In the early decades of the 8th century AD, Islamic forces were flooding into Europe through the Iberian peninsula, threatening Frankish and Burgundian territory and raiding it with ever-increasing ferocity. At the battle of Poitiers, also known as Tours, Christian forces under the Frankish leader Charles Martel "The Hammer" (grandfather of Charlemagne) confronted a massive invading Islamic army. The Franks were victorious, effectively halting the northward advance of Islam and preserving Christianity as the dominant faith in Europe. Expert medievalist David Nicolle draws on contemporary sources to reconstruct this turning-point battle, places it in its historical context and reviews its background and immediate and longer-term historical consequences.
In the year 73 BC, Spartacus broke out of a gladiatorial training school and formed an army of runaway slaves and people with little to lose. Terrified lest the revolt spread, the government in Rome assigned Crassus and Pompey to crush to rebellion. This book presents the story of Rome's most famous revolt and the ex-gladiator who led it.
Tells the dramatic story of the two Mongol invasions of Japan that pitted the masters of the steppes against the noble Samurai. Using maps and illustrations, this title charts the history of these great campaigns, which included numerous bloody raids on the Japanese islands, and ended with the famous kami kaze that destroyed the Mongol fleet.
In 480 BC, the Greek and Persian fleets met in a battle in the strait between Attica and the island of Salamis. Although outnumbered, the Greeks delivered a victory that ended the Persian threat to Greece. This book draws on the findings of archaeological, technological and naval research to recreate an important naval campaigns in world history.
On 26 August 1071 a large Byzantine army under Emperor Romanus IV met the Saljuq Turk forces of Sultan Alp Arslan near the town of Manzikert. The battle ended in a decisive defeat for the Byzantine forces, with the Byzantine emperor captured and much of his fabled Varangian guard killed. This title deals with this battle.
The War of 1812 was never the most popular of conflicts on both sides of the Atlantic. Bogged down by their involvement in the Napoleonic conflict in Europe, the British largely relied on the power of the Royal Navy in the early years of the war. This title brings these dramatic events of American history to life.
On the night of 1 August 1798 a British fleet under the command of Rear-Admiral Horatio Nelson met a French fleet under the command of Admiral Franois-Paul Brueys D'Aigalliers. By morning the British had won a near-complete victory. This book tells the story of one of the great sea battles of the Napoleonic era.
"Walcheren 1944: Storming Hitler's Island Fortress".
Operation Pointblank was the code name for the United States Army Air Force's attempt to destroy German fighter capability through the use of daylight strategic bombing in advance of the D-Day landings. This book examines the entire operation from both the Allied and the German perspectives.
"Plataea 479 BC: Greece's Greatest Victory".
"St. Mihiel 1918: The American Expeditionary Forces' Trial by Fire".
In the immediate aftermath of Pearl Harbor, the Japanese launched an attack on the Philippines to eliminate the United States' other major Pacific naval base. Catching the US forces completely by surprise, the Japanese bombed the major airfields and quickly gained air supremacy. They followed with a full-scale invasion that quickly rolled up US-Filipino opposition and captured Manila. Meanwhile US forces, under the leadership of the Douglas MacArthur, created a series of defensive lines to try and stop the Japanese advance. Despite their efforts, they were continually pushed back until they held nothing more than the small island of Corregidor. With doom hanging over the US-Filipino forces, Douglas MacArthur was ordered to fly to safety in Australia, vowing to return. Nearly five months after the invasion began, the US-Filipino forces surrendered, and were led off on the 'Bataan Death March'. This book covers the full campaign from the planning through to the execution, looking at the various battles and strategies that were employed by both sides in the battle for the Philippines.
The fighting around the town of Demyansk was one of the longest encirclement battles on the Eastern Front during World War II, stretching from February 1942 to February 1943. This volume concludes with the drama of a German Army-sized withdrawal under fire in winter, under attack from three sides.
Despite myth, the Japanese carrier force was not destroyed at Midway but survived to still prove a threat in the Pacific Theater. Nowhere was this clearer than in the battle of Santa Cruz of October 1942. The Japanese were able to gain a tactical victory at Santa Cruz. This book deals with this topic.
Fighting insurgents has always been one of the greatest challenges for regular armed forces during the 20th century. The war between the Germans and the French resistance, also called FFI, during World War II has remained a near-forgotten chapter in the history of these 'Small Wars'. This title includes a discussion about this battle.
The battle of Talavera in 1809 was one of the major battles of the Peninsular War and Arthur Wellesley's first victory in Spain itself, following which he was created Viscount Wellington of Talavera and Wellington.
During the Peloponnesian War the Athenians occupied the promontory of Pylos to counter Sparta's repeated invasions of Attica. Over two days of fighting the small garrison beat off the Spartan army and the returning Athenian fleet won a victory in the nearby waters, stranding a contingent of elite Spartan hoplites on the island of Sphacteria.
The news of Wellington's momentous victory at Vitoria on 21 June 1813 reached London in early July. His Majesty's Government gave authority for Wellington to invade France and made noises and plans for the redeployment of the Peninsular Army in support of Russia and Prussia. Wellington, however, did not see things in quite the same way.
Analyzing the three Japanese attempts to retake the island in the face of ferocious American resistance, this book shows how the battle was won and lost, and how it affected the outcome of the Pacific War as a whole.
Reveals how Cornwallis was able to use his aggressive strategy to great effect and how the overconfidence of the re-formed American forces under Horatio Gates was to result in a shocking defeat on the night of 15 August 1780 - a defeat that would allow Cornwallis to push deep into North Carolina the following year, and more.
Following the disastrous defeat at Chickamauga, Union forces were in disarray and the tactically vital city of Chattanooga was under siege and on the brink of falling. The situation required outstanding leadership and President Abraham Lincoln decided Ulysses Grant was the man for the occasion. This title is about the Chattanooga Campaign.
Following Hannibal''s crushing victory at the battle of the Trebbia, the reeling Roman Republic sent a new army under the over-confident consul Gaius Flaminius to destroy the Carthaginian invaders--unbeknownst to him they were ready and waiting. The destruction of the Roman force at Lake Trasimene firmly established Hannibal as one of the Ancient World''s greatest commanders thanks to his use of innovative tactics, including the first recorded use of a turning movement. The Romans would not send another major army to confront him until the battle of Cannae in 216 BC. This new study, based on recent archaeological work on the battlefield itself, tells the full story of one of Hannibal''s greatest victories with the help of maps, full-color illustrations, and detailed sections on the makeup of the armies and their commanders.
In September 1864, the Confederate army abandoned Atlanta and were on the verge of being driven out of the critical state of Tennessee. In an attempt to regain the initiative, John Bell Hood launched an attack on Union General Sherman''s supply lines, before pushing north in an attempt to retake Tennessee''s capital---Nashville. This fully illustrated book examines the three-month campaign that followed, one that confounded the expectations of both sides. Instead of fighting Sherman''s Union Army of the Tennessee, the Confederates found themselves fighting an older and more traditional enemy: the Army of the Cumberland. This was led by George R. Thomas, an unflappable general temperamentally different than either the mercurial Hood or Sherman. The resulting campaign was both critical and ignored, despite the fact that for eleven weeks the fate of the Civil War was held in the balance.
Campaldino is one of the important battles between the Guelphs and Ghibellines - the major political factions in the city states of central and northern Italy. It heralded the rise of Florence to a dominant position over the area of Tuscany and was one of the last occassions when the Italian city militias contested a battle, with the 14th century seeing the rise of the condottiere in Italy's Wars.In this highly illustrated new study, renowned medieval historians Kelly De Vries and Niccolò Capponi have uncovered new material from the battlefield itself, as well as using all the available sources, to breathe new life into this colourful and fascinating battle.
Japan was closed to the world until 1854 and its technology then was literally medieval. Great Britain, France, and Russia divided the globe in the nineteenth century, but Japan was catching up. Its army and navy were retrained by Western powers and equipped with the latest weapons and ships. Japan wanted to further emulate its European mentors and establish a protectorate over Korea, yet Japanese efforts were blocked by Imperial Russia who had their own designs on the peninsula.The Russo-Japanese War started with a Japanese surprise naval attack against an anchored enemy fleet still believing itself at peace. It ended with the Battle of Tsushima, the most decisive surface naval battle of the 20th century. This gripping study describes this pivotal battle, and shows how the Japanese victory over Russia led to the development of the dreadnought battleship, and gave rise to an almost mythical belief in Japanese naval invincibility.
In the aftermath of the murder of Gaius Julius Caesar, his self-declared successor Mark Antony struggled to hold together his legacy. Following an abortive coup attempt by Caesar''s adopted son Octavian, two of Antony''s legions declared for him, leading to a renewed outbreak of civil war. Antony moved into Northern Italy and invaded the city of Mutina, which was held by Decimus Brutus. There they were quickly sandwiched between the city walls on one side, and the newly arrived Senate-backed forces of Octavian on the other.These two heirs of Caesar then fought to claim their former mentor''s legacy. Fully illustrated with specially commissioned artwork and maps, this is the full story of the battles which would see Octavian move from being a young, inexperienced aristocrat to the dominating figure of Augustus.
A highly illustrated account of the first and largest fleet action between the navies of Great Britain and France during the French Revolutionary Wars.As 1794 opened, Revolutionary France stood on a knife''s edge of failure. Its army and navy had been shaken by the revolution, with civil war and famine taking its toll on their resources. Seeking to bring a revitalizing supply of food from its Caribbean colonies and the United States, the French government decided to organize a massive convoy to bring the New World''s bounty to France. However, in order to succeed in their mission, the French Navy would have to make a deadly crossing over the North Atlantic, an ocean patrolled by the Royal Navy, the most powerful navy force in the world, whose sailors were eager to inflict a damaging defeat on Revolutionary France and win their fortune in prize money. Illustrated throughout with stunning full-color artwork, this is the full story of the only fleet action during the Age of Fighting Sail fought in the open ocean, hundreds of miles from shore. Taking place over the course of a month, the inevitable battle was to be a close-run affair, with both sides claiming victory. To the French, it was le Bataille du 13 prairial, a notable day in their new, scientific Revolutionary calendar. For the British, it was the Glorious First of June.
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