In Brief

This article is from Military History Matters issue 146

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Eagle Days: life and death for the Luftwaffe in the Battle of Britain

In 1940, Herman Goering promised his Führer an intensive air campaign that would sweep away all remaining opposition to the Nazi invasion of Britain but the events that were to follow would not reflect the optimism of German propaganda. Victoria Taylor here provides a comprehensive new account of the Luftwaffe’s real experiences during the Battle of Britain.

Eagle Days: life and death for the Luftwaffe in the Battle of Britain
Victoria Taylor
Apollo, hbk, 432pp (£25)
ISBN 978-1804549995

A Scandal in Konigsberg

Now part of the Russian enclave of Kaliningrad, the former Prussian and German port of Königsberg was for most of its history a somewhat sleepy place. But in the late 1830s, in the aftermath of the Napoleonic Wars, it became famous for all the wrong reasons. Christopher Clark’s new book is the result of the author’s many years of fascination with this strange case.

A Scandal in Konigsberg
Christopher Clark
Allen Lane, hbk, 240pp (£22)
ISBN 978-0241767887

Sword: D-Day trial by battle

In his latest book, Max Hastings explores the actions of the Commando brigade, Montgomery’s 3rd Infantry, and 6th Airborne division during the D-Day landings of June 1944. Sword vividly describes the hopes, fears, and frustrations of individual soldiers – many of whom had never seen battle before – during their months and years of training, the assault on the beaches themselves, and beyond.

Sword: D-Day trial by battle
Max Hastings
Harper Collins, hbk, 400pp (£25)
ISBN 978-0008699758

Lest We Forget: war and peace in 100 British monuments

Why did Scotland take 600 years to commemorate its most famous freedom fighter? When did Wellington become an anti-establishment figure? And can the Cenotaph ever stay above politics? Ahead of the 80th anniversary of VE Day, Tessa Dunlop has travelled across Britain better to understand what monuments and memorials say about the country and its history.

Lest We Forget: war and peace in 100 British monuments
Tessa Dunlop
HarperNorth, hbk, 352pp (£25)
ISBN 978-0008713140

Sceptred Isle: a new history of the 14th century

The death of King Edward I in 1307 began a period of intense turmoil in England, with the start of the Hundred Years War with France, famine in Europe, and the largest catastrophe in human history: the Black Death. Sceptred Isle promises to be a thrilling new account of this century of upheaval from historian Helen Carr. 

Sceptred Isle: a new history of the 14th century
Helen Carr
Hutchinson Heinemann, hbk, 464pp (£25)
ISBN 978-1529151657

Allies at War: the politics of defeating Hitler

After the Fall of France in June 1940, Churchill, then desperate for allies, did everything he could to bring the United States into the conflict and drive a wedge between the Soviet Union and Nazi Germany. Tim Bouverie, the best-selling author of 2019’s Appeasing Hitler, offers a fresh perspective on the political drama behind the military events of the Second World War.

Allies at War: the politics of defeating Hitler
Tim Bouverie
Bodley Head, hbk, 688pp (£22)
ISBN 978-1847926227

PODCASTS

Warrior Women

This brand new podcast from the Leeds-based Royal Armouries Museum looks at the fascinating lives of five women during wartime, exploring how they navigated their roles as spies, diplomats, rebels, and soldiers – facing danger at every turn. Hosted by Anna Ward, part of the museum’s exhibition team, the first episode looks at Vera Leigh, who was one of only 39 women chosen to work with the Special Operations Executive (SOE) during the Second World War. Special guest Dr Kate Vigurs describes Leigh’s intriguing double life as a special agent in occupied Paris, and her ultimate fate at the hands of the enemy.

Warrior Women
Vera Leigh, Anna Ward and Dr Kate Vigurs
https://royalarmouries.org/objects-and-stories/stories/warrior-women

Not So Quiet on the Western Front! Verdun Parts I & II

Hosted by military historians Dr Spencer Jones and Dan Hill, Not So Quiet on the Western Front! is a popular and long-running podcast specialising in – as the title implies – the First World War. Recent episodes have focused on the role of France during that conflict, looking at the lives of ordinary French soldiers and the country’s initial response to the crisis of 1914. A two-part special released in March on the Verdun campaign, one of the most significant events of the war, looks in detail at the battle’s slow descent into attritional warfare and its overall impact on the organisation and resources of the French military.

Not So Quiet on the Western Front! Verdun Parts I & II
Dr Spencer Jones and Dan Hill, with guests
https://battleguide.co.uk/nsq