A highly illustrated account of the hard fighting in North Africa, from the battle of El Alamein to defeat of the Axis forces in May 1943. The battle of El Alamein saw the shattering of Germany's hopes for victory in North Africa and from this point on the end was inevitable. In the six months that passed before the final surrender there was much hard fighting, as the defeated German and Italian armies sought to hold off the encroaching Eighth Army. Rommel, his health suffering, fought a number of major actions during this campaign before his forces settled into the pre-war French defensive position the Mareth Line. All the way he was pursued by an increasingly confident Eighth Army under the command of General Montgomery, although he was unable to outflank the retreating German and Italian forces decisively, and Rommel was even able to divert forces to inflict a sharp defeat on the newly arrived US forces at Kasserine Pass in February 1943. This was one of Rommel's last acts in the Desert War as his health problems forced his return to Germany shortly afterwards. In this detailed examination, Ken Ford explores the lead-up to and execution of the last great battle of the Desert War, as the veteran formations of the British Eighth Army took on their foes in the Afrikakorps for the final time in the major set-piece battle for the Mareth Line.

Vivid, intensely human impressions of the war in China, Malta, Tunisia and Sicily, by the author of “Retreat with Stilwell.” Belden’s first book, ““Retreat with Stilwell”“ (Knopf) was one of the most distinguished correspondent’s books. It did not have the sale it deserved—he insists on saying things that should be said rather than things people want to read...Even more true of this book, which—though two thirds of the text records war through battle, the remaining third dominates—sums up Belden’s conclusions and grim determination to help his readers recognize the falsehood of war—falsehood not only in its reportage, but in its underlying causes, rooted in the world soul sickness, fascism, which he feels is pregnant in America and must be fought now. No analyzes the determining factors of the battlefield,—uncertainty, insecurity; need for political conviction of the importance of this war; divorce of the combat army from civilians; etc. The balance deals specifically with Ksuchow, Malta, the Mareth Line, Sicily, Messina, Salerno. Pungent phrase and fire for crusading passion.-Kirkus Reviews.

A highly illustrated account of The North African campaign of November 1942-May 1943 during World War II. This campaign was a baptism of fire for the US Army. After relatively straightforward landings, the US II Corps advanced into Tunisia to support operations by the British 8th Army. Rommel, worried by the prospect of an attack, decided to exploit the inexperience of the US Army and strike a blow against their overextended positions around the Kasserine Pass. However, the Germans were unable to exploit their initial success, and later attacks were bloodily repulsed. The fighting in Tunisia taught the green US Army vital combat lessons, and brought to the fore senior commanders such as Eisenhower, Patton, and Bradley.

As the Afrika Korps withdrew after a bruising defeat at El Alamein, it became apparent that Axis forces would not be able to maintain their hold over Libya. Rommel pulled his troops back to Tunisia, digging in along the Mareth Line, and turned westwards t

Following the raid on Pearl Harbor and the entry of the United States into World War II, President Franklin D. Roosevelt identified the European theatre as his country's priority. Their first joint operation with the British was an amphibious invasion of French North Africa, designed to relieve pressure on their new Soviet allies, eliminate the threat of the French navy joining the Germans, and to shore up the vulnerability of British imperial possessions and trade routes through the Mediterranean. Operation Torch was the largest and most complex amphibious invasion of its time. In November 1942, three landings took place simultaneously across the French North African coast in an ambitious attempt to trap and annihilate the Axis' North African armies between the invading forces under General Eisenhower and British Field-Marshall Montgomery's Eighth Army in Egypt. Using full colour artwork, maps and contemporary photographs, this is the thrilling story of this complex operation.

This Leavenworth Paper is a critical reconstruction of World War II Ranger operations conducted at or near Djebel el Ank, Tunisia; Porto Empedocle, Sicily; Cisterna, Italy; Zerf, Germany; and Cabanatuan in the Philippines. It is not intended to be a comprehensive account of World War II Ranger operations, for such a study would have to include numerous minor actions that are too poorly documented to be studied to advantage. It is, however, representative for it examines several types of operations conducted against the troops of three enemy nations in a variety of physical and tactical environments. As such, it draws a wide range of lessons useful to combat leaders who may have to conduct such operations or be on guard against them in the future. Many factors determined the outcomes of the operations featured in this Leavenworth Paper, and of these there are four that are important enough to merit special emphasis. These are surprise, the quality of opposing forces, the success of friendly forces with which the Rangers were cooperating, and popular support.