History Talks.

Here is a list, and brief description, of the talks that Pete has given to history societies over the years. If you want any further information, or are interested in having Pete give any of these lectures for your group, please comment below.

The Decima Mas- Italian Frogman Unit.

The Italians have suffered pretty poorly from WW2 historiography,;this talk provides a counter to that with an examination of the ground breaking Frogman unit. Covering both the technical developments as well as the missions of this small band of brave, motivated and skilled men it provides and insight into the genisis of all modern naval special forces.

 

Art and Artillery- Wyndham Lewis: War Artist.

This talk covers the wartime career of the enfant terrible Wyndham Lewis; before the war he formed an avant garde art collective but during the war served in the Royal Artillery during the Passchendaele battle before getting out of the trenches to become an official war artist. His work now forms part of the IWM collection.

 

Britain and the Irish War of Independence, 1919-1921.

Although armed Irish nationalism had a violent birth spasm in the Easter Rising of 1916, it was not until after the end of the Great War that open conflict between the IRA and the British government broke out. This talk chronicles the war, seeing the development of early Counterinsurgency doctrine and political events that shaped the rest of the next century and beyond.

 

Air Control between the Wars.

The end of the Great War saw Britain’s colonial possessions expand after the collapse of the Ottoman Empire. Needing a cheap way to manage the huge new areas, the RAF step up with a proposal. In this talk hear how new technologies were ultilised to enforce the rule of law and how ‘Bomber’ Harris learnt his trade.

 

The Search for the Universal Tank: British Tank Design since 1919.

As the Great War ended Britain led the world in tank design; this is the story of how it squanded its lead in the interbellum years, struggled through WW2 and then ended with a design classic.