Assault on Germany: The Battle for Geilenkirchen

Description

The author of A Luftwaffe General gives a detailed history of the Allied forces’ brutal Operation Clipper during World War II. The Anglo-American battle for the Geilenkirchen salient in November, 1944, was infantry warfare at its worst, and it is described in vivid detail in this new edition of Ken Ford’s classic study. The onset of winter saw the Allied advance from the Normandy beaches forced to a halt on Germany’s doorstep. The clock had been put back to the days of the Great War—the Allies had arrived at the Siegfried Line and were forced to attack the fortifications from the hell of the trenches. Geilenkirchen was the first battle on German soil to be fought by the British since Minden in 1759. For them, it was just one more battle on the way to Berlin, but for the American 84th Division, it was a first faltering step into war and a bitter lesson in the attrition and savagery of combat. The story is told by the men who were there—the British, the Americans, and the Germans who were fighting desperately for their homeland. Neither side was victorious—both lost more men than they could afford and paid a heavy price in young lives for a few miles of ground. Cover Page Title Page Copyright Dedication Contents Author’s Acknowledgements Prologue Chapter 1. The Problem of Geilenkirchen Chapter 2. The Wessexmen and the ‘Railsplitters’ Chapter 3. Into the Line Chapter 4. Preparations for Battle Chapter 5. The Attack Chapter 6. Prummern Chapter 7. The British Attack Chapter 8. The First Night Chapter 9. Consolidation Photo Gallery Chapter 10. Geilenkirchen Chapter 11. The Second Night Chapter 12. Monday, 20 November Chapter 13. The Attack Down the Wurm Valley Chapter 14. Mullendorf and Beeck Chapter 15. The Tragedy of Hoven Chapter 16. Retreat Chapter 17. The Rain, the Mud and the Blood Appendix: XXX Corps Order of Battle Bibliography Index