Military Audiobooks | History

Forgotten Patriots: The Untold Story of American Prisoners During the Revolutionary War

"Between 1775 and 1783, some 200,000 Americans took up arms against the British Crown. Just over 6,800 of those men died in battle. About 25,000 became prisoners of war, most of them confined in New York City under conditions so atrocious that they perished by the thousands. Evidence suggests that at least 17,500 Americans may have died in these prisons—more than twice the number to die on the battlefield. It was in New York, not Boston or Philadelphia, where most Americans gave their lives for the cause of independence. New York City became the jailhouse of the American Revolution because it was the principal base of the Crown's military operations. Beginning with the bumper crop of American captives taken during the 1776 invasion of New York, captured Americans were stuffed into a hastily assembled collection of public buildings, sugar houses, and prison ships. The prisoners were shockingly overcrowded and chronically underfed—those who escaped alive told of comrades so hungry they ate their own clothes and shoes. Despite the extraordinary number of lives lost, Forgotten Patriots is the first-ever account of what took place in these hellholes. The result is a unique perspective on the Revolutionary War as well as a sobering commentary on how Americans have remembered our struggle for independence—and how much we have forgotten."

Edwin G. Burrows (Author), Norman Dietz (Narrator)

Audiobook

The Drillmaster of Valley Forge: The Baron De Steuben and the Making of the American Army

"The image of the Baron de Steuben training Washington's ragged, demoralized troops in the snow at Valley Forge is part of the iconography of our Revolutionary heritage, but most history fans know little more about this fascinating figure. In the first book on Steuben since 1937, Paul Lockhart, an expert on European military history, finally explains the significance of Steuben's military experience in Europe. Steeped in the traditions of the Prussian army of Frederick the Great—the most ruthlessly effective in Europe—he taught the soldiers of the Continental Army how to fight like Europeans. His guiding hand shaped the army that triumphed over the British at Monmouth, Stony Point, and Yorktown. And his influence did not end with the Revolution. Steuben was instrumental in creating West Point and in writing the 'Blue Book'—the first official regulations of the American army. His principles have guided the American armed forces to this day. Steuben's life is also a classic immigrant story. A failure in midlife, he uprooted himself from his native Europe to seek one last chance at glory and fame in the New World. In America he managed to reinvent himself—making his background quite a bit more glamorous than it really was—but redeeming himself by his exceptional service and becoming, in a sense, the man he claimed to be."

Paul Lockhart (Author), Norman Dietz (Narrator)

Audiobook

The Life of Horatio Lord Nelson

"Having entered the British Navy at the age of twelve, Horatio Lord Nelson achieved the rank of captain at the age of twenty. As captain, he was quickly recognized as a magnetic and controversial figure. He triumphed at Cape St. Vincent and the Nile but failed at Tenefife and Boulogne. With the glories of Copenhagen and Trafalgar yet ahead of him, his ardent passion for Emma Hamilton, the wife of a British Ambassador, cast a heavy shadow over his career. Audacious in battle (he once ignored a superior's order to cease action at Copenhagen by putting his telescope to his blind eye and saying he could not see the signal) and winner of some of Britain's greatest victories, Nelson possessed an extraordinary amount of dash and courage, thus rendering him one of history's great romantic figures. This extensive biography of one of England's most famous navy heroes—a great commander able to inspire and bring out the best in his men—is a great reference work for anyone interested in British naval history."

Robert Southey (Author), Frederick Davidson (Narrator)

Audiobook

The Guns of August

"In this Pulitzer Prize–winning classic, historian Barbara Tuchman brings to life the people and events that led up to World War I. This was the last gasp of the Gilded Age, of kings and kaisers and czars, of pointed or plumed hats, colored uniforms, and all the pomp and romance that went along with war. How quickly it all changed—and how horrible it became. Tuchman masterfully portrays this transition from the nineteenth to the twentieth century, focusing on the turning point in the year 1914, the month leading up to the war, and the first month of the war. With fine attention to detail, she reveals how and why the war started and why it could have been stopped but wasn't, managing to make the story utterly suspenseful even when we already know the outcome. A classic historical survey of a time and a people we all need to know more about, The Guns of August will not be forgotten."

Barbara W. Tuchman (Author), Wanda McCaddon (Narrator)

Audiobook

Tried by War: Abraham Lincoln as Commander in Chief

"'James M. McPherson's Tried by War is a perfect primer . . . for anyone who wishes to understand the evolution of the president's role as commander in chief. Few historians write as well as McPherson, and none evoke the sound of battle with greater clarity.' -The New York Times Book Review The Pulitzer Prize-winning author reveals how Lincoln won the Civil War and invented the role of commander in chief as we know it As we celebrate the bicentennial of Lincoln's birth, this study by preeminent, bestselling Civil War historian James M. McPherson provides a rare, fresh take on one of the most enigmatic figures in American history. Tried by War offers a revelatory (and timely) portrait of leadership during the greatest crisis our nation has ever endured. Suspenseful and inspiring, this is the story of how Lincoln, with almost no previous military experience before entering the White House, assumed the powers associated with the role of commander in chief, and through his strategic insight and will to fight changed the course of the war and saved the Union."

James McPherson (Author), George Guidall (Narrator)

Audiobook

World War I: The Great War and the World It Made

"'The Great War' as it was known at the time was also said to be the 'war to end all wars.' It seized all of Europe and much of the rest of the world in its grip of death and destruction. The first truly modern war, it changed how war-and peace-would be conducted throughout the remainder of the twentieth century and even to the present. The Great War was a time of 'firsts' and opened the door to the modern era. Almost all the major developed countries had a role to play in this war, as they never had before. This was the first time for fighting on land, at sea, and in the air. Modern weapons and munitions were developed in previously unimaginable quantities. By the end of the war, international politics, the relationships between the individual and the state, gender relations, and the role of artists and the media were all drastically changed. World War I laid the foundation for the modern world. This course examines the major events of the war to further understand how they led to the shaping of this new world."

John Ramsden (Author), John Ramsden (Narrator)

Audiobook

The Battle of New Orleans

"This book addresses a pivotal and overlooked moment in American history. In 1815, Britain's crack troops, fresh from victories against Napoleon, were stunningly defeated near New Orleans by a ragtag army of citizen soldiers under the fledgling commander Andrew Jackson, whom they dubbed "Old Hickory." It was this battle that first defined the United States as a military power to be reckoned with and an independent democracy here to stay. The Battle of New Orleans sets its scenes with an almost unbelievably colorful cast of characters-a happenstance coalition of militiamen, regulars, untrained frontiersmen, free blacks, Indians, townspeople, and of course, Jackson himself. His glorious, improbable victory will catapult a once-poor, uneducated orphan boy into the White House and forge the beginning of a true nation."

Robert Vincent Remini (Author), Raymond Todd (Narrator)

Audiobook

We Die Alone: A WWII Epic of Escape and Endurance

"One of the most enthralling true adventure stories ever written, We Die Alone, set in Nazi-occupied Norway in 1943, is an epic tale of survival against staggering odds. It begins with an ambushed commando raid that leaves all but one of the expatriate resistance fighters dead or captured. Though wounded, Jan Baalsrud, the sole survivor, takes off on a courageous, incredible trek into the wilds of the Lyngen Alps, while the Nazis relentlessly pursue him. In the course of his journey he suffers frostbite, snowblindness, and a terrible fall in an avalanche. At last, delirious and near death, he chances onto a cabin, where the first in a series of remarkably brave and clever men and women come to his aid. These “ordinary heroes” will eventually get the crippled Baalsrud to safety and freedom, and the amazing story of how they do it will fill listeners with wonder at the capability of the human spirit. This edition includes a never-before-published afterword by the author’s son."

David Howarth (Author), Stuart Langton (Narrator)

Audiobook

The Nightingale’s Song

"Robert Timberg weaves together the lives of Annapolis graduates John McCain, James Webb, Oliver North, Robert McFarlane, and John Poindexter to reveal how the Vietnam War continues to haunt America. Casting all five men as metaphors for a legion of well-meaning if ill-starred warriors, Timberg probes the fault line between those who fought the war and those who used money, wit, and connections to avoid battle. A riveting tale that illuminates the flip side of the fabled Vietnam generation: those who went."

Robert Timberg (Author), Patrick Lawlor (Narrator)

Audiobook

Fixing Hell: An Army Psychologist Confronts Abu Ghraib

"This is the story of Abu Ghraib that you haven't heard, told by the soldier sent by the Army to restore order and ensure that the abuses that took place there never happen again. In April 2004, the world was shocked by the brutal pictures of beatings, dog attacks, sex acts, and the torture of prisoners held at Abu Ghraib in Iraq. As the story broke, and the world began to learn about the extent of the horrors that occurred there, the U.S. Army dispatched Colonel Larry James to Abu Ghraib with an overwhelming assignment: to dissect this catastrophe, fix it, and prevent it from being repeated. A veteran of deployments to Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, and a nationally well-known and respected Army psychologist, Colonel James's expertise made him the one individual capable of taking on this enormous task. Through Colonel James's own experience on the ground, readers will see the tightrope military personnel must walk while fighting in the still new battlefield of the war on terror, the challenge of serving as both a doctor/healer and combatant soldier, and what can-and must-be done to ensure that interrogations are safe, moral, and effective. At the same time, Colonel James also debunks many of the false stories and media myths surrounding the actions of American soldiers at both Abu Ghraib and Guantanamo Bay, and he reveals shining examples of our men and women in uniform striving to serve with honor and integrity in the face of extreme hardship and danger. An intense and insightful personal narrative, Fixing Hell shows us an essential perspective on Abu Ghraib that we've never seen before."

Larry C. James (Author), Eric Kramer (Narrator)

Audiobook

Apache

"‘Apache’ is a blazing true story from the heart of Afghanistan – a tale of courage, comradeship, technology and tragedy, straight from the cockpit of the world’s deadliest helicopter. Includes an exclusive 20 minute Q & A with the author When Ed Macy's career in the Paras was cut short by a brutal accident, he thought he'd never fight again. But joining the Army Air Corps gave him the chance to return to the front line. And when the army launched its attack helicopter programme, Ed was the first to sign up. The Westland Apache AH Mk 1 is the deadliest, most technically advanced helicopter in the world –and only the top two per cent of pilots even make it through the training. In 2007, Ed's Apache squadron was dispatched to Helmand, Afghanistan. Their mission: to protect the men on the ground. So when a marine goes missing in action during an attack on a Taliban stronghold, Ed and his team know they are the Army's only hope of getting him out …"

Ed Macy (Author), Sam Hazeldine (Narrator)

Audiobook

High Seas, High Stakes: Naval Battles that Changed History

"Naval battles have long captured the popular imagination, from confrontations between Greece and Sparta in the ancient world to epic conflicts during the World Wars and beyond. In this riveting series of lectures, Professor Timothy B. Shutt explores the naval battles that have helped to establish empires and have changed history. Professor Shutt imparts an under- standing of the importance of naval warfare and of the grandeur and daring of these awe-inspiring clashes."

Timothy B. Shutt (Author), Timothy B. Shutt (Narrator)

Audiobook

Military Audiobooks in History