Blitzkrieg. Lightning war. We are all familiar with the rapid attacks executed by the Germans in the early days of the Second World War, which initially led to the collapse of Poland and subsequently the Low Countries and France. But were the German tactics, seemingly breaking through all resistance, really as devastating as they appeared? This is the main question posed by Jeffrey Plowman in this absorbing new study of the 1941 Greek campaign.
Within three weeks, the Germans occupied the country, but through the analysis of the campaign, the author argues that at no point did the Germans achieve dominance over the symbolic British and ANZAC forces sent to reinforce the Greek defenders. They came very close to achieving it, but the ANZAC soldiers and their Greek allies offered spirited resistance that sometimes turned the Germans' own methods against them.
This perceptive new narrative should prompt a reappraisal of the Greek campaign. It also offers a compelling insight into the weaknesses of the German method of warfare, which became increasingly apparent during the later stages of the war.
Pages: 240, Dimensions: 15.6x15.6cm
