Richard Duckett

Walter Morris Felix Gamble had a remarkable military career – one that crossed continents, frontiers, and jungles, spanning the defining conflicts of his age. From the Gallipoli Campaign, where Gamble was among the last to evacuate the Peninsula; before serving with distinction on the Western Front in France, where acts of conspicuous gallantry saw him awarded the Military Cross in France. Between the wars, he was drawn toward the wilder edge of British India, serving with the 8th Punjab Regiment and the South Waziristan Scouts on the North-West Frontier. But it was Burma that shaped him most profoundly. Gamble returned there again and again – in 1918, 1930-34, and finally during the darkest days of 1942 through the end of 1944. As Japanese forces swept north, the British/Indian Army fell back in wholesale retreat. Yet, alone in northern Burma, Gamble commanded the Northern Kachin Levies – the only British force actively operating against Japan in Burma, at a time when the map of empire itself appeared to be collapsing. His previously unpublished first-hand account from that campaign forms the unvarnished core of this history. His actions in northern Burma earned him the OBE. He later commanded the Tripura Scouts in 1944 in the Arakan, building highly effective guerrilla operations for which he was Mentioned in Dispatches. A rediscovered voice from lost battlefields, A Remarkable Gamble is this story told at last – an unforgettable journey through war on different continents, remote frontiers, and the jungles of Burma where he successfully led guerrilla irregulars against the Japanese.

The Special Operations Executive (SOE) was created by Winston Churchill in 1940 to "set Europe ablaze," but its most significant success occurred in the jungles of Burma, where its guerrilla operations were vital to the reconquest of the country. SOE’s greatest commander was Lieutenant Colonel Edgar Peacock. Born in India in 1893, Edgar Peacock missed WWI due to his employment in Burma’s Jungles. In 1940, aged 46, he lied about his age and enlisted as a Private, ending the war as a highly decorated special forces Lieutenant Colonel, who had conceived, planned and led the most successful guerrilla operation of WW2. Approximately 130 British officers and NCOs parachuted in, raised about 12,000 indigenous guerrillas and prevented the Japanese from halting General Slim's advance on Rangoon. Over eight months of intense, continuous, combat in enemy territory, Operation Character accounted for 11,874 Japanese casualties for the loss of 22 British troops. For a period they outperformed the entire British 14th Army! Monsoon rains, scarce supplies, dense mountainous jungle, tigers, snakes, leeches and a determined enemy, all combined to make this an operation like no other. Eminent historian, Richard Duckett, given exclusive access to private family files, has produced an extraordinary biography of an exceptional man, exploring Edgar’s truly fascinating life 'warts and all'.

In early 1945 small teams of Allied special forces soldiers were parachuted into the Burmese jungle far behind enemy lines. Their task was to work with local tribespeople who had suffered at the hands of the Japanese occupiers and the majority Burman population to raise irregular forces for guerilla warfare. Their goal was to assist advancing Allied forces by disrupting the rear area of the Japanese Army as it tried to hold the Allied advance. Recruiting, training, supplying and fighting with indigenous peoples, Allied special forces created powerful local forces that learnt all the skills of demolition, ambush and infantry attack. As the war in Burma turned into a rout for Japanese forces in 1945 those forces, instead of trying to disrupt the rear areas of the enemy, found themselves squarely in the way of the retreating Japanese Army trying to get out of Burma. The fight would turn desperate as Allied special forces and tribespeople stood against a Japanese Army in headlong flight. This is the story, through the unvarnished diary and photographs, of one of those Allied special forces soldiers (Major AAE Trofimov MC, Croix de Guerre) who stood with the Karen people against the fleeing army of Japan between the Salween and Sittang Rivers in Southern Burma in 1945 as part of Operation Character.

In the mountains and jungles of occupied Burma during World War II, British special forces launched a series of secret operations, assisted by parts of the Burmese population. The men of the SOE, trained in sabotage and guerrilla warfare, worked in the jungle, deep behind enemy lines, to frustrate the puppet Burmese government of Ba Maw and continue the fight against Hirohito's Japan in a theatre starved of resources. Here, Richard Duckett uses newly declassified documents from the National Archives to reveal for the first time the extent of British special forces' involvement - from the 1941 operations until beyond Burma's independence from the British Empire in 1948. Duckett argues convincingly that `Operation Character' and `Operation Billet' - large SOE missions launched in support of General Slim's XIV Army offensive to liberate Burma - rank among the most militarily significant of the SOE's secret missions. Featuring a wealth of photographs and accompanying material never before published, including direct testimony recorded by veterans of the campaign and maps from the SOE files, The SOE in Burma tells a compelling story of courage and struggle in during World War II

The Team Series is suitable for use with both individuals or as a group tutor encouraging students to try ensemble playing from the very early stages. All of the books in the series are fully integrated allowing students using Team Strings to play in ensembles with students using Team Woodwind, Team Brass, Team Percussion and Team Recorder. Team Strings: Viola is a flexible and adaptable course ideal for beginner viola players. The tutor can be tailored to suit the specific needs of each student. Each piece is carefully graded to ensure a logical progression at a sensible pace and students are introduced to a wide variety of musical styles throughout the book. Team Strings has been specially written to support almost any combination of string instruments the teacher may encounter. Imaginative Piano Accompaniments have been provided as well as helpful notes and clear ensemble scores to aid the teacher. Team Strings also includes all of the scales for the relevant Grades set by the major examination boards. This volume comes complete with downloadable online audio of backing tracks designed to add a third dimension to practice sessions or performance when an accompanist is not available.

Team Strings is firmly established as a leading series of string tutors. It presents a flexible course which can be tailored to suit each student, ideal for individual, group and class tuition - including the ABRSM music medals.

Team Woodwind is firmly established as a leading series of woodwind tutors. It presents a flexible course which can be tailored to suit each student, ideal for individual, group and class tuition - including the ABRSM music medals. The books in the series contain plenty of carefully graded music in a wide range of styles.

Presents a flexible course which can be tailored to suit each student, suitable for individual, group and class tuition - including the ABRSM music medals. This series encourages ensemble playing with varied repertoire for both orchestral and brass band instruments and develops instrument-related aural skills, improvisation and composition.

Suitable for use with individuals or as a group tutor encouraging students to try ensemble playing from the very early stages, this flexible and adaptable course is intended for beginner woodwind players and can be tailored to suit the specific needs of each student. It also provides imaginative piano accompaniments to add variety in performance.

Offers a flexible and adaptable course that is suitable for beginner violin players. This title intends to support various combinations of string instruments the teacher may encounter. It features a CD of backing tracks designed to add a third dimension to practice sessions or performance when an accompanist is not available.