This book completes the story of one of the most formidable defensive lines in Europe in World War II, looking at the lesser known Mediterranean extension and describing how it was conceived of, built and used. After the alarming collapse of Italy in 1943, the Germans launched a crash building program and the 'Sudwall' (South Wall) sprang up quickly along the French Mediterranean coast and the neighbouring Italian coast around Genoa. The new defenses were bolstered by existing French fortifications of key port towns such as Marseilles and Toulon – many of them bristling with heavy artillery. Whilst describing the wall's physical design features, this book also recounts the defenses' role in the Allied invasion of Southern France; Operation Dragoon – 'The Second D-Day'. As the Germans' worst fears became a reality, the southern Atlantic Wall would face its ultimate test.

This WWII history and visitor’s guide explores the extensive network of Nazi fortifications built to defend Fortress Europe. Hitler's Atlantic Wall, the complex system of coastal fortifications that stretched from Norway to the Spanish border during the Second World War, was built to defend occupied Europe from Allied invasion. Many of its principal structures survive and can be visited today. This authoritative guide provides both practical information for visitors and essential historical context. The wall, which was constructed on a massive scale between 1942 and 1944 by German engineers, forced laborers and troops, consisted of strong points, artillery casemates, bunkers, troop shelters, minefields, anti-tank and anti-boat obstacles. It also included the concrete U-boat and E-boat pens in the key ports and, behind the Channel coast, the V-weapon sites. This huge scheme of fortifications was one of the longest series of defensive lines in military history. This comprehensive volume takes readers and visitors through the entire story of the fortifications from the fall of France to the D-Day invasion on the beaches of Normandy that finally broke through. As a guide to some of the most impressive relics of the Second World War, this book is essential reading for travelers or anyone interested in the liberation of occupied Europe.

Germany's Atlantic Wall was the most ambitious military fortification program of World War II. With Germany's gradual loss of the strategic initiative to the Allies, in 1942 Hitler was forced to construct an impenetrable wall of fortifications along the Atlantic and Mediterranean coast. This book deals solely with the structures on the French coast, starting with the Pas-de-Calais and extending down to Spain. It features detailed illustrations and diagrams of the various sections of the Atlantic Wall and the role that they played, giving a thoughtful analysis of some of the most accessible fortifications of World War II.

Refreshingly different perspective on the momentous events of D-Day.

Immediately after Hitler halted his proposed invasion of Britain in 1940, he secretly ordered the building of an Atlantic Wall. Using material from British, American, and Canadian archives, a top military historians pieces together a unique, barely known story from the war--and memorializes the Allied soldiers caught behind it in appalling conditions.

This is not just another book about the Atlantic Wall during the Second World War. This book aims to give the reader an understanding of the part of the Atlantic Wall located in Denmark, specifically on the West Coast of the Jutland Peninsula. How did the Wall fit in with the overall German plans? How was it built? The book will also explore the different alternatives the Allies had for an invasion of Europe and if the Danish part of the Wall in any way affected the ranking of the alternatives. Denmark is also the place for one of the most extensive fortifications in Europe, the 38 cm battery of Hanstholm. This battery will be explored, as well as the general strategic thinking behind it and how it was supposed to have worked with its counterpart in Norway, battery Vara.

This highly informative book begins with an examination of the background to Germany's primary military objectives in relation to the western end of their self-styled 'Fortress Europe' including the early foundation of shore defences in northern France.??In 1941, there was a switch in emphasis of the Atlantic Wall's role from attack to defence. Beach defences became more elaborate and the Nazi-controlled Todt Organisation began a massive building programme constructing new bunkers and reinforcing existing sites, using forced labour.??Hitler appointed Rommel to formulate Germany's anti-invasion plans in early 1944. At the same time the Allies were making extensive studies of the fortifications and preparing for the challenge of overcoming this most formidable of obstacles.??Using, in many cases, previously unpublished accounts of the soldiers on the ground this book follows Britain's 79th Armoured Division, Sir Percy Hobart's 'Funnies', as they utilised their unique weaponry in support of Allied efforts to ensure the success of the invasion. The author draws on British, American, Canadian and German sources.??Hitler's Atlantic Wall – Normandy also includes information on war cemeteries along with travel information and accommodation suggestions and a guide to the relevant museums.