Pre D-day World War II Conferences: Books, Audiobooks, and DVDs owned by Avn Tech Library

In the summer of 1941, the Atlantic Charter marked the first of many meetings between President Franklin Roosevelt and Prime Minister Winston Churchill. The Charter laid out eight articles promoting ideals such as equality among nations and promising post-war freedom of the seas. It was ironic that in a conference concerning war aims, the United States was still a neutral country and the British were far from sure they could win the war against Germany.

A Companion to World War II brings together a series offresh academic perspectives on World War II, exploring the manycultural, social, and political contexts of the war. Essay topicsrange from American anti-Semitism to the experiences ofFrench-African soldiers, providing nearly 60 new contributions tothe genre arranged across two comprehensive volumes.  A collection of original historiographic essays that includecutting-edge research Analyzes the roles of neutral nations during the war Examines the war from the bottom up through the experiences ofdifferent social classes Covers the causes, key battles, and consequences of thewar

Obviously, there are many books written about World War II--but very few of them present 'competing voices'. Written for college-bound high-school students, first- and second-year undergraduates and general readers of military history, Competing Voices from World War II in Europe highlights the different perspectives and views of all belligerents in the military arena, as well as describing the impact of the war on daily life. The book begins in 1939 (with the invasion of Poland) and ends in 1945 (with Germany's surrender). However, an introductory chapter puts the war in perspective by examining key events preceding the invasion of Poland, and a concluding chapter looks at the controversy surrounding the Nuremberg Trials after the end of hostilities. Though well-known, the main events of the war often remain controversial, and minor events are still relatively unexplored. Though it is often assumed that Allied victory was inevitable, and that all the Allies worked together in a seamless fashion, this book provides evidence that contradicts these basic concepts. Presented with directly reported sources, together with all the contextual information, readers will be able to develop their own opinions about events such as the Munich Conference, the defeat of France, the debate over a second front, the D-Day events of 1944, the development of Soviet-American relations throughout the war and the origins of the Cold War.

Four months before Pearl Harbor, Winston Churchill and Franklin D. Roosevelt met in secret aboard a ship in a secluded Newfoundland harbor. This was the first summit conference of World War II. Although it would soon be overshadowed by the events to come, the 1941 summit at Placentia Bay produced dramatic results. It confirmed the policy of material aid for Britain and sanctioned the "Atlantic Charter." It also laid the groundwork for the three-way alliance that would bring about the destruction of the Axis powers. "I am sure that I have established warm and deep personal relations with our great friend," Churchill cabled his cabinet from Argentia Harbor. In this revised edition of his classic study, which won the Society of American Historians Parkman Prize, historian Theodore Wilson has expanded and updated the narrative. Drawing upon a wealth of primary sources made available since the first edition (British official records, declassified material in the Roosevelt Library and National Archives, along with the papers of such British and American officials as George C. Marshall, Adolf Berle, Orlando Ward, Sir Alexander Cadogan, and Lord Halifax), he has added nearly 40% new material. The First Summit is now totally grounded in archival research and authoritative in a way that the original version could not be. Wilson carefully analyzes the events of August 1941 and concludes that President Roosevelt was not totally in control. As the country lurched from crisis to crisis, bureaucratic politics and organizational dynamics were far more influential than FDR in determining the evolution of U.S. strategy, U. S. policy toward Japan, Anglo-American economic relations, and the efforts to mobilize for war. Wilson also recaptures the drama and color of the shipboard discussions from Roosevelt's bizarre working methods to Churchill's choice of entertainment in the evenings. The resulting narrative bristles with detail and puts forth a rounded, confident argument establishing the meeting at Argentia as a landmark in the history of war diplomacy.

*Includes pictures *Includes quotes from the leaders and accounts of the conference by participants*Includes online resources and a bibliography for further reading.

*Includes pictures*Includes eyewitness accounts of the conferences*Includes online resources and a bibliography for further reading.

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER Paul Kennedy, award-winning author of The Rise and Fall of the Great Powers and one of today's most renowned historians, now provides a new and unique look at how World War II was won. Engineers of Victory is a fascinating nuts-and-bolts account of the strategic factors that led to Allied victory. Kennedy reveals how the leaders' grand strategy was carried out by the ordinary soldiers, scientists, engineers, and businessmen responsible for realizing their commanders' visions of success.

This book is a magisterial global history of World War II. Beginning in 1937 with the outbreak of the Sino-Japanese War, Evan Mawdsley shows how the origins of World War II lay in a conflict between the old international order and the new and then traces the globalisation of the conflict as it swept through Asia, Europe, and the Middle East. His primary focus is on the war's military and strategic history though he also examines the political, economic, ideological, and cultural factors which influenced the course of events. The war's consequences are examined too, not only in terms of the defeat of the Axis but also the break-up of colonial empires and the beginning of the Cold War. Accessibly written and well-illustrated with maps and photographs, this compelling new account also includes short studies of the key figures, events and battles that shaped the war.