Books published by the Royal Marines Historical Society
You can buy all of our books by emailing orders@onetreebooks.com or by completing the
SP 55, FOUR TWO, THE OFFICIAL HISTORY OF 42 COMMANDO ROYAL MARINES 1943-2023. BY DR DAVID ABRUTAT.
In October 1943, the men of newly formed 42 (RM) Commando passed the legendary course at Achnacarry Castle. No sooner had they received their green berets they were told to hide them, secrecy was everything as they embarked for war in the Far East. They were soon to earn their spurs fighting against the Japanese in the jungles of Burma. Kangaw was to be the first of many laurels in an illustrious eighty–year history. FOUR TWO is their story, from the darkest days of the Second World War right up to the complexity of the Commando Force battlespace. It is a rich and varied history from fighting our nation’s enemies to providing humanitarian aid in the remotest areas of the globe to people they have never met, keeping drugs from our shores, adventures in some of the most extreme environments to public duties on the streets of London. Be it in the dense humid jungles of Burma, Malaya and Borneo to the arid deserts of Iraq and Aden to contested and congested Northern Ireland and Afghanistan, across the oceans to the seas of the Gulf, the Caribbean, and the great Southern Ocean on the frozen fringe of Antarctica, Four Two have truly served Per Mare Per Terram.
“42 Commando has played a huge part in the history of the Royal Marines. The author brilliantly captures that story in this book. Through a truly evocative narrative, the journey of this incredible Unit, from the hills of Burma, through the hardships of the Falklands, to deserts of Iraq and Afghanistan, is brought to life in this story of the Commandos who wear the white lanyard.” Colonel J A E Lewis OBE RM, Troop Commander, Company 2I/C, Operations Officer, OC M Company, Commanding Officer 2021-2023. £20 plus P&P
SP 54 THE COMMANDO COMPENDIUM, THE FACTS ABOUT CHURCHILL’S HUNTER CLASS, LOCATIONS AND OPERATIONS OF BRITISH AND INTER-ALLIED COMMANDO FORMATIONS DURING WORLD WAR TWO. by Michael John Beckett. The first Royal Marines Commando was raised in February 1942, just a few months after Lord Mountbatten became the Chief of Combined Operations. After the war he was to write that he found it surprising that so few Marines were in Commandos, a role that he saw as naturally theirs. It had been in June 1940 when Churchill had called for “specially trained forces of the hunter class” to tie up enemy troops by raiding the coast of German occupied Europe. This book traces the origins of the many Army, Navy, Air Force and Royal Marines units that were raised and served as Commandos. Over the past three decades Mike Beckett has meticulously researched and interrogated records of these often-clandestine units during World War Two. Some 22,000 pages of war diaries have been diligently condensed into a series of tables and maps that for the first time give a true and complete picture of the activities of Churchill’s hunter class. “The wartime achievements of these embryonic raiding forces – detailed in this book – were legendary. From small beginnings, relying initially on their volunteers’ raw courage and boyish enthusiasm, they adapted their tactics and equipment to become an outstanding professional force that was capable of meeting strategic objectives” Saul David. The Royal Marines Historical Society is particularly pleased to be able to publish Mike’s research in this Commando Compendium. A true and unique record of the men who served so gallantly and who’s legacy today survives not just in the Royal Marines but in all the units of 3 Commando Brigade and other Special Forces. £25 P&P
SP 53 Lima Company, 42 Commando RM, in the Falkland’s War, In Our Own Words by Tony Sickelmore. This ‘collective’ account of survival and combat in the Falklands Conflict has been put together nearly forty years later. The stark, often disconcerting, descriptions of endurance and courage reveal a Company of Royal Marines who bonded together so closely in adversity that their camaraderie and mutual trust persist to this day. Tony Sickelmore, has sensitively but brilliantly compiled their memories in this fascinating book. As always amongst British soldiers, the sardonic but affectionate humour between them never wavered, despite fear, fatigue, or exposure, as well as significant threats from air strikes or artillery, while confronting an established and numerically superior enemy. £20 P&P
SP 51 A Small Cog, The Story of Montfortebeek Flight 3 Commando Brigade Air Squadron Royal Marines In the 1982 campaign to recapture the Falkland Islands by Nick Pounds. Nick Pounds commanded M Flight and with many others paints a personal and moving picture of what it is like to be in a front-line aviation unit. Operating light battlefield helicopters in an old fashioned conventional war, from violently pitching flight decks and from field locations ashore, all in a hostile air environment. Their story tells also of life back home for the families. “They were wonderful. Just when you thought ‘God, I really need a helicopter now’, there it would be, coming over some fold in the ground. They were the bravest of anyone. Superb. Like the Seventh Cavalry. They kept on coming....” £15 P&P
BEST SELLERS BEST SELLERS BEST SELLERS BEST SELLERS BEST SELLERS BEST SELLERS
SP 50 116 Infantry Brigade Royal Marines, North West Europe 1945 By George Gelder. The story of a unit that was never meant to exist in a role rarely given to Marines; holding the line. Desperately short of men the Army turned to the Admiralty for support and so 116 Bde RM came into being. With meticulous research in records dispersed across the UK and by interviews with the few remaining veterans, George Gelder has bought to life the story of these Blue Beret Marines who fought alongside their Commando and Army brethren in the final moments of the War. £15 P&P
SP 48 A Short History of the Royal Marines 1664-2019 (Fifth Revised Edition) (Updated SP39 198pp) A pocket-sized history which is an excellent compendium of the complete history of the Corps, including detailed annexes on many traditions, customs and linked organisations - issued to all Young Officers and Recruits on joining the Corps. £15 plus P&P
SP 43 Bluenoses, Bears and Bandits, Sea Service to Commandos by WO William J Kitchingham. An autobiography of one man’s long, varied and exciting career in the Royal Marines; his story highlights the major role changes in the Corps from Ship’s Marine to Commando with his personal experiences within these roles. £15 PLUS P&P
GENERAL BLUMBERG’S CLASSICS GENERAL BLUMBERG’S CLASSICS
SP 42 Britain’s Sea Soldiers, A Record of the Royal Marines during the War 1914-1919 by General Sir H E Blumberg, KCB (Originally published in 1927) Regarded as the authoritative record of the Royal Marines in World War 1, this is a detailed account of all of the activities of the Corps on land and sea. From remote naval bases, afloat on every sea and ocean, service ashore with the Royal Naval Division to the great raid at Zeebrugge, every unit and action is covered in meticulous detail. This RMHS specially prepared reprint of General Sir HE Blumberg’s 1927 original is now complete with an index for the first time and it provides both casual and historical readers with facts, figures and all the British and foreign gallantry awards information from the Great War. £25 PLUS P&P
SP 49 Blumberg’s History of the Royal Marines 1755-1914 by General Sir H E Blumberg, KCB (Originally written in 1934, but never before published on the open market). After he had completed his research into WW1 Blumberg turned to the early history of the Corps, researching all of the records that survived at each Grand Division since 1755. The result was a three volume work that was produced in very low numbers and a copy was presented to each Division. The RMHS are delighted to bring together this mammoth work for the first time as a single volume, again supplemented with an index. This is a very different history to Field’s Britain’s Sea Soldiers, although both authors collaborated on many projects, Blumberg’s fascination with detail makes his work unique and important for anyone seeking to find out who was involved in the events that made Corps history. £25 PLUS P&P
COLLECTORS’ ESSENTIAL BOOKS COLLECTORS’ ESSENTIAL BOOKS
SP 41 Personal Distinctions, 350 years of Royal Marines Uniforms and Insignia by John Rawlinson. This is a long over due comprehensive catalogue of uniforms and insignia worn by Marines and Royal Marines since 1664. Over 1000 high quality photographs and clear descriptions make this a volume that will be sought after by aficionados and collectors of Marine insignia around the world. The book is profusely illustrated with both modern photography of surviving artefacts from museums and private collections as well as contemporary paintings, sketches and illustrations from regulations with good drawings. Separate sections deal with head-dress, badges of rank, unit insignia, specialist gunnery and flying badges with sections devoted to the band service and accoutrements. All of Chas Stadden’s series of uniform illustrations are included and brought up to date with a specially commission montage of uniforms from 1974 to 2014. £35 PLUS P&P
SP 30 Irreproachable Character - Royal Marines and the Meritorious Service Medal by John Bilcliffe. Only Royal Marines who have reached the rank of sergeant and who demonstrated a career of irreproachable character and meritorious service are eligible for the MSM. This superb work recalls them all, from 1849 until 2004. £20 PLUS P&P
SP 38 Flying Royal Marines by Col Michael Reece OBE. The stories and details of all Royal Marines Aviators from the early 1900s, through both world wars, the ‘junglies’ and the Falklands then to Afghanistan. £20 PLUS P&P
SP 47 World War 1 Remembered, Royal Marine Buglers and Musicians at War, by John Ambler. This detailed account records the contribution made by buglers and musicians of the RM Band Service in World War 1. £25 PLUS P&P
CEREMONIAL SPECIALS CEREMONIAL SPECIALS CEREMONIAL SPECIALS
SP 45 42 Commando Royal Marines Public Duties in London 2014. A pictorial pamphlet of 42 Commando RM carrying out Public Duties in 2014, only the fourth time in 350 years that the Corps has performed these prestigious duties at the Royal Palaces. £5 P&P
SP 46 RM350 – A pictorial record of RM350 events during this anniversary year 2014 by Lt Col C R S Dare MBE RMR. A Pictorial Record of RM350 events during this anniversary year carried out by the Corps in 2014, its 350th year. £15 PLUS P&P
SP 23 The Story of Colours in The Royal Marines by Major A.J. Donald RM – (16 pages in full colour) Everything about Colours, their significance, heraldry and their presentation, right up until 1986; authoritative and very well illustrated £15 PLUS P&P
FIRST AND REVISED EDITIONS FIRST AND REVISED EDITIONS
Royal Marines have a vast and fascinating history, and our publications reflect this. Brian Edwards’s superb works, Formative Years and After Limbang tell of two very different Corps. Whilst individual operations and campaigns are explored in Left Behind at Zeebrugge, The RM and D-Day, The Long Summer, Borneo Interlude, 41 Independent Cdo RM, and Fidelity Will Haunt Me Till I Die, all through the eyes and memories of the men who were there. Finding Thoroton and One Time Marine are the biographies of two very different careers in the Corps. Albert Medals Awarded to Royal Marines, The Crinoline Church, Eastney Barracks, Vertical Assault and Royal Marines in East Devon were all completed after many years of painstaking research by members of the RMHS and each tells a unique story of Corps history. For anyone interested in how much the Corps has changed over its long history then At The Turn of the Centuries is highly recommended, this survey by Brian Edwards looks at the Corps in 1700, 1800 and then 1900.
SP 7 One Time Marine (A Bootneck’s Tale) by Haydn Jenkins £15 PLUS P&P
SP 8 41 Independent Commando RM - Korea 1950 - 52 by Lt Col Peter Thomas RM (Third Edition 2011) £15 PLUS P&P
SP 9 Royal Marines in East Devon - A History of Lympstone and Dalditch Camps by Anthony J Perrett (Second Edition 2011) £15 PLUS P&P
SP 12 Left Behind at Zeebrugge (The Incredible Story of Sergeant Harry Wright DSM, MSM, RMLI) (Second Edition 2017, first edition published 1990 as the ‘Memoirs of Sergeant Harry Wright (Zeebrugge 1918 and Aftermath P.O.W.) £15 PLUS P&P
SP 13 Fidelity Will Haunt Me Till I Die by Peter Kingswell (Fourth Edition 2010) £15 PLUS P&P
SP 16 Royal Marines and D-Day compiled by Captain the Rev D A Farquharson-Roberts, RM (Second Edition 2012) £15 PLUS P&P
SP 22 At the Turn of the Centuries (An anniversary portrait of the Marines in the RN of 1700, 1800, 1900 and after) by Lt Col Brian Edwards RM £15 PLUS P&P
SP 31 Formative Years 1803 to 1806 (A perspective of the Corps in the Nelson Era) by Lt Col Brian Edwards RM £15 PLUS P&P
SP 32 Albert Medals awarded to Royal Marines by Capt Derek Oakley MBE, RM £15 PLUS P&P
SP 34 Vertical Assault, the Story of the Mountain Leaders Branch by Maj Mark Bentinck RM (Second Edition 2013) £15 PLUS P&P
SP 35 The Long Summer, 45 Commando in Aden & Tanganyika 1963/64 by Lt Col T M P Stevens OBE, MC, RM £15 PLUS P&P
SP 36 After Limbang, a Royal Marines anthology of experiences of the Confrontation with Indonesia December 1962 to September 1966 by Lt Col Brian Edwards RM £15 PLUS P&P
SP 40 Finding Thoroton, the Royal Marine who ran British Naval Intelligence in the Western Mediterranean in World War I by Philip Vickers £15 PLUS P&P
SP 44 The Crinoline Church, Royal Marine Artillery Barracks Eastney by Dennis Bill £15 PLUS P&P
SP 52 BORNEO INTERLUDE, A Troop, 40 Commando, Royal Marines. The Troop Commander’s Journal, July to October 1965 By MA Taffinder £15 PLUS P&P
SP 6 The Ghost of a General and The Royal Marine Officers of 1914 by Lt Col Donald Bittner PhD USMCR £10 PLUS P&P
SP 11 Marines of The First Fleet (Australian Bicentennial) from the journals of Private John Easty, Sergeant James Scott and Lieutenant Ralph Clark £10 PLUS P&P
SP 14 Royal Marines in Wales by Anthony J Perrett £10 PLUS P&P
SP 15 Royal Marines Spies of World War One Era by Lt Col Donald Bittner PhD USMCR and Capt J M Coleby RM £10 PLUS P&P
SP 18 Behind Japanese Lines (The untold story Royal Marines Detachment 385) by Captain Derek Oakley MBE RM £10 PLUS P&P
SP 19 The Royal Marines and Hong Kong (from 1840 to 1997) by Dr S S Richardson AO CBE MA LLD £10 PLUS P&P
SP 20 Marines from the Medway (Story behind their Memorials in the Medway Towns) by Lt Col Brian Edwards RM £10 PLUS P&P
SP 21 Mutiny in Murmansk, ‘The Hidden Shame” (RM in North Russia 1918/19) by Major Mark Bentinck RM £10 PLUS P&P
SP 24 ‘Bagged’ in World War 2 - Tales of Royal Marines Prisoners of War by Jim Fallace and Benjamin Knapton. £10 PLUS P&P