Military History
Airships
Price: £4.99
ISBN: 978 0 74780 084 2 / Shire Library 259 / 32 pp
Dirigible balloons, usually known as airships, were first suggested in the late eighteenth century but not until the invention of the internal combustion engine a hundred years later were they able to achieve controlled and directed flight.
Aviation Archaeology in Britain
Price: £6.99
ISBN: 978 0 74780 490 1 / Shire Archaeology 80 / 64 pp
During the Second World War, an average of five aircraft crashed every day in the British Isles. Their remains provide an opportunity for archaeological and historical study. This book is an introduction to the aircraft, the airfields, the documentary record and the memorials to the men and women who gave their lives in the air war.
British Campaign Medals 1815-1914
Price: £4.99
ISBN: 978 0 74780 465 9 / Shire Library 384 / 40 pp
At a time of imperial expansion, British forces were almost constantly in action against major powers, in wars of conquest, or in expeditions on the fringes of Empire, such as the North West Frontier, southern Africa or Burma. This book outlines the medals issued to British soldiers and sailors for military service.
British Campaign Medals 1914-2005
Price: £5.99
ISBN: 978 0 74780 649 3 / Shire Library 393 / 48 pp
Surveys the medals awarded to British personnel for military services from the First World War to operations of British forces in the opening years of the twenty-first century. The campaign medals awarded for the military actions have become a popular field for collectors, since the majority of British awards were officially named.
British Gallantry Awards 1855-2000
Price: £5.99
ISBN: 978 0 74780 516 8 / Shire Library 394 / 64 pp
This book surveys the British decorations and medals from the origins in the Crimean War of 1854-6 up to the end of the twentieth century.
British Military Rifles
Price: £5.99
ISBN: 978 0 74780 633 2 / Shire Library 445 / 48 pp
A concise history of the attempts to develop and improve the British Army's most important individual weapon, and the ammunition designed for it.
British Orders and Decorations
Price: £5.99
ISBN: 978 0 74780 580 9 / Shire Library 424 / 56 pp
Introduces the insignia worn by members of British Orders of Knighthood and Chivalry. These Orders have existed since the early Middle Ages and were initially intended to unite important noblemen in bonds of loyalty to their monarch or to act as impressive rewards for their services.
British Regimental Traditions
Price: £9.99
ISBN: 978 0 74780 662 2 / Shire Discovering 292 / 136 pp
Charts the history of the British Army by using one of its most distinctive aspects - its regimental traditions. This work describes the emergence of a royal army under Charles II and its expansion during the eighteenth century, the formation of its militia, the yeomanry and the Territorials, the distinction of the Household Cavalry and more.
Discovering Artillery
Price: £4.99
ISBN: 978 0 85263 707 4 / Shire Discovering 123 / 72 pp / Now Available
Artillery has been an important part of the armament of the British and European armies since the fourteenth century. This book describes the development of artillery from the primitive ‘pot-de-fer’ of 1326 and other early cannons to the larger firing equipment of the First World War. Covering a wide range of artillery such as field, horse, mountain, coastal and naval, plus additional advice on model making, Discovering Artillery provides a fascinating survey of a significant aspect of military history.
R.J. Wilkinson Latham is manager of the sword business of Wilkinson Sword, and is the fifth generation of his family to be connected with the business. He is the author of ‘British Military Bayonets’ and co-author, with his brother, of ‘Cavalry Uniforms of Britain and the Commonwealth’, and two volumes on ‘Infantry Uniforms of Britain and the Commonwealth’. He has also written ‘Discovering British Military Badges and Buttons’ for Shire.
Discovering Battlefields of England and Scotland
Price: £8.99
ISBN: 978 0 74780 370 6 / Shire Discovering 287 / 184 pp
This chronological gazetteer of the battlefields of England and Scotland shows readers how to find them and it includes 69 sites, each with a description map of the battle which took place there. Various baronial and border wars are included.
Discovering British Military Badges and Buttons
Price: £6.99
ISBN: 978 0 74780 484 0 / Shire Discovering 148 / 88 pp
This book examines the development of the various styles of military head-dress badge from 1751, to the introduction of 'cap badges' in 1894. Buttons are dealt with from 1767 to 1881.
Discovering English County Regiments
Price: £9.99
ISBN: 978 0 74780 506 9 / Shire Discovering 294 / 160 pp
This brief history of each of the former county regiments lists the battle honours on their Colours, their marches, customs, Victoria Crosses, nicknames, badges, facings, mottoes and memorials and describes their amalgamations and later lineage.
Discovering Horse-Drawn Transport of the British Army
Price: £4.99
ISBN: 978 0 85263 403 5 / Shire Discovering 233 / 72 pp / Now Available
Horse-drawn vehicles have played an essential role in the transport of military stores since ancient times, yet the British Army did not have a permanent royal transport corps until the Crimean War in the nineteenth century. Beginning from this period, this book explores the variety of horse-drawn vehicles used by the British Army, from the general service wagons and water carts, to the specialised horse ambulance and the travelling field cooker. Using line drawings to explain the equipment and construction methods, and illustrated with black and white photographs throughout, D. J. Smith reveals the vital role played by these wagons and carts for centuries until the introduction of motor vehicles in the World War I gradually superseded them.
Early Armoured Cars
Price: £4.99
ISBN: 978 0 85263 908 5 / Shire Library 209 / 32 pp
Early Firearms
1300-1800Price: £5.99
ISBN: 978 0 74780 672 1 / Shire Library 464 / 48 pp
This book provides a general summary of the history of European firearms, from the earliest designs which appeared during the Middle Ages through to the mechanised weapon production of the Industrial Revolution. Covering the dual inventions of gunpowder and the gun, the development of reliable firing mechanisms, improvements in accuracy and rate of fire and the revolutionary changes brought about by the application of scientific and industrial processes, Michael Spencer explains the technical evolution of the firearm and analyses what drove these changes. Built around an accurate dating framework, this is an invaluable resource for both military historians and firearms collectors, and includes an array of illustrations of rare firearms, difficult to find elsewhere in print.
European Orders and Decorations to 1945
Price: £9.99
ISBN: 978 0 74780 670 7 / Shire Library 463 / 96 pp
Since the early Middle Ages, the Royal and princely families of Europe have conferred a wide range of Orders of Knighthood and Chivalry both to reward loyal service to the Crown or Royal Family and to strengthen the bonds of loyalty which existed between sovereign and subject. Although many ancient Orders have fallen into disuse over time, many European states continue to award Orders for distinguished service. Badges of the highest quality are worn to show membership of an Order. The manufacture, and the materials used in creating these badges are exquisite and these decorative objects are studied and collected widely. In this volume, expert medal collector Peter Duckers describes the range of European Orders conferred before 1945, some of which stretch back hundreds of years. A brief introduction to a fascinating subject, this is an ideal reference book for anyone interested in collecting these rare and valuable objects.
Peter Duckers has been a collector of British campaign and gallantry medals for thirty-five years and now specialises in awards to the Indian Army. He has written numerous magazine and journal articles about medals and is a Fellow of the Royal Numismatic Society as well as a member of the Orders and Medals Research Society and the Indian Military Historical Society. He is curator of the Shropshire Regimental Museum in Shrewsbury Castle.
Fortifications From the Tudors to the Cold War
Price: £10.99
ISBN: 978 0 74780 651 6 / Shire Discovering 296 / 144 pp
Britain has responded to threat of invasions or attack building strongholds (fortifications). This book reveals what fortifications were built to contain insurrection in Scotland in the eighteenth century and Ireland in the twentieth century.
Military Barracks
Price: £4.99
ISBN: 978 0 74780 489 5 / Shire Library 358 / 32 pp
Prisoner of War in Germany
Price: £5.99
ISBN: 978 0 74780 685 1 / Shire Library 473 / 64 pp
Peter Doyle is a scientist and military historian, and was in charge of the recent archaeological dig at the site of Stalag Luft III, which identified one of the three escape tunnels. His father, Pte Leslie Doyle, spent five long years as a POW in Germany. In addition to numerous scientific books and papers, his books include: The British Soldier of 1914-1918 (Shire, 2008) and The Home Front 1939–1945 (with Paul Evans) Crowood, 2007.
Roman Artillery
Price: £6.99
ISBN: 978 0 74780 575 5 / Shire Archaeology 86 / 80 pp
After examining the Greek origins of torsion-powered catapults, this book describes the machines used from the time of Cae onwards, their dominance in the warfare of the western world for over a thousand years, and their importance in the history of technology.
Siege Mines and Underground Warfare
Price: £6.99
ISBN: 978 0 74780 547 2 / Shire Archaeology 84 / 64 pp
Staff Cars
Price: £4.99
ISBN: 978 0 74780 058 3 / Shire Library 245 / 32 pp
The British Soldier of the First World War
Price: £5.99
ISBN: 978 0 74780 683 7 / Shire Library 471 / 56 pp / Available April 2008
The familiar pictures of the First World War show soldiers in their trenches: hellish images of mud. But there is another dimension not depicted by these frightening representations of battle: the mundane everyday routine of the majority of the soldier’s life that was spent away from the Front. This book explores the life of the average British ‘Tommy’ of the Great War, in battle and at rest, in training, and on his return home. Illustrated with evocative images of the war, and items of the soldier’s kit, it provides an answer to the question: what was it like to be a soldier in the trenches on the front line?
Peter Doyle is a scientist and military historian specialising in the role of terrain in warfare. His books include: ‘Tommy’s War 1914–1918’; ‘Beneath Flanders Fields: The Underground War 1914-18’ and ‘Grasping Gallipoli’. He is co-secretary of the All Party Parliamentary War Graves and Battlefield Heritage Group, and is an elected member of the British Commission for Military History. He lives in London.
The British-Indian Army 1860-1914
Price: £5.99
ISBN: 978 0 74780 550 2 / Shire Library 412 / 56 pp / Available April 2008
This book provides a glimpse into the complex, multi-layered and evolving institution and offers an introduction to the uniforms, arms and services of the Indian Army at the height of the Raj.
The Victorian Soldier
Price: £4.99
ISBN: 978 0 74780 460 4 / Shire Library 352 / 32 pp
Although lacking the weapons of today, Victorian soldiers were no different from their present-day successors. This volume aims to bring these soldiers to life through their uniforms, weapons, equipment and illustrations of them at war and at peace.
The WAAF
A History of the Women’s Auxiliary Air Force in the Second World WarPrice: £4.99
ISBN: 978 0 74780 572 4 / Shire Library 422 / 40 pp
The story of the Women’s Auxiliary Air Force is a journey of exploration. This intriguing history tells the story of the wartime WAAF at work and play. They were no decorative adjunct to the RAF, but an integral working force that eventually saved the RAF 150,000 men, whose places they filled admirably. Debarred from flying, they nevertheless could be found in posts ranging from cooks to aircraft fitters. They were radar operators, plotters in busy operations rooms, nurses in air evacuation. In secrecy they worked as codebreakers at Bletchley Park, in the Y Listening Service, as code and cypher officers in Churchill’s War Cabinet, as air interpreters, and as SOE agents in occupied France. Many others were posted abroad to work. This book provides a fascinating bird’s-eye view of their many roles.
Squadron Leader Beryl E. Escott was born in Newfoundland and educated at Durham University. She joined the RAF in 1961 and in her spare time edited magazines and wrote books for the service. On leaving the RAF in 1986, she started work on ‘Women in Air Force Blue’, a history of the service, and she has since written several other books. Widely recognised as the leading WAAF historian, she lives in Warwickshire.
Trench Art
Price: £5.99
ISBN: 978 0 74780 543 4 / Shire Library 409 / 48 pp
The Victoria Cross
Price: £5.99
ISBN: 978 0 74780 635 6 / Shire Library 447 / 72 pp
Describes and illustrates many of the medals, including the Victoria Cross award, and the men and women who have been awarded them together with the award citations which are always remarkable and sometimes astounding.
Victoria's Wars
Price: £7.99
ISBN: 978 0 74780 388 1 / Shire Library 540 / 88 pp
War Memorials in Britain
Price: £5.99
ISBN: 978 0 74780 626 4 / Shire Library 441 / 56 pp
War memorials are a feature of Britain's landscape, and part of the fabric of its history as a nation. The Imperial War Museum's National Inventory has sixty thousand war memorials spanning two millennia. This work presents examples that are intended as a tribute to the victims of war and as tangible reminders of significant events.