In Halik Kochanski's extraordinary book the untold story of Poland & the Poles in the Second World War is finally heard. By almost every measure the fate of the inhabitants of Poland was the most terrible of any group in the Second World War. Following the destruction of its armed forces in the autumn of 1939 the Republic of Poland was partitioned between Nazi & Soviet forces & officially ceased to exist. As the war progressed millions of Poles were killed with each phase unleashing a further round from the industrialised genocide of Treblinka to the crushing of the Warsaw Rising. Polish Jews were all to be murdered Christians reduced to a semi-literate slave class. This powerful & original new book is perhaps the most important 'missing' work on the whole conflict describing both the fate of those trapped within occupied Poland & of the millions of Poles who were able to escape. Reviews: A remarkable book... Kochanski brings to the subject not only an impressive grasp of the military & political context but also a balance neutrality & honesty few could manage combined with the intelligence imagination & empathy necessary to grasp the true depth of the experience she recounts... This book is history at its best. It tells the whole story & tells it well with just the right mixture of detachment & empathy in crisp readable prose. But it also speaks to the imagination & makes the reader think
- & not just about the subject in hand". (" Standpoint"). " Until Halik Kochanski's " The Eagle Unbowed" nobody had written a comprehensive English-language history of Poland at war... She uncovers details that will surprise even history geeks... Ms Kochanski marshals an impressive & comprehensive array of English & Polish material". (" Economist"). " Poland's war was so terrible as to almost defy summary.. .this book is opinionated fluid & forceful". (Oliver Bullough " New Statesman"). " An informative authoritative & wide-ranging account of the tragedy that befell Poland & its inhabitants Gentiles & Jews during the war & its aftermath... An engaging & important book". (Hubert Zawadzki (author of "A Concise History of Poland")). About the author: Halik Kochanski read Modern History at Balliol College Oxford & then completed a Ph D at King's College London. She has taught at both King's College London & University College London & presented papers to a number of military history conferences. She has written a number of articles & is the author of " Sir Garnet Wolseley: Victorian Hero" (1999). She is a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society. She has been a member of the councils of the Army Records Society & Society for Army Historical Research & remains a member of both societies. She is also a member of the British Commission for Military History & the Institute for Historical Research. She is currently a judge for the Templer Medal book prize."
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The second novel in Simon Scarrows bestselling Roman series. When Centurion Macro arrives on British soil as one of Emperor Claudiuss invasion force in 43 AD he is facing one of the toughest campaigns of his battle-scarred career. In a series of bloody skirmishes Macro & his young subordinate Optio Cato & the desperately outnumbered Roman army must find & defeat the enemy before he grows strong enough to overwhelm the legions. But the Britons are not the only foe facing Macro & Cato. A sinister organisation opposed to the Emperor is secretly betraying the invaders. & when rumours of an assassination attempt coincide with the Emperors arrival on British soil the soldiers realise they are up against a force more ruthless than their acknowledged enemy... ...

The fifth novel in Simon Scarrows bestselling Roman series. It is late summer 44 AD & the battle-weary Roman legions are in their second year of campaigning against the British tribes. The troops commander General Plautius is under considerable pressure from the emperor to crush the natives once & for all. Centurions Macro & Cato are with the crack Second Legion under the precarious leadership of Centurion Maximus & its their task to hold a ford across the river Tamesis when the natives are forced into a trap. But Maximuss nerve breaks at the critical point allowing the enemy leader Caratacus & his men to escape. Outraged by this failure General Plautius orders the decimation of the unit. Their choice: die or escape to become a fugitive pursued by soldiers of their own ruthless army. Hiding from their former comrades as well as the Britons Catos small band of fugitives have only one chance to redeem themselves before they are hunted down like animals... ...

The second novel in Simon Scarrow's bestselling Roman series. When Centurion Macro arrives on British soil as one of Emperor Claudius's invasion force in 43 AD he is facing one of the toughest campaigns of his battle-scarred career. In a series of bloody skirmishes Macro & his young subordinate Optio Cato & the desperately outnumbered Roman army must find & defeat the enemy before he grows strong enough to overwhelm the legions. But the Britons are not the only foe facing Macro & Cato. A sinister organisation opposed to the Emperor is secretly betraying the invaders. & when rumours of an assassination attempt coincide with the Emperor's arrival on British soil the soldiers realise they are up against a force more ruthless than their acknowledged enemy... ...

The sixth novel in Simon Scarrow's bestselling Roman series. It is spring 45 AD & Centurions Macro & Cato dismissed from the Second Legion in Britain are trapped in Rome waiting for their involvement in the death of a fellow officer to be investigated. It is then that the imperial secretary the devious Narcissus makes them an offer they can't refuse: to rescue an imperial agent who has been captured by pirates operating from the Illyrian coast. With him were scrolls vital to the safety of the Emperor & the future of Rome. However Narcissus also sends Vitellius an old enemy of the two centurions. The three officers set out from Ravenna with the imperial fleet but the pirates are forewarned & the Romans pay a heavy price. Outnumbered by the enemy surrounded by rumours of treachery & endangered by Vitellius' desire to redeem himself Centurions Macro & Cato must find the pirate base to avert a disaster that could destroy the Emperor. ...

In August 1781 Alistair Douglas is sent by the British spy network the Decipherers to York Town in the American Colonies. He is tasked with assisting the Loyalist colonists of Virginia to organize themselves into a militia & fight the Revolutionaries on behalf of the King. Douglas goes undercover as a grain merchant aboard a French military vessel in Chesapeake Bay where he discovers that matters have progressed much further than anyone in London had imagined.. . While Lord Cornwallis turns all his efforts to fortifying York Town Douglas intercepts disturbing correspondence suggesting that they might be protecting themselves in the wrong place. When a British father & son Cable & David Morgan are captured by the French as spies matters turn critical. Douglas is determined to do whatever it takes to save them knowing that if he can get them back they might just have a chance to reverse British fortunes before its too late.. . ...

This book celebrates the eagles of Africa in evocative text & compelling photography.

Features: colour photographs

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The impact of the war on family life in Britain was profound. In Ealing at War" Dennis Upton explores the wartime experiences often disruptive & sometimes grievous endured by the men women & children of Ealing Acton & Southall. Including 100 contemporary photographs this is a unique pictorial tribute to how one of Londons boroughs dealt with being at Britains frontline during the Blitz years. Dennis Upton has dedicated many years to exploring the history of the Home Front & in this book his detailed captions explore the devastating toll of the war on Ealing & its residents. This book is an important record of this extraordinary time in Ealings history & is a moving tribute to the undefeatable spirit of the British people." ...

Ealing Revisited provides a major reappraisal of one of British cinemas best-loved institutions Ealing Studios. During its heyday Ealing produced a string of classic comedies including Kind Hearts & Coronets (1949) The Lavender Hill Mob (1951) & The Ladykillers (1955) but there is much more to Ealing than these films as this volume of new writing on the studio shows. Addressing both known & less familiar aspects of Ealings story its films actors & technicians the contributors uncover what has gone unexplored or unspoken in previous histories of the studio & consider the impact that Ealing has had on British cultural life from the 1930s to the present. Listed in the Independent on Sundays Cinema books of 2012 http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/books/reviews/ios-books-of-the-year-2012-cinema-8373713.html ...

The mainland & islands of Greece were extensively settled by peoples moving from Asia Minor in c.5000 BC while a further wave in c.5000 BC introduced bronze-working to the region. It is form this point on that it is possible to discern a distinct Cycladic or Aegean civilisation developing at roughly the same time as the Egyptian & Persian civilisations. Further to the south the Minoan civilisation based on Crete held sway & this power
- along with the Helladic Achaeans to the north gradually swamped the Cycladic civilisation in between. In common with most Bronze Age societies the culture of the Aegean world was dominated by warfare with the inhabitants living in organized settlements & small citadels with fortification walls & bulwarks towers & gates to provide protection against invaders from the sea or internecine conflicts. Using the latest archaeological evidence this title recreates the world of these peoples through a detailed examination of their material culture.
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