Bringing History to Life Collections

Bringing History to Life Collector’s Edition’ is a 180 page must read special issue packed with in depth WW2 historical information narrated as a story and illustrated with informative graphs and timelines. Readers interested in WW2 will not be disappointed.

The world is set on fire

GREATEST BATTLES OF WWII

The road to a new world war • The period after World War I was not the halcyon days that many hoped for. Instead extremist movements rose throughout Europe. 20 years later Nazi Germany was poised for revenge.

Germany’s rearmament tested the world • When Hitler came to power in 1933, he swiftly rearmed Germany militarily, in direct violation of the Treaty of Versailles. New warships were launched, military service was introduced, and a new air force was built under the leadership of Hermann Göring.

BLITZKRIEG CONQUERS EUROPE 1939-1941 • May 1940. Hitler’s Panzer Army rumble through France’s defences. Within six weeks, the Germans have one of the most powerful armies that the world has ever seen. Over the next two years, forcing blitz torn Europe to her knees while The Third Reich Forces thunder through the Balkans, North Africa and Stalin’s massive Soviet Union.

BATTLE OF BRITAIN 1940-1941 • In July 1940, only England remains as a bulwark against the Nazi scourge. Hitler hatches a plan to crush the British Empire. 400,000 soldiers would be transported across the English Channel and occupy the British Isles; but first the Luftwaffe must usurp the airspace over the channel. During the next three months, the Royal Air Force fight a decisive battle against the superior Luftwaffe.

OPERATION BARBAROSSA CAUGHT STALIN OFF GUARD • In June 1941, Hitler launches a surprise attack on the Soviet Union. 3.7 million soldiers storm across the border in the biggest German Blitzkrieg history will ever see. But Stalin’s vast empire will prove to be a much tougher cookie to crack, even for the usually victorious invaders.

ATTACK ON PEARL HARBOR 1941 • On the morning of 7 December 1941, 351 Japanese warplanes drum against the US naval base at Pearl Harbor, where the Marines have barely woken. The Americans are totally unprepared; they quickly run out of anti-aircraft ammunition, and only eight aircraft scramble to defend the naval base. For two hours, bombs rain down over the surprised Americans and transform the paradise of Hawaii into a hell wrapped in flames, blood and dead soldiers.

BATTLE OF MIDWAY 1942 • In May 1942, Japan is planning an attack against the US atoll of Midway; a military base in the middle of the Pacific. A huge Japanese fleet must destroy the enemy once and for all and throw the Americans out of the area. But what the Japanese do not know is that the Americans are ready and waiting. A gigantic battle between aircraft carriers ensues and every minute may prove to be decisively important for the entire Pacific war.

ATTACK ON STALINGRAD • In autumn 1942, the Soviet industrial city of Stalingrad is the scene for a personal duel between Joseph Stalin and Adolf Hitler. Both lay claim to a city that quickly turns into a smoking heap of ruins. And both dictators are willing to pay for victory with the lives of hundreds of thousands.

DESERT RATS SEND ROMMEL PACKING • Montgomery’s Desert Rats are the last barrier between the Germans and the Arab oil fields. 1,600 tanks come together in the Battle of El Alamein, where Britain’s fate will be decided. Their opponent is Hitler’s strongest card: “Desert Fox” Erwin Rommel.

HITLER’S ARMY LOSES IT ALL AT STALINGRAD • At the beginning of January 1943, Soviet forces initiated a major offensive at Stalingrad. The goal was to crush the remains of Hitler’s besieged 6th Army. For the next 20 days, German soldiers fought a futile battle against a vengeful enemy.

BATTLE OF KURSK 1943 • In July 1943, Hitler was...