Overview

A powerful German counterattack in Normandy in August 1944 might have been one of the Wehrmacht's great shining moments in World War II. The odds were certainly in their favour. Determined to drive the Allies back to the English Channel, elements of four combat-hardened panzer divisions faced off against a single American infantry division near the town of Mortain. Instead, the Americans held their ground, enabling the Allied armies to secure the invasion and ultimately liberate France. In a vivid recreation of this pivotal battle, Mark Reardon tells how the 30th Infantry Division held off the German panzer juggernaut, which was designed to drive a wedge between Allied forces. In recounting this showdown, the author offers a perspective on the German defeat in Normandy and a convincing counterpoint to the conventional view of most military analysts that Germany lost the war as a result of Allied material superiority or Hitler's strategic meddling.

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9780700611584

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Reviews

A richly detailed and stirring tale of American GIs in battle against great odds. RUSSELL F. WEIGLEY, AUTHOR OF EISENHOWER'S LIEUTENANTS The definitive account of the defeat by the U.S. Army of the best operational counterattack by the Wehrmacht during the D-Day campaign. At its best, the writing evokes Stephen Ambrose. Reardon is able to convey both the epic as well as everyday aspects of Mortain's field of battle. DENNIS E. SHOWALTER, AUTHOR OF TANNENBERG: CLASH OF EMPIRES A tightly organized and detailed account of an important battle in Normandy. GEOFFREY P. MEGARGEE, AUTHOR OF INSIDE HITLER'S HIGH COMMAND

A richly detailed and stirring tale of American GIs in battle against great odds. RUSSELL F. WEIGLEY, AUTHOR OF EISENHOWER'S LIEUTENANTS The definitive account of the defeat by the U.S. Army of the best operational counterattack by the Wehrmacht during the D-Day campaign. At its best, the writing evokes Stephen Ambrose. Reardon is able to convey both the epic as well as everyday aspects of Mortain's field of battle. DENNIS E. SHOWALTER, AUTHOR OF TANNENBERG: CLASH OF EMPIRES A tightly organized and detailed account of an important battle in Normandy. GEOFFREY P. MEGARGEE, AUTHOR OF INSIDE HITLER'S HIGH COMMAND

Author Information

Lieutenant Colonel Mark J. Reardon is currently assigned to the Joint Staff as a Deputy Director of Operations in the National Military Command Center. His writings have appeared in a number of professional military journals.

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