Increasing tension between Julius Caesar and Pompeius Magnus (Pompey the Great) after the death of Marcus Licinius Crassus soon degenerated into military conflict. With his hand considerably strengthened by his election as Dictator by the Senate in Rome, Caesar knew that power would only be a reality once he had militarily defeated Pompey. By August 49BC, Caesar had effectively destroyed Pompey's armies in Spain, but, by the time he had crossed the Adriatic pursuing him eastward, his forces were heavily outnumbered. Even with the reinforcements brought by Mark Antony, his attempt to crush...
Increasing tension between Julius Caesar and Pompeius Magnus (Pompey the Great) after the death of Marcus Licinius Crassus soon degenerated into mi...
One of the "top picks for specialized military history" - California Bookwatch
Gibraltar is not only an archetypal fortress, preserving in its dominating topography and walls, bastions and emplacements a rich testament to extended periods of human conflict, but it is also a unique record of the evolution of the sciences of fortification and associated defensive structures over a period of more than six centuries. Gibraltar has a complex and varied military history, lying as it does at the gateway to the Mediterranean and the meeting points of the continents of Europe and Africa. Its...
One of the "top picks for specialized military history" - California Bookwatch
Gibraltar is not only an archetypal fortress, preserving in it...
During the early decades of the 19th century, the Southern Plains of the North American continent were only occasionally visited by explorers, trappers, traders, and missionaries. The first trading posts and forts were built then, such as Adobe Walls in the panhandle of North Texas, and Tubac Presidio in New Mexico. During the 1840s, when the 'Great American Desert' became the scene of an inexorable westward expansion, European pioneers and settlers flooded overland from the eastern seaboard. As they headed west, these settlers invaded and absorbed the traditional lands of the Native...
During the early decades of the 19th century, the Southern Plains of the North American continent were only occasionally visited by explorers, trap...
Written by Trevor Bryce, one of the world's leading experts on the Hittites, this book charts the rise and fall of a warrior people famed for their ferocity, who built an empire which stretched from Mesopotamia to Syria and Palestine. Regarded as barbarians by the Egyptians, for a hundred years the Hittites fought a draining war against the Egyptians - the climax of which saw the Hittites defeated and their 400-year-old empire destroyed at the Battle of Qadesh (1274 BC).
Thought to have invented iron, used to forge their weapons, and known for pioneering a revolutionary three-man...
Written by Trevor Bryce, one of the world's leading experts on the Hittites, this book charts the rise and fall of a warrior people famed for their...
Gregory Fremont-Barnes examines the lives of the American Bomber Crewmen of the Eighth Air Force, "The Mighty Eighth," who crewed, maintained and repaired the Boeing B-17 Flying Fortresses and the B-24 Liberators that flew from the airfields of Norfolk and Suffolk and other counties of England during World War II (1939-1945). He highlights the physical and psychological strain placed on these brave men. Long bombing missions called for brute strength to control the aircraft and extraordinary endurance to fly for hours at 20,000 feet at temperatures below freezing in unheated, unpressurized...
Gregory Fremont-Barnes examines the lives of the American Bomber Crewmen of the Eighth Air Force, "The Mighty Eighth," who crewed, maintained and repa...
Osprey's study of airmobile tactics used in the Vietnam War (1955-1975).
With its first major use in battle during the Vietnam War, the helicopter ushered in a radically different way of fighting, despite its proven vulnerability to ground fire. Either delivering troops into hostile territory and removing them after the fighting ended, or armed with guns, grenade launchers, and rockets to provide rapid and wide-ranging air to ground support fire, the helicopter - available for the first time in sufficient numbers and capable of a wide range of missions - played a central role in the...
Osprey's study of airmobile tactics used in the Vietnam War (1955-1975).
With its first major use in battle during the Vietnam War, the heli...
The book clearly explains and illustrates the mechanics of how Roman commanders - at every level - drew up and committed their different types of troops for open-field battles. It includes the alternative formations used to handle different tactical problems and different types of terrain; the possibilities of ordering and controlling different deployments once battle was joined; and how all this was based on the particular strengths of the Roman soldier. Covering the period of "classic" legionary warfare from the late Republic to the late Western Empire, Ross Cowan uses case studies of...
The book clearly explains and illustrates the mechanics of how Roman commanders - at every level - drew up and committed their different types of troo...
The Mississippi River played a decisive role in the American Civil War. The Confederate fortifications that controlled the lower Mississippi valley were put to the test in the lengthy Federal campaign of 1862-63. Vicksburg was a fortress city, known as the "Gibraltar of the Confederacy," whose capture is often seen as the key to victory in the war.
This book explores the fortifications of the river valley, focusing on Vicksburg and its defenses which boasted a network of forts, rifle pits, and cannon embrasures surrounding the city and examining the strengths and weaknesses of the...
The Mississippi River played a decisive role in the American Civil War. The Confederate fortifications that controlled the lower Mississippi valley...
Osprey's study of the Battle of Gettysburg (1863), one of the decisive battles of the American Civil War (1861-1865). The Confederate invasion of the Northern states was General Lee's last great gamble. By taking the war to the Union he hoped to force Lincoln into peace negotiations, or win support from the European powers who were watching events closely from across the Atlantic. Equally, Meade's Army of the Potomac needed to regain it's fighting credibility after the setbacks of Fredericksburg and saw this as an opportunity to redeem its honour. The clash of 150,000 soldiers from both sides...
Osprey's study of the Battle of Gettysburg (1863), one of the decisive battles of the American Civil War (1861-1865). The Confederate invasion of the ...
The 8th century heralded the start of a golden age in the history of the Islamic world. At this time, the Sunni Muslim 'Abbasid Caliphate, with its capital at Baghdad, ruled virtually the entire Islamic world. Islamic military power peaked in the 9th century, but by the end of this golden age in the 11th century, the 'Abbasid Caliphs had little political and virtually no military power. Featuring numerous photographs of artefacts and eight full colour plates by Graham Turner, David Nicolle's book examines the recruitment, organization, weaponry and uniforms of the armies of the Caliphates...
The 8th century heralded the start of a golden age in the history of the Islamic world. At this time, the Sunni Muslim 'Abbasid Caliphate, with its ca...
