Synopses & Reviews
Synopsis
1944 saw the largest seaborne invasion ever staged in Operation Overlord. The Allied landings on the beaches of Normandy on D-Day, 6 June 1944, opened the way for the thrust into the occupied countries of northern Europe, in particular France, with the Allies liberating Paris in August. This was the first major milestone in the eastwards drive into the heart of Germany. Other triumphs in the sixth year of the war included the Red Army regaining Leningrad on the Eastern Front, defeats for the Japanese in the Battle of the Philippine Sea as well as the British advances in Burma, and there were the American landings in Anzio, the taking of Rome, and further landings in Greece. Victory was almost within sight, but it couldn't be taken for granted as the war was entering a new phase and the Nazi war machine still had a sting in its tail. Infuriated by Allied gains, Hitler unleashed the long-promised Vengeance weapons, in particular the V1 flying bomb and the V2 ballistic missile, in the belief that they would turn the tide of the war in Germany's favour. There was also the question of whether Nazi scientists were developing an atomic bomb. John Christopher and Campbell McCutcheon tell the story of 1944 at war using many rare and often unpublished images, showing the rapidly changing nature of the conflict.
Synopsis
In 1944, the end of the war was in sight, with resistance blooming and major cities being liberated.In January, the Allies successfully landed at Anzio. The landings were successful, and although there was five-month stalemate, the battle set the wheels in motion for the liberation of Rome in June.Meanwhile, in Russia, after over two years of siege, Leningrad was liberated, and the Russian army took back the city.In the middle of the year came arguably the best-remembered operation of the war: the D-Day landings. Over 4,000 Allied soldiers were killed, but the landings sparked the beginning of the successful Battle of Normandy. This prompted the first V-1 flying bomb attacks on London, and they continued until October.Nevertheless, the Allies continued to push forward, and Paris was finally liberated in August 1944, after four years of Nazi control in the French capital.The Allied victories gave hope, and led to events such as the Warsaw Uprising, which lasted for two months from August, and was organised by the Polish Home Army resistance. Unfortunately, the Poles were defeated, but this was the largest resistance effort of the Second World War, and signalled the beginning of the end for the Nazis.Even in the Pacific, the tide was beginning to turn, with the Allies reoccupying Burma from the end of the year. Indeed, Allied hopes of victory were so high that it was decided to stand down the Home Guard in December.This is the sixth in a series of books covering the major events of the Second World War year by year.