Ewen Southby-Tailyour, a Royal Marines commando and landing-craft officer with a string of campaigns under his belt, in 1977 found himself posted to the Falkland Islands to command the small Royal Marines detachment stationed there. He was ordered by the Foreign Office and Ministry of Defence to reassess the passive defence of the Islands, make recommendations for a positive and active defence, and, once it had been approved, implement this new concept of operations. His unrealistic remit was to "buy bargaining time in the United Nations" while keeping at bay a determined enemy "for three weeks". There would be no increase in the size of the detachment (42 marines) and no defence-weapons or stores. A keen sailor and navigator, Southby-Tailyour took the opportunity to sail round the Islands, charting many of the bays and beaches for private use, while carrying on a ceaseless battle with the then Governor, and Whitehall, over their differing interpretations of his orders. To say that he became unpopular would be putting it mildly - not least because he smuggled out his wife and family (courtesy of the Argentinian Air Force) to join him in what was an "unaccompanied posting". When the Argentinians invaded the Falklands, it took the MOD little time to realize that they had on hand, since the day he had returned to the UK, the only person who knew the detailed geography of the Islands. And so, on the day of the invasion, Southby-Tailyour was sent for. He found that not all of his advice was appreciated. At one stage Admiral Woodward dismissed his maps and charts, saying that they were too untidy, despite the fact that they were the only ones available in the required detail. Southby-Tailyour was party to nearly all the planning discussions - and arguments. In the end it was generally accepted that he knew more about the Islands than anyone except the Falklanders themselves, who were incommunicado, and so, after helping to plan the initial assault, he was ordered to lead it. Subsequently he helped to plan, and then commanded, all the major seaborne moves of the land forces, including those of Bluff Cove and Fitzroy. This account includes Southby-Tailyour's criticisms of those about him, and also records his love of the Falklands and their abundant wildlife, stark landmass and turbulent waters, as well as the appalling dangers faced by the members of the Task Force in carrying out their duties. That they succeeded was in so small way due to the author, whose efforts were recognized with the award of a modest OBE.

REASONS IN WRITING: A Commando's View of the Falklands War

History

Southby-Tailyour, Ewen

Military

Pen and Sword Military

Arnhem was the heaviest Allied defeat of 1944 and was the subject of the famous film A Bridge Too Far. Casualties during the battle were appalling; the brave and enduring Dutch people suffered catastrophically in the aftermath and German morale was strengthened at a time of otherwise ebbing fortunes. This new revised edition besides being a superb history is, above all, a record of quite extraordinary courage. It is unlikely to be superseded as the standard work on a bold, gallant, yet doomed, undertaking.

The Devil's Birthday: The Bridges to Arnhem 1944

Powell, Geoffrey

Both Sanctuary Wood and the village of Hodge saw intense fighting during the First World War. Nigel Cave takes the reader on an explanatory tour of the immediate area. Included is a description of the museum at Hill 62 with its trench system, stereoscopic photos and weapons.

Sanctuary Wood And Hooge (Battleground Europe)

Cave, Nigel

Europe

For the Sake of Example: Capital Courts-Martial, 1914-1920

Babington, Anthony

Americas

Designed to act as a diversion to the 'big push', Gommecourt was an attempt to force the Germans to commit their reserves to the front line before the main battle took place. This Battlefield Guide tells the reader what happened and relates it to the ground as it now stands today.

Beaumont Hamel: Newfoundland Park (Battleground Somme)

This volume covers the battlefields of Arras around Vimy Ridge dealing with the activities of the French and the British and the start of the Battle of Arras. Vimy Ridge gives a balanced view of the fighting by detailed descriptions of various units and individuals.

Vimy Ridge (Battleground Europe)

Major and Mrs. Holt's Battlefield Guide to the Somme is, without doubt, one of the best-selling guide books to the battlefields of the Somme. This latest updated edition, includes four recommended, timed itineraries representing one day's traveling. Every stop on route has an accompanying description and often a tale of heroic or tragic action. Memorials, private and official, sites of memorable conflict, the resting places of personalities of note are all drawn together with sympathetic and understanding commentary that gives the reader a sensitivity towards the events of 1916.

MAJOR AND MRS. HOLT'S BATTLEFIELD GUIDE TO THE SOMME

Tonie and Valmai Holt

This comprehensive, illustrated account also contains a complete listing of all remaining bunkers and pillboxes in Belgium and France.

PILL BOXES ON THE WESTERN FRONT: A Guide to the Design, Construction and Use of concrete Pillboxes, 1914-1918

Oldham, Peter

DRUMS OF MEMORY: The Autobiography of Stephen Hastings, MC

Biographies & Memoirs

Hastings MC, Sir Stephen

Historical

This paperback edition offers a selection of what has become one of the great English diaries, as Ella Bickersteth, A pastor's wife in World War I, began keeping an extensive diary, partly for the benefit of her four sons who were on active service in various parts of the British Empire.

Bickersteth Diaries 1914-1918

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