USS Thompson (DD-305)

USS Thompson (DD-305) was a Clemson class destroyer that served with the Pacific Fleet in the 1920s, as a floating restaurant in the 1930s and as a target for trainee bombers during the 1940s.

Curtiss C-46 Commando

The Curtiss C-46 Commando was one of the most important US transport aircraft of the Second World War, and survived to see service in Korea and Vietnam.

Siege of St. Malo (4-17 August 1944)

The siege of St. Malo (4-17 August 1944) was an unexpectedly costly battle during the American liberation of Brittany that ended with the port in American hands, but with its facilities totally destroyed by the Germans.

HMS Mosquito (1910)

HMS Mosquito (1910) was a Beagle class destroyer that spent most of the First World War in the Mediterranean, where she took part in the Dardanelles and Gallipoli campaigns. She returned to home waters late in 1917 to carry out anti-submarine and convoy escort duties.

USS Farquhar (DD-304)

USS Farquhar (DD-304) was a Clemson class destroyer that served in the Pacific during the 1920s, taking part in several of the early Fleet Problems, before being scrapped because of her badly worn boilers. 

Curtiss C-30/ R4C-1

The Curtiss C-30/ R4C-1 was a transport version of the Curtiss Condor II biplane transport aircraft, a rather outdated aircraft when it first appeared in 1933.

Siege of Brest (6 August-18 September 1944)

The siege of Brest (6 August-18 September 1944) was originally carried out in an attempt to give the Americans a good port in Brittany, but by the time it ended any hopes of using the Breton ports had ended, and the main purpose of the battle was to eliminate a potentially dangerous German garrison.

HMS Harpy (1909)

HMS Harpy (1909) was a Beagle class destroyer that spent most of the First World War in the Mediterranean, where she took part in the Gallipoli campaign.

USS Reno (DD-303)

USS Reno (DD-303) was a Clemson class destroyer that spent most of the 1920s serving along the US West Coast, before being scrapped in 1931.

Curtiss XC-10

The Curtiss XC-10 was a modified version of the Curtiss Robin three seat cabin monoplane that was used for experiments with radio controlled aircraft.

Brittany Campaign of August 1944

The Brittany Campaign of August 1944 saw the Allies rapidly conquer most of the Breton peninsula in the aftermath of the American breakout during Operation Cobra, but the key ports either remained in German hands, or in the case of St. Malo, were so badly damaged that they were unusable. 

Britain’s War Against the Slave Trade, Anthony Sullivan

Focuses on Britain’s long naval campaign against the African slave trade, which combined with a prolonged diplomatic effort eventually ended that trade. Largely taken up with accounts of every clash between the Royal Navy and slaving ships along the coast, the fate of those slavers and the people found onboard, but also looks at the attempts to win over the major slaving nations, and the difficulties caused by jointly run courts set up to decide the eventual fate of the captured ships

(Read Full Review)

Cromwell’s Failed State and the Monarchy, Timothy Venning

Looks at the political and military history of the period between the end of the First Civil War and the establishment of Cromwell’s Protectorate, largely to ask if the Protectorate or something similar was an almost inevitable result, or if there had ever been a possibility of an agreement with Charles I or another Stuart, or that Parliament might have stayed in power. A bit ramshackle and lacking any introduction to explain its purpose, but otherwise a useful look at key elements of this period that are often skipped over quite quickly.

(Read Full Review)

The Frontiers of Imperial Rome, David J. Breeze

Looks at the entire length of the Roman frontier, from the familiar Hadrian’s Wall to the long desert frontiers in Africa and the Middle East, including the man made lines of forts and other features and the natural borders of mountains, rivers and coastlines. An excellent overview of a massive subject, looking at the individual elements of the frontiers, how they linked up along the frontiers and what their actual purpose may have been.

(Read Full Review)

HMS Grasshopper (1909)

HMS Grasshopper (1909) was a Beagle class destroyer that spent most of the First World War in the Mediterranean, where she took part in the Dardanelles and Gallipoli campaigns. She returned to home waters in 1917 to serve on anti-submarine warfare and convoy escort duties.

USS Stoddert (DD-302)

USS Stoddert (DD-302) was a Clemson class destroyer that served in the Pacific during the 1920s, before becoming a radio controlled target ship from 1930-33.

Curtiss PN-1

The Curtiss PN-1 was an experimental night fighter of 1921 that didn’t live up to expectations.

Operation Cobra (25-31 July 1944)

Operation Cobra (25-31 July 1944) saw the decisive breakthrough in Normandy, after more than a month of attritional fighting and slow progress, and saw Bradley’s US 1st Army break the western end of the German line, allowing the Allied armour to break out and dash east towards the Seine, trapping a large part of the Germany army in the Falaise pocket.

Darwin 1942 – The Japanese Attack on Australia, Bob Alford

Focuses on the Japanese air raids on Darwin on 19 February 1942, the first and by far the largest of the ninety seven Japanese air attack on the Australian mainland during the Second World War. A very detailed account of the air battle, with eyewitness accounts from both sides, and an excellent analysis of experiences of the airmen on both sides and their losses. 

(Read Full Review)

Emperors of Rome – The Monsters – From Tiberius to Theodora, AD 14-548, Paul Chrystal

A look at some of the most notorious of the Roman emperors and their famous misdeeds. Covers quite a range, starting with the second emperor, Tiberius, and finishing with the early Byzantine Justinian and his wife Theodora. A bit ‘tabloid’ in nature, recounting the reported sexual misdeeds of a series of Emperors and the Imperial women. Starts with a brief introduction looking at similar atrocities committed in earlier periods, to help put these people in the context of their times, but could have done with more analysis of our sources and their motives

(Read Full Review)

The German Army on Campaign 1914-1918, Bob Carruthers

At the same time familiar but different, looks at the First World War from the German side of the lines, so we get the same sort of pictures as in books on the British Army, but with different uniforms and equipment (and more mustaches). An interesting collection of photographs, showing how similar life was on the other side of no man’s land

(Read Full Review)

HMS Nautilus/ Grampus (1910)

HMS Nautilus/ Grampus (1910) was a Beagle class destroyer that served in the Mediterranean for most of her career, taking part in the Dardanelles and Gallipoli campaigns. She returned to home waters during 1918 to carry out anti-submarine patrols and convoy escort duties from Ireland.

USS Somers (DD-301)

USS Somers (DD-301) was a Clemson class destroyer that served with the Pacific Fleet in the 1920s, taking part in many of the early Fleet Problems, and surviving the Honda Point disaster.

Curtiss Twin JN

The Curtiss Twin JN was a twin engined aircraft based on the famous JN-4 Jenny, produced in small numbers as an observation type.