The Second World War : a complete history

Gilbert, Martin 1936- (Author).

Summary: It began with the German invasion of Poland on September 1, 1939. By the time it came to an end on V-J Day--August 14, 1945--it had involved every major power and become global in its reach. In the final accounting, it would turn out to be, in both human terms and material resources, the costliest war, taking the lives of forty million people.

Record details

ISBN: 9780805076233
ISBN: 0805076239
Physical Description: xviii, 846 p., [64] p. of plates : ill., maps ; 24 cm.
print
Edition: Rev. ed.
Publisher: New York : Henry Holt, 2004, c1989.

Content descriptions

General Note:	"An Owl book."
Bibliography, etc. Note:	Includes bibliographical references (p. 749-764) and index.
Formatted Contents Note:	The German invasion of Poland, September 1939 -- Poland defeated, October 1939 -- Finland defiant, November 1939 -- The Scandinavian cockpit, winter 1939-1940 -- The German attack in the West, May 1940 -- Dunkirk, May 1940 -- The battle for France, June 1940 -- France's agony, Britain's resolve, June-July 1940 -- The battle for Britain, August-September 1940 -- 'The war is won!' (Hitler), October 1940 -- The 'new order of tyranny' (Roosevelt), winter 1940-1941 -- The widening war, January-March 1941 -- The German conquest of Yugoslavia and Greece, April 1941 -- The fall of Crete; war in Africa, April-May 1941 -- The German invasion of Russia, June 1941 -- Terror in the East, July-August 1941 -- Towards Leningrad, Moscow and Kiev, September 1941 -- Russia at bay, September-October 1941 -- 'Deciding the fate of Europe' (Hitler), November 1941 -- The limits of German conquest, December 1941 -- Japan strikes, December 1941 -- 'We are no longer alone' (Churchill), New Year 1942 -- Global war, February-April 1942 -- The spread of resistance and terror, summer 1942 -- Axis triumphs, July 1942 -- Guadalcanal, Dieppe, El Alamein, August-September 1942 -- Stalingrad and 'Torch', September-October 1942 -- The turn of the tide for the Allies, winter 1942 -- Casablanca: blueprint for victory, January 1943 -- The German armies in danger, February 1943 -- 'Drive the enemy into the sea' (Montgomery), spring 1943 -- 'The first crack in the Axis' (Roosevelt), summer 1943 -- Germany and Japan in retreat, autumn 1943 -- 'Bleeding to death in the East' (Goebbels), winter 1943 -- Anzio, Cassino, Kwajalein, January-February 1944 -- Bombing, deportation, and mass murder, February-March 1944 -- Resistance, sabotage, and deception, spring 1944 -- D-Day, June 1944 -- Germany encircled, July 1944 -- The battles for Poland and France, summer 1944 -- The bitter-sweet path of liberation, autumn 1944 -- Into Germany; towards the Philippines, September 1944 -- Fighting for every mile, October-November 1944 -- Flying bombs, suicide pilots, death marches, January 1945 -- Berlin, Manila, Dresden, Tokyo, February-March 1945 -- The Axis in disarray; the Allies in conflict, March-April 1945 -- The deaths of Roosevelt, Mussolini and Hitler, April 1945 -- The end of the war in Europe, May 1945 -- Germany in defeat, Japan unbowed, May-July 1945 -- Alamogordo, Potsdam, Hiroshima, July-August 1945 -- The defeat of Japan, August 1945 -- Retribution and Remembrance, 1945-1952 -- 'Unfinished business', 1953-1989.