Normandy '44

Earlier this year I bought the following book along with a few others to add to the library. I have plenty of books on the Normandy campaign already, so one might reasonably ask: "Do I need another?". Well of course not in one sense as I know so much about the campaign already, but in another it's always good to get another viewpoint, plus James Holland has become one of my favourite WWII historians over the past few years.

So what did I think of the book? Well it makes for a good primer for the campaign, without going into too much detail, where you wouldn't be able to see the wood for the trees as it were. Was there anything new or of interest that I learnt from it? Most certainly there was! The main points that stood out to me were:

Logistics. Quite simply the sheer scale of the invasion and the follow up is brought sharply into focus. Although touched upon in other books, here it plays quite a central part to the story. It is summed up rather nicely in one chapter heading: 'The Freedom of Poverty and the Constraints of Wealth'. Although the Allies had a massive numerical and materiel superiority, much of the time they struggled to bring this to bear as much as they might wish, due to being hemmed in in a relatively small area for much of the campaign, until the break out by the Americans later on. 

Weather. Along with the above its effects upon Allied operations in particular are nicely highlighted, from the damage to the Mulberry harbours and the delays in getting menn and equipment off the beaches, through to delays in attacks being able to go in due to no air support, that allowed the German 'crust' to be stiffened quite significantly. In another example a whole British Brigade was unable to join one of the major attacks due to being delayed in getting off the beaches.

Air Support. There is a lot devoted to the planning of the air campaign for the invasion as well as the conflict between the Strategic and Tactical air support as the campaign progressed. The usefulness, or not, of the types of bombers used, when and how is quite enlightening, as well as how the use of air support eveolved during the campaign. Armed reconnaissance is a case in point.

As I was reading the book, and it is a very good read, lots of ideas kept popping into my head of how the above and other examples could be used for my BKCII campaigns, to add another level of interest and dare I say it historical accuracy. I would heartily recommend anyone with an interest in the Normandy campaign to buy a copy of this book, as IMHO it is well worth it.

So until next time stay safe and keep healthy.