Product Description

It wasn't until many months later that ground forces captured Arnhem in conventional fighting. It had literally been "a bridge too far". This book consists of interviews, research of British and Polish airborne forces involved in Arnhem, German forces and Dutch civilians caught up in the battle. The book attempts to cover the wider scene of the American airborne landings and the attempt by ground forces to reach Arnhem.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #170872 in Books
• Published on: 1995-09-28
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 512 pages

Customer Reviews

A very readable history of the Allied side of the battle
"Arnhem 1944" is another excellent war history from Martin Middlebrook. It has all the usual hallmarks of a Middlebrook history: research so exquisitely detailed and painstaking, that you know he's got things right, coupled with a readable style that mixes narrative with personal recollections of participants, all illustrated with numerous maps that enable the reader to follow the cut and thrust of individual unit actions, and the inexorable development of the allied defeat.

However, I was somewhat disappointed that Mr. Middlebrook failed to follow the formula that made his World War II bombing campaign books so absorbing. In those books, he examined every aspect of the aerial battles from the points of view of the allied aircrews, the German defenders (on the ground and in the air), and the victims of the bombing themselves.

In "Arnhem 1944", Mr. Middlebrook has avoided looking at the battle from the German perspective. In his introduction, he stated that he originally had every intention of doing so, but while he was carrying out his research, a comprehensive history on the Germans' experiences in that battle was published, causing him to drop that aspect from his research. Unfortunately, Mr. Middlebrook fails to quote from that German history, with the result that the reader feels, to some degree, like the allied defenders must have done: impressed by the determination and ferociousness of the German attacks, but never knowing about the extent of the resources available to the Germans. Just a hint of the Germans' thought processes throughout the battle would have balanced out the book considerably.

That criticism aside, this is still an excellent piece of work, which General John Hackett, a senior participant in the battle, calls "without question the best book published so far on the Market Garden operation." Who can argue with someone so well qualified to assess this book?

Awesome.
The third Middlebrook book I have read, and as ever fantastic research and elegant use of real accounts from those that were there to make for a compelling narrative. A must read if you have any interest in WW2...

The definitive account of the Battle of Arnhem
Brilliant. Superb detail.Superb balance. All to often Arnhem accounts concentrate on certain events and less on others. This amends those unbalanced books I've had to put up with. Superb research. Superb personal narratives. The best book about the Battle of Arnhem. Full Stop.