Osprey Campaign S.

6 primary works

Poltava 1709

by Angus Konstam

Published 17 October 1994

Poltava marked the demise of Sweden as a European great power and the rise of Russia. In 1707, the seemingly invincible Charles XII led his army deep into Russia. It was to prove his undoing - the long march eroded the fighting strength of the invaders; a vital supply convoy was lost; and the winter of 1708/9 was the worst in living memory. Drawing upon primary source material previously unseen in the west, Angus Konstam recounts these events, looking in particular at how this battle led to the destruction of the Swedish Army.

Poltava marked the demise of Sweden as a European great power and the rise of Russia. In 1707, the seemingly invincible Charles XII led his army deep into Russia. It was to prove his undoing - the long march eroded the fighting strength of the invaders; a vital supply convoy was lost; and the winter of 1708/9 was the worst in living memory. Although the great Northern War was to drag on for another twelve years, after 1709 Sweden was isolated and on the strategic defensive. Within a year both Saxony-Poland and Denmark would rejoin the anti-Swedish cause, and the capture of Vyborg to the north of St. Petersburg and Riga to the south would ensure the safety of Tsar Peter's fledgling European capital - all results of the battle. In this Osprey Campaign title Angus Konstam recounts the events leading up to Poltava and looks in particular at how this battle led to the destruction of the Swedish Army. As part of his investigation both armies and their commanders are examined carefully. Fluency in Russian allowed author Angus Konstam to visit the country regularly and gain access to primary source material previously unseen in the west: hard work which has made this account of Poltava stand out.

The Armada Campaign 1588

by Angus Konstam

Published 25 March 2001

Ever a popular subject, the thwarted invasion of England by the Spanish Armada is studied here in detail. How Philip ll's fleet was, in a few short days, stopped from invading England and forced into full retreat is looked at in a new and fascinating way, With the help of battle plans and bird's eye views of the action Angus Konstam, a leading historian in the field, here considers many of the intriguing questions surrounding the campaign, Why did the Armada fail? Were the English really superior in ships and gunnery? And perhaps the most fascinating of all, what would have happened if the Spanish had succeeded?

Hampton Roads 1862

by Angus Konstam

Published 17 April 2002

During the winter of 1861-62, Confederate engineers transformed an old wooden steam frigate, the USS Merrimac, into a steam-powered ironclad warship, the CSS Virginia, capable of withstanding the fire of any other warship afloat. Overnight the CSS Virginia had rendered the old wooden fleets obsolete. While similar developments were taking place concurrently in Europe, it was in Hampton Roads, Virginia, that the first clash between two ironclads would take place. The result was one of the strangest naval battles of all time - a well-matched clash between two technically different and revolutionary warships. This book details why the battle of Hampton Roads has been seen as one of the most important navel battles in history, ushering in a new age of naval warfare and warship design.

Lepanto 1571

by Angus Konstam

Published 19 February 2003

For much of the 16th century the Mediterranean was a battleground between Christians and Muslims. The war galley was the predominant warship type of the era, and a battle between two large war galley fleets was expected to decide the fate of the entire Mediterranean basin. In August 1571 an Ottoman fleet of some 235 galleys encountered the Christian fleet led by Spain, the Papacy and Venice. This work details a five hour melee in which the Christians inflicted a decisive defeat on the Turks in a battle which proved to be the last great galley fight of all time.

Fair Oaks 1862

by Angus Konstam

Published 17 December 2003

By 1862 most Americans had realised that the Civil War was failing to be brought to a conclusion. However, General George B. McClellan aimed to avoid this by capturing Richmond, the Confederate capital, and end the war in a single campaign. However, despite catching the Confederates off-guard, McClellan threw away his advantage - it took him almost two months to advance towards Richmond. Finally, General Johnston launched a last-ditch attempt to halt their advance. This book details the result, a bloody one-day battle of Fair Oaks (also known as Seven Pines), fought on 31 May 1862. Both sides battled with ferocity, yet failed to take full advantage of the opportunity to change the face of the war.

Seven Days Battles 1862

by Angus Konstam

Published 25 August 2004

When General Robert E. Lee took command of the Army of Northern Virginia, the Confederacy was in crisis. Lee changed all that in a brilliant weeklong campaign. On 26 June the Confederates struck, fighting two hard-fought battles in two days; Mechanicsville and Gaine's Mill. Although there were heavy casualties, the ferocity of the Confederate assaults convinced McClellan that he was outnumbered. He duly retreated, Lee's men pursued, and McClellan was forced to retreat. Unable to keep the Confederates at bay, the Union army was recalled to Washington. Despite losing a quarter of his men, Lee had saved Richmond, and inflicted a humiliating defeat on the Army of the Potomac. This book traces the course of this short yet crucial campaign.