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Obtaining weather data was vital for military operations in Northwestern Europe during World War II. In an effort to secure this data, the German Navy and air force secretly established manned weather stations in East Greenland, Svalbard, and Franz Josef Land. This is the personal story of Wilhelm Dege, the leader of the last weather station, code-named "Operation Haudegen". Originally written in German, Dege describes the mission from beginning to end. On 9 May 1945, the allies despatched a vessel to pick up Dege and his team; in effect, Dege and his team were the last German troops to surrender. With a detailed introduction, this translation offers English-speaking readers a rare glimpse into the Germans' account of weather activities during World War II in the Arctic. An epilogue written by Dege's son offers insight into the various fates of the expedition members who worked alongside his father.
Norway's Spitsbergen Archipelago, known as Svalbard to the Norwegians, is of increasing interest to Arctic scholars and geographers, as well as to military historians and analysts of strategy. It was the farthest northern battleground between German and Allied forces in World War II; it became a political arena for Soviet and U.S. competition during the Cold War; it is now a field of conflict for fishing rights and cultural resource protection; and it serves as a laboratory for the study of global warming. This unique island group occupies a fascinating place in European, Russian, and American affairs. Here, for the first time, is the complete report compiled by U.S. Intelligence at the beginning of World War II evaluating the islands both geographically and militarily, as well as a report on the archipelago produced by the CIA in 1950. This comprehensive report--never superseded in the years since--has been edited and introduced by P.J. Capelotti. It provides in great detail the American perspective on these islands and their strategic, economic, and geologic value. Maps and illustrations are included, some from the original report, some new. A glossary covers Arctic terms.
The first English-language monograph that covers the importance of Greenland during World War II. The wartime interest in Greenland was a direct result of its vital strategic position—if you wanted to predict the weather in Europe, you had to have men in place on the vast, frozen island. The most celebrated example of Greenland’s crucial contribution to Allied meteorological services is the correct weather forecast in June 1944 leading to the decision to launch the invasion of Normandy. In addition, both before and after D-Day a stream of weather reports from Greenland was essential for the Allied ability to carry out the bombing offensive against Germany. The Germans were aware of the v...
Providing case study analyses of the politics of science in and around the International Polar Year of 2007-2008, this volume makes a distinct contribution to ongoing research focusing on the relationship between science, international politics, law and history. The contributors combine both interdisciplinary and multi-theoretical approaches to engage directly with the most recent debates in international relations scholarship, to include discussions of arctic climate change, governance issues, reflections on the Antarctic Treaty and the science-geopolitics interface amongst others. This is the first comprehensive account to look explicitly at the relationship between global politics and science through an account of the International Polar Years.
The final volume in one of the most acclaimed works of military history of this generation. Here is Peter Caddick-Adams' third volume in his trilogy about the final year of the Western front in World War Two. Fire & Steel covers the war's final 100 days-beginning in late January 1945 and continuing until May 8th, 1945, when the German high command surrendered unconditionally to all Allied forces. Caddick-Adams' previous two volumes in the acclaimed series-Sand & Steel, which covers the invasion of Normandy in June 1944, and Snow & Steel, the definitive study of the Battle of the Bulge, the German's final offensive in the war-have set the stage for this concluding volume. In these final month...
No country can rival the sheer diversity of intelligence organizations that Germany has experienced over the past 300 years. Given its pivotal geographical and political position in Europe, Germany was a magnet for foreign intelligence operatives, especially during the Cold War. As a result of this, it is no wonder that during certain periods of history Germany was probably busier spying on its own citizens than on its enemies. Because of the Gestapo and the SS of Nazi Germany to the Stasi of the German Democratic Republic, the fear of domestic abuse by security agencies with police powers runs far deeper in German society than elsewhere in the West. The Historical Dictionary of German Intelligence presents the turbulent history of German intelligence through a chronology, a bibliography, and hundreds of cross-referenced dictionary entries on the agencies and agents, the operations and equipment, the tradecraft and jargon, and many of the countries involved. No military reference collection is complete without it.
Golf at the North Pole? Unlikely, but it happened. The author persuaded the crew of a Russian ice breaker to transport his golf clubs to the North Pole and during the journey he sought out other possible golfers who might be game enough to participate in a tournament. As the ship progressed to 90 degrees north he was continually reminded of the exploits of earlier Polar explorers who did not had the advantage of heated cabins, berths, good food and the attentions of a delightful crew. He tells the tales of the early explorers who attempted to find the North Pole by airships, balloons and boats and while telling these tales he intersperses the narrative with golfing stories that appear pertinent. He is now the North Pole Open Champion but his friends know that that is not meaningful.