I am a historian of the Second World War and the aim of this site is to enable others to access some of the research I have carried out over the past few years, and to encourage people to exchange ideas and views about a wide range of subjects relating to the conflict. On this site you will find an oral history archive with transcriptions of many of the interviews I have conducted with veterans of the war from many different countries, and there are also blogs, comment pieces, book reviews, suggested reading, and also contributions from other leading historians in this field.
I hope you find it interesting.

James Holland


Talking point - Thursday 21st September 2006

RAF Special Operations

When eighteen year-old Sergeant Les Silver and the rest of his crew arrived at the quiet airfield of Tempsford, near Bedford, none of them had any idea they would be carrying out Special Duties operations.  They had trained on four-engine Halifax bombers and assumed that once they’d finished their heavy bomber conversion course at Dishford in Yorkshire, they’d be going on bomber missions over Nazi-occupied Europe.  Read more…

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Blog - Thursday 21st September 2006

Diary of Writing Italy’s Sorrow

Getting Started

18 September 2006
About three weeks ago I set myself this date as the day I simply had to start writing the book, so for the past fortnight it’s been a frantic scrabble to get to a stage where I feel I’m ready to go.   Read more…

Posted by James Holland
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