Showing results by author "James" in Military & War

In June 1944, German and American forces converged on an insignificant bridge a few miles inland from the invasion beaches. If taken by the Nazis, the bridge might have gone down in history as the reason the Allies failed on D-Day. The narrow road over it was each side’s conduit to victory. Continued Nazi control over the bridge near an old manoir known as La Fière—one of only two bridges in the region capable of supporting tanks and other heavy armor—would allow the Germans to reinforce their defenses at Utah Beach, one of the five landing areas chosen for Operation Overlord.

George Armstrong Custer, one of the most familiar figures of 19th-century American history, is known almost exclusively as a soldier, his brilliant military career culminating in catastrophe at Little Bighorn. But Custer, author James E. Mueller suggests, had the soul of an artist, not of a soldier. Ambitious Honor elaborates this radically new perspective, arguing that an artistic passion for creativity and recognition drove Custer to success and, ultimately, to the failure that has overshadowed his notable achievements.

When Jim Pierrot dropped out of high school and joined the navy at 17, it did not look to outsiders like he could possibly be destined to succeed. He quickly learned to make the most of his situation, though. He faced a range of exciting and dangerous situations. Whether he was delivering the governor and his entourage ashore during a nighttime squall or preventing a destroyer from running aground during a high-wind torrential downpour, Jim always pushed himself to do his best.

The author James E Smith (1832 - 1893) served during the Civil War as Captain and commander of the 4th New York Independent Volunteer Light Artillery battery. Early Days in the Black Hills with Some Account of Capt. Jack Crawford was originally published in 1892 and features several of his adventures in the early Black Hills gold rush. It also deals with the legendary John Wallace (Captain Jack) Crawford (1847 - 1917), known as "The Poet Scout". Crawford was an American adventurer, educator, and master storyteller about the Wild West.

Mortar rounds rained down on us continuously, starting at sunrise. We hadn’t slept the previous night because the business of life and death were upon us. Now those mortar rounds were erupting like little volcanoes. But instead of hot lava rocks, they were hot pieces of shrapnel that whizzed by us in every direction.

War is uncomfortable for Christians, and worldwide war is unfamiliar for today's generations. Jim Downing reflects on his illustrious military career, including his experience during the bombing of Pearl Harbor, to show how we can be people of faith during troubled times. The natural human impulse is to run from attack. Jim Downing - along with countless other soldiers and sailors at Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941 - ran toward it, fighting to rescue his fellow navy men, to protect loved ones and civilians on the island, and to find the redemptive path forward from a devastating war.

There are scads of books written about military leadership, or act of heroism so great they are deserving of their own manuscript. This is not one of those books. This book is about the moments that made us laugh along the way. These are the times that built morale, helped us cope, and otherwise helped make the in between times bearable.

Chaplain James D. Johnson chose to accompany his men, unarmed, on their daily combat operations, a decision made against the recommendations of his superiors. During what would be the final days for some, he offered his ministry not from a pulpit but on the battlefields - in hot landing zones and rice paddies, in hospitals, aboard ship, and knee-deep in mud. Through his compelling narration, he takes us into the hearts of frightened young boys and the minds of experienced men.

The last days of the Korean War saw savage battles for control of important local terrain features, and in the trench warfare of the Chorwon Valley a young U.S. Army lieutenant was assigned to lead an infantry company charged with holding Outpost Harry against a determined Chinese assault. The battle devolved into hand-to-hand combat during a period of constant, intense fighting that lasted two days.

Delving deep into the motivations, horrific experiences, and ultimate fates of this Harvard-educated quintet - and by extension, of the brilliant young officer class that left its collegiate and postcollegiate pursuits to enlist in the army and lead America’s rough-and-ready doughboys - Five Lieutenants presents a unique, timeless, and fascinating account of citizen soldiers at war and of the price these extraordinary men paid while earnestly giving all they had in an effort to end "the war to end all wars."

James Moody of the 2/1st Machine Gun Battalion found an Egyptian dog in 1940, who became Horrie, the Battalion's mascot. He wrote it first as a simple tale, augmented by his own photographs of Horrie and his mates in action in Greece, Crete and Palestine. This was sent to Ion Idriess, who developed the book with a series of questions, to finally develop the classic tale of man's best friend: Horrie the Wog Dog.

This is the story of how James lost his son to The Navy in 2015 and the events that followed. Henry Price was happy and filled with ambition and a love for life, like most young men his age. He enlisted in the military after high school in hopes of getting the free college GI Bill to follow his dreams. He joined the Navy with hopes and aspirations but had no idea what would happen when he got posted in Japan. This story follows the events that happened after his death and how different gold star families of our fallen servicemen are treated if they haven’t died in the line of duty.