Europe Audiobooks | Travel

Operation Gunnerside: The History and Legacy of the Allied Mission to Sabotage Nazi Germany’s Nuclea

When the Nazis’ quest for a nuclear weapon began in earnest in 1939, no one really had a handle on how important nuclear weapons would prove to war and geopolitics. The attacks on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in August 1945, along with the Cold War-era tests and their accompanying mushroom clouds, would demonstrate the true power and terror of nuclear weapons, but in the late 1930s these bombs were only vaguely being thought through, particularly after the successful first experiment to split the atom by a German scientist. The nuclear age itself was in its infancy, barely 35 years old, but within a few short years the advent of nuclear war loomed over the world and the prospect of a malign dictatorship winning the nuclear race kept Allied leaders awake at night. When the Allies learned the Nazis had a heavy water plant in occupied Norway, they considered various ways to stop it. Bombing raids by the Royal Air Force (RAF) were not practical since they lacked the required accuracy, so it seemed that the only way to slow down or stop the supply of heavy water to the Nazi nuclear program was to mount a commando-style raid on the plant. This would mean sending a handful of men against a well-defended target deep in occupied territory, but the need to interrupt the supply of heavy water was all too clear, even if the means of achieving this was less so. The British turned to the only organization capable of planning and executing such a mission: the Special Operation Executive (SOE), a secret group formed in 1941 with the express purpose of sending in agents to cause mayhem in German-occupied Europe. What resulted was one of the most remarkable raids of World War II, under the name Operation Gunnerside.

Charles River Editors (Author), Daniel Houle (Narrator)

Audiobook

Opération Mincemeat, comment manipuler l'armée allemande: Les plus grandes affaires d'espionnage

L'opération Mincemeat (littéralement ' chair à pâté ') était un plan britannique organisé par le Système Double Cross durant la Seconde Guerre mondiale. L'opération doit convaincre les Allemands de leur interception de documents hautement confidentiels qui détaillaient avec précision les futurs plans d'invasion des Balkans et de la Sardaigne, afin d'éloigner de la Sicile - véritable objectif des Alliés - les troupes allemandes. Cette opération fut un succès, car la Wehrmacht transféra ailleurs des divisions de l'île et permit aux Alliés de réussir en douceur leur débarquement.Voici l'histoire de cette opération secrète britannique, qui a eu des conséquences méconnues sur le déroulement de la Seconde Guerre Mondiale...

Frédéric Garnier (Author), Patrick Blandin (Narrator)

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Operation Nemesis: The Assassination Plot that Avenged the Armenian Genocide

A masterful account of the assassins who hunted down the perpetrators of the Armenian Genocide In 1921, a tightly knit band of killers set out to avenge the deaths of almost one million victims of the Armenian Genocide. They were a humble bunch: an accountant, a life insurance salesman, a newspaper editor, an engineering student, and a diplomat. Together they formed one of the most effective assassination squads in history. They named their operation Nemesis, after the Greek goddess of retribution. The assassins were survivors, men defined by the massive tragedy that had devastated their people. With operatives on three continents, the Nemesis team killed six major Turkish leaders in Berlin, Constantinople, Tiflis, and Rome, only to disband and suddenly disappear. The story of this secret operation has never been fully told, until now. Eric Bogosian goes beyond simply telling the story of this cadre of Armenian assassins by setting the killings in the context of Ottoman and Armenian history, as well as showing in vivid color the era's history, rife with political fighting and massacres. Casting fresh light on one of the great crimes of the twentieth century and one of history's most remarkable acts of vengeance, Bogosian draws upon years of research and newly uncovered evidence. Operation Nemesis is the result--both a riveting read and a profound examination of evil, revenge, and the costs of violence.

Eric Bogosian (Author), Eric Bogosian (Narrator)

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Operation Pedestal: The Fleet that Battled to Malta 1942

The Sunday Times bestseller 'One of the most dramatic forgotten chapters of the war, as told in a new book by the incomparable Max Hastings' DAILY MAIL In August 1942, beleaguered Malta was within weeks of surrender to the Axis, because its 300,000 people could no longer be fed. Churchill made a personal decision that at all costs, the 'island fortress' must be saved. This was not merely a matter of strategy, but of national prestige, when Britain's fortunes and morale had fallen to their lowest ebb. The largest fleet the Royal Navy committed to any operation of the western war was assembled to escort fourteen fast merchantmen across a thousand of miles of sea defended by six hundred German and Italian aircraft, together with packs of U-boats and torpedo craft. The Mediterranean battles that ensued between 11 and 15 August were the most brutal of Britain's war at sea, embracing four aircraft-carriers, two battleships, seven cruisers, scores of destroyers and smaller craft. The losses were appalling: defeat seemed to beckon. This is the saga Max Hastings unfolds in his first full length narrative of the Royal Navy, which he believes was the most successful of Britain's wartime services. As always, he blends the 'big picture' of statesmen and admirals with human stories of German U-boat men, Italian torpedo-plane crews, Hurricane pilots, destroyer and merchant-ship captains, ordinary but extraordinary seamen. Operation Pedestal describes catastrophic ship sinkings, including that of the aircraft-carrier Eagle, together with struggles to rescue survivors and salvage stricken ships. Most moving of all is the story of the tanker Ohio, indispensable to Malta's survival, victim of countless Axis attacks. In the last days of the battle, the ravaged hulk was kept under way only by two destroyers, lashed to her sides. Max Hastings describes this as one of the most extraordinary tales he has ever recounted. Until the very last hours, no participant on either side could tell what would be the outcome of an epic of wartime suspense and courage.

Max Hastings (Author), John Hopkins (Narrator)

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Opération Tracer, un bunker secret à Gibraltar: Les plus grandes affaires d'espionnage

L'opération Tracer était une opération d'espionnage militaire de la Seconde Guerre mondiale ultra secrète basée à Gibraltar, alors colonie britannique et base militaire. L'origine de cette opération venait du plan allemand pour envahir Gibraltar en 1940, connu sous le nom de code d'opération Félix. L'opération Tracer fut conçu par le contre-amiral John Henry Godfrey, le directeur de la Division du renseignement naval de l'Amirauté britannique. En 1941, il décida de créer un poste d'observation secret à Gibraltar qui resterait opérationnel même si Gibraltar tombait à l'ennemi. Depuis cette installation, les mouvements des navires ennemis seraient signalés au Royaume-Uni. Mais tout ne s'est pas passé comme prévu...

Frédéric Garnier (Author), Patrick Blandin (Narrator)

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Operation Typhoon: Hitler's March on Moscow, October 1941

In October 1941, Hitler launched Operation Typhoon-the German drive to capture Moscow and knock the Soviet Union out of the war. As the last chance to escape the dire implications of a winter campaign, Hitler directed seventy-five German divisions, almost two million men and three of Germany's four panzer groups into the offensive, resulting in huge victories at Viaz'ma and Briansk-among the biggest battles of the Second World War. David Stahel's groundbreaking new account of Operation Typhoon captures the perspectives of both the German high command and individual soldiers, revealing that despite success on the battlefield the wider German war effort was in far greater trouble than is often acknowledged. Germany's hopes of final victory depended on the success of the October offensive but the autumn conditions and the stubborn resistance of the Red Army ensured that the capture of Moscow was anything but certain.

David Stahel (Author), Philip Battley (Narrator)

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Operation Typhoon: The History of the Fight for Moscow between the Nazis and Soviets

After the Fall of France and the unsatisfactory Battle of Britain came to a close, Hitler turned to the east and issued Führer Directive 21, his secret order for the invasion of the Soviet Union, on 18 December 1940. Prior to this the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact, a non-aggression agreement, had enabled the two countries to divide the spoils after the invasion of Poland that had triggered the Second World War. Hitler, however, had always regarded this agreement as nothing more than a temporary tactical maneuver. In the early part of the Second World War, the arrangement had suited the two nations, with the Soviet Union preoccupied with its own issues while Hitler continued his aggression in Western Europe, exporting manufactured goods to the Soviet Union in return for grain and oil. But they were never easy bedfellows since their ideological differences were diametrically opposed. For his part, Stalin seems uncharacteristically trusting of Hitler despite Soviet intelligence reports and London warning him of Germany’s intentions. Operation Barbarossa caught him unprepared. Over three and a half million troops - eighty% of the German Army, attacked along a front almost 3,000 km, supported by 2,700 aircraft, the largest invasion force ever seen. Soviet forces were hastily dispatched to the frontier in huge numbers, but the Germans pushed through quickly and decisively, and within three weeks of the launch of Operation Barbarossa, Hitler’s initial objectives had been achieved. While a legend exists today that Hitler's strategic fecklessness destroyed Germany's chances, despite the wise objections of the Wehrmacht general staff (OKW), the actual situation in 1941 resembled the precise reverse of this familiar historical trope. It seems the Fuhrer retained his full strategic acumen in 1941, until he ill-advisedly adopted the suggestions of the OKW and diverted forces in a winter campaign to seize the Soviet capital, leading to the Battle of Moscow .

Phaistos Publishers (Author), Colin Fluxman (Narrator)

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Opus Dei - Das 'Werk Gottes' zwischen Heiligkeit und Santa Mafia (Feature)

Es ist seine umstrittenste Heiligsprechung: 2002 ehrt Johannes Paul II. den Gründer der gefürchteten und bewunderten Elitetruppe Opus Dei, Josémaria Escrivá. Ihre stetig wachsende Anhängerschaft - einflussreich, flexibel und streng prinzipientreu - macht die Gottesstreiter zu einer Stütze der katholischen Kirche. Ihre Rituale der 'körperlichen Abtötung' mit Peitsche und Bußband und die inquisitionsähnliche 'Gewissenserforschung' der Mitglieder verleihen dem Orden gleichzeitig eine Aura der Angst. Wie mächtig und gefährlich ist Opus Dei tatsächlich? Ein fesselndes Feature zu einem der umstrittensten katholischen Orden, vielstimmig inszeniert mit mehreren Sprechern - diese Dokumentation bringt Erstaunliches ans Licht ...

Jan Peter, Thomas Teubner (Author), Anna Dramski, Gerald Paradies, Oliver Nitsche (Narrator)

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Order of Assassins, The: The History and Legacy of the Secretive Persian Sect during the Middle Ages

Like the shinobi, more commonly known as the ninja, the assassin is yet another fabled figure with ancient roots that remains astonishingly relevant to this day. Assassins in the context of contemporary pop culture often conjure up images of brooding, silver-tongued individuals in peak physique, equipped with impeccable style, flawless marksmanship, and exemplary hand-to-hand combat skills. Others visualize strapping, muscular men, their mysterious faces almost entirely obscured by the heavy hoods of their capes, toting quivers, an assortment of daggers strapped to their waists, and glinting blades hidden up their sleeves, a portrayal popularized by the chart-topping video game franchise Assassin's Creed. These invisible executioners lurk soundlessly in the shadows, clocking their target's every move before lunging forth, restraining them with acrobatic stunts and cat-like reflexes, and going in for the kill. But again, like the shinobi, the genuine lore and long-lived legends surrounding the assassin, along with fanciful fabrications stemming from creative liberties taken by modern storytellers, have become so homogenized that the differences between historical and mythical assassins are imperceptible to most. This itself is a pity, given the provocative and riveting history of the Hashashin, the original assassins, because in their case, truth is often stranger than fiction. Known as the Order of Assassins, the Hashashin were not run-of-the-mill hitmen who simply followed the money and exterminated whichever mark was assigned to them by their employers, nor were they unfeeling, vicious butchers who merely pounced on the opportunity to quench their thirst for blood. In reality, the group that became the namesake for assassins and the term assassination consisted of a well-oiled, systematized fraternity of extremist death-dealing agents recruited by the Nizari Ismaili state.

Charles River Editors (Author), Daniel Houle (Narrator)

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Orderly and Humane: The Expulsion of the Germans after the Second World War

The award-winning history of twelve million German-speaking civilians in Europe who were driven from their homes after WWII: 'a major achievement' (New Republic). Immediately after the Second World War, the victorious Allies authorized the forced relocation of ethnic Germans from their homes across central and southern Europe to Germany. The numbers were almost unimaginable: between twelve and fourteen million civilians, most of them women and children. And the losses were horrifying: at least five hundred thousand people, and perhaps many more, died while detained in former concentration camps, locked in trains, or after arriving in Germany malnourished, and homeless. In this authoritative and objective account, historian R. M. Douglas examines an aspect of European history that few have wished to confront, exploring how the forced migrations were conceived, planned, and executed, and how their legacy reverberates throughout central Europe today. The first comprehensive history of this immense manmade catastrophe, Orderly and Humane is an important study of the largest recorded episode of what we now call 'ethnic cleansing.' It may also be the most significant untold story of World War II.

R. M. Douglas (Author), Paul Woodson (Narrator)

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Ordinary Men: Reserve Police Battalion 101 and the Final Solution in Poland

“A remarkable—and singularly chilling—glimpse of human behavior. . .This meticulously researched book...represents a major contribution to the literature of the Holocaust.'—Newsweek Now available in audio for the first time, Christopher R. Browning’s shocking account of how a unit of average middle-aged Germans became the cold-blooded murderers of tens of thousands of Jews—now with a new afterword and additional photographs. Ordinary Men is the true story of Reserve Police Battalion 101 of the German Order Police, which was responsible for mass shootings as well as round-ups of Jewish people for deportation to Nazi death camps in Poland in 1942. Browning argues that most of the men of RPB 101 were not fanatical Nazis but, rather, ordinary middle-aged, working-class men who committed these atrocities out of a mixture of motives, including the group dynamics of conformity, deference to authority, role adaptation, and the altering of moral norms to justify their actions. Very quickly three groups emerged within the battalion: a core of eager killers, a plurality who carried out their duties reliably but without initiative, and a small minority who evaded participation in the acts of killing without diminishing the murderous efficiency of the battalion whatsoever. While this book discusses a specific Reserve Unit during WWII, the general argument Browning makes is that most people succumb to the pressures of a group setting and commit actions they would never do of their own volition. Ordinary Men is a powerful, chilling, and important work with themes and arguments that continue to resonate today. Supplemental enhancement PDF accompanies the audiobook.

Christopher R. Browning (Author), Kevin Gallagher (Narrator)

Audiobook

Orphans of Empire: The Fate of London's Foundlings

Eighteenth-century London was teeming with humanity, and poverty was never far from politeness. Legend has it that, on his daily commute through this thronging metropolis, Captain Thomas Coram witnessed one of the city's most shocking sights-the widespread abandonment of infant corpses by the roadside. Orphans of Empire tells the story of what happened to the thousands of children who were raised at the London Foundling Hospital, Coram's brainchild, which opened in 1741 and grew to become the most famous charity in Georgian England. It provides vivid insights into the lives and fortunes of London's poorest children, from the earliest days of the Foundling Hospital to the mid-Victorian era, when Charles Dickens was moved by his observations of the charity's work to campaign on behalf of orphans. Through the lives of London's foundlings, this book provides readers with a street-level insight into the wider global history of a period of monumental change in British history as the nation grew into the world's leading superpower. Through extensive archival research, Helen Berry uncovers previously untold stories of what happened to former foundlings, including the suffering and small triumphs they experienced as child workers during the upheavals of the Industrial Revolution.

Helen Berry (Author), Jennifer M. Dixon (Narrator)

Audiobook

Europe Audiobooks in Travel