Gregg Adams – författare

Fully illustrated, this study examines the US Army and Japanese troops who fought for control of the Philippine Islands in the climactic months of World War II.In October 1944 the Sixth US Army landed on Leyte in the Japanese-held Central Philippine Islands, initiating a series of battles that became the largest contest between the US and Japanese armies. Determined to liberate the Philippines, General Douglas MacArthur’s forces confronted the Japanese troops intent on extracting a bitter price from their adversaries, amid challenging terrain ranging from the urban streets of Manila to the mountains and jungles of Leyte. Featuring specially commissioned artwork, archive photographs, and full-color mapping, this book examines three important battles of the Philippines campaign.The IJA’s 1st Division faced the US Army’s 24th Division as it attacked toward the port of Ormoc (Breakneck Ridge, November 3–11, 1944), in a fight that pitted one of Japan’s crack divisions against prewar US Regular units. The US 38th Division battled the reinforced 39th Infantry Regiment at Zig-Zag Pass (February 1–13, 1945), an action that saw a relatively green US division facing IJA veterans located in highly defensible terrain. Finally, Gregg Adams examines the battle for the Ipo Dam (May 6–21, 1945), where the veteran US 43d Division fought the Kawashima Force. This absorbing study casts light on the fighting men on both sides.

Specially commissioned artwork and thrilling combat accounts transport the reader to the far-flung and inhospitable East African theatre of World War I, where the Schutztruppe faced off against the King's African Rifles.In an attempt to divert Allied forces from the Western Front, a small German colonial force under the command of Oberst Paul von Lettow-Vorbeck raided British and Portuguese territory. Despite being heavily outnumbered, his expert use of guerrilla tactics forced the British to mount a series of offensives, culminating in a major battle at Nyangao-Mahiwa that saw both sides suffer heavy casualties.Meticulously researched analysis highlights the tactical and technological innovation shown by both armies as they were forced to fight in a treacherous climate where local diseases could prove just as deadly as the opposition.

After the US declaration of war on Germany, hundreds of thousands of American troops flooded into France and were thrust into the front line.Among them was the US Marine Corps’ 4th Marine Brigade whose first major action was the battle of Belleau Wood in June 1918, fighting elements of Germany’s 10th, 28th, and 237th Infantry divisions. Volunteers to a man, the newly arrived Marines faced experienced but war-weary German conscripts whose doctrine had been honed by nearly four years of conflict on the Western Front. During the fighting, the Germans are alleged to have given the nickname “Devil Dogs” to the Marines, and Belleau Wood has become enshrined in the Corps’ heritage. Employing first-hand accounts and specially commissioned artwork, this book investigates three different actions that shaped the course of the bitter battle for Belleau Wood, revealing the interplay of doctrine, tactics, technology, leadership, and human endeavour on the brutal battlefields of World War I.

Between June 1812 and January 1815, US and British forces, notably the regular infantrymen of both sides (including the Canadian Fencibles Regiment), fought one another on a host of North American battlefields.This study examines the evolving role and combat performance of the two sides’ regulars during the conflict, with particular reference to three revealing battles in successive years: Queenston Heights, Crysler's Farm, and Chippawa.Featuring full-color artwork and battle maps, this fully illustrated study investigates the US and British regular infantry’s role, tactics, junior leadership, and combat performance on three battlefields of the War of 1812. The actions assessed here notably demonstrate the evolution of US regulars from their initial poor showing to an emerging professionalism that allowed them to face their British opponents on equal terms.

This absorbing study pits US Army National Guardsmen against Japanese soldiers in the uniquely hostile setting of the New Guinea campaign in World War II.When Japanese forces attacked Pearl Harbor in December 1941, New Guinea – the world’s second-largest island – was administered partly by Australia and partly by the Dutch East Indies. The New Guinea campaign (January 1942–August 1945) saw Japanese forces invade the island, rapidly capturing the key port of Rabaul and threatening Port Moresby, while US forces joined the defenders in increasing numbers. The uniquely demanding environment, and the savage nature of the fighting, meant that the campaign was among the most arduous of World War II for both sides.In this study, the Japanese forces and their US Army opponents, many of whom were National Guard units, are assessed and compared, with particular attention paid to combat doctrine, weaponry, tactics, logistics, leadership, and communications in the challenging setting of New Guinea. The role of US Army National Guard units and their Japanese opponents in three important battles are examined, namely Buna–Gona (November 1942–January 1943), Biak Island (May–August 1944) and the Driniumor River (July–August 1944).

Featuring evocative artwork plates and carefully selected photographs, this book assesses the US Marines and Japanese troops who contested the islands of Tarawa, Roi-Namur, and Eniwetok during 1943–44.On November 20, 1943, amphibious vehicles carrying Marines of the 2d Marine Division reached the shores of Betio Island in the Tarawa Atoll, defended by a determined Japanese garrison that would fight to the last man. This began a test by combat of over two decades of US studies, analyses, and planning for capturing and defending naval bases in Micronesia. The Tarawa assault was followed in February 1944 by the rapid capture of the Kwajalein and Eniwetok atolls in the Marshall Islands.In these battles US Marines fought a mix of Imperial Japanese Navy and Imperial Japanese Army ground units. All but a handful of the defenders, whether they were organized ground combat troops or infantry improvised from aviators and service troops, were determined to die for the Emperor while killing as many of the enemy as possible. In this study, Gregg Adams shows how the US Marine Corps and US Navy drew upon these pivotal actions to improve their tactics, organization, and equipment for the next round of amphibious operations. He also explains how their Japanese opponents – realizing that isolated island garrisons were doomed to destruction or isolation if the Imperial Japanese Navy could not defeat the US Navy at sea – moved from seeking to repel an invasion to one inflicting maximum American casualties through prolonged defensive fighting.