No Holding Back

About this book

""A breakthrough has occurred near Caen the like of which we have never seen." This stark assessment, made by a senior German officer on the evening of 8 August 1944, was the German reaction to Operation Totalize, the Canadian attack planned and led by General Guy Simonds that threatened to trap the German army in Normandy by linking up with Patton's advancing Third United States Army. Whether Totalize should be seen as a success or a failure has been the subject of controversy and debate for sixty years. Certainly there was plenty to criticize in the work of senior commanders, though Brian Reid has determined that much previously written about Totalize is wide of the mark." "Brian A. Reid, a military historian and retired officer, has for the first time undertaken an in-depth study of Totalize, including a critical examination of the part played by Allied land and air forces. He addresses the strategic situation, the background, planning and development of Totalize, including the air plan, and examines the contribution of the four armies that fought and bled on the high ground south of Caen some six decades ago." "He has also uncovered evidence that throws new light on the death of the "Black Baron," SS-Hauptsturmfuhrer Michael Wittmann, the top-scoring German tank ace of the Second World War." "A landmark contribution to the literature of the Normandy campaign, No Holding Back is handsomely illustrated with maps, photographs and graphics of armoured vehicles and weapons, as well as detailed orders of battle. It is a book that will appeal to both specialists and general readers alike. Book jacket."--Jacket.