Swiss bank. Ryan's dogged tenacity uncovered not only financial deceit, but also the existence of a KGB assassin, code-named Zenith. He was never able to find the killer.But in the shadowy world of covert operations, nothing stays hidden forever.In the present, a new strongman has emerged in the ever-chaotic Russian republic - the enigmatic President Valeri Volodin. His rise to power was meteoric, but shrouded in deception and treachery. The foundations of his personal empire are built on a bloody secret from his past, and he will eliminate anyone who comes close to that truth. For he has set in motion a plot to return Russia to its former glory and might, with the rest of the world once again trembling in fear of the mighty Bear.When an old friend of the Ryans is poisoned by a radioactive agent, the trail leads to Russia. And Jack Ryan, Jr. - aided by his compatriots John Clark and the covert warriors of the secretive Campus - must delve into an international conflict thirty years in the making, and finish what his father started.With President Ryan fighting a desperate campaign to thwart Russian aggression, and his son fighting a silent war against a ruthless foe, the chances for global conflict grow ever greater - and the possibility of survival may soon be lost for all . . .Tom Clancy's Command Authority is a brand new full-throttle all-action adventure, and follows Threat Vector and Locked On as the newest Jack Ryan novel.Praise for Tom Clancy:'Exhilarating. No other novelist is giving so full a picture of modern conflict' Sunday Times'The inventor of the techno-thriller' Daily Telegraph
Command in War
by Martin Van CreveldMany books have been written about strategy, tactics, and great commanders. This is the first book to deal exclusively with the nature of command itself, and to trace its development over two thousand years from ancient Greece to Vietnam. It treats historically the whole variety of problems involved in commanding armies, including staff organization and administration, communications methods and technologies, weaponry, and logistics. And it analyzes the relationship between these problems and military strategy. In vivid descriptions of key battles and campaigns—among others, Napoleon at Jena, Moltke’s Königgrätz campaign, the Arab–Israeli war of 1973, and the Americans in Vietnam—Martin van Creveld focuses on the means of command and shows how those means worked in practice. He finds that technological advances such as the railroad, breech-loading rifles, the telegraph and later the radio, tanks, and helicopters all brought commanders not only new tactical possibilities but also new limitations. Although vast changes have occurred in military thinking and technology, the one constant has been an endless search for certainty—certainty about the state and intentions of the enemy’s forces; certainty about the manifold factors that together constitute the environment in which war is fought, from the weather and terrain to radioactivity and the presence of chemical warfare agents; and certainty about the state, intentions, and activities of one’s own forces. The book concludes that progress in command has usually been achieved less by employing more advanced technologies than by finding ways to transcend the limitations of existing ones.
Command A King's Ship: (Richard Bolitho: Book 8) (Richard Bolitho #8)
by Alexander KentAn enthralling and exciting Bolitho adventure from the master storyteller of the sea, Alexander Kent (pseudonym for Douglas Reeman).In March 1784, at a time when most of the fleet was laid up, His Majesty's frigate Undine weighed anchor at Spithead to begin a voyage to India and far beyond. As her new captain, Richard Bolitho was glad to go, despite the nature of his orders and the immensity of the voyage - for he was leaving an England still suffering from the aftermath of war. But he was to learn that signatures on proud documents did not necessarily make a lasting peace, and found himself involved in a conflict as ruthless as the one which had given him his first command during the war with France.In an uneasy peace the expansion of trade and colonial development in little-known areas of the East Indies soon pushed aside the pretence and brought the guns' fury into the open. There was no set line of battle or declared cause to rally Undine's small company. But the dangers and the endless demands had to be faced by the man who commanded the only King's ship available.
The Command of the Ocean: A Naval History of Britain 1649-1815
by N A RodgerThe Command of the Ocean describes with unprecedented authority and scholarship the rise of Britain to naval greatness, and the central place of the Navy and naval activity in the life of the nation and government. It describes not just battles, voyages and cruises but how the Navy was manned, how it was supplied with timber, hemp and iron, how its men (and sometimes women) were fed, and above all how it was financed and directed. It was during the century and a half covered by this book that the successful organizing of these last three - victualling, money and management - took the Navy to the heart of the British state. It is the great achievement of the book to show how completely integrated and mutually dependent Britain and the Navy then became.
Command or Control?: Command, Training and Tactics in the British and German Armies, 1888-1918
by Dr Martin Samuels Martin SamuelsThis is a comparative study of the fighting systems of the British and German armies in The Great War. Taking issue with revisionist historians, Samuels argues that German success in battle can be explained by their superior tactical philosophy. The book provides a fascinating insight into the development of infantry tactics at a seminal point in the history of warfare.
Command or Control?: Command, Training and Tactics in the British and German Armies, 1888-1918
by Dr Martin Samuels Martin SamuelsThis is a comparative study of the fighting systems of the British and German armies in The Great War. Taking issue with revisionist historians, Samuels argues that German success in battle can be explained by their superior tactical philosophy. The book provides a fascinating insight into the development of infantry tactics at a seminal point in the history of warfare.
Commanded By The French Duke: The Innocent And The Outlaw Commanded By The French Duke Claiming The Chaperon's Heart (Mills And Boon Historical Ser.)
by Meriel FullerOne knight to capture her heart! Alinor of Claverstock takes her life in her hands when she rescues Bianca d’Attalens from her stepmother’s evil clutches. But when Alinor encounters Bianca’s handsome brother, Guilhem, Duc d’Attalens, it’s not just her life that’s in danger.
Commander: The Life and Exploits of Britain's Greatest Frigate Captain
by Stephen TaylorEdward Pellew, captain of the legendary Indefatigable, was quite simply the greatest frigate captain in the age of sail. An incomparable seaman, ferociously combative yet chivalrous, a master of the quarterdeck and an athlete of the tops, he was as quick to welcome a gallant foe into his cabin as to dive to the rescue of a man overboard. He is the likely model for the heroic but all-too-human Jack Aubrey in Patrick O'Brian's novels.Pellew was orphaned at eight, but fought his way from the very bottom of the Navy to fleet command and a viscountcy. Victories and eye-catching feats won him a public following. Yet as an outsider with a gift for antagonizing his better-born peers, he made powerful enemies. Redemption came with his last command, when he set off to do battle with the Barbary States and free thousands of European slaves. Contemporary opinion held this to be an impossible mission, and Pellew himself, in leading from the front in the style of his direct contemporary Nelson, did not expect to survive.Pellew's humanity as much as his gallantry, fondness for subordinates and blind love for his family, and the warmth and intimacy of his letters, make him a hugely engaging and sympathetic figure. In Stephen Taylor's magnificent new life he at last has the biography he deserves.
Commander in Chief: FDR's Battle with Churchill, 1943 (Fdr At War Ser. #2)
by Nigel HamiltonThe astonishing story of FDR's year-long battle with Churchill as World War II raged in Africa and Italy.In his masterly Mantle of Command, Nigel Hamilton made a powerful case for Franklin Delano Roosevelt as the brilliant war strategist whose towering importance to the Second World War is overlooked because of his early death. Now, in this second installment of his major trilogy, Hamilton reveals the remarkable truth - suppressed by Winston Churchill in his memoirs - of how Roosevelt battled with Churchill to maintain the strategy that would win the war.Roosevelt knew the Allies should take Sicily but avoid a wider battle in the Mediterranean, building experience but saving strength to invade France in early 1944. Churchill seemed to agree at Casablanca - only to undermine his own generals and the Allied command, testing Roosevelt's patience to the limit. Seeking to avoid the D-Day landings, Churchill made the disastrous decision to push the battle further into southern Europe, almost losing the war for the Allies. In a dramatic showdown, FDR finally set the course for victory by making the ultimate threat.Challenging seven decades of conventional wisdom about not one but two world leaders, Commander in Chief draws on extraordinary new archive material to delve further into the minds and actions of the men who led the Allied powers in the crucial year that decided the outcome of World War II.
The Commanders: The Leadership Journeys of George Patton, Bernard Montgomery and Erwin Rommel
by Lloyd ClarkBorn between 1885 and 1891, George Patton, Bernard Montgomery and Erwin Rommel all participated in the First World War and, like millions of others, were so affected by their wartime experiences that it became a fundamental influence on their lives. Yet none of the men were dissuaded by the carnage from seeking military careers when the guns finally fell silent. Each became wholly dedicated to the profession of arms and, being exceptional officers and leaders, they prospered.Despite the broad similarities between them, there were some marked differences in their approach to leadership due to the individuality bestowed on them from their genes, upbringing, life experience and relationships. Triumph reveals how these stimuli created three unique personalities which, in turn, each man came to draw from when they became among the most prominent officers in their armies.Exploring the many and various influences that shaped these three officers as men, as soldiers and, principally, as leaders, Lloyd Clark tracks their progress - through war and peace - all the way up to their final confrontation on the battlefields of the Second World War.
Commando: The Inside Story of Britain’s Royal Marines
by Monty Halls'There is only one colour that matters, one that unites us all. And that colour is green.'The Royal Marine Commandos have become a byword for elite raiding skills and cutting-edge military operations. They are globally renowned, yet shrouded in mystery. With unique insight and authority, Commando captures the essence and heart of this revered military unit then and now, exploring their role patrolling the high seas and policing coastlines around the globe, and revealing their rich history and what it means to win and wear the legendary green beret.With full and exclusive access to every level of the organisation, author and former Royal Marine Monty Halls tells the real stories of extraordinary individuals through a period of historic global unrest: from Future Commando forces on high-profile drug busts to Mountain Leaders training across glaciers north of the Arctic Circle; from medics who serve as global first responders in conflict to wounded veterans raising vast sums to support their brethren in the Corps Family. These are the modern vanguard of a legendary unit, descendants of the misfits and eccentrics who were so effective and feared in WW2 that Hitler famously ordered them to be shot on sight.Commando is an unforgettable glimpse into a rarified world of danger, drama, and valour.
Commando: Special Forces in World War II (Osprey Digital Generals Ser.)
by Kenneth MackseyCommando', the history Commandos and small-scale raids during World War II, is a gripping narrative, tracing the actions of the fearless men who served as Allied commandos for the Combined Operations department during the war. Kenneth Macksey offers the details of St Nazaire, Bruneval, Dieppe as well as the key players, such as Stirling, Lovat and Carlson. Macksey skilfully provides a study of the lesser-known figures, such as Edson, Appleyard and Pickney, bringing to life their courage and determination while celebrating the sailors who enabled the raiders to reach their destinations.
Commando: Special Forces in World War II
by Kenneth MackseyCommando', the history Commandos and small-scale raids during World War II, is a gripping narrative, tracing the actions of the fearless men who served as Allied commandos for the Combined Operations department during the war. Kenneth Macksey offers the details of St Nazaire, Bruneval, Dieppe as well as the key players, such as Stirling, Lovat and Carlson. Macksey skilfully provides a study of the lesser-known figures, such as Edson, Appleyard and Pickney, bringing to life their courage and determination while celebrating the sailors who enabled the raiders to reach their destinations.
The Commando: The life and death of Cameron Baird, VC, MG
by Ben Mckelvey'Corporal Baird was a modern-day warrior who set a standard that every soldier aspires to achieve.' - GENERAL DAVID HURLEYOn 22 June 2013, Corporal Cameron Baird was a 2nd Commando Regiment Special Forces soldier when he led his platoon into a known Taliban stronghold to back-up another Australian unit under heavy fire. In the pronged firefight, Cameron was mortally wounded. In 2014, Cameron's bravery and courage under fire saw him posthumously awarded the 100th Victoria Cross, our highest award possible for bravery in the presence of the enemy. Cameron Baird died how he lived - at the front, giving it his all, without any indecision. He will forever be remembered by his mates and the soldiers he served with in the 2nd Commando Regiment. THE COMMANDO reveals Cameron's life, from young boy and aspiring AFL player, who only missed out on being drafted because of injury, to exemplary soldier and leader. Cameron's story and that of 4RAR and 2nd Commando personifies the courage and character of the men and women who go to war and will show us the good man we have lost.
Commando
by Chris TerrillChris Terrill is a man in search of his limit. He's 55 years old. He is not a soldier. He is being trained by the Royal Marines and he is going to Afghanistan. The only difference is that instead of a gun, Chris will be holding a camera and filming the whole ordeal for a major TV series.The Royal Marines Commando training base in Lympstone Devon, has a famous motto: '99.9% need not apply'. Of those who start training, after a very tough selection process, nearly 50% fail to make it through the most gruelling physical tests of any armed forces in the world in an eight month training regime. The elite who do eventually pass out are generally eighteen years old and at the peak of physical condition. But Chris Terrill is the exception: this book will tell of his heroic struggle to become the oldest man to win the coveted Royal Marines Commando Green Beret and enter the record books.And after six months of hell, what next? Chris will follow the raw recruits on a tour to Southern Afghanistan. He will tell the story in book and film of the fears and hopes of the youngsters as they are plunged into one of the planet's most dangerous wars in the outlaw mountain terrain of Helmand Province. He will tell of ferocious battles against the Taliban, of firefights, of jaw-dropping heroism, British sang froid and humour and tragedy as causalities are suffered -- all from the unique perspective of a civilian who has achieved the ultimate accolade: to be accepted as an honorary Royal Marines Commando. Commando is a brilliant account of modern war on the front line.
Commandos: The Definitive History Of Commando Operations In The Second World War
by Charles MessengerThe definitive and thrilling history of those who wore the famous green beret.
Commandos: The Inside Story Of A Force For The Future
by John ParkerThe 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.
Commandos: Heroic and Deadly ANZAC Raids in World War II
by Frank WalkerAmazing revelations and extraordinary exploits of Australia's elite secret warriors.There was something unique about Australians and New Zealanders in war that prompted World War II Allied commanders to turn to ANZAC soldiers, sailors and airmen to carry out the most dangerous and virtually impossible missions behind enemy lines.Paddling canoes 4,000 kilometres to attack enemy ships in Singapore; lightning raids on Rommel's forces in the deserts of North Africa. Flying bombers at tree-top level deep into Nazi Germany to destroy vital targets; rescuing sultans and future US presidents from under the noses of the Japanese and playing crucial roles in the greatest commando raid of the war at St Nazaire - the Aussies and Kiwis were there.The special forces showed incredible bravery in the face of overwhelming odds. They were determined to complete their missions. Often alone and far behind enemy lines,they demonstrated resourcefulness, spirit and a humanity that inspired others to follow them.Frank Walker, author of bestselling books on the Vietnam War and the British atomic tests in Australia, brings to life the amazing exploits and extraordinary stories of this select band of heroes..