We Won the War but Lost the Empire: True Short Stories From The Second magasin World

This is the 3rd in a series of 4 books full of short stories about Britains involvement in the 2nd World War. Many of the stories uncover what war was really like and not what is often portrayed in modern day chronicles. There was nothing wonderful and magnificent about war, it was, and still is, violent, brutal and inhuman, and those that took part in the fighting sometimes took on animal characteristics to survive. Death stalked the battlefield in many forms and survival was mostly pure luck rather than natural skill. Those that survived nearly 6 years of fighting were never the same again as they had hardened by all the killing. I have selected stories that begin just before war was declared, and initially cover the disgrace that ended in Dunkirk, the Battle of Britain, and the Blitz. There after they delve into the sea war on the Atlantic and Russian convoys, then the Desert campaign, Greece, Crete, Morocco, Tunisia, and Italy. There are also tales about the terrible war against Japan, a country that was so cruel and inhuman towards innocent civilians as well as POWs that it is difficult to come to terms with the reasons behind what they arbitrarily did. Finally, we have the Allied landings at Normandie and the titanic fight through Europe and into Germany. Something the Allies didnt expect.

In the 1960s Roger Payne served in Britains elite Parachute Regiment. In 1969 He and his family moved to Australia after he enlisted in the Australian Army as a physical training instructor training National Servicemen for Vietnam. He remained in the Army until 2003. During that time he developed new programmes for the Corps of Infantry and received the Armys highest award, the Chief of the Defence Force Commendation. A year later he was awarded one of the highest awards an Australian citizen can get, The Order of Australia. He is still the only serviceman to be awarded both.