Blowing Up The Rock German Italian And Spanish Sabotage Attacks On Gibraltar During The Second World War
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Blowing up the Rock: German, Italian and Spanish Sabotage attacks on Gibraltar during the Second World War by Bernard O'Connor Pdf
During the Second World War, Gibraltar faced the threat of invasion by Italy, Germany, and Spain. The Abwehr, the German Intelligence Service, rather than use their own saboteurs, paid young Spanish men to undertake over sixty sabotage attacks on military installations and shipping with limited success. The Italian Decima Flotilla MAS, a specialist team of underwater frogmen, launched eight attacks which were relatively successful and Spanish Falangists made several unsuccessful attempts. The British Secret Intelligence Service endeavoured to stop or at least limit such attacks. Using contemporary files from the National Archives in Kew, autobiographies, biographies, histories and newspaper articles, this documentary history investigates the successes and failures of these attacks on Gibraltar and the roles played by intelligence officers, agents, double agents in discovering and preventing such acts. The book sheds light on an unusual and largely overlooked aspect of Gibraltar's history.
Blowing Up Iberia: British, German and Italian Sabotage in Spain and Portugal by Bernard O'Connor Pdf
During the Second World War, the British military and intelligence agencies had plans in case Germany invaded Spain and Portugal. This involved training British and Spanish agents to be secretly infiltrated to undertake sabotage operations on important lines of communication and liaising with pro-British locals. At the same time the Abwehr, Germany's military intelligence agency, paid young Spanish and Portuguese collaborators to undertake sabotage missions against Allied military and economic targets in Iberia but they had limited success. Italian saboteurs from the Decima Flotigglia MAS were more successful using underwater divers to attack Allied shipping. Using declassified files from Britain's National Archives, autobiographies, biographies and newspaper articles, this documentary history sheds new light on an unusual aspect of Iberian history telling a human story of international diplomacy, political intrigue, secret agents, clandestine warfare, military strategy, nationalism, and deception.
Gibraltar and the Spanish Civil War, 1936-39 by Julio Ponce Alberca Pdf
Incorporating local, national and international dimensions of the conflict, Gibraltar and the Spanish Civil War, 1936-39 provides the first detailed account of the British enclave Gibraltar's role during and after the Spanish Civil War. The neutral stance adopted by democratic powers upon the outbreak of the Spanish Civil War is well-known. The Non-Intervention Committee played a key role in this strategy, with Great Britain a key player in what became known as the "London Committee". British interests in the Iberian Peninsula, however, meant that events in Spain were of crucial importance to the Foreign Office and the victory of the Popular Front in February, 1936 was deemed a potential threat that could drive the country towards instability. This book explores how British authorities in Gibraltar ostensibly initiated a formal policy of neutrality when the uprising took place, only for the Gibraltarian authorities to provide real support for the Nationalists under the surface. The book draws on a wealth of primary source material,some of it little-known before now, to deliver a significant contribution to our knowledge of the part played by democratic powers in the 1930s' confrontation between Communism and Fascism. It is essential reading for anyone seeking a complete understanding of the Spanish Civil War.
Daring Missions of World War II by William B. Breuer Pdf
Critical acclaim for William B. Breuer "A first-class historian." --Wall Street Journal For Top Tales of World War II "As evidenced time and again by the prolific Breuer, WWII continues to be a source of absorbing espionage tales. . . . This is a book for rainy days and long solitary nights by the fire. If there were a genre for cozy nonfiction, this would be the template." --Publishers Weekly "A perfect book for the curious and adventure readers and those who love exotic tales and especially history buffs who will be surprised at what they didn't know. Recommended for nearly everyone." --Kirkus Reviews For Secret Weapons of World War II "Rip-roaring tales . . . a delightful addition to the niche that Breuer has so successfully carved out." --Publishers Weekly
Spanish Republicans and the Second World War by Jonathan Whitehead Pdf
Spanish Republicans and the Second World War tells the stories of the 500,000 Spanish Republicans that fled across the Pyrenees in 1939 as Catalonia fell to Franco’s victorious army in the final weeks of the Civil War. Many of the exiles played an active part in the Second World War. Some joined the French and British armed forces and saw action in various theatres including Africa and Europe (both in 1940 and after D-Day). In August 1944, Spanish Republicans in the La Nueve Company of General Leclerc’s Deuxième Blindée were the first Allied troops into Paris during the liberation of the French capital. Those that had remained in Vichy France were active in the early days of the French Resistance, and Republican Maquis also played a significant part in the liberation of the south-west of France in 1944. Those who fought the Axis troops in Spain during the Civil War and then again in France assumed that once the Allies had defeated the Nazis, they would launch a military campaign to overthrow Franco’s government in Spain. In October 1944, a force of thousands of Spanish Maquis took part in Operación Reconquista, the invasion of the Valley of Aran on the Spanish side of the Pyrenees. Their declared aim was to trigger a popular uprising and force the Allies to intervene against Franco’s dictatorship. Whitehead also examines the role of the Spanish volunteers of the División Azul who swore an oath of allegiance to Hitler and fought with the Wehrmacht on the Eastern Front; the role of the master double-agent Garbo, who played a crucial part in the success of D-Day; the strategic importance of Gibraltar; and the activities of the British diplomatic corps and secret services in resisting Hitler’s plans to invade the Iberian Peninsula.
Adolf Hitler's failure to take Gibraltar in 1940 lost him the Second World War. But in truth the formidable Rock, jutting between the Mediterranean and the Atlantic, was extraordinarily vulnerable. Every day, ten thousand people crossed its frontier to work, spy, sabotage or escape. It was threatened by Spain, Vichy France, Italy and Germany. After the USA entered the war, Gibraltar became General Eisenhower's strategic headquarters for the invasion of North Africa and the battle for the Mediterranean.
Edited by the author of Disaster at D-Day, a collection of alternative histories that force readers to consider what could happen if the Nazis won World War II. What if Winston Churchill's plane had been shot down and Halifax had become Prime Minister? Or what if Goering had taken power after a successful assassination of Hitler? Or what if Italy had not joined the Third Reich and the Axis? Inspired by a series of hypothetical questions posed by leading military historians, this compelling collection of alternate histories rewrites moments in World War II that could conceivably have altered the entire course of the war and led to a German victory. Based on real battles, actions, and characters, each scenario has been carefully constructed to reveal how different decisions or minor incidents could have set in motion an entirely new chain of events, altering history forever. Other scenarios in this volume include the fall of Malta in 1942, a successful Stalingrad breakout, and a disastrous attempt to open a second front on the Cherbourg peninsula in 1943. Contributors include John Prados, editor of The White House Tapes: Eavesdropping on the President; David Isby, editor of Fighting the Invasion and The Luftwaffe Fighter Force; and Nigel Jones, author of The War Walk and Rupert Brooke, Life, Death and Myth. Praise for Hitler Triumphant “An entertaining work of counter-factual history, with some thought-provoking material on the overall course of the war.” —History of War “The analysis of battle strategy and military might makes for a top pick for military readers seeking more than fantasy speculation.” —Midwest Book Review
At a time of great sacrifice in Canadian history, we are welcomed into the homes, the hearts, and the minds of mothers, sons, fathers, and friends as we follow Syd Smith and his high-school brotherhood of 13 when they answer the call to duty in 1941. Written with his son, David, Lifting the Silence is also a father-and-son journey of discovery that uncovers a remarkable letter that serves as testament to what still defines Canada today. Postmarked "France August 1946," the fragile letter bares the soul of a people beaten down by cruel times and extols their admiration and gratitude for Canada as a nation of spiritual and economic resources that helped them out so much during the war. Within the letter as well, a heartfelt and strikingly prophetic expression of hope to once again receive the downed pilot they had sheltered in 1942. As if by Providence, this letter now serves to reunite Syd with his angel of the French Resistance 61 years later.
"The story of Spain during World War II has largely been viewed as the story of dictator Francisco Franco's foreign diplomacy in the aftermath of civil war. Wayne H. Bowen now goes behind the scenes of fascism to reveal less-studied dimensions of Spanish history. By examining the conflicts within the Franco regime and the daily lives of Spaniards, he has written the first book-length assessment of the regime's formative years and the struggle of its citizens to survive." "Examining the effects of World War II on key facets of Spanish life - Catholicism, the economy, women, leisure, culture, opposition to Franco, and domestic politics -Bowen explores a wide range of topics: the grinding poverty following the civil war, exacerbated by poor economic decisions; restrictions on employment for women versus the relative autonomy enjoyed by female members of the Falange; the efforts of the Church to recover from near decimation; and methods of repression practiced by the regime against leftists, separatists, and Freemasons. He also shows that the lives of most Spaniards remained apolitical and centered on work, family, and leisure marked by the popularity of American movies and the resurgence of loyalty to regional sports teams."--BOOK JACKET.
Oxford Companion to World War II by Ian Dear,M. R. D. Foot Pdf
This text is an authoritative reference work covering a wide breadth of topics on all things associated with World War II. Entries cover topics such as strategy, politics, weapons, tactics, logistics, economics, and society.
Author : Ian Dear,Michael Richard Daniel Foot Publisher : Oxford University Press, USA Page : 1072 pages File Size : 41,7 Mb Release : 2007 Category : History ISBN : 0195340965
*Includes pictures *Includes a bibliography for further reading World War II stood apart in many ways from every earlier war, not least in the way that it reached to every corner of the planet and involved a noticeable segment of humanity's collective resources. Battles erupted not only on land and the sea's surface as they had for centuries, but also in the ocean depths and the windswept heights of the sky. One of the war's most crucial struggles happened in the realm of the unseen, inside the human mind and amid the invisible flow of radio waves. Every war is a battle of wits as intelligence-gathering, tactics, and strategies clash, from the level of individual action up to the grand, overarching schemes of generals and statesmen. Intelligence took on a freshly urgent aspect in World War II, however, as the fate of offensives, armies, and nations came to hang on the struggle to decrypt vital enemy radio traffic and military communications. By the end of 1941, it seemed as if nothing could stop Germany. German forces had swept deep into Russia, killing or capturing hundreds of thousands of prisoners and were closing in on Moscow. In North Africa, German and Italian forces under the command of General Erwin Rommel were poised to take British-controlled Egypt. In the Atlantic, German U-boats were sinking such large numbers of British merchant ships that it seemed as if Britain might be starved into submission.The Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor presented President Franklin D. Roosevelt with a strategic problem that went beyond how to deal with Japanese aggression. Although the war in Europe had been raging for more than two years, many Americans felt it was not their concern, especially with the ultimate defeat of the British seeming all but certain. Four days after the attack on Pearl Harbor, Hitler declared war on America, almost casually and without seeming to consider the consequences. There was no diplomatic necessity for him to have done this and no obvious strategic reason. Germany's military successes were so complete at that point that Hitler seemed to believe declaring war on one more country was a trifling matter. In some ways, he was right, because in December 1941, the US Army was tiny and poorly equipped. In September 1939, the German army invading Poland comprised 100 infantry divisions and six panzer divisions. At that time, the whole US Army was comprised of just five divisions. Even two years later, the US Army was relatively small and ill-equipped. It was clear that, in strictly military terms, the United States was no threat to Nazi Germany when Hitler declared war in late 1941. However, American industry had the capacity and power ahead of virtually any other country in the world, so if America posed a threat to Germany, it would be through its capacity to produce weapons, tanks, aircraft, and ships in vast numbers. At the same time, America was simply too far from any German-controlled airbases to make strategic bombing a possibility. Thus, if a direct attack on American industry was not feasible, the best alternative was to mount a campaign of subterfuge and sabotage. The responsibility for mounting an attack on American industry was given to the German military secret intelligence service, the Abwehr, which devised a plan to land saboteurs in America to attack factories, railroads, and perhaps conduct a random bombing campaign against American civilians. The Nazi plan was given the codename of Operation Pastorius, and it was launched in June 1942, just six months after Germany had declared war on America. What followed was one of World War II's most bizarre spy stories. Operation Pastorius: The History of the Nazi Intelligence Operation to Commit Sabotage in the United States during World War II looks at one of the war's most unique operations.