General George Patton's most controversial campaign was the series of battles in autumn 1944 along the German frontier which centered on the fortified city of Metz. It took nearly four months; from September to December 1944; for Patton's Third Army to capture the Metz-Thionville fortified zone. In part; the problem was logistics. As was the case with the rest of the Allied forces in the European Theatre; supplies were limited until the port of Antwerp could finally be cleared. Also problematic was the weather. The autumn of 1944 was one of the wettest on record; and hardly conducive to the type of mechanized warfare for which Patton was so famous. However at the heart of the problem was the accretion of sophisticated fortifications. Metz had been fortified since ancient times; heavily rebuilt by France in the post-Napoleonic period; modernized by Germany in 1870-1914; and modernized by France during the Maginot effort in 1935-40. The Germans hoped to hold Metz with a thin screen of second-rate troops; counting on the impregnable fortifications. This book covers the entire campaign from beginning to end; offering an unbiased assessment of the success and failures of both the Allied and Axis efforts.
#3660318 in Books Pen and Sword 2010-06-15Original language:EnglishPDF # 1 9.10 x 2.50 x 6.10l; 3.00 #File Name: 1848841922860 pages
Review
5 of 6 people found the following review helpful. I was ThereBy WidgeThis book to me was one of the great books of my life. I was there; I flew operation in Lancaster Bombers from jan 1944 to july 1944 I had seen it all; but there shure as hell not a lot of what it was all about; which we did not know. My copy is not an copy; in fact I have purchased 6 copies of TO THE RIGHT OF THE LINE; to ensure that my family know the true storie. I found it hard to find copies and some of mine are old library copies. So before it disappears snap up a copy if you really want to know what your Grand Dad did in RAFBC WW2 Another great AMAZON ORODUCT.9 of 10 people found the following review helpful. This is THE overview history of the RAF in WW II.By Paul Johnston (johnstns@istar.ca)The emminent British historian John Terraine has produced a compelling overview of the RAF in WW II. A hefty tome (800ish pages) it covers everything. It thus covers nothing in any great detail; but it is the one place where you can find at least mention of everything. Its also exhaustively researched; and not afraid to offer (sometimes idiosyncratic) commentary. This is not a book that you're likely to sit down and read cover to cover; but all students of the RAF in WW II need to have this on their shelf. Its particularly strong on the personalities (and their opinions) of the RAF's key commanders.0 of 3 people found the following review helpful. Far Too Much Information!By John ClaytonA very good book; filled with tons and tons of information that; when detailed by Mr.Terraine; goes on and on and on. Given the PR I'd heard about the book; I wanted to get it. When it arrived I thought it was some nifty present from - but no; this mammoth; huge book that tells you (probably) more than you ever wanted -or needed - to know about the UK's RAF. As an ex-Brit (I'm now a proud US citizen!) I love the RAF; they (and their brilliant WW2 leaders like Dowding) saved GB and; indeed the world; from the madness of Hitler and his cronies. But I have most of this book's information in smaller; faster to read books. I was going to return it to ; but decided to keep it as a gigantic reference work. If other WW2 buffs read this and have similar thoughts; I'd like to hear YOUR observations at jdcradio@cox.netJohn Clayton -
