Author(s): David Armstrong
The Special Operations Executive (SOE) was the paramount Allied sabotage force of the Second World War. Its job – in Churchill’s words – was to ‘set Europe ablaze’ through the use of sabotage, insurrection and assassination. One of its ‘shining stars’ and ‘legends’ was the close-combat pistol instructor, Colonel Hector Grant-Taylor.
Grant-Taylor taught commandos, secret agents and irregular soldiers the art of how to kill at close quarters. He taught them how to be ruthless, lethal and covert, and yet his own life was a mystery worthy of a John Buchan thriller novel. Misinformation, deception, bravery, murder and ultimately redemption all play a part in his story. At Close Quarters: SOE Close-Combat Pistol Instructor Colonel Hector Grant-Taylor finally puts to rest the myths and legends that surrounded his life and unravels the mysterious truth behind the enigma that was Colonel Hector Grant-Taylor.
BOOK ISBN | 9781781553206 |
FORMAT | 234 x 156 mm |
BINDING | Paperback |
PAGES | 176 pages |
PUBLICATION DATE | 15 October 2013 |
TERRITORY | World |
ILLUSTRATIONS | 30 black and white photographs |
David Armstrong works as a freelance security consultant and investigator. It is during this career that he studied what is known as the ‘Grant-Taylor shooting method’.
Five years ago, Armstrong began researching who Grant-Taylor was and is the only person who has managed to gather together all the pieces of his life accurately and present it in a comprehensive work.