Books published by publisher Pen and Sword Military

The assault guns and tank destroyers deployed by the Wehrmacht during the Second World War are not as famous as tanks like the Tiger and Panther, but they were remarkably successful, and they are the subject of Anthony Tucker-Jones's wide-ranging photographic history. As the conflict progressed, the German army had to find a use for its obsolete panzers, and this gave rise to the turretless Sturmgeschütz or assault guns designed for infantry support. From 1944 onwards they played a vital role in Nazi Germany's increasingly defensive war. A selection of rare wartime photographs shows the variety of turretless armored fighting vehicles that were produced and developed – various models of the Sturmgeschütz III, the Sturmhaubitze, Jagdpanzer, Panzerjäger, Marder, Hetzer. Often a lack of tanks meant that these armoured vehicles were called on to fill the panzer's role, and they proved ideal during the Germans’ defensive battles on the Eastern Front as well as in Italy and Normandy – they were instrumental in delaying Germany's defeat. This highly illustrated account provides is a fascinating introduction to one of the less well-known aspects of armored warfare during the Second World War.

In the dark and uncertain days of 1941 and 1942, when Rommel’s Afrika Korps was sweeping towards Egypt and the Suez Canal, a small group of daring raiders made history for the Allies. They operated deep behind the German lines, driving hundreds of miles through the deserts of North Africa. They hid by day and struck by night, destroying aircraft, blowing up ammunition dumps, derailing trains and killing many times their own number. The men were the Special Air Service, the SAS, the brainchild of David Stirling, a deceptively mild-mannered man with a brilliant idea. Under his command, small teams of resourceful, highly trained men penetrated beyond the front lines of the opposing armies and wreaked havoc where the Germans least expected it. Virginia Cowles’s The Phantom Major is a classic account of these raids, an amazing tale of courage, impudence and daring, packed with action and high adventure. Her narrative, based on the eyewitness testimony of the men who took part, gives a fascinating insight into the early years of the SAS.

MAJOR & MRS HOLT'S Concise, Illustrated BATTLEFIELD GUIDE TO THE WESTERN FRONT- SOUTH contains many fascinating but little-visited areas by travelers and is hoped that they will be tempted further afield than the 'showcase' and sophisticatedly presented battlefields like the Somme to discover some marvelous sites. Many of them have lain virtually 'dormant' for many years (such as areas of the Meuse-Argonne and Champagne) but have recently been renovated and opened up by dedicated local enthusiasts. There are many 'gems' in store in this book. Each battlefield starts with some pertinent quotations by participants, has a succinct Summary of the Battle, Opening Moves and What Happened sections then a Battlefield Tour which follows the same tried and tested formula as the rest of the series of a timed and measured itinerary with historic and anecdotal information at each stop. A detailed Sketch Map showing battle lines and each stop on the route accompanies every battle using the same color code (of yellow for memorials, purple for cemeteries, blue for museums) as the larger Holts' Battle Maps.Together the two books MAJOR & MRS HOLT'S Concise, Illustrated BATTLEFIELD GUIDE TO THE WESTERN FRONT- SOUTH and NORTH will form the most comprehensive and detailed English-language guides to the WW1 Western Front ever produced.

A look at the famed medieval Catholic order, with an emphasis on military history—includes numerous illustrations. There are many books about the Knights Templar, the medieval military order which played a key role in the crusades against the Muslims in the Holy Land, the Iberian peninsula, and elsewhere in Europe. What is seldom explored is the military context in which they operated. This book focuses on how this military order prosecuted its wars. The order was founded as a response to attacks on pilgrims in the Holy Land, and it was involved in countless battles and sieges, always at the forefront of crusading warfare. This absorbing study examines why they were such an important aspect of medieval warfare on the frontiers of Christendom for nearly two hundred years. The author shows how they were funded and supplied, how they organized their forces on campaign and on the battlefield, and the strategies and tactics they employed in the various theaters of warfare in which they fought. Templar leadership and command and control are examined, and sections cover their battles and campaigns, fortifications, and castles.

Richard Gabriel has been studying and writing about ancient warfare for nearly half a century. He has written fifty-five books on the subject (before this one) and over three hundred published articles. These decades of scholarship are complemented by direct military experience as a US army officer (now retired). This book presents his thoughts and perspectives on a selection of aspects of ancient warfare that he has found of particular interest over the years. It does not aim to be a comprehensive overview nor a coherent narrative of ancient military history but adds up to an illuminating, fascinating and wide-ranging discussion of various topics. With topics ranging from the origins of war, through logistics, military medicine and psychiatry or the origins of jihad, to specifics such as the generalship of Alexander the Great (Gabriel’s not a fan), Scipio and Hannibal, there is plenty here for the either the general reader or academic scholar.

The war of 337-363 (which the author dubs the ‘Nisibis War’), was an exception to the traditional Roman reliance on a strategic offensive to bring about a decisive battle. Instead, the Emperor Constantius II adopted a defensive strategy and conducted a mobile defense based upon small frontier (limitanei) forces defending fortified cities, supported by limited counteroffensives by the Field Army of the East. These methods successfully checked Persian assaults for 24 years. However, when Julian became emperor his access to greater resources tempted him to abandon mobile defense in favor of a major invasion aimed at regime change in Persia. Although he reached the Persian capital, Ctesiphon, he failed to take it, was decisively defeated in battle and killed. The Romans subsequently resumed and refined the mobile defense, allowing the Eastern provinces to survive the fall of the Western Empire. John Harrel applies his personal experience of military command to a strategic, operational, tactical and logistical analysis of these campaigns and battles, highlighting their long-term significance.

Attila the Hun is a household name. Rising to the Hunnic kingship around 434, he dominated European history for the next two decades. Attila bullied and manipulated both halves of the Roman empire, forcing successive emperors to make tribute payments or face invasion. Ian Hughes recounts Attila's rise to power, attempting to untangle his character and motivations so far as the imperfect sources allow. A major theme is how the two halves of the empire finally united against Attila, prompting his fateful decision to invade Gaul and his subsequent defeat at the Battle of the Catalaunian Plain in 451.Integral to the narrative is analysis of the history of the rise of the Hunnic Empire; the reasons for the Huns' military success; relations between the Huns and the two halves of the Roman Empire; Attila’s rise to sole power; and Attila’s doomed attempt to bring both halves of the Roman Empire under his dominion.

The thrilling and inspiring true story of Violette Szabo, the fearless British cloak-and-dagger agent who infiltrated Nazi occupied France. Switchboard operator and volunteer for the Women’s Land Army, Violette Szabo was only twenty-two years old when her husband, Etienne, a captain in the French Foreign Legion, died at El Alamein. His death only made the resilient young widow more determined than ever to join England’s war effort in World War II. To Violette’s surprise, opportunity came at the request of Britain’s Special Organization Executive. The purpose of the SOE was to conduct sabotage and espionage, and to aide local resistance movements in occupied Europe. Trained in secret in the Scottish Highlands, Violette became an expert in fieldcraft, covert navigation, and weapons and demolition. Then, on June 7, 1944, Szabo parachuted into Limoges. Her task was to coordinate the work of the French Resistance in the first days after D-Day. Violette Szabo was about to make history. “Violette’s bravery and spirit shine throughout” this arresting true story of a heroic woman, undaunted by her missions, or the reality of the fate that would most likely await her in the closing years of war. R. J. Minney’s stirring historical narrative was the basis for the classic 1959 film starring Virginia Mckenna and Paul Scofield (Portland Book Review).

Carve Her Name With Pride is the inspiring story of the half-French Violette Szabo who was born in Paris Iin 1921 to an English motorcar dealer, and a French Mother. She met and married Etienne Szabo, a Captain in the French Foreign Legion in 1940. Shortly after the birth of her daughter, Tania, her husband died at El Alamein. She became a FANY (First Aid Nursing Yeomanry) and was recruited into the SOE and underwent secret agent training. Her first trip to France was completed successfully even though she was arrested and then released by the French Police. On June 7th, 1944, Szabo was parachuted into Limoges. Her task was to coordinate the work of the French Resistance in the area in the first days after D-Day. She was captured by the SS 'Das Reich' Panzer Division and handed over to the Gestapo in Paris for interrogation. From Paris, Violette Szabo was sent to Ravensbruck concentration camp where she was executed in January 1945. She was only 23 and for her courage was posthumously awarded The George Cross and the Croix de Guerre.

With comprehensive captions and text this superb book is the latest in the best selling Images of War Series and the second instalment of the Author’s pictorial history of the German Panzers in the Second World War. The Panzer III saw almost continuous action from the the annexation of Czechoslovakia, the invasion of Poland and then France and the Low countries, in North Africa, Italy, the Eastern Front and, finally, the retreat back into Germany. Between 1936 and 1945, many thousands of Panzer III’s were built. It quickly demonstrated its superiority on the battlefield and, for most of the war, remained a match for its opponents’ heavy tanks. The superb collection of images show how these formidable tanks were adapted and up-gunned to face the ever increasing enemy threat. The expert commentary describes how the Germans carefully utilized all available reserves and resources into building numerous production variants and how they coped on the battlefield. This is a splendid description of the one of the Nazis’ foremost fighting machines and a worthy successor volume to the acclaimed Panzer IV at War.

A groundbreaking study of the weaponry used in combat thousands of years ago. Few accounts of ancient warfare have looked at how the weapons were made and how they were actually used in combat. Logan Thompson's pioneering survey traces the evolution of weapons in Britain across three thousand years, from the Bronze Age to the Battle of Hastings in 1066. Insights gained from painstaking practical research and technical analysis shed new light on the materials used, the processes of manufacture, the development of the weapons, and their effectiveness. His account features new information about the weapons themselves and their origin and design—as well as a fascinating new perspective on the practice of early warfare.

Richard Gabriel has been studying and writing about ancient warfare for nearly half a century. He has written fifty-five books on the subject (before this one) and over three hundred published articles. These decades of scholarship are complemented by direct military experience as a US army officer (now retired). This book presents his thoughts and perspectives on a selection of aspects of ancient warfare that he has found of particular interest over the years. It does not aim to be a comprehensive overview nor a coherent narrative of ancient military history but adds up to an illuminating, fascinating and wide-ranging discussion of various topics. With topics ranging from the origins of war, through logistics, military medicine and psychiatry or the origins of jihad, to specifics such as the generalship of Alexander the Great (Gabriel’s not a fan), Scipio and Hannibal, there is plenty here for the either the general reader or academic scholar.