Battle at Best
H. G. Miller (Maps and Diagrams) and Garver Miller New York: William Morrow and Company, 1964. Second printing [stated]. Hardcover. xii, 257, [3] pages. Some DJ wear. Foreword by Major General J. F. C. Fuller. The various chapters of this book have appeared as articles in The Atlantic Monthly, American Heritage Magazine, Army Magazine, Combat Forces Journal, and Marine Corps Gazette. Brigadier General Samuel Lyman Atwood Marshall, also known as Slam, (July 18, 1900 – December 17, 1977) was a military journalist and historian. He served with the American Expeditionary Forces in World War I, before leaving to work as a journalist, specializing in military affairs. In 1940, he published Blitzkrieg: Armies on Wheels, an analysis of the tactics used by the Wehrmacht, and re-entered the U.S. Army as its chief combat historian during World War II and the Korean War. He officially retired in 1960 but acted as an unofficial advisor during the Vietnam War. Marshall wrote some 30 books about warfare, including Pork Chop Hill: The American Fighting Man in Action, which was made into a film of the same name. His most famous work was Men Against Fire: The Problem of Battle Command, which concluded fewer than 25% of men in combat actually fired their weapons at the enemy. While the data he used to support this claim has been challenged, his overall conclusion - a significant number do not fire their weapons in combat - has been verified by multiple studies performed by other armies, going back to the 18th century. Marshall argued that even with their own lives at risk, the resistance of the individual “...toward killing a fellow man" was such that "he will not...take life if it is possible to turn away from that responsibility. S L A Marshall is justly famous for his unique method of battle analysis. In "Battle at Best" he applies this method of the assessment of data gleaned from on-the-spot interviews with the troops themselves - to eight critical actions of World War II and Korea. Taken together, these battles illustrate the infinite variety of combat experience and reveal new truths about soldiers under fire. From the Korean War, General Marshall highlights the role of Easy Company in the attack on Hill 180 ("Fix Bayonets and Follow Me") and two phases of the 1st Marine Division experience during the Chosin Reservoir operation. From World War II comes the title, the fight against overwhelming odds of one platoon of the 101st Airborne Division at Best, Holland and, most movingly, the self-sacrifice of Private Joe Mann. Also included is an account of the 29th Infantry Division at Omaha Beach, two stories of Pacific combat and, finally, a surprising view of the liberation of Paris-and of Ernest Hemingway who participated. Condition: Good / Good.
Keywords: D-Day, Omaha Beach, Robert Barrow, Korean War, Ernest Hemingway, Lewis Millett, Donald Schmuck, Edward Wierzbowski, John Westover, First Marine Division, Chosin Resevoir, 101st Airborne Division, Joe Mann, 29th Infantry, Liberation of Paris
[Book #82980]
Price: $45.00