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This documentary history from the UK National Archives captures the evolution of the Cold War through captivating images and declassified documents.In Cold War, Stephen Twigge explores the tense confrontation of global superpowers from the end of the Second World War to the collapse of the Soviet Union. It was a time when military and ideological struggles between the United States and the Soviet Union dominating the postwar landscape. But Twigge also highlights the role played by Britain in major events such as the Berlin Blockade, the Cuban Missile Crisis and the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan. Cold War describes the devastating consequences of nuclear war, the growth and influence of the peace movement and the exploits of the Cold War spy networks built up by both sides. Based on declassified government reports and papers, the book tells a compelling story of global conflict and superpower politics set against a backdrop of dramatic social and cultural change.

“The story of the Code Breakers and Bletchley Park holds a fascination for many... A very enjoyable addition to the whole Enigma story.” —Military Model SceneThe book reveals the story of British Codebreakers from the reign of Elizabeth I to the Cold War. It explores the use of ciphers during the Napoleonic wars, the role of the Royal Mail's Secret Office and the activities the Admiralty's ‘Room 40'leading to the creation of the Government's Code and Cypher School. The main theme of the book are the events of the Second World War and the battle to break the German enigma codes. The center of Britain's codebreaking operation was located at Bletchley Park in rural Buckinghamshire and it was from here that a hastily assembled army of codebreakers battled to decipher Nazi Germany's secret wartime communications. The deciphered high-level signals intelligence was known as Ultra and had a major influence on the outcome of the war, most notably contributing to crucial successes in the battle for the Atlantic and the D-Day landings in June 1944. The book also reveals the work undertaken in the Far East and the allied efforts to break the Japanese military cipher code named Purple. The book ends with a re-assessment of the work undertaken by the British code breaker and mathematician Alan Turing and a brief overview of the codebreaking operations undertaken by GCHQ during the formative period of the Cold War.“Virtually every page of this 128-page book has a photo, diagram, map or document of importance in advancing the ability of the British code breakers of World War II.” —The Spectrum Monitor“A superb visual memoir.” —Books Monthly

A revealing, sometimes sinister and often hilarious look at the gadgets and devices devised to help spies in their profession.Spies claim that theirs is the second oldest profession. Secret agents across time have had the same key tasks: looking and listening, getting the information they need and smuggling it back home. Over the course of human history, some amazingly complex and imaginative tools have been created to help those working under the cloak of supreme secrecy.During the Second World War, British undercover agents were the heroes behind the scenes, playing a dangerous and sometimes deadly game – risking all to gather intelligence about their enemies. What did these agents have in their toolkits? What ingenious spy gadgets did they have up their sleeves? What devious tricks did they deploy to avoid detection?From the ingenious to the amusing, this highly visual book delves into espionage files that were long held top secret, revealing spycraft in action.

This volume examines British policy towards the Soviet Union in the aftermath of the invasion of Afghanistan in December 1979.The documents in this volume, many released into the public realm for the first time, describe the development of British policy towards the Soviet Union during the eventful years 1979-1982. The new Conservative government, under Margaret Thatcher, was determined to strengthen British defences against the perceived Soviet threat and advocated a strong response to the Soviet intervention. East-West relations further deteriorated following the imposition of martial law in Poland in December 1981. The dilemma facing the British government was how to express strong disapproval of Soviet actions while still attempting to maintain a constructive bilateral relationship, and at the same time keep British policy in line with the Western Alliance. The death of President Brezhnev in November 1982, after 18 years in office, brought uncertainty but also new opportunities for relations with the Soviets. This book will be of much interest to students of British politics and foreign policy, Russian history, US foreign policy, Central Asian politics, and IR in general.

Planning Armageddon provides the first detailed account of Britain's Command, Control, Intelligence and Communications infrastructure. A central theme of the book is the British-American atomic relationship and its implications for NATO strategy. Based on the recollections of officials and military officers in both Britain and the United States and