in 1985 Simon Winchester, struck by a sudden need to discover exactly what was left of the British Empire, set out across the globe to visit the far-flung islands that are all that remain of what once made Britain great. He travelled 100,000 miles back and forth from Antarctica to the Caribbean, from Mediterranean to the Far East, to capture a last glint of imperial glory. His adventures in these distant and forgotten ends of the earth make compelling and often funny reading and tell a story most of us had thought was over: a tale of the last outposts in Britain's imperial career and of those who keep the flag flying. With a new introduction and additional material in many of the chapters, this revised edition tells us what happened to these extraordinary places while the author's been away.

There are still wild places out there on our crowded planet. Through a series of personal journeys, Dan Richards explores the appeal of far-flung outposts in mountains, tundra, forests, oceans and deserts. Following a route from the Cairngorms of Scotland to the fire-watch lookouts of Washington State; from Iceland’s ‘Houses of Joy’ to the Utah desert; frozen ghost towns in Svalbard to shrines in Japan; Roald Dahl’s writing hut to a lighthouse in the North Atlantic, Richards explores landscapes which have inspired writers, artists and musicians, and asks: why are we drawn to wilderness? What can we do to protect them? And what does the future hold for outposts on the edge?

The basis of the film starring Orlando Bloom and Scott Eastwood, The Outpost is the heartbreaking and inspiring story of one of America's deadliest battles during the war in Afghanistan, acclaimed by critics everywhere as a classic. At 5:58 AM on October 3rd, 2009, Combat Outpost Keating, located in frighteningly vulnerable terrain in Afghanistan just 14 miles from the Pakistani border, was viciously attacked. Though the 53 Americans there prevailed against nearly 400 Taliban fighters, their casualties made it the deadliest fight of the war for the U.S. that year. Four months after the battle, a Pentagon review revealed that there was no reason for the troops at Keating to have been there in the first place. In The Outpost, Jake Tapper gives us the powerful saga of COP Keating, from its establishment to eventual destruction, introducing us to an unforgettable cast of soldiers and their families, and to a place and war that has remained profoundly distant to most Americans. A runaway bestseller, it makes a savage war real, and American courage manifest. "The Outpost is a mind-boggling, all-too-true story of heroism, hubris, failed strategy, and heartbreaking sacrifice. If you want to understand how the war in Afghanistan went off the rails, you need to read this book." -- Jon Krakauer

The New York Times bestselling author of Krakatoa and The Professor and the Madman takes readers on a quirky and charming tour of the last outpost of the British empire Outposts is Simon Winchester’s journey to find the vanishing empire, “on which the sun never sets.” In the course of a three-year, 100,000 mile journey—from the chill of the Antarctic to the blue seas of the Caribbean, from the South of Spain and the tip of China to the utterly remote specks in the middle of gale-swept oceans—he discovered such romance and depravity, opulence and despair tht he was inspired to write what may be the last contemporary account of the British empire. Written with Winchester’s captivating style and breadth, here are conversations and anecdotes, myths and political analysis, scenery and history—a poignant and colorful record of the lingering beat of what was once the heart of the civilized world.

'The author has done a quite outstanding job of editing and footnoting this rare memoir . . . this will be of genuine interest to the Peninsular War historian or enthusiast.' Philip Haythornthwaite John Vandeleur's letters home to his mother are a lively and engaging account of active service during the Napoleonic Wars, recounting everything from day-to-day life on campaign to the experience of pitched battle at Vitoria and Waterloo. As first a light infantryman and then a light cavalryman, Vandeleur was frequently on the outposts of Wellington's forces, in frequent contact with the French and often obliged to live a rough-and-ready lifestyle as a result. The conditions that he endured, and the camaraderie that sustained him, are vividly recounted in this fascinating collection – previously only available in an extremely rare private publication over a century ago. Expertly edited and enhanced with contemporary documents and commentary by Andrew Bamford, this is an outstanding contribution to our understanding of the Peninsular War and Waterloo campaign.

General De Brack served Napoleon and France for many years as a light cavalryman during the wars that raged for over a decade. He served under some of the most able and dashing of officers, including the legendary Lasalle and the celebrated Pajol. During this time, the skills and instincts of outpost duty were engraved on his mind, time-taught instincts long forgotten by the army in peace time. In his older age he was approached by the officers of his regiment to recount his advice, lessons and memoirs so that the invaluable experience could be passed on. In his book, Light Cavalry Outposts, General De Brack dispenses his maxims for service in the light cavalry interspersed with memories of his service under the eagles of Napoleon. Author — General Fortune de Brack (1794-1854) Translator — Colonel L A Hale, R.E. (d. 10.1914) Text taken, whole and complete, from the fourth edition published in London, W. Mitchell and Co, 1876. Original Page Count – xxii, 308 p. Illustrations — 3 maps and plans.

Outposts of the Faith offers ten compelling portraits of country churches where the Anglo-Catholic movement flourished during the twentieth century. Rightly famed for its dedicated and heroic work in poor inner-city areas, little is recorded about the impact of Anglo-Catholicism in rural parishes, nor have the stories of some of its more colourful rural priests and people been told, nor of those forces at work in out of the way places which affected the wider church and subsequent direction of the movement. From Cornwall to the Fens, Michael Yelton has conducted visits, interviews and archival research and has created vividly detailed and inspiring accounts. Here we encounter some well known names about whom very little has been written. We also meet some individuals who made outstanding contributions to Anglo-Catholicism in their day, but whose names and accomplishments have become almost forgotten. Outposts of the Faith records devotion and eccentricity in generous measure - we meet one priest who removed parts of his clerical clothing whenever any part of the 1662 Prayer Book was recited, another who was shot by a parishioner, another who faithfully served the same Devon parish for seventy years.

The International Space Station (ISS) is the largest man-made structure to orbit Earth and has been conducting research for close to a decade and a half. Yet it is only the latest in a long line of space stations and laboratories that have flown in orbit since the early 1970s. The histories of these earlier programs have been all but forgotten as the public focused on other, higher-profile adventures such as the Apollo moon landings. A vast trove of stories filled with excitement, danger, humor, sadness, failure, and success, Outposts on the Frontier reveals how the Soviets and the Americans combined strengths to build space stations over the past fifty years. At the heart of these scientific advances are people of both greatness and modesty. Jay Chladek documents the historical tapestry of the people, the early attempts at space station programs, and how astronauts and engineers have contributed to and shaped the ISS in surprising ways. Outposts on the Frontier delves into the intriguing stories behind the USAF Manned Orbiting Laboratory, the Almaz and Salyut programs, Skylab, the Apollo-Soyuz Test Project, Spacelab, Mir station, Spacehab, and the ISS and gives past-due attention to Vladimir Chelomei, the Russian designer whose influence in space station development is as significant as Sergei Korolev’s in rocketry. Outposts on the Frontier is an informative and dynamic history of humankind’s first outposts on the frontier of space.

The development of plans to protect the United States and the rest of the Western Hemisphere that concentrates on policy in the three years before Pearl Harbor, the gradual merger of hemisphere defense into a broader national defense policy, the transition to offensive plans after Pearl Harbor, and the military relationships of the United States with other American nations.