tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70724982024-02-20T09:22:48.685+00:00Military History Blog on the WebWe are going to use this Blog to announce any changes to our website - new articles, design changes and anything else of interest, as well as point to websites we find usefullJohn Rickardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04451374395100850830noreply@blogger.comBlogger6179125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7072498.post-12205605303712856112021-08-10T07:24:00.003+01:002021-08-10T07:24:31.137+01:00P.Z.L. 18<p>The <a href="http://www.historyofwar.org/articles/weapons_PZL_18.html" rel="nofollow">P.Z.L. 18</a> was a design for a heavy torpedo-bomber that never got beyond the design stage.</p>John Rickardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04451374395100850830noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7072498.post-23405014662131843582021-08-08T10:59:00.000+01:002021-08-08T10:59:11.369+01:00German Tank Destroyers, Pierre Tiquet<p>An excellent collection of photographs of the main German tank
destroyers of the Second World War, with a somewhat less satisfactory
text that wanders between excellent sections analysis the performance of
the vehicles and otheres that can be rather too congratulationary in
tone and appears to use wartime Nazi propaganda for many of its
eyewitness accounts, without explaining where each source came from. </p><p><a href="http://www.historyofwar.org/bookpage/tiquet_german_tank_destroyers.html" rel="nofollow">(Read Full Review)</a></p>John Rickardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04451374395100850830noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7072498.post-17900665717063829362021-08-08T10:58:00.001+01:002021-08-08T10:58:04.000+01:00U.S. Aircraft Carriers 1939-45, Ingo Bauernfeind<p>A photographic history of the US Aircraft Carrier of the Second World
War, covering the Fleet, Escort and Light carriers with a background
history of each class, and a brief history and at least one photograph
for every carrier that saw service during the war. Also includes a
detailed diving tour of the Saratoga, a guided tour of the Hornet (now a
museum ship) and a look at the post-war career of the Essex class
carriers </p><p><a href="http://www.historyofwar.org/bookpage/bauernfeind_US_aircraft_carriers.html" rel="nofollow">(Read Full Review)</a></p>John Rickardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04451374395100850830noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7072498.post-22726027421151351132021-08-08T10:56:00.002+01:002021-08-08T10:56:20.804+01:00Kongo-Class Battleships, Lars Ahlberg and Hans Lengerer<p>An excellent photographic history of the Kongo class of battleships,
originally built as pre First World War battlecruisers but modified
twice to turn them first into battleships, then into fast battleships
with the distinctive Japanese pagoda foremasts. This book combines a
good history of the ships with an excellent selection of photographs,
including good details on the layout of their distinctive pagoda
foremasts and an honest assessment of the results of their
reconstructions. </p><p><a href="http://www.historyofwar.org/bookpage/ahlberg_lengerer_kongo_class.html" rel="nofollow">(Read Full Review)</a></p>John Rickardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04451374395100850830noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7072498.post-66480328401494003342021-08-05T08:12:00.003+01:002021-08-05T08:12:37.822+01:00HMS Jackal (1911)<p><a href="http://www.historyofwar.org/articles/weapons_HMS_Jackal_1911.html" rel="nofollow">HMS <em>Jackal </em>(1911)</a>
was an Acheron class destroyer that served with the First Destroyer
Flotilla, fighting at Heligoland and Dogger Bank, then with flotillas
based at Portsmouth, Devonport and Ireland from late 1916 to the
summer of 1918, before ending the war in the Mediterranean. </p>John Rickardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04451374395100850830noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7072498.post-51766555476844947892021-08-04T12:21:00.001+01:002021-08-04T12:21:03.132+01:00USS Farragut (DD-348)<p><a href="http://www.historyofwar.org/articles/weapons_USS_Farragut_DD348.html" rel="nofollow">USS <em>Farragut </em>(DD-348)</a>
was the name ship of the Farragut class destroyers, and fought in the
Pacific, taking part in the battle of the Coral Sea, the Guadalcanal
campaign, the Aleutian campaign, the invasion of the Gilbert and
Marshall Islands, the landings at Hollandia, the Mariannas and the
battle of the Philippine Sea, the Philippines, Iwo Jima and Okinawa. </p>John Rickardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04451374395100850830noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7072498.post-50317081493491015072021-08-03T07:26:00.003+01:002021-08-03T07:26:42.487+01:00P.Z.L. P.8 <p>The <a href="http://www.historyofwar.org/articles/weapons_PZL_P8.html" rel="nofollow">P.Z.L. P.8 </a>was
a design for an improved inline engine powered of Zygmunt Pulawski’s
gull wing fighters, but which never progressed beyond the prototype
stage, and was abandoned in favour of the inline powered P.11. <br /></p>John Rickardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04451374395100850830noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7072498.post-33639275879462278712021-08-02T09:52:00.003+01:002021-08-02T09:52:27.274+01:00No.409 Squadron (RCAF) <p><a href="http://www.historyofwar.org/air/units/RCAF/409_wwII.html" rel="nofollow">No.409 Squadron (RCAF) </a>was
a Canadian night fighter squadron that took part in the defence of
Britain in 1941-44, then supported the D-Day landings, flew intruder
missions over France and took part in the campaign against the V-1
flying bomb. </p>John Rickardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04451374395100850830noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7072498.post-76698019324514408842021-08-01T08:47:00.002+01:002021-08-01T08:47:27.556+01:00No Moon as Witness, - Missions of the SOE and OSS in World War II, James Stejskal<p>A nice mix of a history of the SOE and OSS, allowing to compare these
two fairly similar British and American organisations, and see how they
interacted, as well as looking at their individual histories, training
systems and operations. Greatly benefits from covering both
organisations, and from selecting a number of less familiar agents and
operations, so we get a broader picture of the two organisation’s
operations than is often the case</p><p><a href="http://www.historyofwar.org/bookpage/stejskal_no_moon_witness.html" rel="nofollow">(Read Full Review)</a></p>John Rickardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04451374395100850830noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7072498.post-37521954963644579882021-08-01T08:46:00.007+01:002021-08-01T08:46:43.036+01:00SOE: Churchill's Secret Agents, Terry Crowdy<p>A short history of SOE, starting with a look at its formation,
organisation, the famous training regime, before spending the second
half looking at SOE’s actual operations. A good introduction to the
work of SOE, with a nice mix of familiar and unfamiliar operations,
along with a big enough introduction to get a feel for the nature of
the organisation. Good for the casual reader who doesn’t have any real
prior knowledge of SOE and its operations</p><p><a href="http://www.historyofwar.org/bookpage/crowdy_SOE.html" rel="nofollow">(Read Full Review)</a></p>John Rickardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04451374395100850830noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7072498.post-26209300268937911062021-08-01T08:46:00.003+01:002021-08-01T08:46:14.817+01:00Spitfire Aces of the Channel Front 1941-43, Andrew Thomas<p>Covers the costly three years of ‘leaning over France’, where Fighter
Command attempted to dominate the air over France but suffered
persistent losses, including many aces and experienced leaders. Mostly
filled with short accounts of each day’s fighting, focuses on the
experiences of the aces, with some longer descriptions built around
eyewitness accounts from the participants. Also has a useful
introduction and sections on general changes to the campaign,
especially the arrival of new aircraft models on both sides</p><p><a href="http://www.historyofwar.org/bookpage/thomas_spitfire_aces_channel.html" rel="nofollow">(Read Full Review)</a></p>John Rickardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04451374395100850830noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7072498.post-11099812776257188202021-07-31T09:30:00.002+01:002021-07-31T09:30:32.308+01:00HMS Hydra (1912) <p><a href="http://www.historyofwar.org/articles/weapons_HMS_Hydra_1912.html" rel="nofollow">HMS <em>Hydra </em>(1912) </a>was
an Acheron class destroyer that served with the Harwich Force in 1914,
fighting at Dogger Bank, at Rosyth in 1915-16, fighting at Jutland, at
Devonport from late 1916-1917 and in the Mediterranean from September
1917 onwards. </p>John Rickardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04451374395100850830noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7072498.post-8584621112042949652021-07-28T08:58:00.001+01:002021-07-28T08:58:05.678+01:00USS Pruitt (DD-347) <p><a href="http://www.historyofwar.org/articles/weapons_USS_Pruitt_DD347.html" rel="nofollow">USS <em>Pruitt </em>(DD-347) </a>was
a Clemson class destroyer that served in the Aleutians and off
Bougainville during 1943, but spent most of the rest of the war on
training or escort duties. </p>John Rickardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04451374395100850830noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7072498.post-5934530875929607652021-07-27T06:41:00.003+01:002021-07-27T06:41:42.622+01:00P.Z.L. 3<p>The <a href="http://www.historyofwar.org/articles/weapons_PZL_3.html" rel="nofollow">P.Z.L. 3</a>
was a Polish design for a heavy bomber that never got past the design
stage, but that influenced the very similar Potez 41 in France, which
did reach the prototype stage. </p>John Rickardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04451374395100850830noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7072498.post-90391332861224942772021-07-26T06:58:00.002+01:002021-07-26T06:58:47.858+01:00No.407 Squadron, RCAF<p><a href="http://www.historyofwar.org/air/units/RCAF/407_wwII.html" rel="nofollow">No.407 Squadron, RCAF</a>,
was a Canadian squadron that served with Coastal Command from 1941-45,
performing a mix of anti-submarine and anti-shipping missions, as well
as taking part in the attempt to stop the 'Channel Dash' and the D-Day
landings. </p>John Rickardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04451374395100850830noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7072498.post-80221072540553009592021-07-25T07:35:00.008+01:002021-07-25T07:35:50.056+01:00Remembrance Poems and Readings, David Roberts<p>An impressive collections of poems, essays and speeches on the nature
of war and the nature of remembrance, with a mix of items that would be
of use at remembrance events and some that perhaps wouldn’t work if read
out by anyone other than the author are still useful as thought
provoking items for the reader. Includes works from the middle ages up
to the modern world, with as you might expect a great many inspired by
the two World Wars, but also more modern conflicts and just general
thoughts on the nature and cost of war</p><p><a href="http://www.historyofwar.org/bookpage/roberts_remembrance_poems_readings.html" rel="nofollow">(Read Full Review)</a></p>John Rickardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04451374395100850830noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7072498.post-55685396286264520012021-07-25T07:35:00.003+01:002021-07-25T07:35:09.989+01:00Ford M8 and M20 – The US Army’s Standard Armoured Car of WWII, David Doyle<p>A pictorial history of the M8 armoured car and M20 utility vehicle,
both of which saw service in Italy, Normandy and north-western Europe
and to a lesser extent in the Pacific. Very good material on the
development of the vehicle, and close up pictures of development and
test vehicles as well as modern survivors, along with a useful chapter
of pictures of the vehicle in service. Probably aimed more at the
modeller than the historian, and will provide many useful details of
otherwise hard to examine areas </p><p><a href="http://www.historyofwar.org/bookpage/doyle_ford_M8_M20.html" rel="nofollow">(Read Full Review)</a></p>John Rickardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04451374395100850830noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7072498.post-35776968941585634002021-07-25T07:33:00.002+01:002021-07-25T07:33:05.132+01:00Yokosuka D4Y ‘Judy’ Units, Mark Chambers with Tony Holmes<p>A well written look at the operational history of a dive bomber that
arrived too late to be truly effective as a carrier based dive bomber,
and that suffered heavy losses during the battle of the Philippine Sea,
before spending the rest of the war as a land based bomber, achieving
limited success in both the conventional and kamikaze roles. </p><p><a href="http://www.historyofwar.org/bookpage/chambers_yokosuka_D4Y.html" rel="nofollow">(Read Full Review)</a></p>John Rickardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04451374395100850830noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7072498.post-71294644733930589892021-07-22T08:38:00.003+01:002021-07-22T08:38:26.647+01:00<p><a href="http://www.historyofwar.org/articles/weapons_HMS_Hornet_1911.html" rel="nofollow">HMS <em>Hornet </em>(1911)</a>
was an Acheron class destroyer that served with the Harwich Force,
fighting at the battle of Dogger Bank, then supported the 3rd Battle
Squadron into 1917, before being officially based at Portsmouth for the
rest of the year, then moving to the Mediterranean during 1918. </p>John Rickardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04451374395100850830noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7072498.post-50870661616004308992021-07-21T08:29:00.004+01:002021-07-21T08:29:45.532+01:00USS Sicard (DD-346) <p><a href="http://www.historyofwar.org/articles/weapons_USS_Sicard_DD346.html" rel="nofollow">USS <em>Sicard </em>(DD-346) </a>was
a Clemson class destroyer that served with the Asiatic Squadron in
1920s, in the Aleutians in 1942-43, Bougainville in 1943, on patrol and
minelaying duties in South Pacific in the first half of 1944, then
helped train submarines for the rest of the war. </p>John Rickardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04451374395100850830noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7072498.post-89718295016869304932021-07-20T07:12:00.004+01:002021-07-20T07:12:51.902+01:00P.Z.L. L.2<p>The <a href="http://www.historyofwar.org/articles/weapons_PZL_L2.html" rel="nofollow">P.Z.L. L.2</a>
was an observation and liaison aircraft designed for the Polish Air
Force but that was only produced in small numbers after losing out to a
Lublin design. </p>John Rickardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04451374395100850830noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7072498.post-21952651670743793192021-07-19T09:30:00.002+01:002021-07-19T09:30:18.223+01:00No.406 Squadron, RCAF<p><a href="http://www.historyofwar.org/air/units/RCAF/406_wwII.html" rel="nofollow">No.406 Squadron, RCAF</a>,
was a Canadian night fighter squadron that was formed in the UK and
after an early spell of defensive duties was mainly used as an intruder
squadron and for low level sorties over France and later Germany. </p>John Rickardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04451374395100850830noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7072498.post-8037687977852046412021-07-18T07:35:00.004+01:002021-07-18T07:35:54.222+01:00Dornier Do 217 Units of World War 2, Chris Goss<p>Actually a chronologically organised operational history of the Do
217, with the main focus being on its use as a bomber over Britain and
as an anti-shipping weapon using the first guided missiles. The result
is an interesting look at the record of a bomber that entered service
after the Luftwaffe’s bomber forces had passed their peak, and that
suffered consistent losses during operations that often don’t get a
mention in general histories of the war</p><p><a href="http://www.historyofwar.org/bookpage/goss_dornier_d0217_units.html" rel="nofollow">(Read Full Review)</a></p>John Rickardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04451374395100850830noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7072498.post-52032859411399582002021-07-18T07:35:00.000+01:002021-07-18T07:35:07.501+01:00SA80 Assault Rifles, Neil Grant<p>A look at the original development, service record and repeated
attempts to improve one of the most controversial series of infantry
weapons to enter British service, with a deserved reputation for being
unreliable and dangerously prone to jamming that eventually required a
major rebuilding program to fix. As this book demonstrates, that
modified version had turned into a perfectly reliable weapon, apparently
popular with its users and one that will remain in service for some
years to come </p><p><a href="http://www.historyofwar.org/bookpage/grant_SA80_assault_rifles.html" rel="nofollow">(Read Full Review)</a></p>John Rickardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04451374395100850830noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7072498.post-10065736694464573332021-07-18T07:34:00.005+01:002021-07-18T07:34:17.429+01:00Pioneers of Armour in the Great War, David A. Finlayson & Michael K. Cecil<p>Based around an account of the history of the First Australian
Armoured Car Section/ First Australian Light Car Patrol written by the
unit’s commander Captain E.H. James soon after the war, supported by
newspaper extracts and letters from the period, tracing the unit from
its origins as a volunteer unit in Australia, to the western desert of
Egypt then through its role in the campaign in Palestine and Syria.
Followed by a shorter account of the first tank to reach Australia, a
Mark IV that was sent to help with fundraising before ending up in the
Australian War Memorial. A fascinating account of the use of mainly
entirely un-armoured cars in the desert during the First World War, in a
unit that reminds one of the LRDG and SAS</p><p><a href="http://www.historyofwar.org/bookpage/finlayson_cecil_pioneers_armour.html" rel="nofollow">(Read Full Review)</a></p>John Rickardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04451374395100850830noreply@blogger.com0