Hitler's Ardennes Offensive

by Parker, Danny S.

• ISBN13: 9781853676833
• ISBN10: 1853676837
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2006-07-15
• Publisher: Greenhill Books/Lionel Leventhal

Summary

Now in paperback, this classic work gives unparalleled insight into the German view of the offensive known to Germany as Wacht am Rhein and to the Allies as the Battle of the Bulge. The book vividly recounts how Hitler and his generals perceived the progress and ultimate failure of their final great assault. The Ardennes offensive in December 1944 surprised the Allies with its ferocity, and was intended to turn the course of the war in Germany's favour. Numerous subsequent accounts of the battle have tended towards the perspective of the Allied victors, lacking first-hand detail about German intentions and operations. Now for the first time in a single volume, historian Danny S. Parker has brought together many rare documents representing the views of all the major personalities within the German army headquarters. These include Oberstgruppenfuhrer Josef Dietrich and Generalmajor Fritz Kramer, General Hasso von Manteuffel, Generalfeldmarschall Wilhelm Keitel and others. Everything from preparations for the offensive, to attitudes to the whole campaign before it started and after it was brought to a close are covered in this book. As with "Fighting in Hell" and "The Anvil of War", two Greenhill books presenting accounts of campaigns in Russia written by the senior German officers involved, "Hitler's Ardennes Offensive" provides a fascinating and invaluable record of the German perspective, essential for a balanced view of the battle.