It was on 14 June 1944, D+8, that the tanks of the 144th Regiment
Royal Armoured Corps began to disembark on Gold Beach during the
Normandy landings. Delayed in going ashore, the regiment's tanks
had been sorely missed by the infantry - and consequently the men
of the 144th soon found themselves in action. It was the start of a
long and bitter campaign that would take them across North West
Europe into the heart of Germany. During that advance the regiment
took part in a number of important actions. These included
Operation Pomegranate (July 1944), Operation Totalize, an
innovative night attack which was one of the final steps to
breaking out of the Caen bridgehead (7/8 August 1944), the siege
and capture of Le Havre, the fighting in Holland during late 1944,
the crossing of the Rhine (by which time the regiment had been
equipped with amphibious Buffaloes and during which it carried the
flag which accompanied the first British tanks to cross the Rhine
after the end of the First World War), and the capture of Bremen
just before the end of the war in Europe. The author began to
investigate the regiment's service through his late father-in-law,
Captain R.W. Thorne, who had been officer in it during the war. As
well as extensive interviews with him about the regiment and the
campaign, this book draws on a variety of contemporary sources -
not least of which are the archives of fellow officer Marcus
Cunliffe. Cunliffe, who went on to become a distinguished British
scholar and author who specialized in American Studies after the
war (particularly military and cultural history), had kept a
detailed and graphic diary and written a number of lively and
informative accounts - all of which are now in the George
Washington University in Washington DC. Unsurprisingly, Cunliffe's
work features heavily in this publication. Arromanches to the Elbe
is a serious contribution to the history of the Second World War.
As well as exploring all aspects of army life, such as training and
what might be called the social history of an active service unit,
this book will appeal to those interested in the campaign in Europe
as a whole, the use of tanks and armoured warfare in general, and,
of course, the final battles to defeat Hitler's Third Reich.
General
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