When the Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan in 1979, few experts believed the fledgling Mujahideen resistance movement had a chance of withstanding the modern, mechanized onslaught of the Soviet Army. But somehow, the Mujahideen prevailed against a larger and decisively better equipped foe. No one predicted the Soviet Union would withdraw in defeat in 1989. With more than 100 first-hand reports from Mujahideen combat veterans and maps illustrating locations...

Wellington and Napoleon tell the story of the convergence and final clash of two of the most brilliant commanders ever to meet on the field of battle. Wellington, his men said, did not know how to lose a battle. But Wellington himself admired his adversary

In the Middle Ages the castle was an important military and administrative center, essentially utilitarian in its design and in the purposes it served. Because it played so central a role in medieval history, and because the wealth of material is so great, the author has concentrated on English seiges undertaken in the period from the Norman Conquest to the War of the Roses. This includes many dramatic actions fought on the continental dominions of...

The Vietnam War is a timely account of the 6,000-day conflict in Southeast Asia. The book begins with the history of South East Asia during World War II, before discussing the French involvement in the First Indochina War, and the subsequent drawing-in of the United States and its allies, Australia and South Korea. The repercussions of this bitter, tragic and costly conflict were far-reaching, for it has affected US foreign policy ever since. As...

World-renowned British historian Sir Max Hastings recounts one of the most horrific months of World War II. June 1944, the month of the D-Day landings carried out by Allied forces in Normandy, France. Germany's 2nd SS Panzer Division, one of Adolf Hitler's most elite armor units, had recently been pulled from the Eastern Front and relocated to France in order to regroup, recruit more troops, and restock equipment. With Allied forces suddenly on European...

"One loses all sense of time here. The battles for the last positions before Alexandria are hard. I was several days in the front line and lived in the car or a hole in the ground." — Erwin Rommel Combining private letters to his wife, orders, his daily accounts of battle written during World War II and his published memoirs, 'Rommel — in his own words' offers a compelling insight into the mind of one of the twentieth century's great military...

Few statesmen have received so many honours as he did over the course of his career. Although several have received the Nobel Peace Prize, none save Churchill have received the Nobel Prize for Literature. His was a career that had few parallels in British history for richness, range, length and achievement. The biography provides an interesting and informative account of Churchill's life - from his childhood, military service in India and the Sudan...

The Sniper at War looks at the impact and role of the sniper from the American Revolutionary War to the present day. It was not until the late 18th century that advances in technology made accurate sniping with a gun possible. The American backwoodsmen took a toll of the redcoats with their hunting rifles, and the modern art of sniping was born. The book looks at how the art of sniping in war has become more professional and specialised, with dedicated...

The German invasion of Russia was Hitler's biggest gamble in his quest for 'Lebensraum' in the East — and it was at Stalingrad that his gamble failed. Stalingrad is a comprehensive history of the greatest battle of World War II, a defining moment in the struggle on the Eastern Front.