Hitler's Atlantic Wall: From Southern France to Northern Norway, Yesterday and Today (Then & Now) - Hardcover

Forty, Simon

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1612003753 ISBN 13: 9781612003757

Publisher: Casemate, 2016

Synopsis

Masters of the continent, the Nazis realized that they would have to defend their gains, and once the United States entered the war, redoubled their efforts. Using forced and slave labor they built a chain of defensive positions, coastal batteries, and beach defenses from the top of Norway to the Franco-Spanish border.

However, as was so typical of the Nazis, while the bunkers and batteries seem impressively constructed, and the Atlantic Wall has left a permanent reminder of the years of Nazi domination, it was crippled by lack of strategic planning, internal bickering, and a multitude of command structures that did not communicate with each other effectively. In June 1944 the Allies burst through the wall, and while it took many lives to break the crust of the German defenses, the vaunted Atlantic Wall proved ineffective save for the fortresses the Allies bypassed and subdued later.

Using the same formula as in their books on The Normandy Battlefields and Race to the Rhine, Leo Marriott and Simon Forty combine bespoke aerial photography with old photographs, maps, and current illustrations to provide a pictorial analysis of the subject—Around 500 illustrations ensure the subject is well covered. After opening sections on the construction of the wall, the defensive plan, and the different structures that were built, Hitler’s Atlantic Wall yesterday and today provides a survey of the key locations and what can be seen today—including many of the museums that interpret them. The bulk of the book is divided geographically by country, dealing with France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Denmark, and Norway. After 70 years, the Atlantic Wall is still a remarkable reminder of the war years, and one that continues to fascinate.

About this title

About the Author:

Leo Marriott has written numerous books on aviation, naval and military subjects including Treaty Cruisers, Catapult Aircraft, Jets at Sea and Early Jet Fighters: British and American 1944-1954. He is now retired after a fifty-year career as an air traffic controller but still maintains his pilot’s licence flying a syndicate-owned Cessna 172. Apart from aviation and naval history, his other interests include sailing, photography and painting.

Simon Forty was educated in Dorset and the north of England before reading history at London University’s School of Slavonic and East European Studies. He has been involved in publishing since the mid-1970s, first as editor and latterly as author. Son of author and RAC Tank Museum curator George Forty, he has continued in the family tradition writing mainly on historical and military subjects including books on the Napoleonic Wars and the two world wars. Recently he has produced a range of highly illustrated books on the Normandy battlefields, the Atlantic Wall and the liberation of the Low Countries with co-author Leo Marriott.

Review:

"...provides a excellent guide to this huge undertaking, a line of fortifications which stretches over 5,000km. It follows on from their earlier title on the Normandy Defences, but this time looks at the Atlantic Wall over its' entire length. Sites such as thos in Normandy attract millions of visitors over the years, others outside that particular area are perhaps less well known, yet a number of now museums and open to public view, and some with their original guns still in place...A fascinating book and at what I think is a reasonable price, so well worth adding to your book shelf." (Military Modelling)

"This is a quality book produced by quality authors...Highly recommended." (MiniatureWargaming.Com)

"Plenty of photographs maps and diagrams to get stuck into, with plenty of contemporary images to reference if you are going to visit any of the sites...an excellent read." (Despatches)

“This is a refreshing approach and is very well researched...do not leave home without it!” – Full review is attached. (Casemate: Journal of the Fortress Study Group)

"The Britain at War team have no hesitation in recommending this book most highly and choosing it as this month's Book of the Month.”" (Britain at War)

About this edition

• Publisher: Casemate
• Publication date: 2016
• ISBN 10: 1612003753
• ISBN 13: 9781612003757
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 192
• Editor: Marriott Leo