Cut off from Earth for more than a century, the inhabitants of the colony planet of Mandala have evolved their own unique society, a culture that could be turned upside down by the forthcoming arrival of thousands of new colonists from their home planet. Original.

Divine Intervention

Science Fiction & Fantasy

Wharton, Ken

Science Fiction

Ken Wharton's latest book on the Northern Ireland Troubles is, as always, written from the perspective of the British soldier. Here he chronicles the worst year of The Troubles - 1972 - a year in which 172 soldiers died as a direct consequence of the insanity that would grip Ulster for almost 30 years. His empathy lies firstly with the men who tramped the streets and countryside of Northern Ireland - but also with the good folk of the six counties who never wanted their beautiful land to be the terrorists' battleground. Ken Wharton is utterly condemnatory of the Provisional IRA and INLA but he certainly pulls no punches in his assessment of the Loyalist paramilitaries and terror gangs who sought to outdo the barbarism of their republican counterparts. Based on the testimony of the men who were there during that terrible year, the author tries to investigate every loss in as much detail as time and space permit, with longer chapters to describe "Bloody Friday" the appalling tragedy of Claudy and - with the 12-year public inquiry finally over - the terrible events of "Bloody Sunday". The Bloodiest Year is written with passion and a detailed knowledge in particular of Belfast and the experience of the ordinary squaddie on the streets. The Troubles have become Britain's forgotten war and so long as he is able, Ken will do his best to keep the memory of Operation Banner alive.

The Bloodiest Year: British Soldiers in Northern Ireland, in their Own Words

History

Europe

The History Press

Former soldier Ken Wharton witnessed the troubles in Northern Ireland first hand. Bloody Belfast is a fascinating oral history given a chilling insight into the killing grounds of Belfast’s streets. Wharton’s work is based on first hand accounts from the soldiers. The reader can walk the darkened, dangerous streets of the Lower Falls, the Divis Flats and New Lodge alongside the soldiers who braved the hate-filled mobs on the newer, but no less violent streets of the ‘Murph, Turf Lodge and Andersonstown. The author has interviewed UDR soldier Glen Espie who survived being ambushed and shot by the IRA not once, but twice, and Army Dog Handler Dougie Durrant, who, through the incredible ability of his dog, tracked an IRA gunman fresh from the murder of a soldier to where he was sitting in a hot bath in the Turf Lodge, desperately trying to wash away the forensic evidence. Wharton’s reputation for honesty established from previous works has encouraged more former soldiers of Britain’s forgotten army to come forward to tell their stories of "Bloody Belfast". The book continues the story of his previous work, presenting the truth about a conflict which has sometimes been deliberately underplayed by the Establishment.

Bloody Belfast: An Oral History of the British Army's War Against the IRA

As the fiftieth anniversary of the Troubles approaches, Ken Wharton takes a thorough look at the start of the Troubles, the precursors and the explosion of violence in 1969 that would last until the Good Friday Agreement in 1998 and cost 50,000 casualties and nearly 2,000 civilians’ lives across Northern Ireland, the Republic and England.Utterly condemnatory of the Provisional IRA and their ilk, Wharton pulls no punches in his assessment of the situation then and seeks to dismiss apologists today. His sympathy lies first with those tasked with keeping order in the province, but also with the innocent civilians caught up in thirty years of immense bloodshed. Based on the powerful testimony of those who were there at the time, The Troubles is written with passion and detailed knowledge of the experience of the squaddie.

Torn Apart: Fifty Years of the Troubles, 1969-2019

In the early twentieth century there was a war brewing on Britain’s doorstep. Northern Ireland was filled with discrimination and suspicion, a sense of foreboding that would soon erupt into full-blown rioting. 
Here, veteran soldier and acclaimed Troubles writer Ken Wharton takes a thorough look at the start of the Troubles, the precursors and the explosion of violence in 1969 that would last until the Good Friday Agreement in 1998. In all, the Troubles cost 50,000 casualties and nearly 2,000 civilians’ lives across Northern Ireland, the Republic and England. 
Utterly condemnatory of the paramilitaries, Wharton pulls no punches in his assessment of the situation then and seeks to dismiss apologists today. His sympathy lies first with those tasked with keeping order in the province, but also with the innocent civilians caught up in thirty years of bloodshed. 
?Torn Apart is an in-depth look at the start of the Troubles, looking at the seminal moments and Northern Ireland today using the powerful testimony of those who were there at the time.

Torn Apart

To a Dark Place: Experiences from Survivors of the Troubles

Biographies & Memoirs

Leaders & Notable People

1972 was the bloodiest year of an already bloody conflict played out on the streets of Northern Ireland. For more than twelve months the country was rocked by the atrocities of Bloody Friday and the Claudy bombing, civilian casualties mounted, and the soldiers of the British Army were caught between the factions. One hundred and sixty-nine servicemen died that year, their deaths unnoticed at home except by their loved ones, fighting a forgotten war on British soil. In The Bloodiest Year, Ken Wharton, a former soldier who did two tours of Northern Ireland, tells the story of the worst year of the Troubles through the accounts of the men who patrolled the streets of Belfast and Londonderry, who saw their comrades die and walked with death themselves. He examines almost every single death during that year, and names the men behind the violence, many of whom now hold high office in the country they tried to so hard to break apart.

The Bloodiest Year: British Soldiers in Northern Ireland 1972, In Their Own Words

The period under review covers the years of 1984-87 - nearing the end of the third decade of the Troubles. It will use research and oral contributions from the mid to late 1980s and will show not only how the Provisional IRA (PIRA) grew in financial and logistical strength, but also how the Security Forces (SF) worked hard to contain them. It was also a period where the Republican terror group fully embraced Danny Morrison's mantra: 'The Armalite and the ballot box' as they moved toward a realization that the British military could not be beaten, but that they (PIRA) could at least sit down with them from a position of strength. Thereafter, their intention was not only political agitation, but also to keep up the terror campaign and force the British Government to talk; further to ensure that they - the British - accepted that there could only be an impasse (albeit one of continued violence). However, while they fought, talked, and then fought again, a further 356 people died. This book will cover every major incident of the period - commencing with the ambush of an off-duty UDR soldier, Robert Elliott, through to the shameless bombing of Enniskillen. Significantly, both incidents were at the hands of the Provisional IRA. It will also look at the continued negative interference of the United States and the vast contribution of the Brit-hating Irish-Americans through NORAID, which ensured the killing and the violence would continue.

Another Bloody Chapter in an Endless Civil War: Volume 1 - Northern Ireland and the Troubles 1984-87

Helion and Company

This is the story of the Troubles in Northern Ireland told from the perspective of the British soldiers who served there between 1969 and 1998. This was a war against terrorists who knew no mercy or compassion; a war involving sectarian hatred and violent death. Over 1,000 British lives were lost in a place just 30 minutes flying time away from the mainland. The British Army was sent into Northern Ireland on August 14, 1969 by the Wilson government as law and order had broken down and the population (mainly Catholics) and property were at grave risk. Between then and 1998 some 300,000 British troops served in Northern Ireland. This is their story - in their own words - from first to last. There are stories from some of the most seminal moments in the period of the Troubles in Northern Ireland - detailed accounts of firefights at Crossmaglen from the commanders on the ground at the time; an incredible story from a British Army sniper in Londonderry, 1973; an account from the first squaddie on the scene at Penny Lane after the 1988 funeral killings of the two corporals; the 1988 Ballygawley coach blast which killed 8 Light Infantrymen, with a first-hand account by one of the survivors; the case of the missing Christmas Club money in the Ardoyne; Gerry Adams' 'birthday treat' at a vehicle checkpoint, accounts by plain-clothes intelligence officers on the streets of Belfast … and many more. The brave men and women of the Ulster Defence Regiment, many of whom were murdered in their homes or at their places of work, occupy a prominent place in the book. The author has also conducted a great deal of original research to produce a roll of honor for all service personnel killed in Northern Ireland. A major contribution to research, the list differs to its 'official' MoD counterpart to a surprising degree. It includes more than 20 names before the first official casualty, Gunner Robert Curtis (1971) and more than 10 after the last official casualty, L/Bombardier Stephen Restorick (1997). Receiving a remarkable amount of cooperation from Northern Ireland veterans eager to tell their story, the author has compiled a vivid and unforgettable record. Their experiences - sad and poignant, fearful and violent, courageous in the face of adversity, even downright hilarious - make for compelling reading. Their voices need to be heard.

A Long Long War: Voices from the British Army in Northern Ireland 1969-98

This is Ken Wharton's second oral history of the Northern Ireland troubles told again from the perspective of the ordinary British soldier. This book looks deeper into the conflict, utilising stories from new contributors providing revealing and long-forgotten stories of the troubles from the back streets of the Ardoyne to the bandit country of South Armagh. Ken Wharton - himself a former soldier - is now known and trusted by those who served and they are keen for their part in Britain's forgotten war to now be made public. For the first time, he tells the stories of the 'unseen victims' - the loved ones who sat and dreaded a knock at the door from the Army telling them that their loved one had been killed on the streets of Northern Ireland. There are more first hand accounts from the Rifleman, the Private, the Guardsman, the Driver, the Sapper, the Fusilier on the street as they recall the violence, the insults and the shock of seeing a comrade dying in the street in front of them. There is an explosive interview with a soldier who killed an IRA gunman who was fresh from the murder of two Royal Artillerymen. Building on the huge success of Ken's first book, this second volume will provide plenty of new material for the reader to reconsider afresh the role of Britain's soldiers in Northern Ireland.

BULLETS, BOMBS AND CUPS OF TEA: Further Voices of the British Army in Northern Ireland 1969-98

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Books by Wharton, Ken