Blitzkrieg in Colour: Rare Colour Photographs from World War II

In 1939, Germany unleashed a new form of warfare on Europe blitzkrieg, or 'lightning war'. The strategy was to carry out rapid, overwhelming attacks combining tanks, motorized infantry and air support to smash through enemy lines. During the early years of the war, it was put into devastating effect and would change the face of modern conflict forever. With more than 250 original colour images almost entirely never seen before this remarkable new work is an immersive visual chronicle of the Wehrmacht's blitzkrieg campaigns of 1939 and 1940, from the first tanks rolling into Poland to the sweeping conquests across Western Europe. The photos are from original colour slides and provide a genuine, vivid look at the past as it was originally seen. The accompanying historical commentary is based on thorough archival research, and together they take the reader to the heart of the frontline, conveying both the tactical brilliance of this revolutionary method of warfare and the terrible human toll. As well as covering the tanks, equipment and aircraft, the book captures snapshots of everyday life for soldiers and civilians, and the destruction caused by the campaigns: cities reduced to rubble, the German occupation of towns, the displacement of refugees, and casualties of war. AUTHOR: Educated in the north of England and London University, Simon Forty has worked in publishing for over 40 years as editor, publisher and author. In recent years he has concentrated on writing and has authored/co-authored 30-odd books, many on military history. His most recent titles examine subjects on the Eastern Front of World War II: Red Army into the Reich looked at the last year of the war, as Soviet forces pushed the German armies back towards and then into Germany; and two Casemate Illustrated titles covered the life and equipment of German and Soviet infantrymen on the Eastern Front. 250 colour illustrations