Autumn 1541. King Henry VIII has set out on a spectacular Progress to the North to attend an extravagant submission of his rebellious subjects in York. Already in the city are lawyer Matthew Shardlake & his assistant Jack Barak. As well as assisting with legal work processing petitions to the King Shardlake has reluctantly undertaken a special mission -- to ensure the welfare of an important but dangerous conspirator being returned to London for interrogation. But the murder of a local glazier involves Shardlake in deeper mysteries connected not only to the prisoner in York Castle but to the royal family itself. & when Shardlake & Barak stumble upon a cache of secret papers which could threaten the Tudor throne a chain of events unfolds that will lead Shardlake facing the most terrifying fate of the age.. .' Sansom is a master storyteller' Guardian ' So compulsive that until you reach its final page you'll have to be almost physically prised away from it' Sunday Times ' Deeper stronger & subtler than The Name of the Rose' Independent on Sunday ...

This book provides a comprehensive survey of Soviet economic development from 1917 to 1965 in the context of the pre-revolutionary economy. In these years the Soviet Union negotiated the first stages of modern industrialisation & then after the defeat of Nazi Germany & its allies emerged as one of the two world superpowers. This was also the first attempt to construct a planned socialist order. These developments resulted in great economic achievements at great human cost. Using the results of recent Russian & Western research Professor Davies discusses the inherent faults & strengths of the system & pays particular attention to the major controversies. Was the Russian Revolution doomed to failure from the outset? Could the mixed economy of the 1920s have led to a democratic socialist economy? What was the influence of Soviet economic development on the rest of the world? ...

From June 1941 the Soviets were forced to undertake large-scale defensive operations in the face of the overwhelming German blitzkrieg assault operations which ran counter to their preference for highly mobile offensive warfare. Lessons were quickly learned across a wide variety of terrain & climates including the open steppes dense forests wooded swamps cities & in snow & ice where the availability of construction materials differed greatly. The first to cover this topic in the English language & containing detailed information about the trenches bunkers observation posts & weapon positions this book examines field fortifications built from local materials by infantrymen as well as their use of mines field camouflage techniques & construction tools. It provides a first fascinating insight into Russian defensive attempts against the overwhelming might of the German Army. ...

Following the destruction wrought on the Red Army Air Forces during the first days of Operation Barbarossa in June 1941 the Soviet Union found itself desperately short of fighter aircraft. Premier Josef Stalin duly appealed directly to Prime Minister Winston Churchill for replacement aircraft & in late 1941 the British delivered the first of 3360 Hurricanes that would be supplied to the Soviet Union under the Lend-Lease agreement. Specifically requested by the USSR the Hurricanes were quickly thrown into action in early 1942
- the Soviet Air Forces most difficult year in their opposition to the Luftwaffe. Virtually all the Hurricanes were issued to Soviet fighter regiments in the northern sector of the front where pilots were initially trained to fly the aircraft by RAF personnel that had accompanied the early Hawker fighters to the USSR. The Hurricane proved to be an easy aircraft to master even for the poorly trained young Soviet pilots allowing the Red Army to form quickly a large number of new fighter regiments in the polar area. In spite of a relatively poor top speed & only a modest rate-of-climb the Hurricane was the mount of at least 17 Soviet aces.
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This is the first volume of an integrated documentary history of the Soviet Union. The Soviet story
- the revolution Lenin Stalinism
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The Soviet invasion of its neighbour Afghanistan in December 1979 sparked a bloody nine-year conflict in that country until Soviet forces withdrew in 1988-89 dooming the communist Afghanistan government to defeat at the hands of the Mujahideen the Afghan popular resistance backed by the USA & other powers. The Soviet invasion had enormous implications on the global stage; it prompted the US Senate to refuse to ratify the hard-won SALT II arms-limitation treaty & the USA & 64 other countries boycotted the 1980 Moscow Summer Olympics. For Afghanistan the invasion served to prolong the interminable civil war that pitted central government against the regions & faction against faction. The country remains locked in conflict over 30 years later with no end in sight. Featuring specially drawn mapping & drawing upon a wide range of sources this succinct account explains the origins history & consequences of the Soviet intervention in Afghanistan thereby shedding new light on the more recent history
- & prospects
- of that troubled country.

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This gift box

Includes:: everything needed for kids to grow an enchanting mix of fairy flowers! Kids will love

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Its Lincolnshire 1926. Kate Hilton is devastated when he mother tells her she is to be sent away to boarding school. For the more Esther tries to keep her from her childhood sweetheart Danny the more determined she is to marry him. It isnt until she is eighteen & finally told the bitter truth about her familys past that Kate is forced to see why she & Danny can never marry. Torn apart by these revelations Kate finds unexpected release with the outbreak of war when she leaves Fleethaven Point to become a driver in the WAAF. In the chaos & destruction of the war years Kate will witness many things. For as well as all the pain suffering & loss she will experience her first taste of a love that finally allows her to leave the past behind... ...

A fascinating look into the extraordinary history of the Sowrey family; an RAF dynasty whose service spans the first sixty-five years of the RAFs existence. Members fought in both world wars & five of the Sowreys were awarded the Air Force Cross amongst their other numerous decorations. Three brothers John Fred & William all served in World War I with distinction before service in Iraq & the Middle East. The next generation of Sowreys started at Cranwell in 1938; one was killed in action in the Western Desert but John jnr & Freddie served throughout on fighter operations in the desert & north-west Europe whilst a sister served in the WAAF. Also during World War II Air Cdre William Sowrey served as an AOC in the often-forgotten campaign in East Africa. John Sowrey went on to become a test pilot in the halcyon days of 1950-fighters & Freddie served in fighters before taking up more senior policy & diplomatic appointments during the Cold War. Their diverse individual careers & experiences worldwide provide great scope for study into the history & development of the RAF from World War I to the later stages of the Cold War. ...

Take an incredible journey through Space starting from a launchpad on earth to the solar system the Milky Way & beyond & finally to the very edges of the visible universe. Featuring the latest spectacular images from NASA & other sources including more than 100 pictures released during the last two years makes this a journey of a lifetime. Discover the technology & spacecrafts behind these extraordinary journeys learn more about planets asteroids & galaxies as they are introduced & supported with explanatory artworks & find out about the important discoveries that have been made. ...