After the Battle

THE FALKLANDS WAR Then And Now (Edited by Gordon Ramsey)

In 1982, Argentina rashly gambled that a full-scale invasion of the Falkland Islands - ownership of which had been disputed with Great Britain for over a century - would put an end to years of political wrangling. However Britain's response was to immediately despatch a task force to recover the islands, by force if necessary.

The 'conflict' which followed (a formal declaration of war was never given) lasted ten weeks from Argentine invasion to British liberation, the white heat of battle using 20th century technology contrasting with bitter hand-to-hand bayonet fighting in inhospitable conditions.

Eyewitness accounts by the participants of both sides, and islanders, leave us in no doubt as to the ferocity of the combat on land, sea, and in the air. Comparison photography in colour of all the battlefields, the crash sites of the aircraft shot down, the relics and the remains, together with portraits of those who lost their lives and the battlefield memorials, serve as a graphic testimony to their endeavours, 25 years after the battle.

A Roll of Honour lists the casualties of both sides and, for the first time, the graves of all the British fallen - both on the islands and in the United Kingdom - have been visited and photographed as a lasting record of all those who made the supreme sacrifice in what is most probably Britain's last colonial war.

Hard Cover, Size 12" x 8.5", 608 Pages, Over 1600 color and b+w Illustrations. Price: $95 USD / $120  CAD

The Battle of France Then And Now (Peter D. Cornwell)

In these pages, Peter Cornwell tells the story of the greatest air battle of the Second World War when six nations were locked in combat over north-western Europe for a traumatic six weeks in 1940.

We begin our account in September 1939 when the newly-formed British Air Forces in France sent the first squadrons to the Continent. This Phoney War period is told through the eyes of Flying Officer Edward Hall, Adjutant of No. 73 Squadron, who claimed his as the first squadron to be sent to France and the last to leave. His unofficial war diary transports us back over 60 years to the immediacy of the period before Hitler launched his Blitzkrieg in May 1940. As far as RAF fighter squadrons in France were concerned, it was an all-Hurricane show, yet it was the Blenheim and Battle crews who suffered the brunt of the casualties. Every aircraft lost or damaged through enemy action while operating in France is listed together with the fate of the crews. Fighting a rearguard action almost from Day One, retreating from airfield to airfield as the panzers roared westwards, the story of the British Air Forces in France has never been told in this way before as it has largely been overshadowed by the Battle of Britain which followed, yet the Battle of France was even more costly in lives lost.

Peter Cornwell now redresses the balance as he describes the day-to-day events as the battle unfolds, and details the losses suffered by all six nations involved: Britain, France, Holland, Belgium, Germany and, rather belatedly, Italy. The Royal Air Force lost more than a thousand aircraft of all types over the Western Front during the six-week battle, but Luftwaffe losses were even higher at over 1,800 aircraft. Having the disadvantage of fighting over foreign soil, the RAF had many men made prisoner when baling out or crashing behind enemy lines.

All told, between September 3, 1939 and June 24, 1940, the RAF lost 1,127 airmen, of whom 415 paid the supreme sacrifice. Their names, and the cemeteries where they lie or the memorials where they are commemorated, are listed so their memory be not forgotten. They were - as Flying Officer Hall describes them - 'the First of the Few'

Hard Cover, Size 12" x 8", 592 Pages, Over 900 Illustrations. Price: $95 USD / $105 CAD/INT.

RÜCKMARSCH Then And Now (Jean Paul Pallud)

Following the successful landing by the Allied armies in Normandy in June 1944, Hitler's forces battled for two months to contain the bridgehead. However, when his last-ditch attempt to recover the initiative with Operation Lüttich - the counter-attack from Mortain on August 7 - failed, it was an implied admission that his armies in the West had been defeated.

From that starting point, Jean Paul Pallud takes up the story, following in the footsteps of the Germans as they retreat across France. The next days and weeks were ones of confusion for the German command with staffs and technical services dispersed; command and communication virtually non-existent; roads congested and strafed, and directives to build new stop-lines almost immediately rendered obsolete by the flow of events . . . all within a matter of a few days.

Although the Germans lost nearly 300,000 men during the retreat - either killed, wounded, missing, or taken prisoner - nevertheless it was not necessarily an Allied victory as by the beginning of September German forces had turned round and were once more standing firm, this time along the 650 kilometers between Switzerland and the North Sea. This, then, is that story . . . told through hundreds of 'then and now' comparison photographs by the author, and which includes some quite amazing discoveries that he made along the way.

Hard Cover, Size 12" x 8½", 376 Pages, Over 1000 Illustrations. Price: $85 USD / $94 CAD/INT

The Third Reich Then And Now  (Tony Le Tissier).

Traces the rise of Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party and illustrates the sites of such things as the homes of the main Nazi Part players, former Third Reich Shrines in locations such as Obersalzburg, Berlin, Munich, Nuremburg and Bayreuth, HG schools, concentration camps etc. The course of the war is charted as the post war de-Nazification of Germany.

Hard cover, large format, English text, 480 pages and over 1400 illustrations.  Price: $95 USD/$105 CDN/INT.

Operation Market Garden Volume 1-Then and Now (Edited by K. Margry)

VOLUME 1 covers the mounting of the operation and the crucial first two days of the battle. The story opens with the planning and preparation of the double undertaking - of 'Market' by the newly created First Allied Airborne Army in the UK and 'Garden' by the British Second Army on the Belgian-Dutch border. The scene then switches to describe the German military situation in the Netherlands on the eve of battle. The massive initial airborne landings of September 17, 1944, are then recounted with equal attention to each of the three airborne divisions involved. The break-out battle by the Guards Armoured Division, spearhead of the ground army, is likewise illustrated with an unprecedented wealth of photographs. The second day of the operation, September 18, sees the Guards reaching the 101st Airborne at Eindhoven, making their first contact with the airborne army.  

Hard cover, large format, English text, 336 pages, over 1000 photographs (many never before published) and numerous maps. Superb. Price: $76 USD/$84 CDN.

Operation Market Garden Volume 2-Then and Now (Edited by K. Margry)

VOLUME 2 of this two-volume history of Operation 'Market-Garden' continues the story as XXX Corps links up with the 82nd Airborne at Nijmegen which leads to the dramatic and spectacular capture of the vital bridges there over the Waal river. But at Arnhem the tide of battle has already turned. The main force of lst Airborne is thrown back to the Oosterbeek perimeter, leaving John Frost's isolated force at the road bridge to fight it out till the end. As the Polish Brigade is dropped south of the Rhine, and the ground army desperately tries to relieve the beleaguered British paras, down in the south the Germans launch repeated attacks on the narrow corridor in an attempt to cut the Allied supply artery. As savage battles rage for possession of 'Hell's Highway', the airborne battle is lost and on September 26 the survivors of lst Airborne are evacuated back across the Rhine.

Hard cover, large format, English text, 416 pages, over 1200 photographs (many never before published) and numerous maps.  Superb. Price: $95 USD/$105 CDN.

Operation Market Garden in slipcase boxed set Price: $170 USD / $189 CAD/INT.

Panzers in Normandy (Eric Lefevre)

Published to commemorate the 40th anniversary of the Normandy Campaign, Panzers in Normandy Then and Now is a detailed study of the German Panzer regiments in Normandy in 1944 as seen from the German side. The book is basically divided into two parts: the theoretical composition of the 1944 model of the panzer regiment, its equipment and personnel, and secondly, individual chapters on the seventeen panzer units which saw service in Normandy. In addition the book contrasts the scenes of the fighting that raged in the countryside and villages in this part of France with comparison photographs of the battleground as it is today. Research for this book also resulted in the discovery of the location of the grave of the most famous panzer commander, formerly listed as missing in action, when a Normandy roadside revealed its secret in 1983 as the last resting place of the victor of Villiers-Bocage, Michael Wittmann.
 

Hardcover, 12" x 9", 212 pages, 373 illustrations, 19 maps. $65 (US) / $72 (CDN).

D-Day, Then and Now

"People of Western Europe. A Landing was made this morning on the coast of France..." With these simple-yet memorable-words, General Eisenhower, the Supreme Commander, Allied Expeditionary Force, announced to the world on June 6, 1944 that the Allies had begun Operation "Overlord" to liberate Europe. Now, 50 years later, After the Battle presents the full story: from its inception, planning and preparation through its launch on D-Day and the days that followed, as told by the commanders whose responsibility it was. Many of the hundreds of 'then and now' photographs have been taken exactly 50 years later - sometimes to the precise minute - from when the original events took place, creating a unique two-volume record of the greatest combined military, naval and air operation of all time.

Boxed set consisting of two volumes. $160 (US) / $178 (CDN). HC, 12" x 9", 800 illustrations in volume 1 and 1,000 illustrations in volume 2. Also available separately. Volume 1: $66 USD / $73 CAD/INT. Volume 2: $95 USD / $105 CAD.

Berlin, Then and Now (Tony Le Tissier)

Using 'then and now' photographs we look at Berlin throughout its many phases. The turbulent years of the Weimar Republic, when Communist and Nazi fought each other for control of the streets, led to the Third Reich with its spectacular scenes of grandeur and glory. However, the 'Thousand Year Reich', and the architectural megalomania it spawned which transformed the centre of Berlin, began to crumble within ten years as the Western Allies dealt out massive retribution from the air. The Soviet land attack which followed finally ground much of what was left of the city into dust. Berlin's position as the focal point of the Cold War in Europe is examined, culminating in 1961 with the fatal division of the city by 'the Wall' which split Berlin into two camps - East and West - for nearly three decades, leaving Berlin and island within a hostile sea. Finally, the story comes full circle with our description of the unbelievable events of 1989-90.

8 1/2" x 12, Hardcover, 472 Pages, Over 1700 Illustrations, Price (95 USD / $105 CAD/INT.

THE BLITZ THEN AND NOW

These three books have no publishing parallel and because of their totally comprehensive nature to which so many thousands of people in all parts of the country can relate, they stand apart from any other form of literature published on the sort of subject." -Aviation News

Volume 1: September 3, 1939-September 6, 1940 Volume one covers the first year, the period from phony war total war: September 3, 1939 to September 6, 1940. Beginning with endless air raid warnings and a sense of unreality, it was a phase which was to culminate in Hitler threatening to raze Britain's cities to the ground.

As a direct source of the day-to-day effects of Luftwaffe operations over Britain at the time, the book utilizes extracts from the 24-hour log compiled by the Ministry of Home Security and this provides a contemporary diary of events as they effected the Home Front. These entries ideally form the setting for a detailed record of the losses sustained by the Luftwaffe over Britain and within sight of land: a barometer of the air war, showing clearly the changing climate of hostilities.

Every German crash on land is listed with its crew, and footnotes are included on all the crash sites which are known to have been investigated or excavated since the end of the war, together with photographs of some of the more interesting discoveries. Features and special articles by historians and eyewitnesses intersperse the daily happenings, illustrating life at the time on both the civilian and service fronts.

8 1/2" x 12, Hardcover, 336 Pages, Over 856 Illustrations, Price for Volume 1: $65 USD / $72 CAD/INT. Order below.

Volume 2: September 7, 1940-May 1941 The day-by-day, blow-by-blow account of the Night Blitz. Beginning with the first mass raid on London on September 7, 1940, the story is continued through the winter of 1940-41 with Ken Wakefield's masterly description of Luftwaffe operations over Britain. The result of over fifteen years of study and research, his 150,000-word account of each night's operations over Britain brings into focus for the first time the full details of the escalating attacks as one raid exceeded another in size, damage or deaths.

As in Volume One, German crash information is meticulously documented. Over twenty features and special articles by historians and eyewitnesses intersperse the daily happenings, illustrating life at the time on both the civilian and service fronts. Contrasting descriptions by German airmen give us an insight into just what it was like to be on the other side. A unique record of a period which changed the face of Britain and cost the lives of 40,000 of her people.

8 1/2" x 12', Hardcover, 656 Pages, Over 1500 Illustrations.  Price for Volume 2: $95 USD / $105 CAD/INT.

Volume 3: May 1941-May 1945 The period in question began quietly with the Luftwaffe busy elsewhere, yet the increasing attacks on Germany by the Royal Air Force provoked a response in the form of the so-called Baedeker offensive of 1942. And it is against the background of the hammer blows dealt out to German towns and cities that the Blitz on Britain during the 1942-1944 period must be viewed.

Hitler's frustration at not being able to hit back, like for like, led to the appointment in 1943 of a Blitz supremo to mete out retaliation. This finally came in 1944 with the Steinbock raids-known better as the Baby Blitz-yet it was only an interim measure. As the manned bomber attacks faded, so a new and fearsome method of attack by robot bomb began with weapons of vengeance. The V1 and V2 period is fully documented with the basic facts and figures balanced by eyewitness account never before published.
The three volumes of the Blitz Then and Now run to more than 1,500 pages and include over 3,500 illustrations. It has taken ten years to bring to fruition-longer than the period it encompasses-and it is dedicated to the 60,000 British civilians who died and the 86,000 who were injured.

8 1/2" x 12', Hardcover, 592 Pages, Over 1452 Illustrations. Price for Volume 3: $95 USD / $105 CAD/INT.

All three volumes in a slipcase: $255 USD / $275 CAD/INT. Available individually as well.

Airfields of the Eighth  (Roger A. Freeman)

"This is a splendid memorial to the USAAF in the UK and will be of absorbing interest to all who have passed these long-deserted airfields and wondered about the drama for which they were once the stage." -AIRCRAFT ILLUSTRATED

A unique, nostalgic look at the airfields used by the Eighth in the United Kingdom during the Second World War. Conceived in war, the airfields experience their moments of glory and , when the war ended, were left empty and derelict to die. The few which remain virtually intact have only survived because some private or public concern has formed a practical use for them, although not always as airfields. Some of the more remote airfields still dot the countryside the same as when the last plane left their runways and the last truck departed through the main gate. They are bleak, windswept and moldering but they retain the atmosphere of the fine, high endeavors of the people who inhabited them and the aura of ineffable sadness that hangs over memorials to fighting men. For such they are.

8 1/2" x 12", Hardcover, 240 Pages, 400 Photos, 70 Maps. Price: $60 USD / $65 CAD/INT.

UK Airfields of the Ninth

The US Ninth Air Force began as a headquarters for USAAF units in the middle east in 1942-43 but it is better known for its role as the major tactical air force for operations in north-west Europe in 1944-45. Charged primarily with the support of ground forces in the invasion of Normandy, the Ninth fielded a variety of aircraft and operated from over 60 airfields in Britain. Within these pages, all are explored and photographed on the ground and from the air, ranging from the troop carrier bases of central and southern England. Then, the airfields were in the front line, vibrant and full of activity as men and machine prepared to do battle. Now, they have adopted new faces: as centers of industry and international aviation or venues for leisure activities and motor racing. Some still retain their war-like status as military bases while others have returned to the plow as the wheel turns full circle.

8 1/2" x 12", Hardcover, 256 Pages, 510 Illustrations. Price: $56 USD / $60 CAD/INT.

The Battle of Britain (Edited by Winston G. Ramsey)

"It is not only a work of colossal scholarship, it is the noblest literary memorial to 'The Few' yet published." -Manchester Evening News

First published to commemorate the 40th anniversary of the Battle of Britain, After the Battle, plowed and entirely fresh furrow across the legendary field of human conflict to produce a book which has now come to be regarded as a memorial; in itself to 'The Few'. Never before has such detailed coverage been given to the losses of either the Royal Air Force or the Luftwaffe. The graves of RAF aircrew that were killed have been listed, visited by the editorial team and photographed as a complete and lasting record of those that died. The pilots, their memorials, crashes and crash sites, and the aircraft that have survived are profusely illustrated. Twenty of the most famous fighter aerodomes have been explored and described as they were at the time and as they are today. Also included is a complete listing of 'The Few' - more than twenty-five years' work by the late John Holloway.

The 16-page introductions to the Mk III/IV and Mk IV editions are available separately if required.

8 1/2" x 12", 848 Pages, 1700 Illustrations. Price: $127 USD / $140 CAD/INT.

The London Blitz

Prior to September 1939, Cyril Demarne had been fighting fires in the East End of London for fourteen years. On the outbreak of war he became one of the nucleus of professional firemen preparing men and Auxiliary Fire Service for the maelstrom of the Blitz. A gifted writer, Cyril describes their trials, their endeavors and their sacrifices, now enshrined in the Fireman's Memorial unveiled by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother, in May 1991. The memorial bears the names of 1,027 men and women of the Fire Service who died as the result of enemy action in the United Kingdom. Their names are also recorded in the Roll of Honor in this book.

This is a true story, told by a fireman in a way that only a fireman who experienced the horrors of the Blitz could tell it. It is a story of ordinary men and women in extraordinary circumstances who, with fortitude and great courage, became very far from ordinary. To them, this book is dedicated.

8 1/2" x 8 1/2", 156 Pages, 144 Photos, Hardcover. Price: $34 USD / $37 CAD/INT.

Dieppe--Through the Lens

The first book in the 'Through the Lens' series covers the amphibious landing at Dieppe by the Calgary Army Tank Regiment. The 14th Canadian Army Tank Regiment was one of the first Canadian armored regiments to be formed and was also the first to be committed to battle.

The action of every one of the regiment's tanks that landed is described in detail by Hugh G. Henry Jr who has spent several years on his research and interviewed all the regiment's survivors. Every Churchill tank and armored car left behind on the beach is pictured - one large photo per page - selected from the very best photographic coverage of the time. In addition, annotated aerial photographs by Jean Paul Pallud pinpoint and identify the position of every vehicle and full crew lists are given for each. The result is a uniquely illustrated 'after-action' report of Canada's worst military defeat.

12" x 8 1/2", 64 Pages, 71 Illustrations. Price: $31 USD / $34 CAD/INT.

Villers Bocage--Through the Lens (Daniel Taylor)

After The Battle's first title of 1999 examines the failed attack of the British 7trh Armored division "Desert Rats" against German Panzer forces at Villers Bocage outside of Caen. The historical battle is analyzed in depth for the first time through hundreds of photographs taken by the Germans the day after the battle, and through the personal accounts of Michael Wittmann, Germany's most famous panzer ace.

12"x8", Hard cover, 180 pages. Price: $42 USD / $46 CAD/INT.

The Battle of the Bulge--Through the Lens (Philip M. Vorwald)

Designed to compliment After The Battle's original Battle of The Bulge Then and Now by Jean Paul Pallud, this remarkable new title retraces the bloody combat of the Battle of The Bulge as it made its way throughout the Ardennes in 1944-45. Unlike any other publication, After The Battle's exclusive Then and Now comparison photography brings the past to life by matching precisely the wartime photographs with the same areas as they appear today! In addition to being an outstanding historical reference, "Battle of The Bulge Through The Lens" also contains detailed maps and instructions, making it easy for you to locate various historical sights for yourself! This book is must have for any military historian.

Hard cover, Size: 8" x 12", 296 pages, over 1200 b+w wartime and comparison photos, maps and illustrations. Price: $66 USD / $73 CAD/INT.

The Ploesti Raid--Through the Lens (Roger A. Freeman)

'If it is granted that the successful destruction of the target would warrant the possible expenditure of the entire force . . .' So wrote Major General Lewis Brereton, the US Ninth Air Force commander in the Middle East, as the planners contemplated the options of a high or low level attack on the oil refineries at Ploesti in Rumania.

If this source of 40 per cent of Germany's oil could be eliminated, it would deal a vital body-blow to the Third Reich's ability to wage war, and a surprise attack by heavy B-24 Liberators flying at tree-top height was considered the best method of achieving success.

Three bomb groups from the Eighth Air Force based in Britain flew out to join two groups of the Ninth already in North Africa, the combined force of 179 aircraft destined to carry out the first massed low-level heavy bomber mission in history.

The Ploesti Raid took place on Sunday, August 1, 1943 and, but for a navigational error which put the leading formation on a course away from the target, the operation might have resulted in the destruction of the seven chosen targets. However, by the time the mistake was realized, the defenses were on the alert and over 20 Liberators were brought down in and around Ploesti. A further 35 aircraft were lost. Although the operation resulted in the award of five Medals of Honor - America's highest decoration for bravery - the cost was high: 308 airmen lost their lives and 208 were taken prisoner or interned. Out of the 1,753 men who are known to have set out on the mission, a total of 516 had failed to return.

Hardcover 12"×8¼", 160 pages, more than 300 illustrations. Price: $55 USD / $60 CAD/INT.

Blitzkrieg in the West (Jean Paul Pallud)

"Superb volume...astounding collection of photographs, maps and diagrams and detached text. This book is a classic." -TRI-SERVICE PUBLICATIONS

Jean Paul Pallud, author of the highly acclaimed The Battle of the Bulge Then and Now, presents — for the first time through comparison 'then and now' photographs — a detailed account of the Battle of France: the forty-five traumatic days from May 10 to June 24, 1940 that resulted in one of the most remarkable military victories of modern times.

During those six weeks, six nations found themselves at war, fighting across four countries. From the polders of the Netherlands in the north to the mountains of the Alps in the south, and from the Rhine valley to the Atlantic coast, Jean Paul Pallud explores every corner of the battlefield, the camera recording the scenes today where fifty years ago Dutch, Belgian, German, French, British and Italian soldiers were locked in mortal combat. Battles great and small are described and illustrated to colour the canvas of both the broad strategy and the individual firefight in Hitler's victorious campaign of Blitzkrieg in the West. 

8 1/2" x 12, Hardcover, 640 Pages, 1880 Photos, $95 (US) / $105 (CDN)

Battle of the Bulge (Jean Paul Pallud)

"The remarkable impartiality of Mr. Pallud's calm, measured reportage gives the reader confidence that the narrative is as free from distortion as any account can be... intricate... majestic... dauntingly massive book."-THE DAILY TELEGRAPH

Nine days before Christmas 1944 Hitler played Germany's last card on which he staked everything to turn the tables in the West. This is the first time that an attempt has been made to cover the entire salient in order to present the battle in our familiar 'then and now' format. Hundreds of miles have been traveled by the author throughout every corner of the battlefield to search out the scenes of past events - every known photograph belonging to combatants, civilians, and in public collections and private sources has been sought or considered. All of the cine film has been examined frame by frame and certain sequences illustrated and analyzed. In this way a number of classic pictures almost always used - or misused - in depicting the Ardennes battle are not only placed in their context in the German advance but are also shown to be not always quite what they seem!

Hardcover, 9" x 12", 544 pages, 1,317 photos, 31 maps. Price $95 (US) / $105 (CDN)