The How & Why
Up until now, there have been many histories written, but were just a single perspective of the greater story.
Where does one find a comprehensive and authoritative history of WW?
The author asked circa 2010 to find no clear answers. He visited bookstores but found no complete WWII histories. None attempted to cover even one war theater from start to end, a to z, north to south or east to west. Yet, as mentioned, when one walks away from the Normandy Beaches and there is not much available. For the tourist, historian and relative, the ETO war ends in Normandy. Tom learned this living in Germany.
An example is American Pageant, which is the premiere U.S. AP History for bright high school students or for an intro to history in college. This version is too short, and not comprehensive enough. Click here to view and example.
Below is the list of the “Greatest Books ever written about the Second World War” according to Matt Blake who wrote the list on May 2, 2022:
1.
Hitler 1936-1945: Nemesis by Ian Kershaw (1991)
2.
Churchill: Walking with Destiny by Andrew Roberts (2018)
3.
If This Is a Man by Primo Levi (1947)
4.
X Troop; The Secret Jewish Commandos who Helped Defeat Hitler; Leah Garrett
5.
The Unwomanly Face of War by Svetlana Alexievich (1985)
6.
Dresden: The Fire and the Darkness by Sinclair McKay (2020)
7.
First Light: The Story of the Boy Who Became a Man in the … Skies Above Britain by Wellum
8.
Stalingrad, Antony Beevor (1998)
9.
The Longest Day by Cornelius Ryan (1959)
10.
Eagle Against the Sun by Ronald H Spector (1985)
The list provides little to nothing concerning WWII in general. Eight books are event and fact specific. The first two cover personalities, not events. Snippets, outtakes and biographies are not WWII histories. Dresden’s fire bombing, a British fighter pilot and Stalingrad are the singular events. So too, the “Longest Day” ended in just 24 hours!
“What happened next, and next and after that?”
What happened after Normandy?
This question is never answered in literature. Nor is: “What happened before Normandy?” The war did not start on D-Day Normandy; did not end that day. Again, the question is: “What happened after D-Day?” “Where do I go?” “Where may I find an 'honest-to-goodness' history WWII in Europe – a military history? Military histories were written, but were: unavailable, ignored, and/or generally unknown. Second, “reading about” the war is completely different from “studying WWII”. The tourist quips: “been there”, “done that” and moves on. The serious student lingers to witness, understand and comprehend the enormity of the event.
WWII occurred 75 years ago; soon it will be 100 years and too rapidly 200 years. How do we preserve the history that is equally marvelous and horrifying, glorious and shameful bringing out the “best” and the “worst” in all. War teaches humans about “humanity”, because it is the first item war sacrifices.
None of the ten best-selling WWII books accomplishes these tasks. The books are snippets in time; the “Little Dutch Boy” plugging wholes to ignore the panorama and troubles of the event.
The Longest Day comes close to describing D-Day. Band of Brothers and Saving Private Ryan captured many of these emotions, ironies, terror, fear, suffering and laughter.
But even these fail with: “But what happened on June 7, June 8, in July?
Do we just walk away from Normandy having “seen it all?”
Celebrate Those Who Served with the “Official” Military Histories
The same cannot be said for U.S Navy “official” histories as they contracted all to one individual who won a windfall – Samuel Morrison. This one man sailed “The Seven Seas” simultaneously recording the “official” Navy history paid as a Navy officer and as an author! This fact elevates Army and Army Air Force histories to the true status of “official”. The famous columnist and Gen S. L. A. Marshall pioneered the interview method, of questioning soldiers as soon as they left the battle to obtain some raw, surprising information then used by the Army. From a lawyer’s view, the Judge will always admit the “official” document in evidence, exclude unofficial documents unless the “official” is proven untrustworthy. Second, here official versions flow in an understandable, chronological fashion classified by armies, locations and battles.
The “official” version presents the facts to the reader in substantial, lengthy but comprehensive manner. Historians highlight the issues and challenges as divisions and corps battled forward. The chapters clearly state who, where and what of each one. Unfortunately, they portray a “clinical” army tone, but do not lack for warmth or humor. The official military histories are the “best evidence” of what occurred, when and where.
Where to Start?
To do more we must start, but where? We honor those who served and sacrificed so much in WWII by reading of their time in the military and the war – frightened on the front line; over-worked, bored in the rear areas. A mixture of terror, loss, grief, laughter, joy, relief and no sleep – in just one day!
A lawyer would seek to learn the case from the most sources of the facts and events of the war. Yet, look at the list of the top-10 World War 2 books as of June 2022). to ask who a more authoritative author is than Cornelius Ryan or Antony Beevor? Easy; the official historians assigned to timely write the histories with full access to military records and personnel. They often had “real time notes” under “real time” circumstances. A lawyer would argue the “official historian” trumps all others, which should be banned. Most likely a judge would agree. Yet, people learn about WWII from many other sources who lacked a “big picture perspective” and access to critical documents. The best evidence must be that contained in “official” Army and Air Force military histories. The same cannot be said for U.S Navy “official” histories as they contracted all to one individual who won the financial windfall of a lifetime – Samuel Morrison. This one man sailed “The Seven Seas” simultaneously recording the “official” Navy history paid as a Navy officer and as an author! This fact elevates Army and Army Air Force histories to the true status of “official”. Which would be more credible to a jury: 1) a man given a commission and a profit to write and advance the careers of his Naval Officer friends or a 2) 2nd Lt following troops as they fight, taking notes, interviewing them ? The famous historian and Gen S. L. A. Marshall pioneered the interview method, of questioning soldiers as soon as they left the battle to obtain some raw, surprising information then used by the Army. From a lawyer’s view, the Judge will always admit the “official” document in evidence, exclude unofficial documents unless the “official” is proven untrustworthy. Second, here official versions flow in an understandable, chronological fashion classified by armies, locations and battles. The “official” version presents the facts to the reader in substantial, lengthy but comprehensive manner. Historians highlight the issues and challenges as divisions and corps battled forward. The chapters clearly state who, where and what of each one. Unfortunately, the portray a “clinical” army tone, but do not lack for warmth or humor. The official military histories are the “best evidence” of what occurred, when and where.
The stark difference between the two U.S. Commissions is: the first had Congressional funds to acquire land for battlefield sites and parks with overlooks and informative signs; WWI American soldiers WWI were fittingly memorialized. Millions of Americans, British, Canadian and French national and colonial citizens served in WWII in Europe; tens of thousands were wounded or died. But no Battlefield Commissions formed. It is up to U.S. and European charitable organizations to light and memorialize this path of history. This book shall aid the effort.
Morrison's Official Navy Histories
$399.00 - AbeBooks
For traveling through Europe to find locations, these are premiere guides – an unimpeachable, original source. Whether true or not, the U.S. military “official” histories provide authenticated histories, officially approved by the U.S. Government written by “professional historians”!
As beneficiaries of the WWII military men, we honor them by understanding. Understanding includes “walking where they walked”. One cannot understand Gettysburg, until one walks “over and back” as Confederate soldiers did. The same for Europe. When we walk their paths, we try to understand. Again, this is how we honor and acknowledge them. Remember their efforts, sacrifices, losses, gains to whisper a “Thank You” -- heartfelt, because we know better now what it cost them.