The Territorials: The History of the Territorial and Volunteer Forces of New Zealand
Peter Cooke and John Crawford
Citizen soldiering has been part of our history since the first years of colonial settlement. From the early militias set up in the 1830s, primarily for internal security, right up to the current day, everyday men and women have been trained and ready to serve in the Boer War, the Great War, World War II and many other military engagements. The shape and purpose of the volunteer and territorial armies has changed over the years, but is marked throughout by bravery, adventure and initiative. This extensive and authoritative history ... read more
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Military history is now a best-selling publishing category, and in recent years there has been a spate of enormously successful books, both fiction and non-fiction, movies and television programmes devoted to it. Interest in the first of the twentieth century's great military conflicts has been strong, and the First World War's terrible futility has been brilliantly caught in books, movies and in television series, some of them recreating the horrors of the war in dreadful detail, and others, like Joan Littlewood's Oh What A Lovely... read more
Designed to be the best fighter in the world the creators of the Spitfire married science, technology and art to create both 'a thing of beauty' and a deadly weapon that changed the course of the war. 'You don't just strap yourself in, you buckle the Spitfire on, like girding on armour...'Squadron Leader William Duncan Smith The Spitfire is part of popular culture and from the Battle of Britain to the present day it has remained a national celebrity. As a focus of appeals, for scrap aluminium - 'turn your saucepans into Spitfires' ... read more
A dramatic account of 'The Great War' that combines emotive photography with personal accounts which evoke both the futility and the spirit of the Great War. Considering every aspect of the conflict - sea, land and on the home front - this momentous book is a vivid analysis of the causes and forces behind the most destructive and costliest war ever witnessed. A must for any military buff.
By the time the First World War broke out in 1914, photography had become affordable and popular. Many of the 100,000 New Zealanders who went overseas to fight carried cameras with them, determined to capture their part in the 'great adventure'. And soldiers were not the only ones to take photographs: cameras were also used by officials, journalists and medical staff. The Face of War is the first book to examine the photographs, many previously unknown, of New Zealand's First World War experience, tracing a sometimes shocking, ofte... read more
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Twelve soldier poets of the First World War Leading poet and former professor of English Literature, Jon Stallworthy tells the story of the lives and work of twelve major poets of the First World War and provides selections of their best work. The First World War began with flag-waving, parades and poets inspired by abstract ideals, in part this reflected the national mood, but it revealed an almost universal failure to understand what modern mass warfare would really mean. The story of the 'war poets' is also the story of an a... read more
The biannual Warbirds over Wanaka airshow attracts up to 100,000 visitors every two years. An idea originated by pioneer Tim Wallis, the show is world-renowned and as a consequence attracts pilots and their aircraft and visitors with an interest in aviation, military history, machinery of old from all over the world.This book is the official record of the events at the show, both those on the ground and in the air. The photographers are experienced in their chosen fields, whether it be photographing aircraft on the ground, in the a... read more
An extraordinary and dramatic depiction of the legendary battle of Agincourt from the number one historical novelist.Agincourt, fought on October 25th 1415, on St Crispin's Day, is one of the best known battles, in part through the brilliant depiction of it in Shakespeare's Henry V, in part because it was a brilliant and unexpected English victory and in part because it was the first battle won by the use of the longbow - a weapon developed by the English which enabled them to dominate the European battlefields for the rest of the ... read more
A detailed look at the war against Japan in the Pacific Islands during the Second World War. Published to coincide with the forthcoming ten-part HBO mini series, 'The Pacific', produced by Tom Hanks, Steven Spielberg and Gary Goetzman - the team behind the hugely successful 'Band of Brothers'.
Important and timely histories bring to life conflicts that educated readers have heard of but want to know more about. Each of the chapters covers a major war that had a profound effect on the way our civilisation was shaped. Veteran history author Joseph Cummins describes each conflict with gripping freshness and vitality that brings the time, people, and crises to life in a narrative history style.This book offers a rare look at multiple conflicts in an accessible, easy to digest format--not a look at war "for dummies," but a so... read more
This beautifully illustrated book is a moving pictorial record of World War I as experienced by the Anzacs, the soldiers of the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps. More than 500 rarely seen photos, historic maps, letters and diaries from the Australian War Memorial archives, as well as detailed captions and illustrated timelines bring to life the Anzac story as experienced by the ordinary soldier. Additional perspectives are gained from official war historian Charles Bean, journalist Keith Murdoch, commanding officer at Gallipol... read more
Our story begins almost 2500 years ago, on 28 September 480 BC, when the Athenian navy destroyed the Persian invasion fleet in the Bay of Salamis. Had the Persians won, we might never have heard the names of Plato, Aristotle or Alexander, nor recognise the word democracy. Charting 25 such defining conflicts, concluding with the Gulf Wars and the future of the War on Terror, Wars That Changed the World is a unique and fascinating portrayal of the story of world history.
World War I stands as a watershed in the evolution of modern warfare, with the development of sophisticated trench systems forming a battlefield over 400 miles long, notable improvements in weaponry and equipment and the first example of tanks being used in battle. This book examines the day-to-day lives of the British Tommy, the German Stormtrooper, the French Poilu and the American Doughboy as they fought and died in the trenches, with details of their recruitment and training and vivid descriptions of combat on the Western Front... read more
Through over 15 beautifully recreated facsimile documents, including maps, diaries, official reports, telegrams and personal letters, Anzacs at War shows why, more than any other fighting force in history, Anzacs have been praised for their courage, endurance, skill, good humour and comradeship.
Showcasing rare archival photographs, and written by the premier oceanographer and researcher R.D Ballard, "Graveyards of the Pacific" is an illustrated and authoritative history of the World War II Pacific battle sites.
Chris Pugsley is New Zealands leading expert on the First World War period and his writings have stripped away the myth that the Anzacs were natural soldiers. This collection tells the story of New Zealanders, Australians and Canadians at war from the Boer War in South Africa to the Empires involvement in the cataclysmic struggle of 19141918. Pugsley describes how citizen armies gradually became professional as they learned from their mistakes and how the crucible of war shaped New Zealand identity forever.
This significant tome, with over 1500 photographs, covers the subject of portable firearms from muzzle-loaders to machine guns; from revolvers to machine pistols; from muskets to automatics; from derringers to submachine-guns. Compiled by experts whose hands-on knowledge and skill comes over in text and captions, The Illustrated History of Firearms provides a visual reference book to grace any aficionado's library.
