In 1944 George Grod, a strip cartoon, modeling and aviation enthusiast, discovered with amazement some American magazines which an MP billeted near his village lent him. What he liked best were the gleaming advertisements scattered throughout the pages.In the eighties, during an “old papers” fair, George came across some old numbers of Life Magazine and from there he started an unbridled search for original magazines dating back to between 1942 and 1945. Now presented in this single volume, we see the return of all his great themes - aviation, kits, cartoon strips, the love of art and even the cinema. The book is not just a collection of beautiful pictures all strung together or a sample from a huge collection; it is above all the testimonial of a period, the reflection of that immense war effort the American people made during the last World War, seen through the kaleidoscope of publicity and propoganda. It is also a tribute to the most glamorous of our liberators.George Grod worked alongside great film-makers like Verneuil, Minnelli, Zinnemann, Lumet and Zanuck before working on the television series les Dossiers Noirs with his friend Jean-Michel Charlier who took part later in the Grands Maïtres de la BD (Grand Masters of the Cartoon Strip) which he created for the Visiteurs de Mercredi (Wednesday’s visitors). This book is a must for anyone interested in art, history or World War II; an impressive edition to anyone’s collection.

The Central Intelligence Agency was created by Congress with the passage of the National Security Act of 1947, signed into law by President Harry S. Truman. A civilian intelligence agency of the United States government responsible for providing national security intelligence to senior United States policymakers, the CIA also engages in covert activities at the request of the President of the United States of America. The CIA's primary function is to collect information about foreign governments, corporations, and individuals, and to advise public policymakers. The agency conducts covert operations and paramilitary actions, and exerts foreign political influence through its Special Activities Division. For the first time in French, here are the CIA's secret operations, illustrated with hundreds of photographs and documents. From the end of World War II to the operations tracking Bin Laden in Pakistan in 2008, via the Cold War, the activities of the famous American secret service are analysed in this work. CIA agents have been present for more than 60 years in all the operational theatres and the world's trouble spots. There is not a single war, not a coup d'etat where America's men in the shadows have not played a part. Never has a secret service been so powerful: its representatives in posts in a number of capitals dealt directly with the most highly placed politicians.

The tank is still the most powerful vehicle in any land forces’ arsenal. It is an all-encompassing arms system which has formidable firepower, extraordinary mobility and fail-safe protection.The present work shows for the first time all the modern tanks and their numerous modifications and modernizations, with a chronological table of when they were put into service. It clearly defines the postwar combat tank generations.Richly illustrated with more than 350 photos, methodically and in two languages, it reveals the features of each tank with accurate dates and presents each model’s capacities and specifications. Dimensions are indicated in a practical and visual manner. A series of four tests will enable you to find out your level and improve your knowledge on the subject. With all its qualities, this manual is an indispensable tool for the armed forces and all military and armored vehicle buffs.Written by a specialist in the domain of identification in collaboration with industrialists, it is the first in a series of book on military materiel.

Published in 1942 with the title Damals, this album is aimed at enhancing the reputation of the SS-Totenkopf-Division, a rather unusual motorized Waffens-SS formation whose nucleus had been shaped with concentration camp guards, the sadly famous ss-Totenkopfverbände. Proof had to be given through text and photos that in 1940, on the battlefields of France, this division displayed the same value as the best Wehrmacht divisions.Eric Lefèvre has added a historical account of the unit and a biography of its commander SS-Gruppenführer Eicke to the original facsimile. Each of the 89 photos and each text forms the subject of remarks and necessary annotations by the same writer.Eric Lefèvre is a well-known specialist of the WWII German Amy.TrilingualEnglish/French/German

The story of the French twin factories Moteurs (engines) Cérès and Tracteurs (tractors) Champion, is chronologically related in 270 photos and pictures.This book is a new issue of Charge Utile Special Issue # 18 of November 1998.

Fought on 14th October 1066 between Duke William of Normandy and Harold Godwinson, the king of England, the Battle of Hastings changed the course of English history forever. William's victory ensured his accession to the English throne, and the battle of Hastings and the two earlier battles at Fulford and Stamford Bridge led to such horrendous casualties that there were very few men left to lead any kind of resistance to William once he'd been crowned. Because of this lack of resistance, William would survive long enough to successfully found a Norman dynasty of English kings and change the English lineage irrevocably. Hastings 1066 fully illustrates one of the greatest battles in military history.

The beginning of the fifties was a really golden age for the Société Française de Matériel Agricole et Industriel de Vierzon’s. This venerable French company was present everywhere in the rural world with its threshers but especially with its farming tractors, the famous “Vierzons”. The company did not miss any opportunity to remind people that its products were 100% French. Year in year out, farming techniques developed faster and faster and after a prosperous period, the Société Française encountered serious difficulties, both financially and technologically, and alone could no longer face up to the rural world’s new demands. This led to SFV’s association with Case: after losing its century-old brand image, the young SFV ended up by vanishing.

With the help of technical specifications, discover all the cannon used by the American forces campaigning between 1941 and 1945. Field artillery and anti-tank and anti-aircraft guns are presented from the technical and historical point of view. A chapter is devoted to radio vectors and another to artillery spotting. Undisputed specialist of 20th Century French Army history and former officer, Paul Gaujac served in the paratroopers, in the air transport command, at the nuclear submarines headquarters and then at that of the Army, finishing his career as head of the Historical Department of the Armée de Terre. He has published twenty works, three of them with Histoire & Collections. Modelers, military equipment enthusiasts and readers interested in World War II history will all find this an excellent new reference book.

During the preparation of the Normandy Invasion, the American high command realized soon enough that the 8th Air Force, which was wholly committed to strategic bombing, could not undertake the close support of ground units in this major offensive. The keystone of operation “Overlord” would indeed be mastery of the skies: tactical aviation had to be able to intervene quickly and precisely, and to operate from bases on the Continent. The heavy bombers, as they were dependent on large and permanent airfields, could not be called upon for such tasks. The concept of on-call tactical air support was therefore paramount in the Overlord plans and the 9th Air Force was transferred to England for this purpose. The hundreds of hitherto unpublished photos copied out from the pilots and crews’ albums, and the full-color reconstruction of their flying gear are a unique testimony to the day to day life of 9th Air Force personnel and the missions of combat crews. Let us look at these men’s faces, they belong to the Past but we owe them our Freedom. This book is dedicated to the memory of the airmen and soldiers of the Ninth Air Force who gave their all for the Liberation of Europe.

The M4 Carbine and its variants fire 5.56 x 45mm NATO ammunition and are gas-operated, air-cooled, magazine-fed, selective fire firearms with a 4-position telescoping stock. The M4 can trace its lineage back to earlier carbine versions of the M16, all based on the original AR-15 made by ArmaLite. It is a shorter and lighter version of the M16A2 assault rifle, with selective fire options including semi-automatic and three-round burst. Used predominantly by US forces, and by many special forces around the world, this book provides an illustrated history of its design, development and operational history, including its use in Afghanistan and Iraq.

After a first volume devoted to the Focke Wulf FW 190, the new release in the collection “Planes and Model Kits” is dedicated to the Curtiss P-40. Despite its limits, the Warhawk is an aircraft which played a major part in the whole war and on all the front lines, displaying the most colorful insignia and “nose arts” of WW2. This book has no historical claim and makes us discover the B, E, F, N versions of this mythical fighter through the most beautiful models currently available. Each of the four versions are organized around one main technical part, which presents in a clear and dynamic way some of the well-tried knacks used by the most experienced modelers.

This book covers the daily life of the ordinary German infantryman from 1914 to 1918, through “Michel”, the archetype of the German soldier, the national personification of the German people, the symbol of patriotic union. We see his life, his material surroundings, his joys, his hardships, the way he ate, expressed himself, his relationship to authority, mobilization, moving up to the front, life in the front line and the rear, the fighting, his assignment to the assault troops, care in hospital, combined with an examination of the way uniforms and equipment altered as the war went on. The context of the period is also particularly well rendered thanks to extracts from songs in vogue at the time and a host of anecdotes and accurate details which make this book such a unique collection.

From July 18 - 20, 1944, British and Canadian forces launched Operation Goodwood in order finally to capture Caen and push the Germans back towards the south, beyond Bourguébus. Among the armored divisions engaged in the fighting, the book follows the British 11th Armoured Division in particular. In four days, the English advanced over six miles and destroyed more than 100 German tanks but at a cost of 5,500 men and 413 tanks destroyed. Didier Lodieu is a recognized specialist of the Battle of Normandy and is the author of a number of works on this period. He gives us a different perspective on Operation Goodwood by following the Guards Armoured Division.The book contains numerous plans and maps and is richly illustrated with many often previously unpublished photographs together with full color armor profiles.

he medieval knight has a distinctive silhouette, despite the numerous legends which blur historical reality. At the turning point between the 12th and 13th centuries, while the feudal order was slowly disappearing in favor of the overwhelming royal will, some men stood apart from their contemporaries by their ability to fight on horses. They held the power and were considered little by little as the ruling class; they were the lords of the land. Thibaut des Puys de Morsaing, a young and poor bachelor, is about to achieve great success and become a rich land owner. Following his father's steps, who died during the Crusades, and his godfather's, Tristan de Maumesnil, he grasps the opportunities offered to him. The many events in the life of this imaginary character are used as a pretext to stage France's medieval society, from king Philippe Auguste to Saint Louis.