Patton at Bay: The Lorraine Campaign, 1944

Description

For Lt. Gen. George S. Patton, Jr., the battle for Lorraine during the fall and winter of 1944 was a frustrating and grueling experience of static warfare. Plagued by supply shortages, critical interference from superiors, flooded rivers, fortified cities, and the highly determined German army, Patton had little opportunity to wage the type of fast armored campaign of which he was so enamored. Author John Rickard examines Patton's generalship during these bitter battles and suggests that Patton was unable to adapt to the new realities of the campaign, thereby failing to wage the most effective warfare possible. Relying on a broad range of historical sources, including personal papers and division after-action reports, this treatment of Patton's operational performance in Lorraine goes beyond the official history. It describes Patton's philosophy of war and explains why it failed him in Lorraine. Supplemented by full orders of battle, casualty and equipment loses, and excellent maps based on Hugh M. Cole's official U.S. Army history of the campaign, Patton at Bay is a penetrating study of one of America's best fighting generals.

John Nelson Rickard is a Canadian army officer completing his Ph.D. in military history at the University of New Brunswick. His area of expertise is World War II with particular emphasis on the campaigns in northwest Europe. He lives in Alberta, Canada.

"Required reading for scholars of World War II." -Armor Required reading for scholars of World War II. With its many lessons in leadership and operational art, this book is well worth reading. "One of the few in-depth studies available of Patton's 'generalship' . . . A fast-paced, thoughtful study of command at the operational level, one written with the punch and pace of a good novel, yet with enough combat detail to please military students. This book is a must for World War II historians and soldiers studying the operational art."