Published during the Great War by GCHQ Intelligence, this is an incredibly detailed compilation of the types and varieties of German shell fuses which plagued the BEF on the western front for four long years. Here, in coldly detailed print descriptions and diagrams, are the dreaded 'whizz-bangs, ' 'Minnies' ( for 'minenwerfer') and other deadly projectiles. Included are manufactuers' marks, Abbreviations used on German ordnance; time and percussion fuses; Naval fuses; and conversion tables between British Imperial and German metric measures. By way of comparison and differentiation there are...

First issued in July 1916 - the month that the battle of the Somme began; and reprinted that November - the month that the battle ended, the notes and practices that it details are an outline of instructional methods in vogue at the Royal Flying Corps to train aerial machine gunners in their work. There is an outline of the syllabus on a typical 12-day training course, which breaks down the total time allotted to each phase: seven hours to drill; eleven to the mechanism and stripping of the gun; two to lectures; two to the care of the guns; and one to testing. Gives a good idea of the levels...

The official guide to the American-made Lewis Gun - the standard machine gun employed by the British army in the middle and later stages of the Great War. There are chapters on the gun's characteristics, the duties of officers in charge of the guns; the use of Lewis guns in offensive and defensive trench to trench attacks as well as in open warfare; and the employment of Lewis guns against aircraft. With appendices on firing the gun from the hip; ammunition; drill and instructions (and photographs) showing the correct carrying of Lewis Gun magazines this booklet tells you all you need to know...

Incorporating the lessons learned in the fighting at Passchendaele in the summer and early autumn of 1917, the first part of this official tactical summary of machine gun operations for October 1917 emphasises the importance of machine gun support of infantry operations by barrages. The second part of the booklet takes in the lessons learned in the battle of Cambrai in November 1917, including dealing with harassing aircraft. Taken together, and printed in one volume by the Naval and Military Press, these two official publications give an excellent picture of how lessons learned on the...

Issued in May 1917, these three booklets, reprinted by the Naval and Military Press in one volume, cover the use of Machine Guns in various theatres and situations of the Great War - from the trenches of the Western Front to the deserts of the Middle East - informed by intelligence reports to GHQ. Part 1 covers personnel, transport, Co-operation, Gas, as well as general and operational notes on such subjects as the effects of barrage fire. Part Two (Training and Technical) covers equip, ment, demonstrations, experiments, and tests. Part Three (Machine Gun Intelligence from Foreign Countries)...

Published in 1912 on the eve of the Great War, this fascinating volume contains notes on the military performances of allies and potential enemies alike as witnessed by British military observers at the war games of various countries carried out in that year. There are assessments of Germany, Austria-Hungary, Russia, France, the US, Japan, Sweden, Switzerland, Norway, and Greece. A fascinating and informative snapshot of European armies on the very verge of war that must not be missed by all who are interested in the Great War.

Issued in April 1918 - the very month that the R.A.F. was founded out of the Royal Flying Corps - this booklet is an instructional manual on the use of the American-made Lewis Gun, which was fast becoming the standard British machine gun of the Great War - in the air as well as on the ground.The booklet contains instructions for stripping the gun; notes on its mechanism; its care and cleaning; the likely causes of jams and stoppages; minor repairs; spare parts; ammunition and aiming. This booklet is a facsimile reprint of the copy held in the War Office Library and contains amendments and...

The debate on the fate of Germany's top-scoring air ace, the famous 'Red Baron' Manfred von Richthoften, (who may have been brought down by ground fire rather than in a dogfight), shows that it was possible to bring down enemy aircraft using rifles and machine guns. This slim booklet is aimed at making that aim easier. Illustrated with diagrams, and much concerned with angles of fire, elevation, and the speed and sighting of hostile aircraft, this gives a graphic picture of anti-aircraft small arms fire in the Great War.