In their many guises military battles have shaped the course of history and in 'Military's Strangest Campaigns & Characters', Tom Quinn takes a look at some of the finest battles ever to be fought. Among the 100 or so stories, there's the extraordinary 'Battle That Never Was' between two Celtic tribes that never began (you will have to read the book to find out why), the ill-fated launch of the Russian warship Novgorod and the Victoria Cross winner who seemed absolutely determined to die, yet survived completely unscathed against all odds. There's also the tale of Vladmimir Peniakoff who was keen to read Milton's 'Paradise Lost' despite an angry buzz of planes overhead.