The Eastern Front of World War I is sometimes overshadowed by the fighting in the West. But the clashes between Imperial Germany and Tsarist Russia in East Prussia, Poland and Lithuania were every bit as gruelling for the participants as the great battles in Western Europe. In spite of the crushing German victory at Tannenburg in August 1914, the war in the East would grind on for two more years.

Featuring full-color artwork, specially drawn maps and archive photographs, this study assesses the tactics, leadership and combat performance of German and Russian footsoldiers fighting in...

The East Wall was where the final battles for the stricken Third Reich were fought, amid scenes of utter carnage. Beginning life at the end of World War I, the wall became a pet project of Adolf Hitler's, whose ascent to power saw building work accelerated, with plans for a grand, 'Maginot-style' defence put in place. But with a characteristically erratic change of heart, Hitler began to systematically strip the wall of its best defensive assets to bolster the Atlantic Wall, never dreaming that he would face an attack on two fronts. Despite belated and somewhat bungled reinforcements later...

When Hitler's forces poured into France and the Low Countries in 1940, the uneasy peace of the 'Phoney War' was shattered, and Europe was ripped apart by another Blitzkrieg. Forming the backbone of the German advance were the mobile, well-equipped Schutzen (Rifles), motorized infantry who embodied the essence of the fluid, swift warfare that had characterized World War II thus far. Facing them were infantrymen of the British Expeditionary Force, units of considerable fighting quality who had nevertheless had no special training or doctrinal instruction to conduct combined-arms warfare in...

Discover what equipment a GI carried with him during World War II: what he had strapped around his body, what it contained, and what those items were used for.

In this highly illustrated book, Special Forces veteran Gordon Rottman offers a truly comprehensive treatment of U.S. World War II gear, covering not only basic belts, pouches, and packs, but also mess gear, first-aid gear, tools, bivouac/camping gear--essentially everything that a GI has to keep him alive and operational on the battlefield. Illustrated with wartime photos, new photos of kit from private collections, and color...

From the 1840s onward, United States military forces clashed with the Apache, a group of Native Americans associated with North America's southwestern region. U.S. territorial expansion and conflict--first with Mexico and then during the Civil War--led to an escalation of hostilities that culminated in the defeat of the Apache leader Geronimo in 1886, although fighting continued into the twentieth century. In this study, the clashes at Cieneguilla (1854), First Adobe Walls (1864), and Cibecue Creek (1881) are assessed in detail.

Fully illustrated and featuring contemporary accounts...

Influenced by the German MP 40 and the British Sten, the .45-caliber M3 "Grease Gun" served as the primary U.S. submachine gun for almost a half century. Designed to replace the expensive Thompson SMG, the M3 was issued to airborne troops thanks to its compact design with sliding wire stock, also being favored by armored crews right up to 1991's Operation Desert Storm.

In Korea and Vietnam, reconnaissance troops and special-operations forces were at times armed with the M3A1--also available in a suppressed version--and it was the first SMG issued to the US counter-terrorist...

Although military rockets have been used since the Middle Ages, it was not until the Soviet Union pioneered the concept of Multiple Rocket Launchers (MRLs), in the late 1930s, that they emerged as a decisive weapon. In the modern era, these Soviet/Russian Katyushas have served in combat in Afghanistan, Chechnya, and Georgia.

Developed to fill the operational need for massed artillery fire support, the MRL possesses enormous destructive power and a devastating psychological impact. This New Vanguard provides a survey of Soviet and Russian Federation MRLs from the beginning of their...

Jagging across northwestern Europe like an ugly scar, the Hindenburg Line was Germany's most formidable line of defense in World War I. Its fearsome reputation was matched only by its cunning design, with deep zigzagging trenches, concrete fieldworks, barbed wire, and devilish booby traps forming an intimidating barrier for any attacking army. Through meticulous research, this volume explores each of the major portions of the Hindenburg Line, paying particular attention to three examples of Allied operations against it towards the end of the war: the critical flanking of the Drocourt-Qeant...

In 1917 the soldiers of the Canadian Corps would prove themselves the equal of any fighting on the Western Front, while on the other side of the wire, the men of the Royal Bavarian Army won a distinguished reputation in combat. Employing the latest weapons and pioneering tactics, the two elite units would clash in three notable encounters: the Canadian storming of Vimy Ridge, the back-and-forth engagement at Fresnoy, and at the sodden, bloody battle of Passchendaele.

Featuring carefully chosen archive photographs and specially commissioned artwork, this study assesses these three...