Osprey's overview of the most calamitous defeat of the German armed forces in World War II (1939-1945). On 22 June 1944, three years to the day after Germany's 1941 invasion of the Soviet Union, the R
On April 6th, the German 2nd and 12th Armies, Italian 2nd and 9th Armies, and the Hungarian 4th, 5th and Mobile Corps invaded Yugoslavia from Italy, Germany, Romania, Bulgaria and Albania. Few of the
Zulu military organisation was extremely sophisticated. Warriors were organised into regiments with some form of basic uniform and shields were state-manufactured and owned. Yet, in spite of this soph
Initially the strongest of all the Allied armies, France's metropolitan and colonial units bore the greatest burden during the first two years of the Great War, and made a great contribution to the fi
Little has been published in English on the Japanese Army Air Force (JAAF), let alone its most successful fighter pilots - no less than 150 of them achieved ace status during eight years of near-const
After AD 304 the five 'barbarian' tribes divided north China among themselves, setting up dynasties which were often Chinese only in name, and feuding constantly both with each other and with the nati
The SS originated as Hitler's personal bodyguard and following his rise to power in 1933 the organisation divided into two: the Waffen-SS, which comprised the military wing, and the Allgemeine-SS, who
In the campaigns of the French Revolutionary (1792-1802) and Napoleonic Wars (1799-1815), the deserved reputation of the British infantry has tended to overshadow the contribution of the cavalry, but
Osprey's study of the Battles of Aspern and Wagram of the Napoleonic Wars (1799-1815). The 1809 campaign on the Danube was to break the spell of Napoleon's invincibility. Indeed Wagram – the largest b
Osprey's examination of the War of 1812, which was? the product of the United States' wish to free itself from the British Empire. The conflict that broke out in 1812 seemed born of an almost subconsc
The British assault on Breed's Hill and the burning of Charlestown were the first major battles of the American Revolution; after the events at Boston there was no turning back. This detailed text by
Osprey's examination of one of the most controversial battles of the American Indian Wars (1775-1918). The death of George Armstrong Custer, and over half of his 7th Cavalry Regiment in the valley of
Osprey's examination of the Battle of Antietam, which was one of the critical battles of the American Civil War (1861-1865). The fortunes of the South were riding high after the resounding victory at
The first official German stormtroop unit was authorized on 2 March 1915 when the Supreme Command of the field army ordered the VIII Corps to form a detachment for the testing of experimental weapons
In 1899 Great Britain was at the height of its Imperial power. The Queen Empress had been on the throne for more than 50 glittering years, and her domain touched upon every continent. Yet, even at thi
The M4 Sherman tank was the mainstay of the Western allies between 1942 and 1945. Fast and modern it was better than most of the tanks Britain had to offer. The American Chief of Staff claimed in Nove
The Churchill was undoubtedly one of the most successful British tanks of the Second World War. Although it suffered from being underarmed, a defect common to most British armoured vehicles of the per
Probably the most highly motivated and ruthless combatant to take the field in World War II (1939-1945), the Waffen-SS soldier was the cutting edge of Germany's military might. Aggressive in attack, d
In June 1941 the US Army's air organisations were consolidated under a single command, the Army Air Forces or AAF. Its expansion was rapid and massive, and its contribution to the war effort was subst
Osprey's examination of 'Market Garden,' one of the most audacious, and ultimately controversial, operations of World War II (1939-1945). It was a joint penetration, by an armoured column and a large-
