The fourteenth century witnessed a late medieval arms race; an era that began with knightly combatants armed in mail - and ended with them dressed head-to-toe in the complete plate armour that is commonly associated with knights. Although well documented in art and effigies, only a very few examples of this early plate armour survive. In this first-of-its-kind series, Douglas Strong brings together three decades of research to offer a lavishly illustrated catalog of these surviving pieces with a detailed record of their provenance, characteristics, construction details, and current whereabouts. Filled with color and black-white photos, line-drawings, this 8.5 x 11 hardback is a piece of artwork in its own right. VOLUME I focuses on the bascinet, the ubiquitous helmet of the period. Developing out of a small skull-cap worn beneath the great helm, it quickly evolved into a complete head defense of its own, becoming the helmet that defines the knightly harness of the second half of the fourteenth century that survived in common usage into the early decades of the fifteenth century. Organizing the surviving examples into broad, morphological categories for both helmets and visors, Douglas Strong not only creates a catalog of surviving pieces, but presents a basic typology, the first of its kind, into which future discoveries can be fit.

Autocannon is a comprehensive history of the development of automatic cannon and their ammunition from the end of the nineteenth century up to the present day. A brief history of their development is followed by sections examining the basic principles of gun and ammunition design, including various unconventional systems. Next comes a survey of cartridges in calibre order, from 20mm to 57mm, including not only ammunition that has seen service, but also a wide range of experimental types. Finally there is a survey of the cannon, grouped by nationality, which again includes many experimental models. The book includes data on about 200 different cartridges and 400 cannon, and has nearly 500 illustrations. It is the culmination of decades of research, and is unmatched in its coverage of this subject.

Popularly known as the AK47 or just AK, the 7.62mm Avtomat Kalashnikov obrazets 1947g was accepted into service by the Soviet Army in 1947. Despite its widespread use by the Soviet armed forces, the AK only became known in the West during the Hungarian Revolution of 1956, when Soviet troops sent to quell the uprising carried the new weapon. Since then it has become probably the most widely recognized firearm of all time, having seen action in most of the conflicts of the past six decades.The Kalashnikov has been produced in many variants and calibres, and this book concentrates on those in the original 7.62mm form. Illustrated with over 350 colour photographs of AK variants produced around the world, including close-ups of the many fascinating detail differences, this work will be an invaluable addition to the bookshelf of anyone with an interest in modern military firearms. The most widely used firearm of the post-war era - the Kalashnikov rifle has become an icon of revolutionary struggle. Covers the principal design features of the AK variants that used the original 7.62x39mm M1943 cartridge. Will be of great interest to militaria enthusiasts, collectors and military historians of modern military firearms. Superbly illustrated with 350 colour photographs showing the different versions produced around the world. Martin J Brayley has a keen interest in military history and is a professional photogapher, author and dedicated militaria researcher and collector.

Aimed at military model makers and wargamers who are interested in the armoured fighting vehicles of the United States as used throughout World War II, this book follows on from Modelling British World War II Armoured Vehicles by the same author. The book places its emphasis on US Army and US Marine Corps AFVs modelled mainly in 1/72 and 1/48 scales, in a deliberate departure from the more popular 1/35 scale, to encourage and inspire model makers who are new to or less familiar with these scales. Illustrated with over 270 colour photos this book features every major US AFV used in World War II, with many models shown in various stages of construction and paintings. It presents step-by-step guides demonstrating the painting techniques appropriate for different scales and includes an additional section showing how to paint wargames models. There is also a review of how the USA developed tanks and other armoured vehicles from the interwar period through to the end of World War II. This fascinating story will help model makers and wargamers give the vehicles they build an historical context.

The History of Armour 1100 - 1700 offers a detailed account of how armour developed through the Medieval, Tudor, Elizabethan and Civil War eras, carefully itemizing the subtle changes over a six hundred year period. Each chapter focuses on an individual area of body protection, charting the evolution of each piece over time, from helmets and chest protection to arm guards, gauntlets, leg guards and sabatons. The book also encompasses the use of weaponry and its evolution, including protection for the horse.With the aid of the authors superb photographs and illustrations, the book looks at how fashions, as well as its protective qualities, influenced the style of armour. Valuable information has been acquired through the study of effigies over a number of years, and using these existing artifacts, supplemented by the authors meticulous illustrations and practical knowlege of armour construction, it has been possible to reconstruct the design and appearance of a wide range of armour. A meticulous study of the development of the knights protective armour and weaponry over a six hundred year period. Through the study of effigies over a number of years, the author has been able to reconstruct the design of a wide range of armour. An invaluable resource for historians, re-enactors, collectors and all those with an interest in miltiary or medieval history. Superbly illustrated with 275 colour photographs and illustrations. Paul Walker gives lectures in armour and weapons for English Heritage and has a lifelong interest in historical warfare.

Tank Turret Fortifications traces the origins of the idea from the development of the first armoured turrets in the nineteenth century through to the present day. On the way it covers the inter-war period when the first turrets were used in this way, the Second World War, when tank turrets were used on every front in the European Theatre of Operations, and the post-war period, when tank turrets were used even more widely. The book also details the decline of the idea as countries reassessed the threats they faced and slowly dismantled all their fixed fortifications. Widely used during World War Two and since, tank turret fortifications deserve a history, and Neil Short has spent several years writing this, the first proper study.

Sinopse: Alta performance na Física do Colégio Naval: Questões Comentadas de 2009 a 2025 é um guia completo e estratégico para estudantes que almejam a aprovação no disputado concurso do Colégio Nava

During the Second World War, the Germans considered the Royal Artillery to be the most professional arm of the British Army: British gunners were accurate, effective and efficient, and provided fire support for their armoured and infantry colleagues that was better than that in any other army.However, the Royal Artillery delivered much more than field and medium artillery battlefield support. Gunner regiments manned antitank guns on the front line and light anti-aircraft guns in divisional regiments to defend against air attack at home and abroad. The Royal Artillery also helped to protect convoys that brought essential supplies to Britain, and AA gunners had their finest hour when they destroyed the majority of the V-1 flying bombs launched against Britain from June 1944.Richard Doherty delves into the wide-ranging role of the Royal Artillery, examining its state of preparedness in 1939, the many developments that were introduced during the war including aerial observation and self-propelled artillery the growth of the regiment and its effectiveness in its many roles. Royal Artillery in the Second World War is a comprehensive account of a British Army regiment that played a vital role in the ensuing Allied victory.

Set in the north Norfolk countryside, Sculthorpe was the hub of offensive operations until its closure in 1944 for upgrading as a base for heavy bombers, its runway ideal for US Strategic Air Command bombers like the B-29. By 1951, it was formally handed over to US control and became a prime front-line nuclear bomber base as well as a centre of intelligence gathering via secret surveillance flights over Eastern Europe and the Soviet Union. There are many unanswered questions about the base during this period, not least regarding the RAF Special Duties Flight which carried out two overflights of the Soviet Union in 1952 and 1954. After 1962, the airfield once again became a standby base used by the USAF, the RAF and the Army.

At the outbreak of war in 1939 British tank crews were ill-equipped, under trained and badly led. As a consequence the lives of hundreds of crewmen were wasted unnecessarily. This was due not only to the poor design and construction of British tanks, but also to the lack of thought and planning on the part of successive pre-war governments and the War Office. Death by Design explores how and why Britain went from leading the world in tank design at the end of the First World War to lagging far behind the design quality of Russian and German tanks in the Second World War. This book is a much-needed warning to governments and military planners: a nation must always be prepared to defend itself and ensure that its soldiers are equipped with the tools to do so.

Discussing the background, weapons and tactics of the ancient Greeks, this title describes the weapons, armour, chariots and other military equipment used from 1550 to 150 BC. It traces how and when various pieces of equipment came into use; where they were introduced from; the effectiveness of the equipment; and when and why things changed.

This book provides a convenient reference to the history and characteristics of the self-loading pistols that were adopted by the military forces of the nations involved in the two World Wars. It presents a selection of nineteen self-loading pistols - and the firms engaged in their manufacture - during this period, together with a technical appraisal of each weapon. For each pistol a history of both manufacturer and pistol is provided, along with a colour photograph and cutaway views of both the pistol and its breech operation. Details and cutaway views are also provided for the cartridges used by these pistols. All of the weapons illustrated are representative of the pattern issued to the military, and in many cases they continued to be produced for the commercial market. Includes a wealth of technical information and numerous high-quality illustrations prepared specially for the book.

The UK is one of nine states possessing nuclear weapons. Renewal of the Trident programme would extend Britains commitment to so-called nuclear deterrence well into the second half of this century, despite treaty obligations and an unequivocal undertaking to disarm. With more than 16,000 nuclear weapons stockpiled worldwide, the risk of one going off by accident or design is increasing every day.Wallis in The Truth about Trident explores the issues Trident presents and raises questions like: what would be the impact of their use? How safe are they in the meantime? Are they really necessary? Can we afford them? Are there better alternatives? This book aims to peel back layers of confusion and deceit to reach the truth about Trident.

The curiously named HMS Pickle was the second-smallest British ship in Nelsons fleet at the Battle of Trafalgar. She acquired enduring fame, however, as the ship that carried Lord Collingwoods dispatch announcing the death, in the midst of battle, of Nelson.A topsail schooner and deemed too small to take part in the line of battle, Pickle and ships like it were essential in the transmission of communication. Relaying messages between admiral and Admiralty, the rapid movement of these ships pioneered an early worldwide web of information that helped secure a British victory over Napoleon.In this revised and updated edition, Captain Peter Hore describes the Pickles beginnings as a civilian vessel, her arming for naval use and the pivotal role she played in Admiral Cornwalliss inshore squadron keeping watch over the French and Spanish. This full and captivating history narrates a colourful story of one small ship and the courage and resolution of her determined crew.

an excellent read - AEROSPACE magazineIn 1915, Westland Aircraft Works was established in the country town of Yeovil. Since then, aircraft have been designed, manufactured and tested at Westland, including the Lysander, which was used to transport British agents to Europe during the Second World War. In 1948, the company focused solely on helicopters and its aircraft have been sent all over the world since then, used in life-saving with Air Ambulance and Search and Rescue, and deployed in warfare such as Balkans, Iraq and Afghanistan.In this new and updated edition of A Quiet Country Town, David Gibbings celebrates over 100 years of Westland through an anthology of writings that retell the companys history and its special relationship with Yeovil, which has rarely been quiet since the first aircraft took off from the airfield that now lies at its heart.

Based on the authors own involvement as an engineer at the company through the 1950s and early 1960s and on more recent research of the archives at Brooklands Museum and the PRO, this book explains the successes and failures of leading-edge developments at Vickers, in the early days of guided weapons.John Forbat explains missile and avionics systems and trials, with diagrams and photographs, and tells the story of the company and its individuals. Projects covered in depth include Red Rapier, Blue Boar, Red Dean and Vigilant anti-tank missile, of which the author has first-hand experience as he started working for Vickers as a graduate apprentice assembling airplanes and soon graduated into Special Projects where he was responsible for many of the trials.

The Fairey Rotodyne was a large British compound helicopter designed and built by the Fairey Aviation Company and intended for commercial and military applications. It was considered to be one of the iconic aviation projects of the 1950s/60s and a bright future was planned for the aircraft. Widely accepted to be a revolutionary design, it was economically viable, fast and capable of vertical take-off and landing from city centre heliports. However, despite the proven feasibility of this bold concept, the Rotodyne project was terminated in 1962 due to escalating development costs and unresolved technical issues. This book seeks to fill a gap in aviation literature on the history of the Rotodyne, an aircraft ahead of its time. Winner of Hampshire Libraries Special Collections Award 2010.

Between 15 June 1968 and 13 May 1996, the Polaris submarines of the 10th Submarine Squadron carried out a total of 229 patrols, travelling over 2 million miles. Wherever you sit on the nuclear debate, it makes an impressive tale; delivered on time and on budget essentially by a small group of naval officers and civil servants, the Polaris programme ensured that Britain had a Continuous at Sea Deterrence for twenty-eight years. Polaris is not just the history of the weapons, submarines and politicians: it is the history of those who were there. Combining through history with personal memories and photographs, Keith Hall has created a long-lasting legacy to a fascinating project and provided an insight into a world that no longer exists.

This is the story of how the Cold War impacted on the people of East Anglia. Had nuclear conflict broken out, the region would have found itself as the target of a Soviet strike for the simple reason that it housed the launch pad for not only the British deterrent, but also Americas first line of defence. The book also examines the early development of the UKs nuclear arsenal, with ballistic and environmental testing of nuclear bombs at Orford Ness and storage and maintenance at one of the countrys most secret sites, Barnham. Cold War: East Anglia reveals the secrets of the years of confrontation, and looks at what life might have been like had the Cold War turned hot.

An exploration of the history and development of the dirigible airship from its humble beginnings in the late eighteenth century through to its current role as military command posts among other uses.Starting out as an unreliable experimental aircraft whilst aeronauts first began to learn the secrets of aerial navigation, the airship was remodelled in 1900 by Count Zeppelin to become a potent weapon of war. It was then transformed again into a short-lived solution to long-distance passenger air travel. With over 100 technical drawings and contemporary images of dirigible aircraft, Ridley-Kitts presents a comprehensive and fascinating history of the airship.Military, Naval and Civil Airships is a must read for those that wish to delve into the development of the aircraft for the first time and for airship specialists alike.