Frederick John Stephens is an English

author An author is the writer of a book, article, play, mostly written work. A broader definition of the word "author" states: "''An author is "the person who originated or gave existence to anything" and whose authorship determines responsibility f ...

of several

militaria Militaria, also known as military memorabilia, are military equipment which are collected for their historical significance. Such items include firearms, swords, sabres, knives, bayonets, helmets and other equipment such as uniforms, military ...

books, including on

Nazi memorabilia Nazi memorabilia or Third Reich collectibles are items produced during the height of Nazism in Germany, particularly the years between 1933 and 1945. Nazi memorabilia includes a variety of objects from the material culture of Nazi Germany, espec ...

Life and career

Frederick Stephens grew up in the

Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...

area. An only child, he was enlisted at the Lord Derby Grammar School in the late 1950s, and from there was awarded an apprenticeship in printing. Originally working as a compositor (a setter of type, by hand), his entire working career was spent in and around printing and publishing, in every capacity within the industry, and at all levels. Having pursued many areas of collecting since childhood (when war souvenirs from

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...

were relatively commonplace in post-war Britain), the concept of producing a book about Third Reich edged weapons became a possibility through a first-hand understanding of the printing trade, and how to get a book self-published. It was this opportunity that opened the way for many other future publications.

Selected works

* 1965: ''A guide to Nazi daggers, swords and bayonets'', F. J. Stephens. Privately published by the author * 1972: ''Italian Fascist daggers'', Militaria Publications Ltd. * 1973: ''Hitler Youth History, Organisation, Uniforms, and Insignia'', Almark Pub. Co. * 1975: ''Weapons and Uniforms of the USSR'', co-authored with Ian V. Hogg and John Batchelor, published by Purnell and Sons Ltd., London. * 1985: ''The Bayonet: An Evolution and History'', co-authored with Roger D. C. Evans, and privately published by Militaria Publications, Milton Keynes

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Stephens, Frederick J. 1945 births Living people English non-fiction writers English male non-fiction writers