Description

A highly illustrated account of the conflict between the German Army and security forces and the French resistance in the Alps.

Fighting insurgents has always been one of the greatest challenges for regular armed forces during the 20th century. The war between the Germans and the French resistance, also called FFI (Forces Françaises d'Intérieur), during World War II has remained a near-forgotten chapter in the history of these 'Small Wars'. This is all the more astonishing as agencies like the British SOE (Special Operations Executive) and the American OSS (Office of Strategic Services) pumped a good amount of their resources into the support of the French resistance movement.

By diversionary attacks on German forces in the occupied hinterland the Allies hoped the FFI could provide assistance in disrupting German supply lines as well as crumbling their morale. The mountain plateau of the Vercors south-west of Grenoble was the main stronghold of the FFI, and in July 1944 some 8,000 German soldiers mounted an operation on the plateau and destroyed the insurgent groups there.

This compact volume examines the battle of the Vercors, the largest operation against the FFI during World War II, and shows how the Germans' suit and crushing victory has caused traumatic memories for the French that persist to the present day.

Table of Contents

Origins of the campaign

Chronology
Opposing commanders
Opposing armies
Orders of battle
Opposing plans
The campaign
Aftermath
The battlefield today

Further reading
Index

Product details

Published Dec 20 2012
Format Ebook (Epub & Mobi)
Edition 1st
Extent 96
ISBN 9781780961163
Imprint Osprey Publishing
Illustrations 10 b/w; 0 col
Series Campaign
Short code CAM 249
Publisher Bloomsbury Publishing

About the contributors

Author

Peter Lieb

Dr Peter Lieb is a Senior Lecturer at the Departme…

Illustrator

Peter Dennis

Peter Dennis was inspired by contemporary magazine…

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