The Ardennes, 1944-1945: Hitler's Winter Offensive
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The Ardennes, 1944-1945: Hitler's Winter Offensive
In December 1944, just as World War II appeared to be winding down, Hitler shocked the world with a powerful German counteroffensive that cracked the center of the American front. The attack came through the Ardennes, the hilly and forested area in eastern Belgium and Luxembourg that the Allies had considered a “quiet†sector. Instead, for the second time in the war, the Germans used it as a stealthy avenue of approach for their panzers.
Much of U.S. First Army was overrun, and thousands of prisoners were taken as the Germans forged a 50-mile “bulge†into the Allied front. But in one small town, Bastogne, American paratroopers, together with remnants of tank units, offered dogged resistance. Meanwhile the rest of Eisenhower’s “broad front†strategy came to a halt as Patton, from the south, and Hodges, from the north, converged on the enemy incursion. Yet it would take an epic, six-week-long winter battle, the bloodiest in the history of the U.S. Army, before the Germans were finally pushed back.
Christer Bergström has interviewed veterans, gone through huge amounts of archive material, and performed on-the-spot research in the area. The result is a large amount of previously unpublished material and new findings, including reevaluations of tank and personnel casualties and the most accurate picture yet of what really transpired.
The Ardennes Offensive has often been described from the American point of view; however, this balanced book devotes equal attention to the perspectives of both sides. With nearly 400 photos, numerous maps, and 32 superb color profiles of combat vehicles and aircraft, it provides perhaps the most comprehensive look at the battle yet published.
REVIEWS
The German counteroffensive in the Ardennes- known as the Battle of the Bulge -with Bergstrom re-examining offical accounts to provide the true story of what happened The Bookseller
"...so richly illustrated...text is illuminated by a plethora of maps and nearly 400 photos. Highlights include 32 fantastic full color profiles of combat aircraft and vehicles that would be a boon to model makers and diorama builders. The comprehensive book amounting to 506 or so pages delivers what appears to be a highly accurate analysis of what really happened during the battle of the bulge. Toy Soldier and Model Figure Magazine.
For a book to live up to its hype, it has to be amazing. Christer Bergstrom's book on the Battle of the Bulge is one such book. If you are a military historian or a wargamer, this book is perfect for you. I have never seen so much detail in a one volume study before. Besides a full history of the campaign, you are treated to wargamer-friendly maps and a full order of battle. Dozens of photos enhance the well-translated text. The account of the battle is detailed, but lucid. Tables and numbers tell their story also, along with full color plates of the tanks and aircraft that came to grips in the Belgian countryside of 1944. For example, you can see the losses by division AND tank type for all of the Nazi Army Group B from December 16 until the 31st. If you can afford only one book on the Ardennes offensive, get this book!
Andy Nunez, Editor of Against the Odds Magazine
Overall, Bergstrom probably ranks as the single best volume, with the most meat, the most photos, the best ancillary material, and the best maps."Â
Stone and Stone Book review
A review of this length cannot do full justice to this exceptional book, which, due to its balance, depth of research, insightful narrative, illustrations, color plates of planes and equipment, numerous detailed appendices, and overall comprehensiveness, can be regarded as the best single-volume work on the Battle of the Bulge, “the greatest American battle†of the Second World War.
International Bibliography of Military History 35, no. 1 (2015)
