Rhineland: The Battle to End the War

by Denis Denis Whitaker, Shelagh D. Whitaker

Overview

With their backs to the Rhine, crack German troops fought savagely to save their Fatherland in the grim winter of 1945, refusing to back down even with the Allies on their doorstep. The Battle of the Rhineland, the last great attritional battle fought by the Allies in World War II, was underway.

As a young combat officer during the Northwest Europe Campaign, Denis Whitaker knew that his survival -- and the survival of the 1,000 men under his command -- depended on his battle skills and cool leadership in action against the relentless Germans.

Now, following the highly successful release of the second edition of the authors' award-winning book Tug of War: The Allied Victory That Opened Antwerp, this landmark study lets the soldiers on both sides tell their stories of this epic clash, from the black humour of the slit trench to their dogged courage under fire. Extensively researched, Rhineland shows how the Rhine was won despite the bickering and infighting among Eisenhower's generals that cost so many young lives.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780312034191
Publisher:	St. Martin's Press
Publication date:	11/13/1990
Edition description:	1st U.S. ed
Pages:	400
Product dimensions:	10.00(w) x 2.00(h) x 7.00(d)

Table of Contents

	Preface	ix
	Prologue	I
1	The Little Watchmaker	5
2	One Could Go Mad	19
3	The Tide's In	29
4	Cratering Is to Be Accepted	44
5	Four Generals Outraged	60
6	The Magic Armies	75
7	Chewing Gum Alley	86
8	The Highland Fling	97
9	The Outlook Seemed Bleak	110
10	Suddenly, There Was Goch	124
11	Dan Spry and His Water Rats	140
12	The Goch-Calcar Road: A Narrative of Battle	152
13	Grenade! GIs Conquer the Roer	174
14	February 26: The Grisliest Day	192
15	Lulu Goes to War	208
16	Valley of Death	219
17	The Obstinate Canadian	236
18	Breakout!	244
19	The Nine Bridges of General Schlemm	258
20	The Power of Plunder	280
21	Winged Soldiers	304
22	Now Is When You Pray	325
	Epilogue	345
	Afterword: Lessons Not Learned	349
Appendix A	Order of Battle	359
Appendix B	Maps	367
	Glossary	385
	Notes on Sources	388
	References	403
	Interviews	411
	Index	422