Alan Hankinson – лучшие книги

A climbers' guru par excellence of the interwar years, Winthrop Young was also an educationalist who helped Kurt Hahn found the "Outward Bound" movement, and was closely involved with German attempts to oust Hitler. He was a patriot and a dedicated European, a homosexual and a devoted family man, and lived his life among politicians and leaders like Theodore Roosevelt, Churchill, Baden-Powell and the Kaiser. This biography, which uses freely Winthrop Young's unpublished diaries and letters, attempts to unravel the complexities of this many-sided man.

The 1863 Vicksburg campaign was to prove decisive to the outcome of the American Civil War. Known as the 'Gibraltar of the West', Vicksburg was the last Confederate stronghold on the Mississippi River. In a masterly campaign Grant used riverboats and steamers to land his army south of the city. He then defeated the armies of Generals 'Joe' Johnston and John C. Pemberton. Pemberton allowed his force to become bottled up in Vicksburg and after an epic 47-day siege he was forced to surrender the remnants of his force to Grant on 4 July 1863, one day after Lee's defeat at Gettysburg.

At Bull Run, two inexperienced, ill-trained and poorly led armies clashed in the opening engagement of the American Civil War. Culminating in a stalwart defensive fight by Thomas 'Stonewall' Jackson's Virginia Brigade, this is the story of the Confederacy's first victory. The author investigates the personalities of the principal commanders and examines the opposing armies, showing how the widely varying uniforms of different units caused mistakes of identity which affected the battle at crucial points. Weapons, intelligence and the almost universal inexperience of troops on both sides are all discussed, helping to explain the events of the battle itself.