Operation Gardening: Bomber Command Minelaying in Danish Waters 1940-1945 - Hardcover

Weber, Frank

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1804518956 ISBN 13: 9781804518953

Publisher: Helion and Company, 2025

Synopsis

“This is a work richly illustrated with photographs, charts, and maps and is a welcome addition to the literature of the Second World War. Those interested in that war, mine warfare, or contemplating future wars will find much of interest in Operation Gardening. Highly recommended.” – National Maritime Historical Society

Operation Gardening is a detailed study exploring the strategic, tactical, and technical aspects of the minelaying operations in Danish waters, emphasising their significance in the broader context of the Second World War. Its strengths lie in its meticulous original research with relevance to both historical and modern contexts.

Operation Gardening indeed covers a wide range of themes: Historical, Technological, Operational, Geopolitical and the Operation’s relevance into the post-war and modern world.

Operation Gardening covers the evolution of mine warfare and its implications for Denmark during the Second World War, with a detailed exploration of mine types, deployment strategies, and their operational efficiency. There is a detailed examination of the RAF’s minelaying campaigns, including tactical successes, failures, and broader strategic impacts, as well as a discussion of Denmark’s position as a ‘harbourmaster’ of the Baltic and how this influenced other wartime strategies. The book also discusses the post-war mineclearing efforts and the lasting effects of Second World War mine warfare on maritime safety and military strategy.

By tying historical operations to contemporary issues such as the ongoing mine-clearing efforts and modern naval strategies, Operation Gardening underscores the enduring relevance of the topic of mining at sea.

About this title

About the Author

The author is a historian from Aarhus University and an art historian from the University of Copenhagen. At the Centre for Peace and Conflict Research, he wrote the thesis on which this book is based. He is co-author of the major work "Western Allied Air Attacks on Targets in Denmark during World War II" Aarhus University Press 1988 and "Bombs over Denmark" 2012. His book” Good Mines for Bad Games” was published in 2018, and the book "Operation Gardening - RAF's Minelaying in Danish Waters 1940-1945" in 2025. The author was a university researcher, high school teacher and head of department of a business school.

Edition details

• Publisher: Helion and Company
• Publication date: 2025
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1804518956
• ISBN 13: 9781804518953
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 288