The Bombers and the Bombed

Posted on 26 September 2018 by Richard Overy

The ultimate history of the Allied bombing campaigns in World War IITechnology shapes the nature of all wars, and the Second World War hinged on a most unpredictable weapon the bomb Day and night, Britain and the United States unleashed massive fleets of bombers to kill and terrorize occupied Europe, destroying its cities The grisly consequences call into question how moral a war the Allies fought The Bombers and the Bombed radically overhauls our understanding of World War II It pairs the story of the civilian front line in the Allied air war alongside the political context that shaped their strategic bombing campaigns, examining the responses to bombing and being bombed with renewed clarity.The first book to examine seriously not only the well known attacks on Dresden and Hamburg but also the significance of the firebombing on other fronts, including Italy, where the crisis was far severe than anything experienced in Germany, this is Richard Overy s finest work yet It is a rich reminder of the terrible military, technological, and ethical issues that relentlessly drove all the war s participants into an abyss. New Download The Bombers and the Bombed author Richard Overy For Kindle ePUB or eBook – kino-fada.fr It delivers what it promises bombing throughout Europe A good two thirds is still devoted to the Blitz over England Germany Italy benefits most of Overy s pan European ambition, while Western Europeor less gets attention in descending order of damage The section on Eastern Europe felt too short I am not yet qualified to judge the strategical bombing of the Soviet Union in the context of Barbarossa It s supposedly seldom separated from the tactical air war in the East The con It delivers what it promises bombing throughout Europe A good two thirds is still devoted to the Blitz over England Germany Italy benefits most of Overy s pan European ambition, while Western Europeor less gets attention in descending order of damage The section on Eastern Europe felt too short I am not yet qualified to judge the strategical bombing of the Soviet Union in the context of Barbarossa It s supposedly seldom separated from the tactical air war in the East The conclusion and epilogue form an excellent synopsis of the book s main themes, but they are shining through the facts throughout so that the reader has a go...The title and the monumental size of this book somehow suggest a definitive, comprehensive history of the strategic bombing campaigns during WWII But that is an enormously complex subject with a substantial body of literature already discussing it Among these, Overy s book is a worthy contribution, but not exceptional It is a thorough study of the politics and strategy of the bloody bo...This was a very detailed and well documented work yet was worded so as to be easy to read It gave a real perspective of the gigantic scope of the bombing effort put forth by the Allies in WWII The book asked the questions, Was the bombing effective, and did it meet its objectives Even though I would agree to some extent with the conclusions, I would say they are negated by the fact that approximately 291,000 Americans died in the conflict and we didn t start the war The fact that only some This was a very detailed and well documented work yet was worded so as to be easy to read It gave a real perspective of the gigantic scope of the bombing effort put forth by the Allies in WWII The book asked the questions, Was the bombing effective, and did it meet its objectives Even though I would agree to some extent with the conclusions, I would say they are negated by the fact that approximately 291,000 Americans died in t...Every time I walk past the statue honouring the aircrews of Bomber Command in Green Park, I taste something unpleasant in my mouth.I can imagine a decent German feeling much the same if Berlin had a major monument to the Eastern Front war dead of the Wehrmacht.Yes, both sets of men were courageous and died for the sins of their leaders but both sets of men were complicit in appalling atrocities under orders that specifically targeted civilians.This remarkable, well evidenced and well written b Every time I walk past the statue honouring the aircrews of Bomber Command in Green Park, I taste something unpleasant in my mouth.I can imagine a decent German feeling much the same if Berlin had a major monument to the Eastern Front war dead of the Wehrmacht.Yes, both sets of men were courageous and died for the sins of their leaders but both sets of men were complicit in appalling atrocities under orders that specifically targeted civilians.This remarkable, well evidenced and well written book is about the use of bombing and its effects in Europe during the Second World War at least that is its primary purpose It is, in fact, a book about evil.Half a million Europeans were murdered from the air either indirectly as part ...Let me start by pointing out that this review is for the American edition from Viking Press, which apparently is missing several chapters, mainly those concerning German use of bombers against Great Britain in 1940 41.On with the review then The Bombers and the Bombed is supposed to be, according to the author, the most detailed analysis of use of aerial bombing during World War 2 Its uniqueness is based on the fact that it covers in great detail both the Allied and German side of the bombi Let me start by pointing out that this review is for the American edition from Viking Press, which apparently is missing several chapters, mainly those concerning German use of bombers against Great Britain in 1940 41.On with the review then The Bombers and the Bombed is supposed to be, according to the author, the most detailed analysis of use o...The version of the book that I read was the original version, published by Allen Lane Penguin as The Bombing War Europe 1939 1945 From what I understand, the U.S version, published by Viking as The Bombers and the Bombed Allied Air War Over Europe 1940 1945 as indicated by the title does not include the original version s account of the German bombing campaigns This is a grave weakness in its absence, a reader of the lesser book may not fully appreciate the Allies political and mi The version of the book that I read was the original version, published by Allen Lane Penguin as The Bombing War ...An amazing book This exhaustive, and exhausting, history solely focusing on the bombing war in Europe from its beginnings in 1939 through to 1945 and beyond is a must have and read for anyone interested in the history of World War II The author focuses on the three major air forces in the war, the Germans, British, and Americans, and peels away all of the misconceptions, forgotten history and heroics that have over the decades built up over the actual facts of the ultimate uselessness that the An amazing book This exhaustive, and exhausting, history solely focusing on the bombing war in Europe from its beginnings in 1939 through to 1945 and beyond is a must have and read for anyone interested in the history of World War II The author focuses on the three major air forces in the war, the Germans, British, and Americans, and peels away all of the misconceptions, forgotten history and heroics that have over the decades built up over the actual facts of the ultimate u...Won via Goodreads First Reads Giveaway Bombers and Bombed is a very interesting look at both ends of the Allied bombing campaign in Europe 1940 45 I am a fan of new or little told stories from WWII and this easy read is near the top The book is very detailed, maybe a little too detailed for the beginner history buff You will not be disappointed with BB and I enjoyed this book greatly On a side note, as I read this book a bulldozer driver in Germany was killed on a construction site Won via Goodreads First Reads Giveaway Bombers and Bombed is a very interesting look...The quality of scholarship and analysis is excellent, but you should be advised you have to plow through mountains of statistics that belonged in an appendix Also needed major editing, the paragraphs in many cases are into...I took a quite personal interest in this book since as a young child living in Frankfurt a m I was one of the bombed I also was one of the children evacuated to a country town near the end of the war, a program that Overy touches on tangentially Beyond the personal side, this is indeed a very good book, and makes clear in merciless detail how ineffective the bombing campaigns often were Entire cities were missed and even if the cities were found the targets were either not found or s...

English
26 September 2018

Richard Overy