Osprey Elite Series

Acient Greeks by OspreyItem Number: OSPELI7Elite 7Author: Nicholas SekundaIllustrator: Angus McBrideAbout this bookThe cradle of western civilisation, the ancient Greek world, consisted of a series of independent city states some of which, such as Athens and Sparta, became major world powers. This authoritative volume by Nicholas Sekunda covers Greek warfare in the Classical Period, which stretches from the Greek victories over the Persian Empire to the death of Alexander the Great at the end...

Acw Commanders Union East by OspreyItem Number: OSPELI73Elite 73Author: Philip KatcherIllustrator: Richard HookAbout this bookWhen the War Between the States broke out in 1861, the US Army had only four line generals - and only one of them was not a septuagenarian veteran of the War of 1812. With about one-third of all professional officers choosing to offer their swords to the South, the government's urgent need to find commanders for the vastly expanded Federal army put generals' stars on...

About half a million African Americans served overseas during World War II, almost all in segregated second-line units. This artificially limited their potential contribution, but their work - especially along the logistic lifelines of the fighting divisions - was vital. This book summarizes the service of these men and women; and it also focuses on the small proportion who, remarkably, overcame prejudicial barriers to reach the battlefields in combat units of the US forces and Coast Guard....

Afrikakorps 1941-43 by OspreyItem Number: OSPELI34Elite 34Author: Gordon WilliamsonIllustrator: Ronald VolstadAbout this bookThe campaign in North Africa between September 1940 and May 1943 holds not only an enduring fascination for postwar generations; but also a perhaps unique degree of nostalgia for some surviving participants. The campaign was no less costly in terms of human lives and material than many others; but regret at the cost is accompanied by positive memories in the minds of...

Allied WW-II Sabotage Devices by Osprey PublishingItem Number: OSPELI184Elite 184Author: Gordon L RottmanIllustrator: Peter DennisAbout this bookFollowing Churchill"s directive to 'set occupied Europe ablaze,' the SOE and later its American sister organization, the OSS, were deployed across the continent. Outnumbered, surrounded and in great peril, these brave agents were armed with a wide variety of devices to help them achieve their objectives, including numerous pieces of sabotage equipment...

American Civil War Guerrilla Tactics by Osprey PublishingItem Number: OSPELI174Elite 174Author: Sean McLachlanIllustrators: Gerry Embleton Samuel EmbletonAbout this bookWhile the giant armies of the Union and the Confederacy were fighting over cities and strategic strongholds, a large number of warriors from both sides were fighting, smaller, more personal battles. Beginning with the violent struggle known as -Bleeding Kansas- armed bands of irregular fighters began to wage war in every corner...

American Civil War Marines by OspreyItem Number: OSPELI112Elite 112Author: Ron FieldIllustrator: Richard HookAbout this bookThe part played in the Civil War by the small Marine Corps of the United and Confederate States is overshadowed by the confrontations of the great armies. Nevertheless, the coastal and riverine campaigns were of real importance, given the strategic significance of the Federal blockade of southern ports, and of the struggle for the Mississippi River. Marines wearing blue...

American Civil War Rr Tactics by Osprey PublishingItem Number: OSPELI171The American Civil War was the world's first full-blown 'railroad war'. The well-developed network in the North was of great importance in serving the Union armies' logistic needs over long distances, and the sparser resources of the South were proportionately even more important. Both sides invested great efforts in raiding and wrecking enemy railroads and defending and repairing their own, and battles often revolved...

Ancient Assyrians by OspreyItem Number: OSPELI39Elite 39Author: Mark HealyIllustrator: Angus McBrideAbout this bookFor the greater part of the period from the end of the 10th century to the 7th century BC, the Ancient Near East was dominated by the dynamic military power of Assyria. At the zenith of its rule Assyria could lay claim to an empire that stretched from Egypt in the west to the borders of Iran in the east and encompassed for the first time in history, within the realm of a single...

The Apache culture of the latter half of the 19th century blended together the lifestyles of the Great Plains, Great Basin and the South-West, but it was their warfare that captured the imagination. This book reveals the skilful tactics of the Apache people as they raided and eluded the much larger and better-equipped US government forces. Drawing on primary research conducted in the deserts of New Mexico and Arizona, this book reveals the small-unit warfare of the Apache tribes as they...

Arab-Israeli Conflict 1948 by OspreyItem Number: OSPESS28Essential Histories 28Author: Efraim KarshAbout this bookThe Palestine War has been by far the most important military encounter in the history of the Arab-Israeli conflict. This book examines the origins of the war and its progression through two distinct stages: the guerrilla warfare between the Arab and Jewish communities of Mandatory Palestine, and the conventional inter-state war between the State of Israel and the invading Arab...

Immediately following the end of World War I, amid the collapse of the German, Austro-Hungarian and Russian Empires, bitter fighting broke out in the Baltic region as Poland, Finland, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania struggled for their independence, and Red and White Russian armies began their civil war. There were also German forces still active in what had been the northern end of Germany's Eastern Front. This book offers a concise but detailed introduction to this whole theatre of war,...

Attila & Nomad Hordes by OspreyItem Number: OSPELI30Elite 30Author: David NicolleIllustrator: Angus McBrideAbout this bookOf all the conquerors who swept out of Central Asia, two names stand out in European memory ' Attila the Hun and Genghis Khan the Mongol. Both are remembered for massacres and devastation; yet whereas Genghis is also famous for the laws he imposed on half of Asia and for the trade which flourished under Mongol rule, Attila's notoriety seems unrelieved by positive...

The Bachem Ba 349 Natter was a secretive, vertical take-off, single-seat rocket interceptor intended to offer high-speed defence of key targets. This radical aircraft offered Luftwaffe an inexpensive means with which to intercept and attack Allied heavy bombers using a vertically-launched, semi-expendable machine built of wood and armed with a nose-mounted ?honeycomb' battery of spin-stabilised air-to-air rockets as well as cannon armament. Launched vertically at 36,000ft per minute, the pilot...

Bell X-1 by Peter E. Davies

Even before the spectacular success of its X-1 rocket-powered aircraft in breaking the ?sound barrier', the adventurous Bell Aircraft Corporation was already pushing ahead with a parallel project to build a second aircraft capable of far higher speeds. The X-2 (or Model 52) explored the equally uncertain technology of swept-back wings. Now common in modern conventional fighter aircraft, the Bell X-2 was revolutionary in using this type of airframe to probe Mach 3 and research the effects of...

Boer Wars by OspreyItem Number: OSPESS52Essential Histories 52Author: Gregory Fremont-BarnesAbout this bookVictorious in its previous campaigns in Africa against native armies, Britain now confronted an altogether different foe. The Boers proved to be formidable opponents, masterfully compensating for inferior numbers with grim determination, resourcefulness and strong religious faith. Their mobility, expert use of cover, and knowledge of the terrain, in which they employed powerful long-range...

The British Army currently enjoys, both at home and abroad, the reputation of being one of the best in the world. Composed entirely of volunteers, its morale sustained by its curious and little-understood attitudes towards tradition, the British Army attracts respect and admiration from the military expert and the layman alike. Written and illustrated by a former British Army infantryman with 22 years' experience, this book details the Army's history, organization, uniforms and distinctions....

British Commanders Of Wwii by OspreyItem Number: OSPELI98Elite 98Author: Ian SumnerIllustrator: Malcolm McGregorAbout this bookThis book examines the key British commanders of World War II across the three branches of service. As well being provided with biographical details for each of the 24 commanders selected, we are given fascinating insights into their personalities and their style of command. Assessments of their combat records and performances under pressure are also supplied....

British Fleet Air Arm In WW II by Osprey PublishingItem Number: OSPELI165This is a concise history of the Royal Navy's air arm during World War II, from their Arctic convoys, to the battle of Malta, and the last raids on Japan. Amazingly, the Admiralty only had 406 operational pilots and eight carriers when war broke out, but a mere six years later there were over 3,000 operational pilots and 53 aircraft carriers patrolling the seas in every theatre of the war. This book charts the rapid...

In an age when infantry units manoeuvred and fought in rigid blocks, the idea of encouraging initiative and allowing a unit to 'skirmish' was regarded as revolutionary and fell out of favour in the years following the French-Indian and American Revolutionary wars. It was revived by far-sighted British and foreign-mercenary officers, who observed the way in which French Revolutionary armies deployed skirmishers to prepare the way for their assault columns.Offering a detailed analysis of the...

Buffalo Soldiers 1866-91 by OspreyItem Number: OSPELI107Elite 107Author: Ron FieldIllustrator: Richard HookAbout this bookAfrican-American soldiers played a decisive role in the US Army on the western frontier during the Plains Wars. First authorised by Congress in July 1866, they were organised into two cavalry and four infantry regiments, which were commanded by white officers. All were quickly nicknamed the 'Buffalo Soldiers' by their Cheyenne and Comanche enemies. These brave soldiers...

ABOUT THIS PRODUCTCarthage, the port-city in Tunisia first settled by Phoenicians from Tyre, grew to extend a competitive maritime trading empire all over the Western Mediterranean and beyond, increasingly defended by the best navy of the period. In the 6th century BC this came into confrontation with Greek colonists in Sicily, starting major wars that lasted through the 5th and 4th centuries, and involved much interaction with different Greek forces. During the 3rd century Carthage first...

Ceasar's Gallic Wars by OspreyItem Number: OSPESS43Essential Histories 43Author: Kate GilliverAbout this bookJulius Caesar was one of the most ambitious and successful politicians of the late Roman Republic and his short but bloody conquest of the Celtic tribes led to the establishment of the Roman province of Gaul (modern France). Caesar's commentaries on his Gallic Wars provide us with the most detailed surviving eye-witness account of a campaign from antiquity. Kate Gilliver makes use of...

Collapse Of Yugoslavia by OspreyItem Number: OSPESS63Essential Histories 63Author: Alastair FinlanAbout this bookIn 1991, an ethnically diverse region that had enjoyed decades of peaceful coexistence descended into bitter hatred and chaos, almost overnight. Communities fractured along lines of ethnic and religious affiliation and the ensuing fighting was deeply personal, resulting in brutality, rape and torture, and ultimately the deaths of thousands of people. This book examines the internal...

In the early hours of June 6, 1944, the first of over 150,000 Allied soldiers stormed five beaches in Normandy against fierce German resistance. They were specially trained and task-organized in a range of different landing teams depending on their means of transport, their tasks, and the resistance they anticipated. The first assault infantry were accompanied by tankers, combat engineers, and other specialist personnel, to breach German obstacles, knock out defensive positions, and to defend...

'General Leclerc' was the�nom de guerre�adopted by the Gaullist officer Philippe de Hautcloque, to protect his family in occupied France. He became France's foremost fighting commander, and his armored division (the '2e DB') its most famous formation. Starting as a small scratch force of mostly African troops organised and led by Leclerc in French Equatorial Africa, it achieved early success raiding Italian and German positions in co-operation with Britain's Long Range Desert Group. Following...

Early Samurai 200-1500ad by OspreyItem Number: OSPELI35Elite 35Author: Anthony J BryantIllustrator: Angus McBrideAbout this bookWar played a central part in the history of Japan. Warring clans controlled much of the country. The wars were usually about land, the struggle for control of which eventually gave rise to perhaps the most formidable warriors of all time: the Samurai. Ancient Yayoi warriors developed weapons, armour and a code during the ensuing centuries that became the centrepiece...

English Civil Wars 1642-1651 by OspreyItem Number: OSPESS58Essential Histories 58Author: Peter GauntAbout this bookThe period 1642-1651, one of the most turbulent in the history of mainland Britian, saw the country torn by civil wars. Focusing on the English and Welsh wars this book examines the causes, course and consequences of the conflicts. While offering a concise military account that assesses the wars in their national, regional and local contexts, Dr Gaunt provides a full appraisal of...

Ancient Rome had deep roots in the 'Villanovan' culture that we call today the Etruscans. Their long-lived civilization can be traced to 900-750 BC in north-west Italy. They were a sea-faring people trading with and competing against Greek and Phoenician peoples, including the Carthaginians. They were also a great land-based power, especially in the 'Classical' period, where they expanded their power north into the Po Valley and south to Latium. In the 6th century BC an Etruscan dynasty ruled...

The Munich Olympics massacre in 1972 was a shock awakening to the public. In the decades since, European countries have faced a wide range of threats from Palestinian and home-grown terrorists, to the more recent world-wide jihadists. The threats they pose are widespread from aircraft hi-jacking and political assassinations to urban warfare against security forces, and murderous attacks on civilian crowd targets, forcing governments have had to invest ever-greater efforts in countering these...

Finland At War 1939-45 by OspreyItem Number: OSPELI141Elite 141Authors: Philip Jowett Brent SnodgrassIllustrator: Raffaele RuggeriAbout this bookIn the face of Soviet invasion in 1939'40, and once again in1941'44, the armies raised by Finland ' a tiny nation of only 4 million people - astonished the world by their effective resistance. At the end of both these campaigns ' the Winter War, and the Continuation War ' the fiercely patriotic defiance of vastly stronger Soviet forces by Marshal...

First Special Service Force 42 by OspreyItem Number: OSPELI145Elite 145Author: Bret WernerIllustrator: Michael WelplyAbout this bookThis is a concise history of the unique integrated commando-style brigade of US and Canadian volunteers formed in 1942. Hand picked, and trained in airborne, amphibious, mountain and winter warfare, demolitions and close-quarter tactics, they left a combat legacy still recognized amongst today's Special Forces. This book explores the remarkable results the FSSF...

Franco Prussian War by OspreyItem Number: OSPESS51Essential Histories 51Author: Stephen BadseyAbout this bookThe Franco-Prussian War broke out in 1870 when Bismarck engineered a war with the French Second Empire under Napoleon III. This was part of his wider political strategy of uniting Prussia with the southern German states, excluding Austria. The war was an overwhelming Prussian victory, and King Wilhelm I was proclaimed Emperor of the new united Germany. The Second Empire collapsed and...

French Foreign Leg Paratroops by OspreyItem Number: OSPELI6Elite 6Author: Martin WindrowIllustrator: Kevin LylesAbout this bookThe decision, in Spring 1948, to form two battalions of Foreign Legion paratroopers was prompted by the requirement for enlarged airborne forces in Indochina, and the healthy recruitment then employed by the Legion. There were some initial doubts. The Legion were known to be magnificent heavy infantry, but were felt by some to lack the flexibility and agility demanded...

French Napoleonic Inf Tactics by Osprey PublishingItem Number: OSPELI159Bonaparte's Grande Arm-e, one of the most renowned battle-winning machines in history, evolved from a merging of the professional army of the Ancien R-gime and the volunteers and conscripts of the Revolutionary lev-e en masse - although the contribution of the former is often underestimated. A leading authority on the history of tactics draws here on original drill manuals and later writings to explain how the French...

Genghis Khan & The Mongol Conq by OspreyItem Number: OSPESS57Essential Histories 57Author: Stephen TurnbullAbout this bookThe history of the Mongol conquests is a catalogue of superlatives. No army in the world has ever conquered so much territory, and few armies have provoked such terror as the Mongol hordes. So vast was the extent of the Mongol Empire that the samurai of Japan and the Teutonic Knights of Prussia had each fought the same enemy while being unaware of each other's existence....

The Imperial German Army Air Service of World War I grew from just 500 men in 1914 to 80,000 in 1918, inventing in the process a wholly new form of warfare. The exploits of the first fighter -aces' have been widely celebrated, and have tended to overshadow the other, equally important branches of the fighting air forces - the reconnaissance and ground attack units, the airships and strategic bombers. This concise but fact- packed guide to both the Army and Naval Air Services - their command,...

German Commanders Of WW II by Osprey PublishingItem Number: OSPELI118This first of two studies examines the careers and illustrates the appearance and uniforms of 19 of the German Army-s leading field commanders in World War II. Their service covers the whole arc of that army-s wartime experience, from stunning success in 1939-41, through the hugely costly middle years on the Russian Front to the stubborn defensive fighting in both East and West in 1943-45. Also included are five more junior...

Author: Gordon WilliamsonIllustrator: Mike ChappellAbout this bookA fascinating and long overdue study of the troops that made up Germany_s elite special forces of World War II. Such forces included the legenday Skorzeny Commandos who carried out audacious tasks such as the glider-borne rescue of Mussolini, and the kidnapping of the son of the Hungarian regent, Admiral Horthy. This book also includes details of lesser-known units such as the Brandenburgers, who operated behind enemy lines in...

Each great samurai warlord, or daimyo, had a division of troops known as the Hatamoto, 'those who stand under the flag'. The Hatamoto included the personal bodyguards, the senior generals, the standard bearers and colour-guard, the couriers, and the other samurai under the warlord's personal command. Apart from bodyguard and other duties in immediate attendance on the daimyo, both horse and foot guards often played crucial roles in battle. Their intervention could turn defeat into victory, and...

In 1947, when the UN partitioned Palestine into Jewish and Arab states, the true war for Israel's existence began. Throughout the War of Independence the PAL'MACH (Hebrew abbreviation for 'Strike Companies') spearheaded Israel's forces. Disbanded in 1949, the PAL'MACH was replaced by other specialist units, including paratroop forces, the GOLANI Infantry Brigade, the Naval Commandos, and territorial and other reconnaissance commando formations. An acknowledged expert on the Israeli Defence...

From the creation of the first volunteer paratroop unit shortly after the birth of Israel and of the Israeli Defense Force, this arm of service has been recognized as elite. They have also been the first choice for daring special missions, and it is mainly from their ranks that Israel's Special Forces units have been recruited. A unique aspect of the Israeli military is the cross-posting of officers from the airborne, armoured and other units, to ensure that all unit commanders share their...

Author: Pier Paolo BattistelliIllustrator: Johnny ShumateAbout this bookItalian military historian Pier Paolo Battistelli examines the elite and specialforces units of the Italian Army during World War II. This includes a vast array of troop types, including paratroopers, assault engineers, sea-landing and swimmer units, long-range recce and ski units, and even hand-picked Fascist _Mussolini_ units. It also delves into the specialist tank and armoured units that were created to emulate the...

Japanese Naval Aviation Unifor by OspreyItem Number: OSPELI86Elite 86Author: Gary NilaIllustrator: Bill YounghusbandAbout this bookThis long awaited title provides a fantastic reference resource on the uniforms, dress, flight gear and personal weaponry of the Imperial Japanese Navy airmen of World War II. It includes detailed descriptions of flight gear, including manufacture information, and interviews with IJN pilots such as Sakai, Komachi, Tanimizu, Kawato and Saito regarding the use of a...

Kaiser's Warlords by OspreyItem Number: OSPELI97Elite 97Author: Ronald PawlyIllustrator: Patrice CourcelleAbout this bookThe turn of the 20th century saw Imperial Germany as essentially a militarist state, whose growing industrial resources and wealth were harnessed to the task of increasing German military power, at a time of aggressive expansionist diplomacy in competition with Britain and France. After her victories over Austria in the 1860s and France in 1870, Germany's General Staff...

On 28 September 1941, Hitler instituted a new, supreme class of the Knight's Cross decoration for gallantry and leadership: the Oak-Leaves with Swords and Diamonds. This award would be presented to only 28 soldiers, sailors and airmen, out of the approximately 15 million who served in the German armed forces. This title describes and illustrates all 28 of those men - from fighter aces and U-boat commanders, to the youngest generals in the Wehrmacht, and field marshals in command of army groups...

Knights At Tournament by OspreyItem Number: OSPELI17Elite 17Author: Christopher GravettIllustrator: Angus McBrideAbout this bookLike all warrior classes throughout history medieval knights engaged in military games, partly in preparation for war and partly for pure sport. From their often brutal origins in the 10th century to the gaudy pageantry and eventual decline of the 15th and 16th centuries, tournaments were the centre of the knightly life. The image of the armoured and surcoated knight...