pen sword books ltd south yorkshire (Plus de 6 100 résultats)

Paperback. Etat : Very Good. A young captain in the Royal Norfolk Regiment, Reggie Burton was wounded in the closing stages of the disastrous defence of Malaya and Singapore. He vividly, yet calmly and with great dignity, describes the horror of captivity at the hands of the Japanese. After initial confusion, the true nature of their captors emerged as, increasingly debilitated, the POWs were forced into back-breaking work. This was only a taste of what was to come. After a horrific journey in overcrowded cattle trucks, Burton and his dwindling band of colleagues were put to work building the notorious Burma Railway. Somehow he survived to tell this moving and shocking story. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged.

Paperback. Etat : Very Good. Benjamin Clouting was just sixteen years old when he embarked with the British Expeditionary Force for France in August 1914. The youngest man in the 4th Dragoon Guards, he took part in the BEF's celebrated first action at Casteau on August 22nd, and, two days later, had his horse shot from under him during the famous cavalry charge of the 4th Dragoon Guards and the 9th Lancers at Audregnies. Ben served on the Western front during every major engagement of the war except Loos, was wounded twice, and in 1919 went with the Army of Occupation to Cologne. The son of a stable groom, Ben was brought up in the beautiful Sussex countryside near Lewes and from his earliest years was, as he often said himself, "crazy to be a soldier". He worked briefly as a stable boy before joining up in 1913; his training was barely completed when war broke out. The Regiment, knowing Ben to be under age, tried to stop him embarking for France, but he flatly refused to be left behind. During the next four years, he served under officers immortalised in Great War history, including Major Tom Bridges, Captain Hornby, and Lieutenant-Colonel Adrien Carton de Wiart VC. Teenage Tommy is a detailed account of a trooper's life at the front, vividly recalling, for example, the privations suffered during the retreat from Mons. and later, the desperate fighting to hold back the German onslaught at 2nd Ypres. But this is more then just a memoir about trench warfare. Ben's lively sense of humour and healthy disrespect for petty restrictions make this an entertaining as well as a moving story of life at the front. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged.

Paperback. Etat : Very Good. In selecting my adventurers, I have had to find limits. The first has been to confine my selection to men and women who are (at least loosely) British and, even then, service and adoption have sometimes, as with Krystyna Skarbeka, taken the place of birth, and I have chosen to ignore such things as competing national claims for Tenzing Norgay. The second limit that I have set myself is generally to exclude heroic adventurers in battle, simply because there is (rightly), so much already written about them, but I have found place for certain (representative) secret agents of the Second World War, whose acts (in voluntary service, beyond the call of simple duty), surely took them out of the arena of straight-forward battle and into the realm of the most individual and courageous adventure. The result of these decisions remains to be judged but the overall objective has been to renew interest in the lives of some of our real heroes and heroines, as representative of the many others that there are; in an age in which contemporary sporting and pop art 'heroes' dominate the news and provide the only readily evident 'inspiration', and also an age in which addiction to the computer screen nearly robs the young of memories and dreams of high adventure; of which ripping yarns are born. The third limit is a limit of time: this speaks for itself; otherwise how would Drake and Raleigh, Clive of India, General Woolf and Captain Cook not have found their places? There have to be such limits. The final limit has been to exclude those who are widely famed already: what more is there to say of General Gordon or Dr David Livingstone of Captain Robert Falcon Scott and Captain Laurence Oates; even though what has been said should often be repeated? Moreover, although Sir Edmund Hillary is acknowledged as the first conqueror of Mount Everest; Tenzing Norgay was there with him and what of George Mallory who, some time before had died, either going up or coming down?To those who might accuse me of having been obscure, I just plead that my purpose has been to bring back into ready remembrance certain men and women, not widely feted now, who had great impact upon the accrual of knowledge of: other peoples, their customs and their countries; or who have striven, often against various obstacles (including the odds), to promote exploration and, sometimes, even to preserve life and liberty for others. To the erudite, who might say that I shed little new light and that the coverage is uneven, I plead, in mitigation of sentence, that my principal purpose has been to remind of worthy lives that might still stir our blood; and to bring them together, as representative of our adventurous people, in one handy volume.James Brooke, Rajah of Sarawak 1803-1868Mary Seacole 1805-1881 Richard and John Lander 1804-1834; 1806-1839Jane Digby 1807-1881General Sir James Abbott 1807-1896Colonel John Peard 1811-1880John William Colenso, 1st Anglican Bishop of Natal 1814-1883Sir Richard Burton 1821-1890 and John Hanning Speke 1827-1854 Emily Hobhouse 1860-1926Mary Kingsley 1862-1900Sir Francis Younghusband 1863-1942Colonel Percy Fawcett 1867-1925 and, in his wake, Peter Fleming OBE 1907-1971Cecil Henry Meares 1877-1937George Mallory 1886-1924 and Andrew Irvine 1902-1924Dame Freya Stark 1893-1993Sir Francis Chichester 1901-1972Gladys May Aylward 1902-1970Amy Johnson 1902-1941Krystyna Skarbek-Granville GM, OBE, Croix de Guerre Avec Palmes, born ca. 1908-1952Sir Fitzroy Hew Royle Maclean 1911-1996Tenzing Norgay GM 1914-1986 Violette Szabo GC, MBE 1921-1945The Present and the Future[Colonel John Blashford-Snell b. 1936Sir Ranulf Fiennes b. 1944Alan Hinkes b. 1954Adrian Hayes (45)Kenton Cool b. 1973Dame Ellen MacArthur b. 1976Rebecca Stephens b. 1982Xanadu and William Dalrymple]. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged.

Paperback. Etat : Very Good. R.C. Sherriff, author of Journey's End, the most famous play of the Great War, saw all his frontline service with the 9th Battalion East Surrey Regiment. This intense experience profoundly affected his writing and, through his play, it continues to have a powerful influence on our understanding of the conflict. Yet the story of his battalion has never been told in full until now. In The Journey's End Battalion, Michael Lucas gives a vivid account of its history. Using official and unofficial sources, diaries, letters, and British and German wartime records, he describes the individuals who served in it and the operations they took part in. He identifies the inspiration for Journey's End and considers how Sherriff delved into his experiences and those of his fellow soldiers in order to create his drama. So not only does the book shed new light on the wartime career of R.C. Sherriff, but it is a valuable record of the operation of a British battalion on the Western Front during the Great War. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged.

Paperback. Etat : Very Good. From Mata Hari through to Noor Inayat Khan, women spies have rarely received the recognition they deserve. They have often been trivialised and, in cinema and popular fiction, stereotyped as vamps or dupes. The reality is very different. As spies, women have played a critical role during wartime, receiving and passing on vital information, frequently at considerable risk. Often able to blend into their background more easily than their male counterparts, women have worked as couriers, transmitters and with resistance fighters, their achievements often unknown. Many have died. Ann Kramer describes the role of women spies during wartime, with particular reference to the two world wars. She looks at why some women chose to become spies, their motives and backgrounds. She looks at the experience of women spies during wartime, what training they received, and what skills they needed. She examines the reality of life for a woman spy, operating behind enemy lines, and explores and explodes the myths about women spies that continue until the present day. The focus is mainly on Britain but will also take an international view as appropriate. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged.

Paperback. Etat : Very Good. At the beginning of the Second World War, MiG was founded by two aircraft engineers, Artyom Mikoyan and Mikhail Gurevich. Thus began a unique history. For decades, MiG aircraft have been among the most well-known and powerful military aircraft in the world and broke a number of records, both through their flight performance and with their large production numbers. Starting with the MiG-1 from 1939 to the MiG-35 of the year 2011, the world famous aircraft manufacturer and its products are presented in this Fact File edition. Numerous pioneering prototypes are described. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged.

Paperback. Etat : Very Good. Herbs have been used since ancient times both to flavour food and as natural medicines. In this easy-access guide, gardener Gordon Thorburn reveals different types of herb garden to suit your needs, from those that don't need much attention (e.g. mint and rosemary don't need much watering but basil and the beautiful Vietnamese coriander are very demanding), to classic herb gardens, culinary options and medicinal herb gardens. Whether you suffer from migraines, insomnia, coughs and colds or fatigue, there are herbs which can treat you without side effects. But some herbs can prove fatal and they're not always sold as such, so discover which herbs are safe to use as herbal teas but not as salad leaves in this must-buy guide to creating the perfect herb garden for your needs. Each herb is listed with growing instructions and its culinary and medicinal uses, plus the colour of its flowers and any must-know information from health warnings to nature-friendly herbs which attract butterflies and bees to help pollinate your garden.The photographer is Sarah Cuttle. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged.

Paperback. Etat : Very Good. Do you remember those wonderful days in the school lab? Not those days when you hadto do those dreadful tests, or when your science teacher demonstrated yet another experiment that failed abysmally and the chemicals turned the wrong colour. Rather, those days when you learned about some amazing principle and felt stimulated to go home and try it out yourself. And when you did, do you recall that Eureka moment?This book takes you on a voyage of scientific re-discovery. From the kitchen laboratory to the bathroom test site you will be able to do experiments galore, investigate the mystery of the pyramid, find things out about your body and make things fizz. If you want to reexperience those Eureka moments, then this book is for youDid you know? That Tycho Brahe, the great Renaissance scientist had an artificial silver nose and was assisted in his experiments by his court jester That you can make a battery from a stack of coins, blotting paper, silver foil and some salt and vinegar That an ancient Greek inventor, Hero of Alexandria invented a steam machine 1,700 years before James Watt built his steam engine That you can make a crystal set radio from a toilet tube, copper wire, a pencil, a safety pin, a few drawing pins and paper clips, and an old razor bladeWell, you can find out hereKEITH SOUTER is a part time doctor, medical writer and novelist. He has always had a passion for science and been an avid home experimenter. This all started in his early school days when he learned that his chemistry teacher had no intention of showing him how to make stink bombs.He is now happily married with three grown-up children, all of whom somehow survived his impromptu experiments. Apart from his passion for science and medicine he is interested in history, sport and fiction. In his spare time he writes novels under his own name and a couple of pseudonyms. He is a member of the Crime Writers Association, the Society of Authors and International Thriller Writers.He looks back with fondness at all those early forays into the laboratory and secretlyadmits to being a frustrated science teacher - hence this book SCHOOLBOY SCIENCEREMEMBERED. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged.

Paperback. Etat : Very Good. This comprehensive pocket guide includes full and up-to-date details of all British military organisations and structures. This edition includes detail regarding all of the UK MoD's latest future force proposals.The Armed Forces of the United Kindom 2010-2011 is an invaluable reference tool and essential reading for all those who wish to be informed of the current state of the UK's defence forces. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged.

Paperback. Etat : Very Good. Donald Dean lied about his age to enlist in the Queen's Own Royal West Kent Regiment and serve on the Western Front, where he worked his way up from Private to acting Captain. It was in the last weeks of the war, late in September 1918, that he won his VC for leading a platoon in the determined defence of a recently-captured and isolated trench against repeated German counterattacks. In one of these attacks, the Germans actually broke into the trench, forcing Dean to break off a radio call for artillery support with the words 'The Germans are here, goodbye!' Refusing to be overrun, he personally killed four of the Germans before they were finally evicted. Dean also served in World War II, witnessing the fall of France in 1940 and claimingto be the last Brit to get out of Boulogne. His frank account of the evacuation challenges some cherished conceptions and is very critical of the conduct of the Irish Guards in particular. He went on to fight in Madagascar, Sicilya nd the Italian mainland. Donald Dean died in 1985.Military historian Terry Crowdy has edited Dean's letters and diaries, never previously published, adding additional notes and material from official reports to give the reader context. The result is a moving, often amusing and inspiring portrait of a little-known hero of two world wars. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged.

Paperback. Etat : Very Good. The Second World War is vanishing into the pages of history. The veterans were once all around us, but their numbers are fast diminishing. While still in their prime many recorded their memories with Peter Hart for the Imperial War Museum. As these old soldiers now fade away their voices from the front are still strong with a rare power to bring the horrors of war back to vivid life. The 2nd Norfolk Regiment were a proud old regular battalion honed in the pre-war traditions of spit and polish at their Britannia Barracks in Norwich. Sent to France they sold their lives to gain time for the retreat to Dunkirk when surrounded by an SS Division at Le Paradis in May 1940. Over 100 of the survivors would be brutally massacred. Back in England they reformed from ordinary drafts of men called up from all over the country. A new battalion was born. Sent to India they met the Japanese head on in the bloody fight for Kohima against the Imperial Japanese Army. As the fighting raged in the jungle the Norfolks were once again right at the very sharp end of modern war. This is their story. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged.

Paperback. Etat : Very Good. The aristocracy is full of scandal and intrigue. Lusty lords and naughty nobles have taken our history by storm. In this book you will see why our nobles are not such a noble lot after all. Many have been involved in scandals linked to kidnap, murder, rape, poisoning, cruelty, seduction, avarice, violence, torture and more! Some were happy to hob-nob with Hitler, one spent a fortune on 2,000 male prostitutes, another dressed all his male servants in yellow from head to toe and one changed sex before claiming her (his) aristocratic title. There are tales of blowing hundreds of millions of pounds, bankruptcy, jail terms, drug-taking, casual sex, gambling, making naughty movies and robbery! The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged.

Paperback. Etat : Very Good. Drawing on unpublished personal journals, this long overdue and bestselling account of Jock Lewes' life, tragically cut short on 31 December 1941 during an SAS deep penetration patrol, makes compelling reading. His exceptional talents found expression in the development of the SAS concept and ethos. Without his and David Stirling's partnership there would have been no Special Air Service; as Stirling later chivalrously admitted, 'Jock Lewes could far more genuinely claim to be the founder of the SAS than I'. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged.

Paperback. Etat : Very Good. The fascinating book features the life story of Dr Randle Manwaring,focusing particularly on his Regiment's fight to capture Burma towards the end of WW2As one of the founding Officers of the RAF Regiment, the author helped train and set up the Regiment from its inception in 1942. He saw active service with the Regiment in Burma, where the Regiment particularly distinguished itself but suffered heavy losses. Randle was present at the Japanese surrender in Rangoon and took the Swords from the Japanese Generals as they surrendered. The end of the War saw a return to a very different life requiring different skills. Guided by his strong Christian beliefs, Randle established a successful career in the City in Insurance Broking. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged.

Paperback. Etat : Very Good. Passcendaele is a subject which has been repeatedly covered in the form of military analyses and personal accounts. However surprising little has been written about the tens of thousands of men who died in the battle. How was it possible that so many men were killed? How were they buried and how have they been remembered up to the present day at Tyne Cot Cemetery? These two fundamental research questions have resulted in a two part book, which is based on two innovative projects in the area of biographical research: The Passchendaele Archives and the Tyne Cot Cemetery Inventarisian Project.The Passchendaele book represents a unique memorial concept which sets out to restore faces to the names of those killed at Passchendaele. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged.

Paperback. Etat : Very Good. Today the Victoria Cross remains the supreme British award for bravery. It takes precedence over all other awards and decorations. During its 160-year history, since the first medals were given for gallantry during the Crimean War in the 1850s, 1,357 of these medals have been won, and no less than 69 of them have gone to Yorkshiremen. Alan Whitworth, in this carefully researched and revealing account, describes in graphic detail the exploits and the lives of this elite group of heroes.Among the roll of the brave whose gallantry and self-sacrifice are celebrated in these pages the reader will find the names and extraordinary deeds of men who were either born or bred or lived and died in Yorkshire. The first was Yorkshire-born Bombardier Thomas Wilkinson in 1857. He set an example that has been followed by generations of Yorkshire soldiers through the conflicts of the late nineteenth century - among them the Indian Mutiny and the wars in Afghanistan and South Africa - and then, in the twentieth century, in the two world wars and more recent operations in the Gulf and Afghanistan. Their stories give an unforgettable insight into the nature of heroism and into the role of individual soldiers who stand out from the ranks of men who took part in Britain's many wars and campaigns.The stories of these ordinary individuals who have 'performed some signal act of valour or devotion to their country' will be fascinating reading for anyone who is interested in military history in general and in the long military tradition of Yorkshire. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged.

Paperback. Etat : Very Good. This book about reclamation shows whats available and why salvage is a good option for people doing up their homes or wanting to have a stylish talking point whether it s stained glass windows, a vintage garden bench, Victorian roll-top bath or an Edwardian door or tiled fire surround. It also appeals to the fast-growing green market with its recycling element, plus reclaimed goods can be great value if you know what you re doing. This is an increasingly popular aspect of the antiques world which includes garden ornaments, as well as interior and exterior housing material. Written by interior design expert and TV favourite, Barty Phillips, the author of How to Decorate Your Home without Going Broke, Daily Mail Book of Household Hints and Tips and Teach Yourself Thrifty Living, this book offers a practical guide on identifying the age of salvaged goods and how to source it and use it in your home or business. This handy book also contains a directory of specialist salvage outlets and events. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged.

Paperback. Etat : Very Good. The impact of the land girls cannot be ignored. It was not just that women were working and farms had more women than men, women who were not part of the family or, for some of them, had even lived in the countryside before - but women were wearing trousers and filling in for men, some of whom would never return from war. For the women, their time as land girls changed their lives and how they viewed their own role in society and the family. Using original interviews and photographs from some of these land girls, historian Ann Kramer delves deeper than any previous study to understand the role of the land girls both during and after the Second World War. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged.

Paperback. Etat : Very Good. No other technical development since the introduction of gunpowder has had as great an influence on warfare as the aircraft. From its early beginnings as simply a means of aerial reconnaissance to its utter supremacy on the battlefield, the aircraft has evolved into the most versatile and precise killing machine known to man. In this wide-ranging and comprehensive study, David Sloggett, an internationally-respected defence analyst, investigates the changing role and increasing significance of air power over the course of the previous 100 years. This is accomplished by detailing every major conflict during that period including not only the two world wars and the recent conflicts in the Middle East but also the Korean War, the Cuban Missile Crisis, the Falklands War and Russian use of air power in Afghanistan. Air power's role in Malaya, Oman, Kenya and in Northern Ireland is also explained. A Century of Air Power is the most important study of the use of military aircraft ever undertaken and as such provides valuable lessons for the future - not only for the commanders who have to apply these all-powerful weapons but also for the politicians who have to determine its use. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged.

Paperback. Etat : Very Good. This fascinating new book is devoted to an almost unknown period in the history of Sheffield. It sets the city's people and events against a background of key national developments by looking also at the way government regulations were tightened, how the country's morale was maintained, and how industry was encouraged to deliver more output. Sheffield in the Great War is written for the general reader, and a large number of the city's residents, companies and streets are mentioned by name. Many aspects of life and work are described and illustrated with more than one hundred original photographs. Numerous advertisements and excerpts are presented from the city's wartime newspapers, and highlighted Display Boxes in every chapter summarize particularly interesting or quirky themes. For more specialist readers, Notes at the end of the book provide additional detail and links to other publications and websites; general readers can of course ignore those. Two substantial Indexes make it easy to find personally-relevant people, topics and places.The book thus offers to the general reader an easy-to-read narrative with many pictures, and it provides a valuable source of information and reference to those who would like to learn more. Sheffield in the Great War starts with a brief account of the conflict itself, looking at its enormous cost not only in terms of money but also in thousands and thousands of men and horses killed or disabled. Next it presents short reviews of Britain and the city in 1914 to introduce national features which became important in wartime Sheffield. The following chapters describe Sheffield life in the four and a half years of war, with special attention to recruiting and the creation of more than twenty new military hospitals. Huge numbers of people devoted themselves to voluntary work, and the book includes much information that has been lost for the past hundred years. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged.

Paperback. Etat : Very Good. Despatches in this volume include that on the Battle of Britain, and air fighting 1940-1941, by Air Chief Marshal Sir Hugh C.T. Dowding, Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Fighter Command, Air Operations by Fighter Command between November 1940 and the end of December 1941, the anti-aircraft defence of the United Kingdom between 1939 and 1945, and the report on air operations by Air Defence of Great Britain and Fighter Command in connection with the German flying bomb and rocket offensives, 1944-1945. This unique collection of original documents will prove to be an invaluable resource for historians, students and all those interested in what was one of the most significant periods in British military history. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged.

Paperback. Etat : Very Good. The Second World War was a defining experience in British history. It shaped us, made us what we are, and we are still fascinated by it. And one of the most extraordinary aspects of this unique war was the effect it had on crime - and this is the focus of M.J. Trow's compelling survey. He does not write solely about servicemen who committed crime - although there were many of them - and he does not celebrate heroes. On the contrary, his account highlights the unheroic, the weak and the corrupt. And it draws attention to something perhaps uniquely British - the will of the people to cope, be it housewives with rationing, the police with the black market or magistrates all too aware that 'careless talk costs lives'. The war may have been Britain's finest hour, but during it there were many dark moments which M.J. Trow explores in his intriguing study. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged.

Paperback. Etat : Very Good. The Great War will never be forgotten but that does not mean that it is understood. Then as now it was the massive set-piece battles (Somme and Passchendaele) that are best remembered. But to understand the whole conflict with its diverse and complex elements the political background, allegiances and alliances of the combatants and the military thinking of the time must be grasped.Philip Warner provides in this fine book the overview necessary to follow the ambitions and reactions of those involved so enabling the reader to appreciate the strategies and tactics on the ground. He lists the main figures who shaped events and comments on their strengths and failings as well as their significance. Helpfully he describes the end game, the literature spawned by war and asks 'was it avoidable'?For a full understanding of both the course of the most appallingly costly war in the history of mankind and its causes and effects this book is unlikely to be bettered. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged.

Paperback. Etat : Very Good. This is the first British study of its kind which focuses on toys made for girls including the spin-off accessories. Susan Brewer explores the world of girls' toys, dividing the book into sections to encompass many kinds; dolls, houses, prams, cuddly toys, outdoor toys, traditional playthings and character toys such as Sylvanian Families, Strawberry Shortcake, My Little Pony, Flower Fairies. She includes brief biographies of some of the best known firms, amongst them Chad Valley, Hornby, Britain's, Pedigree and Fisher Price but the main focus is on the toys themselves, many of which readers will remember from their own childhood. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged.

Paperback. Etat : Very Good. The manner of their meeting was unprecedented. During the lawless mayhem that followed the capture of Badajoz by Wellington, a 14 year old Spanish girl sought the protection of Captain Harry Smith. They fell in love and married shortly after. From then on their lives and careers were inextricably linked and Juana not only followed her able, brave and ambitious husband but built her own formidable reputation.The book describes their lives together starting with the remaining battles of the Peninsula War. Harry Smith was already a favourite of Wellington, who insisted most unusually on giving away Juana in marriage. His card was marked and his career prospered. He distinguished himself in numerous campaigns and theatres. Most particularly he was credited with the victory at Aliwali in India.It will however be the couple's achievements and legacy in South Africa that they are best associated with, after the exceptional circumstances of their first meeting. Travellers to Natal are reminded of this by the towns of Ladysmith and Harrysmith. The outlines of their lives are known to many, but the details in this carefully researched book will come as a revelation. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged.

Paperback. Etat : Very Good. This edited diary is Colonel Bill Spackman's extraordinary personal record of his experiences as the Medical Officer of an Indian Infantry battalion during the Mesopotamian Campaign 1914 - 1916. In particular he describes the harrowing events of the five month siege of Kut and, after the surrender of the 10,000 strong garrison in April 1916, the hardships of the 1,000 mile forced march to Anatolia in Turkey. As a doctor he witnessed at first hand suffering the and deaths of many POWs, both British and Indian.The book goes on the record life in Turkish captivity which was relatively relaxed and fortunately, in sharp contrast to their earlier experiences.Written with humorous understatement and infinite good sense Captured at Kut : Prisoner of the Turks is a gripping read and will appeal strongly not just to Great War enthusiasts but all who enjoy reading of the triumph of men over extreme adversity. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged.

Paperback. Etat : Fine. Soon after the outbreak of the Great War, following many years of part-time soldiering as cavalry troops on home defence duties, the members of various British Yeomanry regiments were asked to volunteer for overseas service. In 1916, officered by well-known members of the landed gentry, two of the Welsh Yeomanry regiments, the Pembroke Yeomanry and the Glamorgan Yeomanry, were amongst many who embarked for foreign service for the first time ever in their history. Spending the next twelve months in Egypt during the campaign against the Senussi tribesmen, the two regiments merged to form the 24th (Pembroke and Glamorgan Yeomanry) Battalion, Welsh Regiment, which joined the 74th (Yeomanry) Division to take part in the historic offensive into Palestine, that ultimately led to the liberation of the Holy City of Jerusalem after 400 years of Ottoman rule. In May 1918, after two years of hard campaigning in the Palestinian deserts, the 24th Welsh embarked for France with the rest of the 74th Division, joining the Allied forces in the victorious 100-day offensive against the Germans. Welsh Yeomanry at War sheds new light on the battalions almost forgotten campaign in Palestine, which saw many of its troops killed and buried in the Holy Land, and also tells the enthralling story of its short but arduous period in France.

Paperback. Etat : Good. Continuing his exploration of the pathways of British history, Timothy Venning examines the turning points of the Tudor period, though he also strays over into the early Stuart period. As always, he discusses the crucial junctions at which History could easily have taken a different turn and analyses the possible and likely results. While necessarily speculative to a degree, the scenarios are all highly plausible and rooted in a firm understanding of actually events and their context. In so doing, Timothy Venning gives the reader a clearer understanding of the factors at play and why things happened the way they did, as well as a tantalizing view of what might so easily have been different. Key scenarios discussed in this volume include: Did the pretenders Lambert Simnel and Perkin Warbeck ever have a realistic chance of a successful invsasion/coup? If Henry Fitzroy, Henry VIII's illegitimate son, had not died young, might he have been a suitable King or at least Regent on the King's death? What if Edward VI had not died at 15 but reigned into the 1560s and 70s? How might the Spanish Armada have succeeded in landing an army in England, and with what likely outcome? The book has been read but remains in clean condition. All pages are intact and the cover is intact. Some minor wear to the spine.

Paperback. Etat : Very Good. In this compelling study of leadership, Correlli Barnett examines the strengths and weaknesses of twenty leaders in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. He examines how the difficulties they faced and the political and strategic backgrounds of their days and analyses how they performed and what they achieved. Were they successful, or were they beaten down by the burden of their roles? His book considers men from very different backgrounds and from three continents in a range of modern conflicts from the Napoleonic Wars to the Second World War. They range from statesmen like Napoleon, Abraham Lincoln, David Lloyd George, Winston Churchill, Adolf Hitler and Joseph Stalin, to generals like Ulysses S. Grant, Douglas Haig, Erwin Rommel, Georgi Zhukov, Dwight Eisenhower and William Slim, to admirals lie Isoruku Yamamoto and Bertram Ramsey. These leaders present fascinating contrasts of personal character, styles of leadership and sheer aptitude for command as well as contrasts in the daunting professional problems that challenged each of them. In Lords of War Correlli Barnett yet again demolishes hallowed reputations and rehabilitates the unjustly scapegoated. His latest book confirms his reputation as a master in the field of strategic history. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged.

Paperback. Etat : Very Good. Born the son of George Byng, a favourite of the king and himself an admiral and member of the admiralty board (and later First Lord of the Admiralty), John Byng seemed destined for a shining career in the Royal Navy. He saw his first fleet action at Cape Passaro, the elder Byng's finest hour, as a Captain's Servant, aged just 14. He qualified as a lieutenant at 19 years old (although the minimum age was 21) and was Post Captain at 23. By the outbreak of the Seven Years' War he had risen to Admiral of the Blue. Then it all went wrong with the Battle of Minorca (20 May 1756), where his failure, or rather the nature of it, earned him accusations of cowardice and a court martial. His trial and execution were the hottest topic of the day, the media lampooning him mercilessly and his reputation has never recovered. Chris Ware reassesses Byng's whole career and carefully untangles the politics surrounding his final days to see how far his poor reputation is justified. This is a valuable and long overdue addition to the literature of the Georgian navy. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged.