DOC British Slave Emancipation: The Sugar Colonies and the Great Experiment; 1830-1865 (Clarendon Paperbacks) by William A. Green in History

Description

By the spring of 1943; after the defeat at Stalingrad; the writing was on the wall. But while commanders close to the troops on Germany's various fronts were beginning to read it; those at the top were resolutely looking the other way. This seventh volume in the magisterial 10-volume series from the Militargeschichtliches Forschungsamt [Research Institute for Military History] shows both Germany and her Japanese ally on the defensive; from 1943 into early 1945. It looks in depth at the strategic air war over the Reich and the mounting toll taken in the Battles of the Ruhr; Hamburg; and Berlin; and at the "Battle of the Radar Sets" so central to them all. The collapse of the Luftwaffe in its retaliatory role led to hopes being pinned on the revolutionary V-weapons; whose dramatic but ultimately fruitless achievements are chronicled. The Luftwaffe's weakness in defence is seen during the Normandy invasion; Operation overlord; an account of the planning; preparation and execution of which form the central part of this volume together with the landings in the south of France; the setback suffered at Arnhem; and the German counter-offensive in the Ardennes. The final part follows the fortunes of Germany's ally fighting in the Pacific; Burma; Thailand; and China; with American forces capturing islands ever closer to Japan's homeland; and culminates in her capitulation and the creation of a new postwar order in the Far East. The struggle between internal factions in the Japanese high command and imperial court is studied in detail; and highlights an interesting contrast with the intolerance of all dissent that typified the Nazi power structure. Based on meticulous research by MGFA's team of historians at Potsdam; this analysis of events is illustrated by a wealth of tables and maps covering aspects ranging from Germany's radar defence system and the targets of RAF Bomber Command and the US 8th Air Force; through the break-out from the Normandy beachhead; to the battles for Iwo Jima and Okinawa.