Author: Marilynn Morris Markwald
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781589097575
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 214
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Book Description
In 1949, on a blind date, I was introduced to a charming student from Germany who was studying at the Chicago Lutheran Theological Seminary in Maywood (Chicago suburb), Illinois. Eight months later Rudi Markwald and I were married. During the first years of our marriage he was reluctant to talk about his war experiences, but as time passed, while he was serving parishes from Illinois to Santiago, Chile, and we were rearing four children, he began to talk about the years of growing up in Berlin during the rise of Hitler; of serving three years in the Luftwaffe in Russia; and as infantryman at the Battle of the Bulge. With the self-assurance of a true mystic, he told of his turn around confrontation with God while he was a prisoner of war. During numerous visits to post-war Berlin I came to know his family and friends. I played cards and board games with them while listening to their stories -- stories told by ordinary, non-political people who had been caught under a totalitarian government that was relentless and unyielding toward anyone who thought "outside the box." I tried to persuade Rudi to write all this down, but his reply was always, "Who would want to read it? We were not heroes, resistance fighters, religious objectors or political agitators. We were just ordinary, middle class citizens who struggled through WWI, inflation, anarchy, depression, National Socialism, war and defeat -- hoping after each crisis that things would get better." He did admit to keeping some abbreviated diaries, which I eagerly opened, but the entries were in his own German shorthand, which I could not decipher. Finally he agreed that perhaps the grandchildren would find a small memoir interesting, but he insisted that I write it, because he was busy writing some church history paper. In close consultation with him, and in his voice, I began piecing together a chronological account of his life before our marriage. The events are actual, but because his memory was fading, I reconstructed some conversations and changed the names of most (not all) of the characters. The narrative was finished and waiting for publication, but Rudi did not live to see his memoir published. At the age of 91 his heart gave out, and he died -- in the faith that he lived and preached for sixty years.
Author: Gregory Urwin
Publisher: Naval Institute Press
ISBN: 1612510043
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 514
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Book Description
Told here for the first time in vivid detail is the story of the defenders of Wake Island following their surrender to the Japanese on December 23, 1941. The highly regarded military historian Gregory Urwin spent decades researching what happened and now offers a revealing look at the U.S. Marines, sailors, soldiers, and civilian volunteers in captivity. In addition to exhaustive archival research, he interviewed dozens of POWs and even some of their Japanese captors. He also had access to diaries secretly kept by the prisoners. This information has allowed Urwin to provide a nuanced look at the Japanese guards and how the Americans survived three-and-a-half years in captivity and emerged with a much lower death rate than most other Allies captured in the Pacific. In part, Urwin says, the answer lies in the Wake Islanders’ establishment of life-saving communities that kept their dignity intact. Their mutual-help networks encouraged those who faltered under the physical and psychological torture, including what is today called water boarding. The book notes that the Japanese camp official responsible for that war crime was sentenced to life imprisonment by an American military tribunal. Most spent the war at a camp just outside Shanghai, one of the few places where Japanese authorities permitted the Red Cross to aid prisoners of war. The author also calls attention to the generosity of civilians in Shanghai, including Swiss diplomats and the American and British residents of the fabled International Settlement, who provided food and clothing to the prisoners. In addition, some of the guards proved to be less vicious than those stationed at other POW camps and occasionally went out of their way to aid the men. As the first historical work to fully explore the captivity of Wake Island’s defenders, the book offers information not found in other World War II historie
Author: Carl von Clausewitz
Publisher: Princeton University Press
ISBN: 1400841151
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 29
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Book Description
The seemingly endless wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have renewed the age-old debate over what constitutes military victory. Will the withdrawal of troops from Iraq and Afghanistan be seen as a sign of victory or defeat? Although the nature of warfare has changed dramatically since Clausewitz's On War was first written, this selection from his classic work remains an invaluable source of insight for understanding what it means to achieve victory in war and how to recognize defeat. Princeton Shorts are brief selections excerpted from influential Princeton University Press publications produced exclusively in eBook format. They are selected with the firm belief that while the original work remains an important and enduring product, sometimes we can all benefit from a quick take on a topic worthy of a longer book. In a world where every second counts, how better to stay up-to speed on current events and digest the kernels of wisdom found in the great works of the past? Princeton Shorts enables you to be an instant expert in a world where information is everywhere but quality is at a premium. On Victory and Defeat does just that.
Author: William Joseph Slim Slim (Viscount)
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Battles
Languages : en
Pages : 654
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Book Description
A personal account of military field command during the Second World War as told by Sir William Slim, who led the British forces in Burma. In Mar. 1942 he took command of the Burma Corps and then led the British 14th Army, formed in 1943. They were British, Australians, Canadians, South Africans, Burmese, Chinese, and African soldiers, but mainly drawn from the volunteer Indian Army. For three years Slim's soldiers tied down tens of thousands of Japanese troops in Burma which keep them from fighting in the Pacific. Slim relates the long retreat through Burma and the final hard-fought victory over the Japanese forces, capturing the harsh realities of war. This narrative was first published during his appointment as the 13th Governor General of Australia, granted by the, then new, Queen Elizabeth II, in May, 1953.
Author: Dominic D. P. Johnson
Publisher: Harvard University Press
ISBN: 0674039173
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 358
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Book Description
How do people decide which country came out ahead in a war or a crisis? Why, for instance, was the Mayaguez Incident in May 1975--where 41 U.S. soldiers were killed and dozens more wounded in a botched hostage rescue mission--perceived as a triumph and the 1992-94 U.S. humanitarian intervention in Somalia, which saved thousands of lives, viewed as a disaster? In Failing to Win, Dominic Johnson and Dominic Tierney dissect the psychological factors that predispose leaders, media, and the public to perceive outcomes as victories or defeats--often creating wide gaps between perceptions and reality. To make their case, Johnson and Tierney employ two frameworks: "Scorekeeping," which focuses on actual material gains and losses; and "Match-fixing," where evaluations become skewed by mindsets, symbolic events, and media and elite spin. In case studies ranging from the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis and the current War on Terror, the authors show that much of what we accept about international politics and world history is not what it seems--and why, in a time when citizens offer or withdraw support based on an imagined view of the outcome rather than the result on the ground, perceptions of success or failure can shape the results of wars, the fate of leaders, and the "lessons" we draw from history.
Author: Kay Arthur
Publisher: Harvest House Publishers
ISBN: 0736935630
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 112
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Book Description
Readers will discover the keys to victorious living and winning life's battles in this enriching Old Testament study of how Joshua, Ruth, and the judges overcame defeat by following God's path to success.
Author: Nigel Cawthorne
Publisher: Arcturus Publishing
ISBN: 178828643X
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 490
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Book Description
"Before Alamein we never won a battle, after Alamein we never lost one." Winston Churchill Although this is an exaggeration, it is perhaps a pardonable one. The second battle of El Alamein in November 1942 was followed in April 1943 by the complete withdrawal of German troops from North Africa. Meanwhile, on the Eastern Front, the Red Army had entered the hell of Stalingrad and emerged victorious. In the Pacific, American troops had captured and held the strategically vital island of Guadalcanal, in the teeth of frantic Japanese counter-attacks. In Burma, the Chindits were continuing to harass the enemy while British forces regrouped in preparation for the recapture of the country. The tide of the war had begun inexorably to turn in favour of the Allies. Victory covers all fronts in detail as it charts the progress of the final years of World War II.
Author: Tony Evans
Publisher: Moody Publishers
ISBN: 1575677245
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 52
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Book Description
The Christian life isn't very complicated; but we've made it so through our ignorance of principles central to the Christian walk. There are some basics with which people need to be equipped to live a more victorious Christian life. Tony Evans has heard the people's cry for these sometimes difficult principles to be made simple and explained clearly and succinctly. In his new Tony Evans Speaks Out . . . booklet series, Evans tackles four basic elements of Christianity with a clarity and simplicity characteristic of his popular style.
Author: Jentezen Franklin
Publisher: Charisma Media
ISBN: 1621362205
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 255
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Book Description
New York Times best-selling author Jentezen Franklin is back with a message that will inspire you to break free and reclaim a life of passion, purpose, and praise.
Author: Emily Dotson
Publisher: Destiny Image Incorporated
ISBN: 9780768422603
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 225
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Book Description
