Robert Lyman


Robert Murray Lyman is a British military historian. He has published a number of popular books on the Second World War.

Biography

Education

Born in New Zealand, Lyman was educated at Scotch College, Melbourne and joined the British Army at the age of 18. He was commissioned into the Light Infantry from the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst in 1982 and left the army as a Major.

Career

Following his career in the British Army, Lyman has published over 16 books on the Second World War in Europe, North Africa and Asia. He regularly appears on TV and radio and reviews books for newspapers and magazines. His presentation of the case for Field Marshal Sir William Slim won a National Army Museum debate in 2011 for Britain's Greatest General and his case for Kohima/Imphal won a National Army Museum debate in 2012 for Britain's Greatest Battle. Lyman regularly gives lectures at organisations such as the National Army Museum, and he is also a battlefield guide.
Lyman has been a trustee of the Kohima Educational Trust since 2004, and chairman between 2008 and 2016.
He is a fellow of the Royal Historical Society.
Lyman was appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire in the 2024 New Year Honours for services to military history and charity work in Nagaland.

Published works

BookYearPublishedOther
Slim, Master of War2004Constable & Robinson
First Victory2006Constable & Robinson
Iraq 19412006Osprey
The Generals2008Constable & Robinson
The Longest Siege: Tobruk, the Battle that Saved North Africa2009Macmillan
Kohima, 19442010Osprey
Japan's Last Bid for Victory2011Praetorian
Bill Slim1994Osprey
Operation Suicide2012Quercus Translated into French
Into the Jaws of Death2013Quercus
Jail Busters2014Quercus
The Real X-Men2015Quercus
Among the Headhunters2016Da Capo
The Rise of the Third Reich2018Amberley
Under a Darkening Sky2018Pegasus
A War of Empires2021Osprey
Operation Jericho2022Osprey
Victory to Defeat2023Osprey
Korea: War Without End2025Osprey

Other contributions

  • Wrote a chapter in Professor Gary Sheffield's book The Challenges of High Command.
  • Wrote the foreword to David Rooney's Stilwell, The Patriot.
  • Contributed to General Sir Richard Dannatt's biography Leading from the Front.
  • Contributed to Jeffrey Archer's second volume of the Clifton Chronicles, The Sins of the Father.

Broadcasts