HISTORY OF THE SECOND WORLD WAR

by B. H. Liddell Hart ‧ RELEASE DATE: April 15, 1971

World War II is a great deal to pack into a single volume, but Liddell Hart, a British military historian noted for his History of the First Worm War, gives a quite even chronicle of the military course of events. His penchant for tactical analysis and his eye for the ironies and accidents of war are best displayed in the description of the North African campaign against Rommel. Earlier, Hitler's order to halt the advance on the retreating British army at Dunkirk is seen as ""producing Hitler's ultimate downfall,"" compounded by his failure to seriously attempt the invasion of England after taking France (""the French high command contributed most to Hitler's success"") and the decision to move on Russia where, as we know, ""space spelt defeat."" Liddell Hart's main interpretive stress falls on the fact that the Russian reserves were nearly twice as big as the Germans expected when their blitzkrieg power penetrated Russia deeply: despite superior mobility, it was only a matter off time until the Germans were hurled back. In the Pacific, too, it was tire Allies' superior resources which overwhelmed the Japanese. Liddell Hart is gentle with the blunders and timidities of commanders (Montgomery in France, for example) and even gentler with Churchill, who concocted the wasteful and militarily foolish Italian campaign. Since this is strictly a military history, nothing is said about the economics and logistics of war, the mass slaughter and general suffering of civilians, much less the administration of conquered areas. Without discussing the political ramifications of the conflict, the epilogue states that the war was prolonged only by the West's insistence on unconditional surrender by the Germans as well as the Japanese. As in most military histories, events remain colored flags and arrows on the fifty-three nicely-composed battle maps; but the information is far more extensive than in Peter Young's World War 1939-45: A Short History (1966).

Pub Date: April 15, 1971

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: -

Publisher: Putnam

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 1971

Categories: NONFICTION