Crete: The Battle and the Resistance
Contents:
James Langton does a good job narrating the book. Overall not a bad look at the battle of Crete and all of the characters involved in it. For me though it was not up there with the authors other books. The narrative did not grip me and I found myself wandering and having to read some section over again. I listened to this on Kindle. If you are familiar with Antony Beevor books, more of the same, although I don't feel it was as good as his books on Stalingrad and D-Day.
Crete: The Battle And The Resistance
You will enjoy the book if you don't get too obsessed with keeping the cast of characters straight. There is a very large cast of characters. I had to consult a map of Crete to get my bearings.
The last part of the book, which dealt with the resistance and special forces operations, had by far the largest cast of characters, inclu I listened to this on Kindle. The last part of the book, which dealt with the resistance and special forces operations, had by far the largest cast of characters, including a number of Greek names that were difficult to distinguish. I found it almost impossible to keep people straight, but the book gives a good overview of the Cretan campaign overall. I saw a review of Beevor's new book on Normandy. I was not familiar with him and looked at his previous work.
I found this book on Crete.
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I had read articles and chapters about the battle but never a full length work. So I picked this up. Overall the book is good but with a couple of faults, there were some natural questions I feel he left unanswered. Beevor covers the allied point of view from boots on the ground to high level command. The German point of view is covered but just supplemental. The book is organized in three parts. Part I sets up the context with British special forces, spys and professor and the battle for the Grecian mainland. This is one of the best elements of the book, you can't understand the battle without understanding the mainland conflict immediately prior and covering the resistance completes the story.
A lot of the first part is about British professors and eccentrics in special forces. Some very interesting stories about Ian Flemming's brother Peter. Germany realized the importance of Crete, seemingly as an after thought of the mainland campaign. Britain realized the value sooner but not by much.
It seems to me Britain would have been better served to use their limited troops and resources to fortify Crete and avoid conflict on the Greek mainland entirely. He points out how this coudl have been useful but never addresses it directly. Beevor mentions that had Crete remained in Allied hands it could have become a massive airbase capable of bombing, among other things Ploiesti oilfields earlier and more consistently than the actual course of the war.
In short the German's landed spread out over the island in a plan more suited to a light or unorganized resistance. Some Anti-aircraft unit cleverly held their fire against the faster fighters and diver bombers and waited for the slower and more vital transports. British forces on the ground stoutly resisted but did not organize counterattacks. Once an airfield was captured the German pulled a logistical miracle landing enough troops quickly enough to secure victory. The window for successful counterattacks had passed.
I think the book could really benefit from more material from the German leadership point of view. Why did the spread their forces around three major objectives instead of concentrating on one. The story behind landing enough troops quickly enough to secure the victory is incredible but only told from the observer point of view.
Beevor lets his own point of view influence his writing I think he is transparently upset that this was a lost opportunity instead of the first British land victory of the war. He feels he should have trusted his ultra reports more and ignored the possible sea landings and focused on the airborne threat.
He did make mistakes but, I think Beevor gives him too much heat and too high expectations. He is asking a combat veteran to completely trust a brand new source of information, ignore a form of invasion existing since man first made a raft and focus entirely on a mode of island invasion that had never occurred before in history. True airborne troops had contributed to invasions but never been the soul or primary force.
It is a good book on an generally under the radar topic. Despite the areas I would build out more or disagree with I am happy I read it and recommend it. Mar 02, Alex rated it liked it. One of the striking things about this book is the portrait of British class society.
Crete: The Battle And The Resistance by Antony Beevor
The use of golfing and shooting metaphors by British officers for example: The contrast is all the stronger because it is in the face of war. This is something that Evelyn Waugh later exploited in Officers and Gentlemen, and is used in effect as part of the reason for the One of the striking things about this book is the portrait of British class society.
This is something that Evelyn Waugh later exploited in Officers and Gentlemen, and is used in effect as part of the reason for the loss of Crete. When reading Beevor it is clear that it had nothing to do with the loss of Crete, the reasons for the success of the German airborne invasion are clear enough in the self-delusion of the New Zealand commander and the persistence of the Germans in their use of Maleme airfield. There are many tales of "derring-do" involving British toffs and scholars, which were undoubtedly of very little military significance, but because many of those involved were writers, achieved more post-war coverage than they truly deserved.
This is a good book by Beevor, but I am much more interested in his Stalingrad and generally in hearing about the "Great Patriotic War" of Russia than reading stories like Crete. Mar 04, Jonathan rated it it was amazing Shelves: Excellent book by Beevor, if you love his other works youll love this one. Excellent overview and in depth look at Crete by the men who fought it, and the subsequent reistance and liberation. The story of Crete plays out like a poorly written drama, but as they say truth is stranger than fiction.
The ups and downs, the missed opportunities, and the various personalities and politics all play their role in a story that wouldnt be out of place in a modern soap opera.
Highly reccomended for those i Excellent book by Beevor, if you love his other works youll love this one. Highly reccomended for those interested in the subject or just a fan of Beevors writing. View all 3 comments.
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Another excellent piece of work by Antony Beevor. He tells great history in a very acceable way, and this is no exception. He gives first hand accounts, sometimes very funny, of the fighting, and also about the immense sacrifices of the Cretians themselves, and the great resistance they put up, and courage in sheltering Allied soldiers. I read this while on holiday in Crete, and it certainly made the whole read a lot pore poignant.
I spent 18 months on Crete in while in the U. It was a wonderful assignment. The people of Crete were incredible, friendly, and a delight to be around. Unfortunately, I didn't take advantage much of the history of Crete due to my work schedule and times off. We all learned the people of Crete hated the Germans because of their occupation from I knew of Maleme Airfield but never traveled west of Chania. Most of our travels away from our base near Gournes were ma I spent 18 months on Crete in while in the U.
Most of our travels away from our base near Gournes were mainly in central Crete so I had not visited many of the places mentioned in Beevor's book. This book gave me a much better picture of the German invasion of Crete and how close the British, Australians, and New Zealanders came to defeating the Germans. If General Freyburg had not been expecting a sea invasion and released the coastal defence forces, the outcome might have been very different. Since this was a paperback version of the book, I feel the publisher may have limited the number of illustrations and maps.
The spelling of many place names differed from the names I was used to so a detailed map would have greatly enhanced my reading experience. I do hope to return to Crete again and this time I will definitely go to the Maleme Airfield and cemetery. I have visited the Allied Cemetery on Suda Bay and highly recommend travelers taking the time to see the beauty of this cemetery. Organized into three sections looking at preparation, the conventional fight, and the resistance post-British withdrawal.
The author mixes tactical and individual perspectives with an operational level look at the conflict. The most interesting part of the book is the review of resistance and how the British SOE supported it throughout the war. This story highlights the importance of bold aggressive action in war. A worthwhile read of what was largely a sideshow in a larger struggle Nov 08, WabbitSeason rated it liked it. While the book was cohesive and was well-researched, it lacked the organization that made Stalingrad and The Fall of Berlin compelling and understandable reads.
Jun 21, Mark Adkins rated it really liked it. Another great book by historian Antony Beevor. This book goes over the battle for Crete and then the occupation of the Island after the battle. If you are familiar with the authors writing then you know that he presents information in an interesting but still informative manner and his books are of interest to people of all levels of knowledge on military history. This book i recommend to all readers of military history. I enjoyed both of those books. I had a hard time following all the various participants especially the Cretans and Greeks and even the Germans.
I don't think I came away with a better understanding of this infamous German airborne operation. I would still recommend it for anyone WWII readers. Aug 06, Rommel Cesena rated it liked it. As always, Beevor is so easy to read. His books always feel like going on an tragic adventure. Beevor always leaves me with a curiosity to expand my knowledge on the sidelines from the main events.
Jun 20, Aaron Watts rated it really liked it. An interesting book that deals in detail with the battle for Crete. Occasionally, I felt the book lost pace and focus, though, due to the level of detail that was covered. Would certainly recommend for anyone interested in historical war books.
Not as well written and some of his other books. Oct 25, Dariusz Stochmal rated it really liked it.
Jan 08, Pete daPixie rated it liked it Shelves: In fact, it was no surprise to find Waugh himself featured in this narrative. How British land forces snatched defeat from the jaws of victory after the airborne invasion of Student's Fallschirmjager in May is almost comical, if it wasn't so tragic. Incompetence and a gross lack of preparation, even with the benefit of Ultra, is laid bare in this well Unlike the other Beevor books on various theatres of WWII, 'Crete-The Battle and the Resistance' reads at times like a novel by Evelyn Waugh.
Incompetence and a gross lack of preparation, even with the benefit of Ultra, is laid bare in this well researched account. What I find admirable is the stoical resistance of the Cretan forces during the years under German occupation and their steadfast support of British S. Crete has always held a fascination for me since my very early reading of Theseus and the Minotaur and to discover later that my father saw action in the Royal Navy around Crete in ' After the Battle of Cape Matapan, his ship was involved in the evacuation of soldiers from Heraklion.
Although this book concentrates on land forces, Beevor does include a report on R. Against the dawn was silhouetted the first wave of attackers. The Hereward was hit first. She had to turn in to try and beach on Crete. Search WorldCat Find items in libraries near you. Advanced Search Find a Library. Your list has reached the maximum number of items. Please create a new list with a new name; move some items to a new or existing list; or delete some items.
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New York, New York: English View all editions and formats Summary: Nazi Germany expected its airborne attack on Crete in to be a textbook victory based on tactical surprise. Little did they know that the British, using Ultra intercepts, had already laid a careful trap. It should have been the first German defeat of the war when a fatal misunderstanding turned the battle around. Prize-winning historian and bestselling author Antony Beevor lends his gift for storytelling to this important conflict, showing not only how the situation turned bad for Allied forces, but also how ferocious Cretan freedom fighters mounted a heroic resistance.