Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Fire and Steel: The End of World War Two in the West Peter Caddick-Adams full chapter instant download
Fire and Steel: The End of World War Two in the West Peter Caddick-Adams full chapter instant download
https://ebookmass.com/product/sand-steel-the-d-day-invasions-and-
the-liberation-of-france-peter-caddick-adams/
https://ebookmass.com/product/the-last-battle-victory-defeat-and-
the-end-of-world-war-i-peter-hart/
https://ebookmass.com/product/the-oxford-world-history-of-empire-
volume-two-the-history-of-empires-2021-peter-fibiger-bang/
Flak: True Stories from the Men Who Flew in World War
Two Veitch Michael
https://ebookmass.com/product/flak-true-stories-from-the-men-who-
flew-in-world-war-two-veitch-michael/
The Steel Ceiling: Achieving Sustainable Growth in
Engineering and Construction Peter Wilkinson
https://ebookmass.com/product/the-steel-ceiling-achieving-
sustainable-growth-in-engineering-and-construction-peter-
wilkinson/
https://ebookmass.com/product/the-oxford-world-history-of-empire-
volume-two-the-history-of-empires-1st-edition-edition-peter-
fibiger-bang/
https://ebookmass.com/product/rome-resurgent-war-and-empire-in-
the-age-of-justinian-peter-heather/
The Thirty Years War, 1618 - 1648: The First Global War
and the end of Habsburg Supremacy John Pike
https://ebookmass.com/product/the-thirty-years-war-1618-1648-the-
first-global-war-and-the-end-of-habsburg-supremacy-john-pike/
https://ebookmass.com/product/india-in-the-second-world-war-
gupta/
FIRE AND
STEEL
ALSO BY PETER CADDICK-ADAMS
By God They Can Fight!: A New History of the 143rd Infantry Brigade
The Fight for Iraq: January–June 2003
Monty and Rommel: Parallel Lives
Monte Cassino: Ten Armies in Hell
Snow and Steel: The Battle of the Bulge 1944–5
Sand and Steel: The D-Day Invasion and the Liberation of France
FIRE AND
STEEL
Published in the United States of America by Oxford University Press 198 Madison Avenue,
New York, NY 10016, United States of America.
eISBN 9780190601881
135798642
To A.L. LeQuesne
who taught me history
at Shrewsbury School (1974–1978)
&
Paul Beaver and Cate Pye
who have kindly accommodated, wined and dined
the wandering historian
during his many travels
Contents
Introduction
PART ONE
Tothe Rhine
1 From Normandy to the Reich
Map: From Normandy to the Rhine
2 Allied Leadership
3 The Colmar Pocket
Map: A Pocket at Colmar, Jan–Feb 1945
4 Veritable Mud
Map: The Rhineland Battles, Feb–Mar 1945
5 The Road to Cologne
6 The Saar and the Siegfried
Map: Operations in the Saar-Palatinate Triangle, March 1945
PART TWO
Acrossthe Rhine
7 The Bridges at Remagen
Map: The Northern Rhine Crossings, March 1945
8 Third Army
9 Montgomery
10 Sixth Army Group
PART THREE
Beyondthe Rhine
11 Tensions with the French
Map: Sixth Army Group and Third Army, April–May 1945
12 Aschaffenburg, Würzburg and Schweinfurt
13 Patton’s April
14 First and Ninth Armies: From the Ruhr to the Elbe
Map: 21st and 12th Army Groups: Holland, the Baltic and the
Elbe, April–May 1945
15 April: Northern Flank
16 First Army: To Leipzig and the Elbe
17 Southern Flank: Nuremberg and Augsburg
18 ‘The bloody dog is dead.’
19 Eight Days of Agony and Ecstasy
20 Aftermath
Acknowledgements
Notes
Bibliography
Index
Image credits
Military Tool Kit And Glossary
Military folk worldwide, like many other communities, tend to adopt their own
abbreviations, which they forget puzzle those outside. Military algebra, by which I
mean the designation of divisions, brigades, regiments, battalions and so on, is
particularly vexing to the uninitiated, hence this briefest of tool kits for your
enlightenment.
Units of all the nations covered here followed much the same approach, in that
their basic formation was the division. By 1945 German divisions had often shrunk
to perhaps 10,000 and sometimes much less. Allied ones tended to vary between
12,000 and 15,000 men, depending on purpose (airborne, armoured or infantry).
Divisions (usually commanded by a Major General, Generalmajor or
Generalleutnant) were self-supporting, with their own reconnaissance, artillery,
anti-aircraft and anti-tank, engineers, signals, machine-gun, supply, transport,
ordnance (for repair), workshop (for vehicles), medical and military police
elements.
All divisions were numbered, and often had a secondary title, which indicated
where they recruited, for example 15th Scottish, 43rd Wessex and 53rd Welsh
under Montgomery; or the 36th Texas and 42nd Rainbow (the latter drawing
recruits from across the United States). Two divisions or more – often many more
– made an army corps. Allied corps possessed their own heavy artillery (an AGRA,
Army Group Royal Artillery in the Anglo-Canadian forces), anti-aircraft, armoured
and reconnaissance units, a Mechanized Cavalry Group (in US corps), plus other
assets.
Allied infantry divisions were broken down into three infantry brigades
(regiments in US terminology), each of around 3,000 personnel, commanded by a
Colonel or Brigadier (Brigadier General, or Général de Brigade). The Cottonbalers
was the unofficial title of a US Army regiment, more formally titled the 7th
Infantry. A brigade, in turn, comprised three battalions, led by lieutenant colonels,
which remain the basic building blocks of military formations. Tank battalions
(sometimes called armoured regiments) fielded around sixty tanks, infantry
battalions contained 600–1,000 riflemen, whilst artillery battalions (or regiments)
comprised anything from nine to forty-eight guns, depending on type and calibre.
Each generally included three infantry companies, armoured squadrons or artillery
batteries, plus headquarters elements.
American and British airborne forces, with minimal transport, who deployed
into battle by glider and parachute, fielded fewer numbers, as did British
Commandos. The latter, all numbered, were split between the Navy (Royal Marine
Commandos) and Army, each unit being the equivalent of a highly-trained, well-
armed, but small battalion. Their US equivalents are Ranger battalions.
American battalions and regiments were numbered, while the Anglo-Canadians
retained a variety of exotic and confusing titles for their battalions, evoking
nineteenth-century antecedents. These included the 13th/18th Hussars, 22nd
Dragoons and Staffordshire Yeomanry (all British tank battalions); 3rd Scots
Guards (also a tank battalion); 13th Royal Horse Artillery (an artillery battalion);
the Algonquin Regiment and the Cameron Highlanders of Ottawa (both Canadian
infantry battalions, the latter fielding machine-guns); and 4th/5th Royal Scots
Fusiliers, 5th Duke of Cornwall’s Light Infantry and (bizarrely) the 12th King’s
Royal Rifle Corps (all British battalions).
Now, for some TLAs (Three Letter Abbreviations) and others, which have crept
past the censors and into this volume.
515th and 517th Parachute Infantry and 326th Glider Infantry Regiments
17th US Airborne Division (Maj. Gen. William M. Miley)
507th and 513rd Parachute Infantry and 193rd Glider Infantry Regiments
82nd ‘All American’ Airborne Division (Maj. Gen. James M. Gavin)
504th and 505th Parachute Infantry, 325th Glider Infantry Regiments
101st ‘Screaming Eagles’ US Airborne Division (Maj. Gen. Maxwell D. Taylor)
502nd and 506th Parachute Infantry, 327th Glider Infantry
2nd Tactical Air Force, RAF (Air Marshal Sir Arthur ‘Maori’ Coningham)
No. 2 Group (medium bombers), No. 83 Group (supported British),
No.84 Group (supported Canadians),
No. 85 Group (night fighters/light bombers)
Cabbage, hungarian, 45
Cake(s):
chocolate, 69
coffee, quick, 62
frosting:
caramel-nut, 69
chocolate, creamy, 69
white, creamy, 69
spiced prune, 67
upside-down, 68
velvety white, 67
Carrots, glazed, 47
Cauliflower au gratin, quick, 46
Cheese:
baked fondue, 40
biscuits, 60
burgers, fish, 63
croutons, 56
pizza, 40
salad dressing, Roquefort (blue), 53
sauce with macaroni, 40
with spanish rice, 39
Cherry:
cobbler, 68
cobbler, quick, 69
pie, 65
Chicken:
a la king, 30
braised, with vegetables, 31
broiled, 29
fried, 29
noodle bake, 30
oven-fried, 29
pie, 31
roast, 27
stewed, 29
vegetable soup, 54
with homemade noodles, 32
Chowder. (See Soup.)
Coleslaw, 52
Cookies:
brownies, chewy, 72
brownies, plain, 72
chocolate chip, 71
chocolate sparkles, 71
cinnamon-sugar, 71
molasses snaps, 71
oatmeal:
coconut or nut, 70
orange, 70
plain, 70
raisin, 70
peanut butter, 70
top hat, 71
Corn muffins, 61
Cornbread, 60
Cranberry-baked apples, 72
Croutons, 56
Custard, baked, 73
Desserts:
apple crisp, 72
apples, baked, 72
bavarian cream, orange, 70
cobbler, cherry, 68
raisin-nut bread pudding, 73
(See also Cakes, Cookies, Custard, Ice Cream Desserts, Pies.)
Duck, roast, 27
Eggplant:
casserole, 47
creole, 46
Egg(s):
baked in hash nests, 39
deviled:
ham, 38
plain, 38
french toast, 37
fried, 37
in shell:
hard-cooked, 37
soft-cooked, 37
omelet, plain (french), 38
poached, 38
poached, supreme, 38
sauce, 57
scrambled, 36
Fish:
baked, 34
baked stuff, 35
broiled, 34
buying, 10
cheeseburgers, 63
chowder:
Manhattan, 55
New England, 55
deep-fat fried, 32
oven-fried, 35
pan-fried, 32
salad, souffle, 51
salmon loaf, 34
sardine puff, 36
servings per pound, 7
storing, 14
topsy turvy tuna pie, 35
Frosting. (See Cakes.)
Fruits. (See Desserts, Pies.)
Gingerbread, 68
Goose, roast, 27
Graham cracker pie crust, 65
Gravy, 57
Ham:
patties, 24
roast, 18
slice, broiled, 18
slice, pan-broiled, 20
Noodle(s):
chicken bake, 30
homemade, with chicken, 32
turkey bake, 30
Oatmeal:
cookies, 70
raisin muffins, 61
Okra and tomatoes, stewed, 45
Omelet, plain (french), 38
Onion(s):
and liver, braised, 24
in mushroom sauce, 48
sauce, 57
Pancakes, 62
Pastry, for pies, 64
Pea salad, 53
Peanut butter cookies, 70
Peppers, green, stuffed, 25
Pie(s):
apple, 64
blueberry, 65
cherry, 65
chicken, 31
cream:
banana, 65
chocolate, 65
coconut, 65
vanilla, 65
fruit delight, 67
graham cracker crust, 65
lemon chiffon, 66
lime chiffon, 67
pastry, 64
peach, 65
pecan, 66
pumpkin, 66
quick meringue-topped, 66
turkey, 31
Pizza, 40
Popovers, 60
Pork:
braised, 21
chops, broiled, 20
curried, 23
roast, 18
(See also Ham.)
Potato(es):
and sausage, au gratin, 23
baked stuffed, 48
patties, 48
salad, 52
soup, creamy, 56
Poultry:
salad, sandwiches, 63
salad, souffle, 51
(See also Chicken, Duck, Goose, Turkey.)
Prune:
cake, spiced, 67
salad, stuffed, 52
Pudding, raisin-nut bread, 73
Salad(s):
chef salad bowl, luncheon, 52
coleslaw, 52
creamy fruit, 51
fish, souffle, 51
frozen fruit, 51
marinated vegetable, 50
asparagus spear, 50
cucumber and onion, 50
green bean, 50
three-bean, 50
meat, souffle, 51
pea, 53
pineapple-carrot, molded, 51
potato, 52
poultry, souffle, 51
prune, stuffed, 52
suggested combinations:
fruit, 50
vegetable, 50
Salad dressing(s):
blue cheese, 53
celery seed, 53
french:
basic, 53
sweet, 53
orange-honey, 53
italian, 53
Roquefort cheese, 53
thousand island, 53
Sandwich(es):
bacon-cheese, 62
barbecued beef, 63
fish-cheeseburgers, 63
grilled open-face, 63
meat salad, 63
poultry salad, 63
Sauces:
cheese, 57
egg, 57
honey-orange, 58
lemon-butter, 58
mock hollandaise, 58
onion, 57
quick vegetable, 58
sour cream, 58
tartar, 58
white, 57
Sausage and potatoes au gratin, 23
Soup(s):
bean, 55
broccoli, cream of, 56
chicken-vegetable, 54
fish chowder:
Manhattan, 55
New England, 55
potato, creamy, 56
turkey-vegetable, 54
vegetable, hearty, 54
Spaghetti with meat sauce, 24
Spinach:
au gratin, quick, 46
souffle, 44
Spoonbread, 61
Squash, zucchini, scalloped, 46
Steak(s):
braised, 21
broiled, 18
pan-broiled, 20
Stew:
beef, 26
irish, 26
Stuffing:
nut, 28
plain, 28
Sweetpotatoes in orange shells, 45
Tomato(es):
and okra, stewed, 45
broiled, 45
Turkey:
boneless roast, 28
noodle bake, 30
pie, 31
roast, stuffed, 27
vegetable soup, 54
Veal:
braised, 21
curried, 23
roast, 18
Vegetable(s):
boiled, 42
chicken soup, 54
creamed, 43
mashed, 43
panned, 44
salad combinations, 50
salads, marinated, 50
sauce, quick, 58
soup, hearty, 54
turkey soup, 54
with a sauce, 44
with braised chicken, 31
(See also other Vegetables, Salads, Sauces, Soups.)
Waffles, 62