Sky Warriors, Saul David
Sky Warriors, Saul David
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Sky Warriors

Author: Saul David

Narrator: Adam James

Unabridged: 14 hr 24 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 04/25/2024

Synopsis

THE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER From bestselling historian Saul David, a riveting new history of the British airborne experience across the Second World War. The legendary ‘Red Devils’ were among the finest combat troops of the Second World War. Created at Churchill’s instigation in June 1940, they began as a single parachute battalion of 500 men and grew into three 10,000-strong airborne divisions: the 1st, 6th and 44th Indian, each composed of parachutists and glider-borne troops. Wearing their distinctive maroon berets, steel helmets and Dennison smocks, they served with distinction in every major theatre of the conflict – including North Africa, Sicily, mainland Europe and the Far East – and played a starring role in some most iconic airborne operations in history: the Bruneval Raid of February 1942; the capture of the Primasole, Pegasus and Arnhem Bridges in July 1943, June 1944 and September 1944 respectively; and Operation Varsity, the biggest parachute drop in history, near Wesel in Germany in March 1945.

About Saul David

Saul David is a critically renowned military historian and broadcaster. He is the author, most recently, of Operation Thunderbolt; Crucible of Hell; and The Force. He lives outside of Bath, England, where he is a professor of military history at the University of Buckingham.

Reviews

Goodreads review by Anthony on August 16, 2025

Ode to the Brave Saul David is a proven historian of great worth. All of the books I have read by him have been excellent. Sky Warriors, his book on the British Airborne Forces in the Second World War is no different. These were brave if also reckless soldiers who may also have been let down by poor......more

Goodreads review by Harry on June 06, 2024

Sky Warriors is a fantastic account of the development of Britain’s airborne forces in the Second World War. Saul David weaves personal testimony and clear battlefield explanations into his historical narrative, bringing to life the Red Devils’ wartime operations; the Bruneval Raid, Operation Tonga......more

Goodreads review by Simon on October 31, 2024

While it comes under my World War II handicap system, it does feel fair to apply the harsher judgement here in terms of novelty. Sky Warriors is a very linear narrative with limited conclusions often thrown in at the end of each action. It lacks the tight script of Operation Thunderbolt or the thoug......more

Goodreads review by Catherine on December 22, 2024

History Happy Hour (111724): The legendary "Red Devils" British Airborne forces were created at Winston Churchill’s instigation in June 1940. They started with just 500 men and grew into three 10,000-strong airborne divisions.British military historian Saul David returns for this encore episode of H......more

Goodreads review by John on August 09, 2025

More of a 3.5 really. Charts the setting up of the UK air borne forces. Again we see that the creation of these required the co-operation of the Army and RAF and they were hampered by internal services rivalry. We go through the learning curve through the war as they become more both larger and effect......more

Quotes

EARLY PRAISE FOR 'Fascinating and absorbing… On every occasion the men battled heroically and often achieved far more than could have been expected given the mayhem and handicaps around them… What emerges from this compelling tale of organic evolution and frequent recklessness is the indomitable and pioneering spirit of those involved and how often their courage and daring was badly squandered by those further up the chain. It is very much the men’s characters that form the beating heart of this book – eccentrics, mavericks, ridiculously brave but also very human too…. The Red Devils were mostly young men, as vulnerable as any other soldier. Yet what they achieved, as David makes clear in this hugely entertaining book, was remarkable' Daily Telegraph ‘In the past the story of paratroopers has been told as an adjunct to wider campaign histories, which diminishes their extraordinary contribution. David, a gifted military historian, instead knits all those stories together into a single continuous narrative, told in the words of those who were there. He starts with the birth of the airborne force in bleak 1940 and ends with the last glorious days of the war. Along the way there are thrilling victories and ghastly tragedies… David recounts battles with enthralling detail, never from a detached distance. He specialises in a worm’s-eye view of the war' The Times

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