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The Great Western Steam Retreat - Keith Widdowson - Bog - The History Press Ltd - Plusbog.dk

In mid-1964, Keith Widdowson got wind that the Western Region was hell-bent on being the first to eliminate the steam locomotive on its tracks by December 1965. The 17-year-old hurriedly homed in on train services still in the hands of GWR steam power, aiming to catch runs with the last examples before their premature annihilation. The Great Western Steam Retreat recalls Widdowson’s teenage exploits, soundtracked by hits from the Beatles, the Kinks and the Rolling Stones, throughout the Western Region and former Great Western Railway lines. He documents the extreme disorder that resulted from that decision, paying tribute to the train crews who managed to meet demanding timings in the face of declining cleanliness, the poor quality of coal and the major problem of recruiting both footplate and shed staff. This book completes the author’s Steam Chase series and provides a snapshot into the comradery that characterised the final years of steam alongside the long-gone journeys that can never be recreated.

Western Isles Folk Tales - Ian Stephen - Bog - The History Press Ltd - Plusbog.dk

Western Isles Folk Tales is a representative collection of stories from the geographical span of the long chain of islands known as the Outer Hebrides. Some are well-known tales and others have been sought out by the author, but all are retold in the natural voice of a local man. You will find premonitions, accounts of uncanny events and mythical beings, such as the blue men of the stream who test mariners venturing into the tidal currents around the Shiant Islands. Also included are tales from islands now uninhabited, like the archipelago of St Kilda, in contrast to the witty yarns from bustling harbours. The author was the inaugural winner of the Robert Louis Stevenson Fellowship (1995) and his Acts of Trust collaboration with visual artist Christine Morrison won the multi-arts category in the first British Awards for Storytelling Excellence (2012). Both author and illustrator live in Stornoway, Isle of Lewis.

Great Western Swindon - Tim Bryan - Bog - The History Press Ltd - Plusbog.dk

For almost 150 years, the influence of the Great Western Railway''s workshops in Swindon extended well beyond the great walls which surrounded most of the complex, which at its height, covered over 320 acres. Although the works has now closed, its influence on the town it helped to create is as strong as ever. In this collection of old photographs drawn from the archives of the GWR Museum in Swindon, the reader is taken on a photographic tour of the great workshops, and the huge variety of activities which went on in the factory are well illustrated with many evocative pictures, mainly covering the period between 1900 and 1960. Swindon was justly famous for the quality of the locomotives and rolling stock it produced, but this book also tells the story of the men behind the machines. Rare and unpublished photographs show something of life for the railway worker both inside and outside the works, and it is hoped that this selection will give the reader some idea of what it was like to live in what many see as the archetypal ''Railway Town''.

An American on the Western Front - Elizabeth Nurser - Bog - The History Press Ltd - Plusbog.dk

This is the remarkable story of the American First World War serviceman Arthur Clifford Kimber. When his country entered the Great War in 1917, Kimber left Stanford University to carry the first official American flag to the Western Front. Fired by idealism for the French cause, the young student initially acted as a volunteer ambulance driver, before training as a pilot and taking part in dogfights against ‘the Boche’. His letters home give a vivid picture of what Kimber witnessed on his journey from Palo Alto, California to the front in France: keen-eyed descriptions of New York as it prepared for the forthcoming conflict, the privations of wartime Britain and France, and encounters with former president Theodore Roosevelt and Hollywood actress Lillian Gish. Kimber details his exhilaration, his everyday concerns and his horror as he adapts to an active wartime role. Arthur Clifford Kimber was one of the first Americans on the front line after the entry of the US into the war and, tragically, also one of the last to be buried there – killed in action just a few weeks before the end of the war. Here, his frank letters to his mother and brothers, compiled, edited and put in context by Patrick Gregory and Elizabeth Nurser, are published for the first time.

The Steam Workshops of the Great Western Railway - Ken Gibbs - Bog - The History Press Ltd - Plusbog.dk

The nineteenth century was a time of innovation and expansion across the industrial landscape, and nowhere more so than on the railways, as the new age of iron, steel and steam, literally, gathered pace. At the head of the race up was the iconic Great Western Railway. As this mighty corporation grew, it absorbed an astonishing 353 railway companies. Many of them had their own workshops, depots and manufacturing, often assembling locomotives to the designs of other companies. All these, along with the various designs, became the responsibility of the GWR on takeover, and followed its standardisation of components where this was possible. These works became the beating heart of the GWR’s vast empire, where majestic engines were built and maintained by some of the most skillful and inventive engineers of the day. Retired GWR railwayman Ken Gibbs presents a comprehensive portrait of the works from Brunel to the final days of steam in the mid-twentieth century, and beyond to the rediscovery and renovation of many of the workshops for their unique heritage.

VCs of the First World War: Western Front 1915 - Peter F. Batchelor - Bog - The History Press Ltd - Plusbog.dk

The predictions of the war ''being over by Christmas'' turned out to be far from the truth. By January 1915 the British Expeditionary Force found themselves trapped in the murderous stalemate of trench warfare. British troops had suffered badly in the early campaigns and by January 1915 were holding some 30 miles of trench. The year 1915 was to witness some of the bloodiest and bitter battles of the Great War, including the first blooding at Neuve Chapelle, the Second Battle of Ypres and the appalling failure of Loos. By the end of the summer almost 50,000 men of Kitchener''s Army had been killed. This book tells the story of the 67 VC winners from this period on the Western Front. Each of their stories are different and 20 medals were awarded posthumously. However, they all have one thing in common - acts of extraordinary bravery under fire.

Midland and South Western Junction Railway - Mike Barnsley - Bog - The History Press Ltd - Plusbog.dk

During the final quarter of the last century a small railway company had the temerity to set up its headquarters at Swindon, right in the GWR heartland, and to drive a standard gauge line north–south through Brunel’s broad gauge empire. The interloper started life as the Swindon, Marlborough & Andover Railway and the first section of line opened in 1881, through running from Swindon to Andover commencing in early 1883. An associated company was formed to carry the line northwards towards Cheltenham, and the section to Cirencester, where a railway works was later established, began operations at the end of 1883. In the following years, in an attempt to attract investment, the two companies amalgamated to form the Midland & South Western Junction Railway and the link through to Cheltenham was completed in 1891. The ten years leading up to the outbreak of the First World War were the line’s finest. In those days, recalled in the pages of this fascinating collection, locomotives in dark red livery hauling carriages from the north of England could be seen passing goods trains bringing milk from Vale of the White Horse farms, vegetables from the Channel Isles, stone from the Foss Cross quarries, or racehorses from the Marlborough Downs. Although vestiges of the line remain, memories of the steam trains which used it are fading. These photographs, which include scenes from along the entire length of the railway, recall the M&SWJR in its heyday, and illuminate an extraordinary period in transport history.

The Vanished Railways of Old Western Dunbartonshire - Stewart Noble - Bog - The History Press Ltd - Plusbog.dk

Illustrated with 200 photographs, this book depicts the rich scenery and history of the old Western Dunbartonshire railway, which stretched from Clydebank with its shipyards and other heavy industries to the north end of Loch Lomond, now part of Scotland’s first National Park. The railways which served this area reflected its landscape; some, such as the West Highland Railway, are still in use, although parts have been lost and the nature of traffic today has changed substantially. Other routes have disappeared completely – thus today’s commuters on the busy electric train service from Helensburgh to Glasgow are frequently unaware that an alternative route existed for much of its length. An extensive network of industrial railways, often running along cobbled roads, has vanished. A railway which meandered eastwards from Balloch to Stirling across the flat farmlands to the Forth Valley was closed to passengers in the 1930s, and a short but busy branch from the West Highland Railway, built during the Second World War to service the military port at Faslane on the Gareloch, has also been taken over by the overgrowth. Other parts, now disappeared, had been built to bring the workers of the Glasgow area down to the fresh air of the coast or the lochs for a trip on the paddle steamers. This book will be a treat for anyone who remembers the golden age of trainspotting, and for anyone keen to capture the essence of those bygone days.

Landscape Archaeology and GIS - Henry Chapman - Bog - The History Press Ltd - Plusbog.dk

The work is well illustrated throughout with digital maps and models being used to support case studies, as well as for suggesting new hypotheses relevant to this discipline.

Western Winds - Edward Chitham - Bog - The History Press Ltd - Plusbog.dk

The Irish heritage of the Brontë family has long been overlooked, partly because both Charlotte and her father Patrick did their very best to ensure that this was the case and partly because there was a strong understanding at the end of the nineteenth century that the Brontës were Yorkshire regional novelists. Yet their ideas and attitudes, and perhaps even their storylines, can be traced to Ireland. This book, which develops ideas originally published in The Brontës’ Irish Heritage in 1986, sets the record straight. By re-evaluating the sources available, it traces Patrick’s Irish ancestry and shows how it prevented him from achieving his ambitions; it shows how that heritage influenced his children’s writings, particularly Emily; and it sheds further light on the genesis of Wuthering Heights.

Julius Caesar: pocket GIANTS - T. P. Wiseman - Bog - The History Press Ltd - Plusbog.dk

Why is Caesar a giant? Because he effectively created the Roman Empire, and thus made possible the European civilization that grew out of it. As the People''s champion against a corrupt and murderous oligarchy, he began transformation of the Roman republic into a quasi-monarchy and a military and fiscal system that for four centuries provided western Europe, north Africa and the Middle East with security, prosperity and relative peace. His conquest of Gaul and his successors'' conquests of Germany, the Balkans and Britain created both the conditions for ''western culture'' and many of the historic cities in which it has flourished.

The Western Kingdom - John Fletcher - Bog - The History Press Ltd - Plusbog.dk

Postcard from the Cotswolds - Jan Dobrzynski - Bog - The History Press Ltd - Plusbog.dk

The steep western ridge of the Cotswolds has a commanding view of the Severn Valley, the Malvern Hills and the Forest of Dean. To the north is an equally impressive view of the Vale of Evesham, the Worcester plain and Bredon Hill.

Durham - Martin Roberts - Bog - The History Press Ltd - Plusbog.dk

Durham is a World Heritage city of remarkable architectural richness, with the cathedral, castle and town forming three constant elements in a history spanning many centuries. This book traces the story of Durham from its beginnings to the present day, through its rich heritage of buildings and landscapes.

The Battle for Europe - Roy Conyers Nesbit - Bog - The History Press Ltd - Plusbog.dk

The bold campaign to liberate Western Europe from Nazi tyranny was the outcome of years of close co-operation and meticulous planning by the Western Allies. Eleven months of vicious fighting followed the Allied landings in Normandy on 6 June 1944, against a determined and well-armed foe controlled by paranoid and brutal political masters. Military author and veteran Roy Conyers Nesbit has assembled a selection of over 300 photographs and illustrations that tell the story of the battle for Europe, from the shores of Normandy to the daring airborne assault on Arnhem, and from the bitter winter fighting in the forests of the Ardennes to the final sweep into the heartlands of Nazi Germany.

Yorkshire Lives and Landscapes - Ian Emberson - Bog - The History Press Ltd - Plusbog.dk

Written by a poet who has lived in Yorkshire for over 35 years, this work portrays the county and its people in a series of gentle anecdotes, including "Life in a Small Village", "Asian Dancing in Huddersfield", "Walking the Pennine Way", and "The Choral Singing Tradition". It also explores diverse elements of life in Yorkshire.

Working at Swindon Works 1930-1960 - Peter Timms - Bog - The History Press Ltd - Plusbog.dk

Presents a social and industrial study of the conditions faced by the many thousands of working men and women and their families whose lives were controlled by the Great Western Railway from 1930-1960, the beginning of the modern period for the railway with mechanical accounting, up to the decline of the railway from 1957.

Swindon and the GWR - Tim Bryan - Bog - The History Press Ltd - Plusbog.dk

In Tim Bryan''s Great Western Swindon the reader was taken on a tour of both inside and outside the GWR workshops at Swindon, which dominated the history of a town for almost 150 years. Since its publication, the collection from which the images were drawn has been moved to the new STEAM: Museum of the Great Western Railway, which opened in 2000. Swindon & the GWR includes a further selection of evocative photographs from the museum''s collection, featuring the men and women who worked at Swindon as well as a glimpse of life beyond the walls of the factory. As well as including more rare and previously unpublished pictures, this volume also illustrates other well-known aspects of the Swindon story, including GWR locomotives, royal visits, staff outings and the famous ''Trip'' holiday.

Panzer Battles - Maj Gen F. W. Von Mellenthin - Bog - The History Press Ltd - Plusbog.dk

Born in 1904, von Mellenthin joined the Seventh Cavalry Regiment in 1924. In 1935, he began his general staff training and in 1939 was an intelligence officer. By the end of the war, he had risen in rank to Major General and was Chief of General Staff, Fifth Panzer Army, on the Western Front. Active in the Polish campaign of 1939, the conquest of France, the Balkans, the desert with Rommel, as well as in Russia, at Stalingrad and Kursk, he was in a unique position to write Panzer Battles, having been present at every major panzer campaign. In 1944, he was moved to the Western Front under Field Marshall von Rundstedt. Captured in 1945 by the Americans, he moved to South Africa after the war and became an executive for a major German airline.

Roman Medicine - Audrey Cruse - Bog - The History Press Ltd - Plusbog.dk

Until the mid-nineteenth century the Western medical tradition rested firmly on the foundations established in Classical Greece and later transmitted throughout the Roman Empire. Against this long and complex background, including both religious and magical medicine, Audrey Cruse looks at the many different aspects of medicine and health in the Roman Empire, especially Roman Britain.

Roman Medicine - Audrey Cruse - Bog - The History Press Ltd - Plusbog.dk

Until the mid-nineteenth century the Western medical tradition rested firmly on the foundations established in Classical Greece and later transmitted throughout the Roman Empire. Against this long and complex background, including both religious and magical medicine, Audrey Cruse looks at the many different aspects of medicine and health in the Roman Empire, especially Roman Britain.

Steam in Scotland - Brian J. Dickson - Bog - The History Press Ltd - Plusbog.dk

R.J. (Ron) Buckley’s photographs illustrate the locomotive scene in Scotland, witnessed across his long career on the railways. This evocative collection of images commemorates the age of steam and reveals the changes wrought across that era, from the 1930s ex- Highland ‘Castle’ and ‘Clan’ 4-6-0s and the graceful looking ex-Great North of Scotland 4-4-0s, to the ex-North British ‘Glen’ and ‘Scott’ 4-4-0s, the Caledonian 4-4-0s, numerous 0-6-0 classes and the few Glasgow and South Western locomotives still working. By the early 1950s all the ex-Glasgow and South Western locomotives had gone and there were few ex-Highland or Great North of Scotland locomotives in service, but many ex-North British and Caledonian locomotives could still be seen. It is a must-have volume for Scottish railway enthusiasts.

The Other First World War - Douglas Boyd - Bog - The History Press Ltd - Plusbog.dk

Winston Churchill called it ‘the unknown war’. Unlike the long stalemate of the Western Front, the conflict 1914–18 between the Russian Empire and the Central Powers was a war of movement spanning a continent – from the Arctic to the Adriatic, Black and Caspian seas and from the Baltic in the west to the Pacific Ocean. The appalling scale of casualties provoked strikes in Russia’s war industries and widespread mutinies at the front. As the whole fabric of society collapsed, German money brought the Bolsheviks to power in the greatest deniable dirty trick of the twentieth century, after which Russia stopped fighting, eight months before the Western Front armistice. The cost to Russia was 4 million men dead and as many held as POWs by the Central Powers. Wounded? No one has any idea how many. All the belligerent powers of the Russian fronts were destroyed: the German, Austro–Hungarian and Russian empires gone forever and the Ottoman Empire so crippled that it finally collapsed in 1922. During four years of brutal civil war that followed, Trotsky’s Red Army fought the White armies, murdering and massacring millions of civilians, as British, American and other western soldiers of the interventionist forces fought and died from the frozen Arctic to the arid deserts of Iran. This is the story of that other First World War.

Devon Railways - Ted Gosling - Bog - The History Press Ltd - Plusbog.dk

For countless holiday-makers, a trip to the seaside resorts of the West Country used to mean travelling on the network of lines operated by the Great Western and the London and South Western railways. Before the reshaping of British Railways following the Beeching Report in 1963, a wide variety of trains operated in Devon. This book chronicles these trains during a period of dramatic change, as lines were closed down, steam traction was phased out and the thundering express and the hard-working tank disappeared. A wealth of these lost images can be found within this evocative collection of over 200 photographs. Comprising the work of both amateurs and professionals, the book also reveals glimpses of the stations, the people who worked on the lines, and of the high days and disasters. Brought together here as a collection, they pay homage to the great days of steam.

Looking Down the Corridors - Peter Jefferies - Bog - The History Press Ltd - Plusbog.dk

Between 1945 and 1990 the Western Allies mounted some of the most audacious and successful intelligence collection operations of the Cold War. Conducted in great secrecy, aircrews flew specially modified transport and training aircraft along the Berlin Air Corridors and Control Zone to gather intelligence on Soviet and East German military targets in the German Democratic Republic and around Berlin. The Air Corridors comprised three regulated airways for civil and military air traffic that connected West Berlin to West Germany. Operating under the guise of innocent transport and training flights, the pilots used their right of access to gather huge amounts of imagery for forty-five years. They also provided the western intelligence community with unique knowledge of the organisation and equipment used by Warsaw Pact forces. For the first time, using recently declassified materials and extensive interviews with those involved, Looking Down the Corridors provides a detailed account and analysis of these operations and their unique contribution to the Cold War.