The ashigaru were the foot soldiers of old Japan. Although recruited first to swell an army's numbers and paid only by loot, the samurai began to realise their worth, particularly with arquebuses and spears, until well-trained ashigaru made up a vital part of any samurai army. This book tells the story of the ashigaru for the first time, their origins, recruitment training and use in various wars, such as the Gempei Wars of 1180-1185 and the Onin War of 1467-1477. Stephen Turnbull draws on previously untranslated Japanese sources and unpublished illustrations that show the range of ashigaru...

Osprey's examination of the naval conflict between England and Spain in 1588. The thwarted invasion of England by the Spanish Armada is studied here in fascinating detail. How, in a few short days, Philip II's fleet was stopped from invading England and forced into full retreat is looked at in a new and unique way. With the help of battle plans and bird's eye views of the action, leading historian Angus Konstam considers many of the intriguing questions surrounding the campaign, concluding with details of how the Armada's disastrous return voyage around Scotland and Ireland became one of the...

Osprey's first title in the study of the Yom Kippur War (1973). At 1345hrs on 6 October 1973, Israeli spotters in the observation post atop Mount Hermon saw Syrian gunners below them removing the camouflage nets from their guns. Ten minutes later shells began to rain down on Israeli positions all along the Golan Heights The Yom Kippur War had begun. The shock Syrian attack caught the Israelis by surprise and by the afternoon of 7 October a Syrian brigade was less than 10km from the Sea of Galilee. Simon Dunstan describes in detail how amid desperate and bitter fighting the Israeli forces...

The third title in Osprey's survey of the D-Day landings of World War II (1939-1945). At 0016hrs on 6 June 1944 a Horsa glider ground to a halt a mere 60 yards from the Orne Canal bridge at Benouville in Normandy. A small group of British paratroopers burst from it and stormed the bridge within minutes. The Allied liberation of Nazi-occupied Europe had begun. Within a few hours landing craft would swarm towards Ouistreham as British 3rd Division stormed ashore at Sword Beach. The battle would then begin to break through to relieve the paratroopers. In the third of the D-Day volumes Ken Ford...

Revealing what it was like to live and fight in a medium tank during World War II (1939-1945), this book is structured around the career of a single tanker from 37th Tank Battalion, 4th Armored Division. The focus is largely on the crew of an M4 Sherman, though light tank service is also studied. Tank operation required a well- trained and well-coordinated crew. The crew positions and roles of tank commander, gunner, driver, loader, and assistant driver are all covered in detail, together with recruitment procedure, specialist training, and the variety of specialized clothing and personal...

Osprey's first title examining the Battle of the Bulge, which was the largest and most costly battle fought by the US Army in World War II (1939-1945). The Ardennes fighting was Hitler's last gamble on the Western Front, crippling the Wehrmacht for the remainder of the war. In the first of two volumes on the Ardennes campaign Steven Zaloga details the fighting in the northern sector around St Vith and the Elsenborn Ridge. Sixth Panzer Army, containing the bulk of German Panzer strength, was expected to achieve the breakthrough here. It was the failure around St Vith that forced the Germans to...

Osprey's study of Italy's Cassino campaign during World War II (1939-1945). The battle for Cassino was probably the most bitter struggle of the entire Italian campaign. The dominating peak of Montecassino crowned by its magnificent but doomed medieval monastery was the key to the entire Gustav Line, a formidable system of defences that stretched right across the Italian peninsula. This position completely dominated the Liri valley and Route 6, the strategically vital road to Rome. Between January and May 1944 the Allies struggled amid inhospitable terrain and dreadful weather to dislodge the...

Osprey's examination of the Dieppe raid of August 1942, which was one of the most controversial actions of World War II (1939-1945). Operation 'Jubilee' was a frontal assault on a fortified port landing the latest equipment and armour directly on to the beach. The main force would destroy the port facilities while other smaller landings dealt with anti-aircraft and coastal batteries. The raid itself turned into a fiasco. The assault force was pinned down on the beach and three quarters of the 5,000 troops landed were lost. This book analyses the disastrous raid and examines contrasting...

The largest city in Normandy, Caen's position gave it major strategic value for Allies and Germans alike. This title describes the battle for Caen, revealing how, as a result of the British failure to take the city early in the campaign, Caen and its population were immolated - a fate for which Montgomery has been held responsible.

The battle around Falaise in Normandy during August 1944 saw the destruction of the German Seventh army. This book details the chain of events which led to the German retreat and the ensuing liberation of France during World War II (1939-1945). The British and American breakout battles had released motorised units to wage a more mobile war against the German static defensive tactics. At Falaise, the armoured units of US Third Army encircled the German Seventh Army, squeezed them into an ever-smaller cauldron of chaos and crushed them against the advancing British Second Army. The results were...