The words "Retreat? Hell, we just got here," has become a central part of the Marine Corps legend, indicative of their reputation for dogged determination and bravery. The iconic words were uttered at the height of the fierce battle for Belleau Wood and became a defining moment for the Corps, establishing their "first to fight" ethos in the public eye.

This history follows the experiences of the Marines during the Great War, from their training in the United States and France through the battles in the trenches and battlefields of the Western Front and right up to their occupation...

In October 2001, the most militarily advanced nation on Earth came into conflict with one of its least developed nations as American forces poured into Afghanistan. The tip of the spear, the sharpest of the attacks, were drawn from the U.S. Special Forces community, and largely from the units of the United States Army Special Forces--the famous Green Berets--who, together with the Special Activities Division and the Afghan Northern Alliance, overthrew the Taliban in a lightning campaign that redefined modern warfare.

This new study reveals the grueling Green Beret training and...

The period from the 12th century onward saw vast changes in every aspect of life on both the Greek mainland and islands, as monarchies disappeared to be replaced by aristocratic rule and finally by the development of a new form of community: the city-state.

Alongside these changes, a new style of warfare developed, which was to be the determining factor in land warfare in Greece, until the 338 BC defeat of the Greek city-state, by the might of Macedonia at Chaeronea. This mode of warfare was based on a group of heavily armed infantrymen organized in a phalanx formation--the classic...

With Hitler's army rampaging across Europe, Winston Churchill ordered the creation of a special fighting force-- the Commandos. These valiant men were volunteers drawn from the ranks of the British Army, formed into a Special Service Brigade, and put through a rigorous but highly effective training program. Over the course of World War II they would see action in every major theater of operation, and are credited with numerous feats of gallantry during the D-Day landings. Although many units were disbanded after the war, the Royal Marine Commandos have maintained the standards of this...

Great Britain had introduced the tank to the world during World War I, and maintained its lead in armoured warfare with the 'Experimental Mechanised Force' during the late 1920s, watched with interest by German advocates of Blitzkrieg. Despite these successes, the Experimental Mechanised Force was disbanded in the 1930s, making Britain relatively unprepared for World War II, both in terms of armoured doctrine and equipment.

This fully illustrated new study examines the men who crewed the tanks of Britain's armoured force during World War II, which was only four battalions large...

The Roman centurion, holding the legionaries steady before the barbarian horde and then leading them forward to victory, was the heroic exemplar of the Roman world. This was thanks to the Marian reforms, which saw the centurion, although inferior in military rank and social class, superseding the tribune as the legion's most important officer. This period of reform in the Roman Army is often overlooked, but the invincible armies that Julius Caesar led into Gaul were the refined products of 50 years of military reforms.

Using specially commissioned Osprey artwork and detailed battle...