DOC The Mareth Line 1943: The end in Africa (Campaign) by Ken Ford in History

Review

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful. End game in North Africa...By HMS Warspite"The Mareth Line 1943" picks up World War Two's North African campaign at the conclusion of the Second Battle of El Alamain. Rommel's battered Panzerarmee Afrika began a difficult retreat back across the Libyan desert; just ahead of the victorious British Eighth Army led by General Bernard Montgomery. The long retreat would finally end at the Mareth Line along the Libyan border with Tunisia; as Rommels' German and Italian troops turned to face their pursuers from the cover of pre-war French fortications; augmented by minefields; wire; and the desert itself."The Mareth Line 1943" follows the standard Osprey Campaign format. It includes an introduction to the North African theater of war; descriptions of the opposing commanders; their armies; and their plans; and a narrative of the fight for the Mareth Line. A well-written text is nicely supplemented by an outstanding collection of photographs; illustrations; maps and diagrams of the various battlefields.Author Ken Ford offers much of interest in this concise account. He narrates the growing disenchantment of an exhausted Rommel with a doomed campaign; which attitude led to his removal from the theater after he had somehow shepherded his forces to the relative safety of the Mareth Line. Ford is quite critical of General Montgomery; whose mastery of the set-piece battle did not extend to the fluid conditions of the pursuit across Libya and the initial attempts to "break-in" the Mareth Line. The much-maligned Italian leadership shows surprisingly well at the end of the campaign."The Mareth Line 1943" is highly recommended to the interested general reader and to the student looking for a quick version of the end of the North African campaign.0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Five StarsBy Leonard TrerotolaGreat item and service! A+++++++++0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. A Useful Detailed DescriptionBy MikebishThis is a narrow topic that gets brief mention in most overall histories of the North African campaigns. The book is clear and easy to read with adequate but not too much detail. The maps and illustrations are especially helpful to a military novice like me. The Mareth Line battles are given enough before and after context to place them in the flow of the North African campaigns but not so much as to detract from the specialized narrative.