Gauntlet of Maltese

Gauntlet of Maltese
Author: Andrew Colunga
Publisher: Lulu.com
Total Pages: 463
Release: 2012-10-15
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 1300394714

Zero City has always known war, and the Junkyard Gang knows to stay away from it, but there are many other dangers besides fire, knives, and Demons. The flickering light from an abandoned theater calls to them, and a lost Mexican village holds a secret. In a smoky jazz bar beneath the city, a saxophone player who's a helpless romantic plays the song every night. The journals of a 500 year old Spanish conquistador tell a story of discovery, disappointment, and determination. A modern barbarian seeks to regain his throne and strikes a deal with the Reaper. A young man learns to kill in the face of a nuclear war, and looses more than his faith along the way. What is the Gauntlet? What are all those drawings of hands with eyes in their palms? And what happens when the sky burns orange and red lightning streaks the sky?

UXB Malta

UXB Malta
Author: S.A.M Hudson
Publisher: The History Press
Total Pages: 299
Release: 2011-11-30
Genre: History
ISBN: 0752478036

As the Regia Aeronautica and the Luftwaffe unleashed their full might against the island of Malta, the civilian population was in the eye of the storm. Faced with the terror of the unexploded bomb, the Maltese people looked for help to the Royal Engineers Bomb Disposal Section, who dealt with all unexploded bombs, outside of airfields and the RN dockyard, across an area the size of Greater London. Based on official wartime records and personal memoirs, the extraordinary tale unfolds of the challenges they faced — as the enemy employed every possible weapon in a relentless bombing campaign: 3,000 raids in two years.Through violent winter storms and blazing summer heat, despite interrupted sleep and meagre rations, they battled to reach, excavate and render safe thousands of unexploded bombs. Day after day, and in 1942 hour after hour — through constant air raids — they approached live bomb after live bomb, mindful that it could explode at any moment. In the words of one of their number they were ‘just doing a job’

Malta Strikes Back

Malta Strikes Back
Author: Ken Delve
Publisher: Pen and Sword
Total Pages: 355
Release: 2017-06-30
Genre: History
ISBN: 1473892465

A detailed account of the air operations based around Malta during the long siege of the island during World War II. Two of the greatest strategic mistakes by Hitler involved failure to take control of two key locations, Gibraltar and Malta; between them these two were able to influence, and at times dominate, the Western Mediterranean area, and surrounding land masses. Malta, with its strategic partner, Alexandria (and Egypt) likewise dominated the Eastern Mediterranean and surrounding land masses. Malta only existed strategically for its ability to attack the enemy Lines of Communication between European bases (now stretching from France to Crete) and North Africa. Every piece of equipment, every man and all supplies had to move from Europe to North Africa, the majority by surface vessel, and had to be gathered at a limited number of port facilities in both locations, which made those locations key choke points and targets. Once in North Africa, everything had to move along the main coastal road from the supply ports to dumps and to units. Every campaign is to a greater or lesser extent one of logistics, the Desert War more so than most. It has often been called a ‘war of airfields’ but it is more accurately described as a ‘war of logistics’, with airfields playing a major role in defending one’s own supply lines whilst striking at the enemy’s lines. If Malta could not attack, then it was a drain on resources; but in order to attack it had to protect the infrastructure and equipment needed for attack. The ability to take a pounding, shake it off and fight back was the key to survival. The Island required determined leadership, external support dedicated to supplying the Island, and the committed resilience of all those on the Island to ensure success. This is the story of how Malta rose to meet the challenges facing its defences during the Second World War; how it struck back and survived one of its darkest eras.

Fortress Islands Malta

Fortress Islands Malta
Author: Peter Jacobs
Publisher: Pen and Sword
Total Pages: 245
Release: 2016-01-31
Genre: History
ISBN: 1473882559

The introduction of Italy into the Second World War on 10 June 1940 signalled the start of the siege of Malta, and for the next two and a half years the Axis powers did all they could to batter the small island into submission. Maltas defences were initially verging on non-existent but the British Prime Minister, Winston Churchill, could not give up on the island. Laying at the crossroads of the Mediterranean, where the supply route between Italy and the Axis armies in Libya crossed the Allied sea route between Gibraltar and Alexandria, almost exactly at its mid-point, Malta was strategically too important and held the key to the door of the desert war being fought in North Africa.If Malta could be held then it would allow British forces to maintain an offensive capability in the Mediterranean and prevent Axis supplies from reaching North Africa. But everything needed to fight a campaign people, food, fuel, ammunition, medical stores, aircraft and spares would have to be delivered to Malta in sufficient numbers and on a regular basis. It would take a monumental air and maritime effort just to survive, let alone hit back, and to manage both would require those in command to carefully balance Maltas precious and limited resources. Otherwise, it meant surrender and who knows what the outcome of the Second World War might have been had the island fallen. Here, the accomplished military author Peter Jacobs tells the extraordinary story of the heroic defence and re-supply of the Fortress Island of Malta during the longest siege in British history.Links End Links Author

Malta GC

Malta GC
Author: Jon Sutherland
Publisher: Casemate Publishers
Total Pages: 163
Release: 2009-10-19
Genre: History
ISBN: 1783039159

The Siege of Malta during World War II was one of the greatest dramas of the conflict. Bereft of vital defending aircraft, guns and ammunition this small island endured a succession of air raids from the Italian and German air forces. Valetta was virtually destroyed, the inhabitants took to living in the hills and caves as their houses lay in ruins. Food was scarce and the islands only salvation and survival depended on the arrival of the Allied convoys which themselves were constantly under attack as they dodged their way across hostile Mediterranean seas. This book contains unseen photographs taken during the siege and dramatically show what life was like for the population and the troops and pilots who so valiantly defended Malta.

The Strange Truth of Fiction

The Strange Truth of Fiction
Author: Joe Bugeja
Publisher: Author House
Total Pages: 263
Release: 2013-02-14
Genre: Family & Relationships
ISBN: 1481780425

The author turns true experiences into stories that adorn his biographies and autobiographies. He does so as a means of information, instruction and discussion. In fact he provides authentic insights of the human predicament in a universe that is sometimes friendly, sometimes hostile but often indifferent. He also delineates the human aspect in realistic living characters. The narration of many incidents and accidents is woven into his stories reinforced by imaginative fiction. True tragic incidents are both intensely dramatic and highly emotional. They engender sympathy and empathy that imprints them as true to life. On the other hand, comic episodes in the life of the characters stimulate humour, an element of pleasant relief and entertainment. True or imaginary they embellish the literary world by allowing the readers' participation in adventures of ordinary people. Personal experiences encompass man's journey on earth, no matter how colourless and humdrum is his life. However man's physical activities, such as travels to nearby or to distant countries, enrich life experiences. In addition, man's thought, stimulated by philosophical dicta, makes him aware of the hidden truths of his universal role. As a human being, Man is subject to superior forces. He is buffeted by coincidences, destiny, misfortune and even Providence. Though this collection of stories may encapsulate a short span of a man's life, they are in essence true to life. Though plot may be coloured by imaginative fiction, the stories are characteristic of a true narration and a recording of what truly happened. Thus, the reader should evaluate the story by its truth rather than by other characteristic structures. Nevertheless, the author considers these stories more as a literature of escape than of interpretation. Yet they broaden the readers' vision and sharpen their awareness of the everyday reality of life. The stories are certainly true to life. They illustrate various reactions and other aspects of human behaviour,

Malta's Greater Siege & Adrian Warburton DSO* DFC** DFC (USA)

Malta's Greater Siege & Adrian Warburton DSO* DFC** DFC (USA)
Author: Paul McDonald
Publisher: Pen and Sword
Total Pages: 386
Release: 2015-11-30
Genre: History
ISBN: 1473860083

This is a true historical account of war in the air, at sea and on land in the battle for Malta's survival in the Second World War. It was a battle which decided the outcome of the war in North Africa and the Mediterranean. Adrian Warburton, the airman described in the subtitle by Marshal of the Royal Air Force Lord Tedder, went missing in 1944 in a single-seat American aircraft. He had flown at least 395 operational missions mostly from Malta. Unusually for a reconnaissance pilot, 'Warby' as he was known was credited with nine aircraft shot down. He lay undiscovered for sixty years. He is the RAF's most highly decorated photo-recce pilot. In Malta, Adrian met Christina, a stranded dancer turned aircraft plotter in the secret world deep beneath Valletta's fortress walls. She too was decorated for heroism. Together, they became part of the island's folklore. How important was Malta and the girl from Cheshire to the man behind the medals? This tale takes the form of a quest opening in a cemetery in Bavaria and closing in another in Malta. In between, the reader is immersed within the tension and drama surrounding Malta's Greater Siege retracing the steps of the main characters over the forever changed face of the island following its heroic victory.

El Alamein and the Struggle for North Africa

El Alamein and the Struggle for North Africa
Author: Jill Mary Edwards
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Total Pages: 263
Release: 2012
Genre: History
ISBN: 9774165810

From the ongoing Italian geomorphic study of the Alamein arena to individual memories of non-combatant Alexandrians, from the Free French to the seasoned colonial forces of Australia, India, New Zealand, and South Africa, and from vital naval engagements and the siege of Malta to the study of Rommel's leadership and the Churchill-Montgomery duo, this book offers a detailed yet broad reassessment of the complexities of the war in North Africa between 1941 and 1943, its technology, philosophy, military doctrine, strategy, tactics, logistics, and the associated local and international politics.