1943 The Victory That Never Was

Book Review

by Old Duffer

John Grigg for Penguin

A reprint of the 1979 edition this book is one that questions a number of assumptions about the Allies' conduct of the War. Notably whether a Second Front in France was possible in 1943 rather than in 1944 (and why this would have been worth the effort). Grigg does a good job of dealing with the political realities of Coalition War (in Totaler Kreig terms one should randomly draw the cards). Given the waste of the assets the Allies used in Tunisia (would have been starved out anyway), Sicily and Italy Grigg believes they could have got ashore in France (Husky after all used more divisions in the first wave). Grigg notes the need for a rather better attitude to France (America being Petainist and anti-imperialist at the same time). He also argues one would have had to alter the Bomber Harris view to one of close-support as with Tedder. He lays into area bombing on moral and effective grounds. He believes US precision bombing would have worked if they could have kept hitting the same target. In passing there are some interesting arguments (for example what might have been if Mountbatten had been made Viceroy and Wavell left in South-East Asia). Clearly any invasion of France was going to be hard slogging, but to be at the Ruhr in 1943 or even early 1944 might have tipped history on its head. You can read why not. A very entertaining read.

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