US Small Arms in World War II

US Small Arms in World War II
Author: Tom Laemlein
Publisher: Osprey Publishing
Total Pages: 0
Release: 2011-05-24
Genre: History
ISBN: 9781849084949

From the humorous to the poignant, this incredible collection of wartime images reveals ordinary GIs on the frontline. From the deserts of North Africa to Normandy and from Guadalcanal to Iwo Jima, every theater of war is covered and each image details the small arms that the average GI carried with him to wage war and win an historic victory. All the key small arms, from the commonplace 3Grease Gun2 to the rare Johnson rifle, and including pistols, rifles, carbines, combat shotguns, automatic rifles and machine guns are included. Tom Laemlein has created a unique photo study that draws together a rare collection of classic images (many never before seen). These images together with a short introduction to each weapon tells the combat story of the US Army at war.

The Rifle

The Rifle
Author: Andrew Biggio
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
Total Pages: 321
Release: 2021-06-01
Genre: History
ISBN: 1684511399

It all started because of a rifle. The Rifle is an inspirational story and hero’s journey of a 28-year-old U.S. Marine, Andrew Biggio, who returned home from combat in Afghanistan and Iraq, full of questions about the price of war. He found answers from those who survived the costliest war of all -- WWII veterans. It began when Biggio bought a 1945 M1 Garand Rifle, the most common rifle used in WWII, to honor his great uncle, a U.S. Army soldier who died on the hills of the Italian countryside. When Biggio showed the gun to his neighbor, WWII veteran Corporal Joseph Drago, it unlocked memories Drago had kept unspoken for 50 years. On the spur of the moment, Biggio asked Drago to sign the rifle. Thus began this Marine’s mission to find as many WWII veterans as he could, get their signatures on the rifle, and document their stories. For two years, Biggio traveled across the country to interview America’s last-living WWII veterans. Each time he put the M1 Garand Rifle in their hands, their eyes lit up with memories triggered by holding the weapon that had been with them every step of the war. With each visit and every story told to Biggio, the veterans signed their names to the rifle. 96 signatures now cover that rifle, each a reminder of the price of war and the courage of our soldiers.

A Call to Arms

A Call to Arms
Author: Maury Klein
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing USA
Total Pages: 916
Release: 2013-07-16
Genre: History
ISBN: 1608194094

The colossal scale of World War II required a mobilization effort greater than anything attempted in all of the world's history. The United States had to fight a war across two oceans and three continents--and to do so, it had to build and equip a military that was all but nonexistent before the war began. Never in the nation's history did it have to create, outfit, transport, and supply huge armies, navies, and air forces on so many distant and disparate fronts. The Axis powers might have fielded better-trained soldiers, better weapons, and better tanks and aircraft, but they could not match American productivity. The United States buried its enemies in aircraft, ships, tanks, and guns; in this sense, American industry and American workers, won World War II. The scale of the effort was titanic, and the result historic. Not only did it determine the outcome of the war, but it transformed the American economy and society. Maury Klein's A Call to Arms is the definitive narrative history of this epic struggle--told by one of America's greatest historians of business and economics--and renders the transformation of America with a depth and vividness never available before.

Japanese Rifles of World War II

Japanese Rifles of World War II
Author: Duncan O. McCollum
Publisher:
Total Pages: 61
Release: 1996-01-01
Genre: History
ISBN: 9781880677117

Japanese small arms, while less sophiscated than those of her adversaries in World War II, still served their intended purposes well. Japanese Rifles of World War II is a sweeping view of the rifles and carbines that made up Japan's arsenal during that conflict. Chapters include Arisaka development and Japanese rifle markings; the Type 38 rifle, carbine and cavalry rifle; the Type 44 carbine; the Type I rifle, the Type 99 rifle and long rifle; the Type 2 paratroop rifle; and Concentric Circle rifles. Additional chapters deal with sniper rifles, the Naval Special Type 99 rifle, the Type 02/45 rifle, the North China Type 19 carbine, training rifles, bayonets and slings. The book contains 81 photographs and numerous illustrations. Contact Excalibur Publications, PO Box 35369, Tucson, AZ 85740-5369. Voice: (520) 575-9068. Fax: (520) 575-9068.

Italian Partisan Weapons in WWII

Italian Partisan Weapons in WWII
Author: Gianluigi Usai
Publisher: Schiffer Military History
Total Pages: 288
Release: 2016-12-28
Genre: History
ISBN: 9780764352102

This book covers all classes and types of small arms, from pistols to heavy machine guns, known to have been used by the Italian partisans during WWII. It provides a brief history of the origin and development of the partisan movement in Italy following the 8 September 1943 armistice between Italy and the Allies and subsequent occupation of the northern portion of the country by Germany. There are many relevant examples of correspondence between partisan units relating to acquisition, distribution, use, maintenance, and problems encountered with the various types of small arms available. The majority of the pages of this book are dedicated to a complete, thorough, and extensive coverage of each individual type of weapon known to have been used by the partisans, including specifications, supported by current as well as vintage photographs showing the weapons in use by the partisans.

The Evolution of US Army Tactical Doctrine, 1946-76

The Evolution of US Army Tactical Doctrine, 1946-76
Author: Robert A. Doughty
Publisher:
Total Pages: 68
Release: 1979
Genre: Military art and science
ISBN:

This paper focuses on the formulation of doctrine since World War II. In no comparable period in history have the dimensions of the battlefield been so altered by rapid technological changes. The need for the tactical doctrines of the Army to remain correspondingly abreast of these changes is thus more pressing than ever before. Future conflicts are not likely to develop in the leisurely fashions of the past where tactical doctrines could be refined on the battlefield itself. It is, therefore, imperative that we apprehend future problems with as much accuracy as possible. One means of doing so is to pay particular attention to the business of how the Army's doctrine has developed historically, with a view to improving methods of future development.

Infantry Weapons of World War II

Infantry Weapons of World War II
Author: Jan Suermondt
Publisher: Chartwell Books
Total Pages: 0
Release: 2012-06-20
Genre: Antiques & Collectibles
ISBN: 9780785829317

This is the first book that shows in full color all the details of the war’s greatest weapons—handguns, rifles, submachine guns, machine guns, mortars and antitank weapons. This reference is much more than a photo book. Each weapon is examined in detail, including a history of how each was developed, how and where they were utilized, and how they evolved during the war. The performance of each weapon is reviewed, and a profile of important variants for each model is provided. A summary box for each weapon provides numerous key details, including physical specifications, system of operation, feed system, rates of fire, manufacturer and collector value range. There have been many books on World War II infantry weapons, but none with photographs like this one. With over 500 photographs showing major infantry weapons from the Cobberton collection in North Devon, England, this book also contains a detailed examination of the small arms used in the conflict. Revolvers, pistols, rifles, submachine guns, machine guns, mortars, grenades, mines, and hand-held anti-tank weapons.

The M1 Garand

The M1 Garand
Author: Leroy Thompson
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
Total Pages: 169
Release: 2012-05-20
Genre: History
ISBN: 178096434X

The M1 Garand gave the US infantryman a marked edge during World War II. It shot faster and further than enemy infantry rifles and hit harder. No less an authority on killing the enemy than General George S. Patton called the Garand, “The greatest battle implement ever devised.” At a time when opposing forces were armed with bolt-action rifles, US troops had a highly reliable self-loader. The eight-round clips which were used to load the M1 Garand were, however, viewed with mixed emotions by the troops on the ground. Some Army and Marine Corps troops allegedly felt that the distinctive “twang” as the Garand's clip was ejected when empty alerted the enemy that the soldiers were reloading and resulted in an attack. But the Garand became the defining mankiller of the war, despite its weight and magazine problems, and many US combat veterans consider it one of the key reasons they survived the war.