Forging the anvil : combat units in the US, British, and German infanteries of World War II /
It has long been accepted wisdom that Germany's infantrymen possessed superior tactical ability relative to their Anglo-American adversaries in World War II. Now, drawing on newly available information, Stephen Lauer unpacks that assumption, exploring the conscription, classification and traini...
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| Format: | Book |
| Language: | English |
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Boulder, Colorado :
Lynne Rienner Publishers,
[2022].
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| Summary: | It has long been accepted wisdom that Germany's infantrymen possessed superior tactical ability relative to their Anglo-American adversaries in World War II. Now, drawing on newly available information, Stephen Lauer unpacks that assumption, exploring the conscription, classification and training methods of the American, British and German infantries from 1919 through 1945. How did conscripted citizens become foot soldiers willing to fight, and even die, for each other in the face of brutal physical and mental demands? How was it decided which men to assign to combat units? How did each nation engender the social bonds that were essential if soldiers were to succeed and survive in their small unit milieus? Addressing these questions of manpower quality, Forging the Anvil is a landmark study of the key factors that influenced the creation of World War II infantries and sustained them in the crucible of close combat. |
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| Physical Description: | xv, 463 pages : illustrations ; 24 cm. |
| Bibliography: | Includes bibliographical references (pages [399]-441) and index. |
| ISBN: | 9781626379589 1626379580 |