{"title":"Illustrated by Mike Chappell","description":null,"products":[{"product_id":"9781780961118","title":"The New Zealand Expeditionary Force in World War II","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eIn 1939 more than 140,000 New Zealanders enlisted to fight overseas during World War II. Of these, 104,000 served in the Second New Zealand Expeditionary Force.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eInitially thrown into the doomed campaign to halt the German blitzkrieg on Greece and Crete (1941), the division was rebuilt under the leadership of MajGen Sir Bernard Freyberg, and became the elite corps within Montgomery’s Eighth Army in the desert.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eAfter playing a vital role in the victory at El Alamein (1942) the ‘Kiwis’ were the vanguard of the pursuit to Tunisia. In 1943–45 the division was heavily engaged in the Italian mountains, especially at Cassino (1944); it ended the war in Trieste. Meanwhile, a smaller NZ force supported US forces against the Japanese in the Solomons and New Guinea (1942–44). \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eFully illustrated with specially commissioned colour plates, this is the story of the Second New Zealand Expeditionary Force’s vital contribution to Allied victory in World War II.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Gardners","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":56303929065845,"sku":"9781780961118","price":12.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0612\/7193\/3106\/files\/9781780961118_43de533e-16df-4285-ae1a-dec7080f6839.jpg?v=1786025562"},{"product_id":"9781855327535","title":"Messerschmitt Bf 110 Zerstörer Aces of World War 2","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eThis volume is the first of its type to be devoted exclusively to the Zerstörer day fighter aces, spanning the war years from Poland to the defence of the Reich.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eAlthough Messerschmitt's single-engined Bf 109 has received most of the plaudits for achieving virtual air superiority over Europe in 1939-40, the exploits of the manufacturer's twin-engined Bf 110, the Ju 88 and the Me 410 Zerstörer in the first year of the war also make for very impressive reading. Indeed, on the eve of World War 2 a posting to a Bf 110 unit was considered to be the best career move available in the Luftwaffe.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Gardners","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":56308067860853,"sku":"9781855327535","price":17.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0612\/7193\/3106\/files\/9781855327535_72850602-c698-4385-8cdc-f199dd6363f6.jpg?v=1786029865"},{"product_id":"9781855326965","title":"German Night Fighter Aces of World War 2","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eWhen the Luftwaffe entered World War 2, its nightfighter force was virtually nonexistent thanks to its\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cb\u003eleader, Reichmarschall Hermann Göring, who boasted that bombs would never fall on Germany.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eBy mid-1940 his folly was evident; the first night fighter wing was hastily formed with Bf 110s. Initially capable of detecting targets by visual acquisition only, the force greatly improved its effectiveness with the creation of the 'Giant Würzburg' radar chain. 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In this book, the first of two volumes examining the French Army of the Second World War, Ian Sumner and François Vauvillier examine the organisation, uniforms and equipment of the army of 1939-40 and Vichy France.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eIt includes orders of battle and formation charts as well as many illustration and colour uniform artworks.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Gardners","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":57490351817077,"sku":"9781855326668","price":12.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0612\/7193\/3106\/files\/9781855326668.jpg?v=1786442242"},{"product_id":"army-commandos-1940-45","title":"Army Commandos 1940–45","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eThe period from early 1940 to the end of 1942 was a time of gloom and uncertainty for the British, who stood alone against the assembled might of the Axis powers.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThey badly needed a champion, and were to find this in a small force of soldiers who inspired them with a series of daring raids against the coasts of 'occupied Europe', becoming the heroes of the British public and of the British Prime Minister who had created them.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThis title explores the wartime history of the British Army Commandos whose bravery did so much to raise the morale of the British public.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Gardners","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":57705604284789,"sku":"9781855325791","price":14.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0612\/7193\/3106\/files\/9781855325791.jpg?v=1793377288"}],"url":"https:\/\/backstory.london\/collections\/illustrator-mike-chappell.oembed","provider":"Backstory","version":"1.0","type":"link"}