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The history of Nazi Germany’s attempt to build a modern aircraft carrier, and the other aviation ships that Germany and Italy designed or operated.The quest for a modern aircraft carrier was the ultimate symbol of the Axis powers’ challenge to Allied naval might, but fully-fledged carriers proved either too difficult, expensive, or politically unpopular for either to make operational. After the Anglo-German Naval Agreement of 1935, Hitler publicly stated his intention to build an aircraft carrier, the Graf Zeppelin, which was launched in 1938. A year later, the ambitious fleet-expansion Z-Plan, was unveiled with two additional aircraft carriers earmarked for production. However, by the beginning of World War II, Graf Zeppelin was not yet completed and work was halted. Further aircraft carrier designs and conversion projects such as the ocean liner Europa and heavy cruiser Seydlitz were considered but, in January 1943, all construction work on surface vessels ceased and naval resources

The streets and public spaces of London are rich with statues and monuments commemorating the great people of history. From the monumental Nelson's Column in Trafalgar Square and Sir Christopher Wren'

Immortalized in literature through such characters as C. S. Forester's 'Horatio Hornblower' and Patrick O'Brian's 'Jack Aubrey', the officers and midshipmen of the Royal Navy during the Revolutionary

Probably the greatest test of the modeller is achieving the perfectly posed figure. This title explains how best to set up the figure, and goes on to deal with the niceties of painting, facial express

If there is one thing we can be sure of concerning the Saxons, Vikings and Normans who inhabited the medieval world, it is that they were a good deal more advanced than some writings would have us bel

Salah al Din Yusif ibn Ayyub, known to his Muslim contemporaries as al Nasi, 'The Victorious', and to an admiring Europe as Saladin, is the most famous single figure in the history of the Crusades, be

Spanning over a thousand years and an immense geographical area, the Roman Empire was the greatest in world history. At its most powerful, the Empire cast a shadow across the known world, and its lega

Field fortifications and tunnel systems are typically thought of as defensive and active protective measures, but the VC/NVA also employed them offensively. It was common for extensive field works to

Tourism - a product of the Victorian era, hugely developed through Edwardian times - generated thousands of fascinating books and photographs which together define the development of the massive indus

Hortatio Nelson, himself one of naval history's boldest actors, called the burning of the frigate Philadelphia by the United States Navy in 1804 "the most bold and daring act of the age." It is one o

Relive the epic conflict between the Christian west and Islamic east in this new Field of Glory Companion, Swords and Scimitars, which provides accessible, detailed army listings for the Crusades, cov

The oldest keys known to exist date from around 4,000 BC in Ancient Egypt. These were simple wooden cylinders that were part of a mechanism to secure doors. By the time of the Roman Empire, metal keys

Around AD 1450 a new Mexican nation emerged called the Aztec Empire of the Triple Alliance. They succeeded in making themselves the most powerful and feared civilisation in the Americas. The Mixtec an

In 1940 Japan placed Vietnam under military occupation, restricting the local French administration to a figurehead authority. Seizing the opportunity, the Communists organised a Vietnamese independe

From the earliest planning stages of the German counter-offensive in the Ardennes during World War II (1939-1945), Hitler was convinced of the importance of taking the Meuse bridges. He resolved that,

Egyptian mythology tells us that long ago the brother gods Osiris and Set ruled peacefully over the lands of Upper and Lower Egypt, each in his own kingdom. But over time Set came to covet his brother

By the time the first photographs were taken at war in the 1850s, the idea that 'the camera cannot lie' was already firmly embedded in the Victorian psyche. Photographs were truth, in a way the work o

Osprey's examiantion of pike and shot tactics employed in various wars of the 17th century. Throughout the 17th century, large parts of Europe were depopulated during wide-ranging and savage wars of r

Described by one soldier as "a metal box designed by a sadist to move soldiers across the water," the Landing Craft, Infantry was a large beaching craft intended to transport and del

Field of Glory provides the historical tabletop wargamer with a new, accessible rules set. Byzantium at War provides an accessible, detailed gaming companion, covering the forces of conflicts during t

This title provides a comprehensive and vivid account of life in the Russian infantry at the turn of the 19th century - a time when the Russian army was arguably one of the most important in the world

As the Second World War dragged on, heavy German losses in armoured vehicles and tanks ensured that assault gun units had to play an increasingly vital role in supporting the beleaguered infantry and

Influenced by the German use of paratroopers early in World War II (1939-1945), General Sir Robert Cassels, the Commander-in-Chief India, ordered the formation of an airborne cadre in October 1940. Th

The Parthians were a warrior people. Though possessing no regular army they were superb horsemen and archers, and in time of war the nobility provided heavily armoured knights mounted on weight-carryi

In 390 BC, a Gallic army marched on Rome. A confident Roman army of about 15,000 men that was sent to bar the way, was destroyed. Three days after the Battle of Allia, the Gauls entered Rome, much of

On 28 September 1066 William of Normandy landed near Hastings and prepared to meet the Anglo-Saxon army of King Harold Godwinson. On 10 October 1066 the two armies met; and after six hours of fighting

The Arthurian Age; the Celtic Twilight; the Dark Ages; the Birth of England; these are the powerfully romantic names often given to one of the most confused yet vital periods in British history. It is

These vigorous northern 'barbarians' were the destroyers of the Western Empire of Rome. It was they who delivered the coup de grace to the dying colossus in the south, subsequently creating medieval E

Cloves from the Moluccas, cinnamon from Sri Lanka, pepper from the Malabar coast, chillis from Peru – for over 4,000 years spices have been used to bring recipes to life, as well as to enhance beauty

This authoritative study examines the French Navy's last battleships, using detailed color plates and historical photographs, taking them from their inception before World War I, through their service

France's colonial wars in sub-Saharan Africa and South-East Asia were very largely fought by an organization completely separate from both the home-defense Metropolitan Army and the Armée d'Afrique in

In an effort to provide the US infantryman with more firepower to cover the range gap between the hand grenade and the light mortar, the 40mm M79 grenade launcher – a shoulder-fired, single-shot weapo

At the outbreak of World War I, Austria-Hungary had four modern light cruisers and twenty modern destroyers at their disposal, constructed in the early 20th century to defend their growing overseas in

In 1910 the first aircraft was successfully launched from a small wooden platform on a stationary ship. Just four years later, seaplane-carrying warships were being used to launch the first naval air

Armies of Castile and Aragon depicts the fighting men whose skill and tactical flexibility made Spain into a world power at the close of the Middle Ages, carving out empires from the Mediterranean to

In 1916, Imperial German aerial domination, once held by rotary-engined Fokker and Pfalz E-type wing-warping monoplanes, had been lost to the more nimble French Nieuport and British DH 2s which not on

Factions represented in the rulebook include: Greco-Roman, Egyptian, Japanese, Aztecs, Pre-Islamic Arabs (Arabian Nights), Norse, Celts and Chinese. For every army list, a list suitable models from va

Whilst under Putin's regime the size of Russia's regular forces has shrunk recently and will continue to do so, its security and paramilitary elements have become increasingly powerful. In fact, recently they have proliferated - as have their special uniforms and kit - and have become disproportionately important, spearheading all recent operations. They seem set to remain Russia's most active armed agencies for the immediate future. In parallel, within the murky world where government and private interests intersect, a number of paramilitary 'private armies' operate almost as vigilantes, with government toleration or approval.This book offers a succinct overview of the official, semi-official and unofficial agencies that pursue Russian government and quasi-government objectives by armed means, from the 200,000-strong Interior Troops, through Police and other independent departmental forces, down to private security firms (in Moscow alone, the largest four security companies have c. 8,

The patrol vehicles used by Special Operations Forces in Afghanistan and Iraq vary quite dramatically between the theaters as well as amongst the Coalition members, and have been developed and upgrade

Far from the influence of the powers of Europe and Asia, the jungles, plains and mountains of the Americas saw the rise and fall of many mighty empires constructed of Blood and Gold, from the bloodthi