World War II defined the 20th century and shaped the contemporary world; from the decolonization of Africa to the rise and fall of the Berlin Wall. This work offers an overview of this complex and volatile era, taking into account the political, economic and social factors, as well as military circumstances of the road to war and its consequences.

Contents: Volume I: The German War 1939-1942: The forgotten campaign: Poland's military aviation in September 1939, Michael Alfred Peszke; A reassessment of Anglo-French strategy during the phoney war, 1939-40, Talbot Imlay; The Winter War in global perspective, Ohto Manninen ; The German invasion of Norway, 1940, Adam Claasen ; Myth of the blitzkrieg, Robert A. Doughty ; Myths of the blitzkrieg - the enduring mythology of the 1940 campaign, James Corum; The battle of Gembloux, 14-15 May 1940: the blitzkrieg checked, Jeffrey A. Gunsberg; The fall of France, 1940, M.S. Alexander; Strategy and scapegoatism: reflections on the French national catastrophe, 1940, Nicole Jordan; Colonel Blimp and the British army: British divisional commanders in the war against Germany ,1939-1945, David French; Understanding defeat: reappraising Italy's role in World War II, James J. Sadkovich; The Italo-Greek war in context: Italian priorities and Axis diplomacy, James J. Sadkovich; Re-evaluating who won the Italo-British naval conflict, 1940-42, James J. Sadkovich; Could Admiral Gensoul have averted the tragedy of Mers-el-Kébir?, Philippe Lasterle; British subversion in French East Africa, 1941-2: SOE's Todd mission, E.D.R. Harrison; Both sides of the hill: intelligence in the Crete and Arnhem campaigns, Richard Wilkinson; The Red Army at war 1941-1945: sources and interpretations, David M. Glantz; Recent literature on the Great Patriotic War of the Soviet Union 1941-1945, Alexander Hill; Antonescu's eagles against Stalin's falcons: the Romanian Air Force, Alexander Statiev; Hitler's quest for oil: the impact of economic considerations om military strategy, 1941-42, Joel Hayward; A case study in early joint warfare: an analysis of the Wehrmacht's Crimean campaign of 1942, Joel Hayward; Too little, too late: an analysis of Hitler's failure in August 1942 to damage Soviet oil production, Joel Hayward; The myth of Stalingrad, Jay W. Baird. Volume II: The German War