What happened and why at one of the most decisive World War II victories The Second Battle of El Alamein marked a major turning point in the Western Desert Campaign of World War II. El Alamein saw two of the greatest generals of the war pitted against each other: Rommel and Montgomery. Through key profiles and a chapter devoted to the armies, this book explores what made these men inspired leaders and what led to their respective defeat and victory. Montgomery's success ensured that the Axis army was unable to occupy Egypt and therefore gain control of the Suez Canal or the Middle Eastern oil fields, thereby preventing a major source of income and power for them. The background and impact of the battle are explored in separate chapters, offering the reader a clear insight into why what happened in this remote part Egypt was so central to the Allied cause.

Battle Story: El Alamein 1942

History

Battistelli, Pier Paolo

Middle East

Spellmount

The tale of one of the longest-running sieges in British military history, and a potent symbol of resistance 
The siege of Tobruk lasted 240 days during which the "gallant garrison" of Allied soldiers, primarily the Australian 9th Division, held out against constant attacks from Rommel's Afrika Korps. The battle became a potent symbol of British resistance. However, Tobruk's importance was far beyond that of a mere symbol in the war, it was a key fortress and port that enabled the resupply of troops throughout the Western Desert theater. Indeed, Goebbels was so infuriated by the British stand that he referred to the garrison troops as "rats" and the "Rats of Tobruk" became known for their tenacity. When the fortress finally fell to German tanks on June 21, 1942, with the loss of 25,000 men, Churchill said it was "one of the heaviest blows I can recall during the war."

Battle Story: Tobruk 1941

Military

How Hitler Evolved the Traditional Army Establishment: A Study Through Field Marshals Keitel, Paulus and Manstein

Sangster, Andrew

Pen and Sword Military

As the war progressed Hitler did not need obedient bureaucrats like Keitel, failures like Paulus and was paranoid about having military leaders who were loyal. The three field marshals in this book were amongst the best.Field Marshal Kesselring gained a reputation in Italy as an expert in defence, and his Allied code name was The Emperor. Kesselring was diplomatic, charming, known as Smiling Albert, but convicted as a war criminal which may not have happened had it not been for the bitter partisan war. Field Marshal Rommel is surrounded by myths which need disentangling. He possessed exceptional qualities of command and leadership, with personal courage and determination, but had problems caused by two major reasons. The first was his relentless ambition, which prevented him from self-criticism and self-evaluation. The second was his meteoric rise in command, and like many other commanders driven by ambition.Field Marshal Model when on the battlefield led his men so well it is surprising that little is known of him. He fought defensive battles in a way hardly matched by any other German general. He had the immense capability of keeping his nerve, but his skills as a commander, were not matched by the sort of personality which may have given him a similar status as with Rommel, and not helped by challenging Hitler. Model had a reputation of being so tough even Hitler claimed he would not want to serve under him, he was known as the Frontschwein (front-line pig).

Hitler's New Command Structure and the Road to Defeat: A Study through Field Marshals Kesselring, Rommel and Model

Europe

The Second Battle of El Alamein was one of the most decisive Allied victories of the Second World War. The Second Battle of El Alamein marked a major turning point in the Western Desert Campaign of the Second World War. El Alamein saw two of the greatest generals of the war pitted against each other: Rommel and Montgomery. Through key profiles and a chapter devoted to “The Armies,” El Alamein 1942 explores what made these men inspired leaders and what led to their respective defeat and victory. Montgomery’s success ensured that the Axis army was unable to occupy Egypt and therefore gain control of the Suez Canal or the Middle Eastern oil fields, thereby preventing a major source of income and power coming to them. The background and impact of the battle are explored in separate chapters, offering the reader clear insight into why what happened in this remote part Egypt was so central to the Allied cause. Through quotes and maps, the text explores the unfolding action of the battle and puts the reader on the front line. If you truly want to understand what happened and why ― read the Battle Story.

El Alamein 1942 (Battle Story, 5)

Africa

Dundurn Press

When Italy surrendered in 1943, it sparked a diverse resistance movement of anti-German, anti-fascist partisans who rose up against German occupation. This book explores the tactics, organizational structure and equipment of the brave Italian resistance fighters, who knew exactly what was at stake when operating against their German occupiers. Beginning with low-level sabotage and assassinations, the groups grew until spring 1944 when they numbered around 100,000, and as the Allies advanced to the Gothic line, a remarkable, unified partisan command structure was created. The partisans began to work in close co-ordination with the Allies, receiving British SOE and American OSS liaison teams as well as supplies of weapons. The German response was eye-watering in its ferocity and brutality, as the SS and Italian RSI looked to eradicate the partisans once and for all when the Allied advance stalled in Autumn 1944. But when the Allies made their final breakthrough in the last weeks of the war the partisans rose in force to pile the pressure on the retreating Wehrmacht. 
From an expert on Italian military history in World War II, this work provides an exhaustively researched, sumptuously illustrated guide to the men and women who fought a desperate struggle against occupation, as well as the German and Italian fascist security forces unleashed against them.

World War II Partisan Warfare in Italy (Elite, 207)

Crociani, Piero

Osprey_Publishing

The first Italian armored cars were used in the war in Libya in 1911–12 against the Ottoman Empire. With few tanks being developed during World War I, the Italians relied instead on the development of more mobile armored cars like the Ansaldo Lancia 1 Z. After the war, the army focused on the Alpine battlegrounds of Italy's northern borders, and did not consider armored cars suitable for reconnaissance duties.
 The experience of the Spanish Civil War would provide the much needed last push for the Italians to develop modern armored cars. The result were the famous AB 41-43 models, which fought against the British in North Africa and Marshall Tito's forces in Yugoslavia, along with other vehicles such as the AS 36 light armored car.
Using detailed color plates and contemporary photographs, this book examines the development of the Italian armored car in the two world wars and the inter-war years from the deserts of North Africa to the slopes of the Alps.

Italian Armoured & Reconnaissance Cars 1911–45 (New Vanguard, 261)

Cappellano, Filippo

The first of two volumes on the Axis campaigns in the Balkans, exploring Mussolini's fateful decision to move against Greece in October 1940. The Greek President Metaxas rejected the Italian ultimatum with a famous 'Oxi' ('No'), and what followed was Italy's first debacle in World War II. In the wake of Italy's rapid annexation of Albania in April 1940, Mussolini's decision to attack Greece in October that year is widely acknowledged as a fatal mistake, leading to a domestic crisis and to the collapse of Italy's reputation as a military power (re-emphasized by the Italian defeat in North Africa in December 1940). The Italian assault on Greece came to a stalemate in less than a fortnight, and was followed a week later by a Greek counter-offensive that broke through the Italiandefences before advancing into Albania, forcing the Italian forces to withdraw north before grinding to a half in January 1941 due to logistical issues. Eventually, the Italians took advantage of this brief hiatus to reorganize and prepare a counteroffensive, the failure of which marked the end of the first stage of the Axis Balkan campaign. The first of two volumes examining the Axis campaigns in the Balkans, this book offers a detailed overview of the Italian and Greek armies, their fighting power, and the terrain in which they fought. Complimented by rarely seen images and full color illustrations, it shows how expectations of an easy Italian victory quickly turned into one of Mussolini's greatest blunders.

The Balkans 1940–41 (1): Mussolini's Fatal Blunder in the Greco-Italian War (Campaign, 358)

This concise yet detailed overview gives a balanced account of this key Blitzkrieg campaign in the Balkans during the opening years of World War II. The Wehrmacht's last Blitzkrieg campaign was indeed a lightning war, since German forces were required to seize both Yugoslavia and Greece before redeploying immediately to the East ready to attack the Soviet Union in a matter of weeks. Although the plans for the conquest of Yugoslavia were developed in haste, the campaign was extremely successful: in a short space of time, both Yugoslavia and Greece had fallen, accompanied by the capture of large numbers of British, Australian and New Zealand troops. The 1941 Balkan campaign was an apparently brilliant military accomplishment that demonstrated once again the superiority of the Wehrmacht, and its cutting-edge campaigning skills. This superbly detailed work details the opposing forces that took part in this campaign, documents their weapons and analyzes the effectiveness of their tactics. It explores the initial Axis campaign against Yugoslavia, the breakthrough of the Metaxas Line and advance into Macedonia and the withdrawal of Allied troops south. Detailed battlescenes depict key moments in the land, sea and air battles that took place in the Balkans, vividly bringing to life events of almost 80 years ago.

The Balkans 1940–41 (2): Hitler's Blitzkrieg against Yugoslavia and Greece (Campaign, 365)

Enjoy a detailed examination of Operation Olive as US, British, Commonwealth and Allied forces seek to smash through the last German defensive line in Italy. The Italian Theatre post-summer 1944 was not, as was often surmised at the time, populated with "D-Day-dodging" soldiers killing time in a quiet sector. The true nature of the hard fighting that took place is exemplified perfectly by the Allied assault on the Gothic Line defences (Operation Olive). Covering the dual Allied offensive spearheaded by American and British units, Italian military historian Pier Paolo Battistelli explores the overall strategic aims for both Hitler and the Allies, before guiding you through the progress of the phased battles in unrivalled detail, notably in the expertly researched and highly original maps and 3D diagrams. The level of detail helps explain why the various Allied troops on the ground struggled so hard to overcome the German and Italian Fascist forces dug in on the line. The photographs and specially commissioned artworks reveal the fascinating array of units involved on both sides - Indian Army troops, Buffalo soldiers, Brazilians, Poles, New Zealanders, Brits, Mountain Infantry, Canadians, Panzergrenadiers, Fallschirmjägers. Special attention is given to the segregated US 92nd Division - the only African-American infantry division to see combat in Europe during World War II.

Assault on the Gothic Line 1944: The Allied Attempted Breakthrough into Northern Italy (Campaign, 387)

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Books by Battistelli, Pier Paolo