Robert Lyman

The Rise of the Third Reich is a poignant and powerful portrait of the years 1939 to 1941, which witnessed the march towards the greatest man-made catastrophe the world has ever experienced. The narrative follows events from 3 September 1939, when Britain and France declared war on Germany, to Pearl Harbor and America’s declaration of war in December 1941. It is told from the fresh perspective of expatriate Americans caught up in the exploding conflict. Uniquely, the book uses their contemporary accounts, to record a time when British and other nationalities were barred from Nazi-occupied territory, but US citizens could travel and report what they saw. They describe the foreboding, fear and suffering caused by the Nazi invasions. These were years of increasing calls for American intervention, as Britain faced its darkest days, and held off the Luftwaffe in the Battle of Britain, yet remained vulnerable. Meanwhile, European nations fell one after another, and Hitler’s power extended from the Mediterranean to the Baltic.Acclaimed historian Robert Lyman brings together a wide range of encounters, conversations and memories. The individuals range across the social spectrum, from the great singer, dancer and activist Josephine Baker to young volunteers in the RAF, such as aces James Goodison, Art Donahue, and the wealthy playboy Billy Fiske – the first American volunteer in the RAF to die in action during the Battle of Britain. The story unfolds as the war drags the whole of Europe and a reluctant United States into the maelstrom.

A ground-breaking history of this global conflict including the errors and miscalculations made on both sides. Korea: War Without End examines the stand-off between East and West in Korea that ultimately defined the second half of the 20th century. It provides a critical analysis of the lack of preparation by the West for war; the results of the North Korean invasion in June 1950; the counter-stroke by MacArthur in September and then the strategic overreach which led to communist China’s involvement on the North Korean side, and the rapid escalation to consideration of the use of nuclear weapons. Through meticulous analysis of all the source material, this book details the chaos of political decision-making at the war’s outset and as it progressed. The Korean War was not planned as a Communist offensive against the West. In turn, the East did not understand the principle at the core of the Western response to Kim Il-sung’s aggression, namely a refusal to appease an aggressor, the key mistake the West considered to be at the heart of the rise of Nazi Germany and militaristic Japan in the 1930s. Korea: War Without End also considers the effect of the fighting on civilians. While the war was a proxy one between East and West, the people of Korea suffered immensely, with approximately 3 million war fatalities and a larger proportional civilian death toll than World War II. This is the definitive history of the conflict that is long overdue.

‘A compelling history.’ – The Sunday Times‘Thought-provoking.’ – The Spectator‘Interesting and well-researched.’ – The Sunday TelegraphA fascinating account of the decline of an army from the triumph of victory in 1918 to defeat in 1940 and why this happened. A salutary warning for modern Britain.The British Army won a convincing series of victories between 1916 and 1918. But by 1939 the British Army was an entirely different animal. The hard-won knowledge, experience and strategic vision that delivered victory after victory in the closing stages of the First World War had been lost. In the inter-war years there was plenty of talking, but very little focus on who Britain might have to fight, and how. Victory to Defeat clearly illustrates how the British Army wasn’t prepared to fight a first-class European Army in 1939 for the simple reason that as a country Britain hadn’t prepared itself to do so. The failure of the army’s leadership led directly to its abysmal performance in Norway and France in 1940. Victory to Defeat is a captivating history of the mismanagement of a war-winning army. It is also a stark warning that we neglect to understand who our enemy might be, and how to defeat him, at the peril of our country. The British Army is now to be cut to its smallest size since 1714. Are we, this book asks, repeating the same mistakes again?