Illustrated Introduction to ...

On 18 June 1815 some 200,000 men fought in what would be the most important land battle Europe had ever seen, the Battle of Waterloo. It was not the largest battle of the Napoleonic Wars, nor would it actually be the last, but it ultimately brought to an end almost a quarter of a century of virtually uninterrupted conflict. The result of the battle, which the Duke of Wellington would later describe as a 'near-run thing', changed the course of history, and Europe – indeed much of the world – would never be the same again. An Illustrated Introduction to the Battle of Waterloo tells the dramatic story of the battle, from Napoleon's escape from exile on Elba to the final desperate attempt of the Imperial Guard to turn the tide against the Allies. A truly fascinating battle, in an equally fascinating period of history, is explored in full colour.

In the summer of 1940, the fate of Britain hung in the balance. In an attempt to invade, Germany was to suffer its first defeat in a desperate struggle that took place in the sky over southern England; that struggle became known as 'The Battle of Britain'. The battle lasted from 10 July to 31 October, during which time the balance of the war rested on the edge of a knife as Fighter Command and the Luftwaffe fought for supremacy over the very fields of England. In this lavishly illustrated guide, each step of the battle is examined, along with the key players and strategies that saw Britain rise triumphant in this most vital stage of the Second World War.

The Battle of the Somme epitomised the cruelty of the Western Front. 1 July 1916 witnessed the opening round of the British Army's attempt to break through an eighteen-mile front of heavily defended German lines straddling the River Somme in northern France. Preceded by an artillery bombardment of over 1,500 big guns that lasted a week, the inexperienced members of Lord Kitchener's New Army went 'over the top' and suffered the deadliest day in British military history. On the first day, British losses alone totalled nearly 20,000 dead. In the next four and a half months of combat, over 350,000 British soldiers would become casualties to one of the most intense, lethal, and futile engagements in history.